À bientôt

I thought a move to the other side of the world was a good excuse to change the look and title of the blog. It’s hard to find a title that hasn’t been used before.

The movers were here yesterday and packed all of our belongings. We were told to expect to see them in 6 weeks. In the meantime, we’re living in the apartment with the bare minimum. We’ll move into a hotel in a couple of days while we eagerly await the arrival of our Entry Visas to Papua New Guinea. We hope to be on a plane by next Friday at the latest.

We’ve lived in many different regions of Canada, and now the world, and there is one constant in every place we’ve been; it doesn’t matter where you are, there is good and bad everywhere. There are a lot of things about life in Paris that I will not miss, but there is no sense in dwelling on the negative. What I will miss the most about Paris has to do with food: pain au chocolat, cheese, bread. What Lori will miss is sitting in a café, drinking a chilled glass of rosé and people watching.

I posted a picture of some of the packed boxes to Facebook yesterday as I wondered how many times our life has been packed up and shipped somewhere else. Some people have expressed concern about how often we move around and change our lives. They’re worried that we’re unhappy and must be searching for happiness in other places. I strongly disagree with that sentiment. What I have a hard time explaining to some people is that it’s the search that brings us happiness. It’s the discovery of new places and foods and experiences that we crave. I’m a firm believer in the adage that if you don’t learn something new everyday, then it’s a day wasted. We could read about the south Pacific region, but what better way is there to learn, than to live there?

I’m not foolish; I know there will come a time when I will tire of our new life in Papua New Guinea and regret leaving Paris. I will get up one morning and crave a pain au chocolat or the weekend will come and I’ll wish that I could get on a train to Brussels, but until then, I am excited for tomorrow.

I will leave you with some things I’ve learned in case you plan to stay in Paris:

1.     It’s tough to find ice. As North Americans, we are used to ice cold drinks in the summer, but not so much in Europe.

2.     Going to the top of the Arc de Triomphe is better than going to the top of the Eiffel Tower. It’s cheaper, there’s no line and you get a great view of the Eiffel Tower. The downside is you have to climb 284 steps.

3.     Paris is built for picnics. Grab a bottle of wine, a baguette, some cheese and a salad and sit along the river or in one of the thousands of parks. Yes, you are allowed to drink in public.

4.     French pizzas are really good. When you think of French cuisine you don’t normally think of pizzas, but you should. They are different from what we’re used to in North America. They have a thin crust, use less cheese and have different toppings. My favourite is when they cook an egg in the centre of the pizza. All pizzas should come with an egg.

5.     Learn the basics of the language and use them. Bonjour(hello), au revoir(good-bye), merci(thank you) and s'il vous plait(please) go a long way. Say hello when you enter a shop and good-bye when you leave.

I’m not sure when I will post a new entry to the blog, but I’ll be wearing flip-flops when I do. Talk to you on the other side.

db

Eiffel Tower

Lori took her mom and her aunt up the Eiffel Tower yesterday. I stayed home because I refuse to stand in line for 2 hours for anything. Anyway, they got some great pictures.

Diane and Lorraine leave tomorrow. Once they're gone, we'll start preparing for the move. The movers will be here on Friday to pack our stuff. We have to sort out what we want to ship with the movers, what we are taking in our suitcases and what we are leaving behind.

db

London and Dublin

We have returned from our last European trip before we leave Paris. Lori's Mom and her Aunt Diane are visiting for 2 weeks so it's a perfect opportunity to explore a bit of Europe while they are here. London was fantastic as always. Lori and I have been there so many times that Leicester Square and Covent Garden are starting to feel like home. We still managed a couple of new experiences by going on The London Eye and walking through Borough Market.

Dublin was a pretty much a new experience for everyone however. Lori and her mom were there for a few hours about 10 years ago, but they really got to explore and enjoy it this time. It's amazing how comfortable I felt there. The city is a manageable size, the people are so friendly and there are so many great pubs and restaurants. Of course I had to visit the Guinness Storehouse while I was there. You can't tour the actual brewery anymore but they have a great facility set up to tell the Guinness story.

I learned how to pour the perfect pint. Notice the steely determination on my face. And yes I got to enjoy my perfect pint as well.

On the 7th floor of the Storehouse is the Gravity Bar with a 360˚ view of Dublin.

Everyone who enters gets their choice of a pint of Guinness or a soft drink. Lorraine was brave enough to try a pint, but Lori and and Diane wanted nothing to do with the beer, so I drank theirs as well. :)

As for our departure to Port Moresby, things are progressing along nicely. We have our medical clearance and now we are just waiting for the Visas. We still don't have an exact date for when we are leaving, but it should be within the next 2 weeks, so our time here is getting short.

db

Our Final Month in Paris

It's hard to believe that it's June already and we will soon be departing Paris for good. Time seems to have sped up since the day we decided to move to Port Moresby. Everything is on track for the move. All of our paperwork has been filled out and we are just waiting for the results from our medical exams. Between blood being taken out and immunizations going in, I feel like a pin cushion. Once we've been cleared medically, our Visas can be processed. The closest embassy for Papua New Guinea is in Brussels. Lori and I won't have to travel there though because a relocation company is handling that for us. The movers are scheduled to pack up our stuff on June 26 but we still don't have an exact date on when we'll be leaving France though. It will be after the 26th but not until we have the Visas in our passports. One thing we have learned in the past 2 1/2 years is to be flexible. You can make plans, but be ready to adapt at a moment's notice.

In the meantime, we have lots of social engagements to keep us busy. We just had two sets of visitors stay with us last week. Lori's cousin and his girlfriend stayed for three nights and then friends from Calgary stayed with us the night before they flew home. Next week, Lori's mom and her aunt are coming for two weeks. We won't be in Paris for the whole time, we're going to London and Dublin while they're here. We are trying to get as many visits in with friends and family as we can because I'm pretty sure we won't see anyone in Papua New Guinea. We also have several Good-bye Dinners, Barbecues and Get Togethers with friends and co-workers in Paris. Sometimes you focus so much on where you are going, that you can forget about what you're leaving behind. Paris has been good to us and we will miss it.

By the way, I will continue to write the blog in Port Moresby. It will be nice to have new things to write about. My production has dwindled lately because our life has become so routine. I will have to change the title though because we will no longer be Two Canadians in Paris. It's probably time to change the title anyway because I have discovered another blog with the same title, but I think ours is better. ;)

db