The Big Scramble
But I want mine sunny side up.......
We made the decision to move to France on a Sunday, and the next day, I called the executive physician to whom I reported. I had to give a ninety day notice and we felt time was of the essence. That was in February. Once I did that, the clock started ticking.
Our plan was to move July 1. Dirk would retire in June. We had a lot to do in seemingly a short period of time!
Emigrating to another country is not necessarily difficult from a hard to do perspective, but rather, not knowing the rules, regulations, and the culture in which those parameters operate. For example, the well known bureaucracy in France requires multiple documents for everything! Hours were spent watching YouTube videos in order to make sense of the changes that were coming.
In addition, there is the “cultural divide”. We had been to France multiple times in the past, but visiting and living there are totally different experiences. We spent much time learning about those cultural differences in order to set our expectations in such a way that we would have an easier transition. Seventy percent of homes in France have no clothes dryers, therefore most French hang their laundry to dry. That is only one of dozens of changes we would be seeing and we wanted to make sure we had wrapped our heads around what to expect in order to minimize any negative experiences that might come from this big move.
While we always brushed up on our high school French prior to traveling abroad, we knew we needed to improve our French speaking skills. Nice is an area which attracts a multi-national crowd, therefore English is widely spoken. But it is more common in the service industry since that caters to tourists. Navigating banking, setting up utilities, and shopping at local stores was going to require some additional language skills. And we did not want to be “those Americans” coming into a new country with expectations that the locals cater to our language needs. We doubled down on improving our French speaking skills.
Obtaining the required visas consumed a lot time. First was obtaining all the documents that were required. Second was navigating the website for filling out the applications. While there is an English online version, idiosyncrasies in communication styles had to be interpreted. And of course an onsite trip was required to the vendor’s office who managed the intake information for the visas. The closest for us was Chicago and took up precious time over two days.
We had a 4,500 square feet historic English Tudor which was furnished with antiques and art we had curated over the years. Decisions had to be made about what we were taking and what we were selling. After consulting with local and international movers, reading about others’ experiences who had move to France from the US, and looking at storage costs, we made the difficult decision to sell essentially everything except for about one fourth of our clothes, some of our favorite art, a few things that had significant sentimental value, and items we deemed as necessary. This was one of the hardest exercises for us. Using a Marie Kondo approach (“Does this bring me joy?”) helped.
Equally as hard was what to do with Agador, our cat. He weighs eighteen pounds, and due to his size, he would have to travel in cargo. Looking at the expense, logistics (we would not know until 24-48 hours prior to the flight whether or not he would be able to fly as it was dependant on air temperatures, and there is a required exam and statement by a certified vet within ten days of travel), and concerns about how he would do with the adjustment, we were in a quandary about what we should do. Then the unbelievable occurred. I was visiting our oldest daughter and her family when she announced they were thinking about getting a second cat. Our two grandsons could not have been happier to adopt Agador and welcome him into their home.
Of course, we had to list and sell the house. Being in a very desirable neighborhood, with decreased inventory in the Dayton area, we had a full price offer four days after the listing was posted. A huge sigh of relief.
About fifteen months ago, well before we made the decision to move, we planned and paid for an eighteen day trip to Egypt, which was scheduled for the first day in June. The trip had been on our bucket list and was non-refundable. Our departure date for France was July 1, and of course, this complicated the timing of everything. Thankfully, Dirk and I both had project management skills which were required to facilitate all the moving parts!
We decided to use a turn key estate sale service. We had no idea such a service was available, and they were a lifesaver. Once we decided what we wanted to keep, we could walk away and the company would come in, go through every drawer and cabinet, research high end pieces for pricing, stage the contents and arrange for the sale over a two day period of time. Anything not sold would be discarded by the service.
We decided that the estate sale service would price and stage the contents while we were in Egypt. That required making all the decisions about what to keep, then moving it all to storage, to be done prior to our trip.
After returning from Egypt, it seemed as if we were living in a fast forward movie. We only had two weeks, then we were off to France. The pace really picked up given all the people we wanted to see, and everyone who wanted to see us. It’s been said a funeral exposes all the lives who have been touched by an individual, and I would say that a move out of the country is much the same. Close friends hosted a large party, and others a small dinner party. We had brunch and dinner plans every single day. And of course the kids. They wanted as much time as they could get with us. Those two weeks were packed with social events, kisses, hugs, and tears.
And finally, on July 1, we boarded an American flight with ten bags and mixed emotions for our new lives in France.
À la prochaine,
Todd (and Dirk)