Moving somewhere new is always a challenge, but moving somewhere new overseas is an adventure in spending! Yesterday we had our first shopping trip. Since we walk everywhere, the first purchase was a cart to carry our provisions. If you know Whit, then you know that we immediately loaded up on cleaning supplies, detergents, soaps, towels, etc, then we hit le supermarché for the food. Unlike in the U.S., people in France generally go to the market daily or every couple of days. Their is no SAMs/COSTCO/55 gallons of BBQ sauce mentality here. It is charming fact of life here that we love already.
We have had quite an adventure with electricity and our new appliances here. First, since the voltage is different, I burned up two cordless phones and a fan in less than 15 minutes. Secondly, the owner installed all new appliances throughout the apartment and our grand challenge today is turning on and using them.
For example, the washer that we have must be extremely fancy because it washes clothes for 2 and half hours!
And, since we don't have a dryer, Whit has stepped back in time to the days of our grandmothers. We have clotheslines to dry our clothes.
The hot water was a bit tricky as well, luckily a friend dropped by to welcome us and showed how to fire up the hot water heater. We waited a couple of hours for the water to heat up, then I tried to shower. It was a rough go because in europe the faucets have safety catches to prevent children or navy pilots from turning on the water too hot to prevent scalding. So after my "brief" shower I discovered this fact just in time for Whit to enjoy her own 2 and half hour wash, with steaming hot water of course.
We have more shopping to do in the next few days as we prepare for our drive across France.
Who is this friend that "assisted" you? Did he bring you a tape that would self destruct in 15 seconds with details of your mission, or what you term your "drive", across France?
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