family

Paris: CDG, Notre-Dame, Les Invalides, and Eiffel Tower

| Alan

We needed to pick up Adam and Liz from Aéroport Paris–Charles de Gaulle (Charles de Gaulle – Paris Airport – CDG).  We  were off on the Métro de Paris (subway) to the RER (Réseau Express Régional – Regional Express Network) “B” line to its final stop at the International Terminal at CDG.  The airport is a city unto itself,  it is the seventh busiest airport in the world, the second busiest in Europe, and handles in excess of  61 million passengers annually.  Our fear was that we had never met anyone arriving at CDG before and had visions of Adam and Liz wandering in “airport limbo” for hours until we could locate them.  However the airport staff was very helpful and we simply waited at the arrival gate for Delta for Adam and Liz to clear Customs and Passport control.  Thirty minutes after their plane set down we saw their happy, jet-lagged faces.

Liz and Adam on the Paris Métro
Liz and Adam on the Paris Métro
Métro de Paris (Subway) Sign
Métro de Paris (Subway) Sign

There are many approaches to dealing with jet-lag.  Adam and Liz wanted to power through the day.  So back on the RER and Métro to the hotel to drop off bags and then back on the Métro to Île de la Cité, the island the River Seine, to explore Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris (Notre-Dame Cathedral).

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Notre-Dame is celebrating its 850 year anniversary.  Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris (French for “Our Lady of Paris” – Notre-Dame Cathedral) is a historic Roman Catholic Marian cathedral located on the Île de la Cité.  The cathedral is widely considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture and is among the largest and well-known churches in the world.  The cathedral’s treasury is notable for its reliquary which houses some of Catholicism’s most important relics including the purported Crown of Thorns, a fragment of the True Cross, and one of the Holy Nails.

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The Cathedral’s stained glass windows were amazing and the quality of the colors has to be experienced to be believed.  The Flying Buttresses on the exterior walls were graceful and added to the beauty of the exterior.  We could have spent days exploring the architecture and art inside Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris.

After a quick lunch and several glasses of wine to fortify ourselves, we started walking along the Left Bank of the Seine heading toward Les Invalides.  In retrospect the Métro would have been faster and easier on our feet, but every block held amazing architecture or public art.

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Finally reaching L’Hôtel National des Invalides (The National Residence of the Invalids), informally known simply as Les Invalides,  we find a large park and series of buildings dedicated to French Military history and veteran.  The complex’s name comes from its original purpose as a hospital and retirement home for war veterans.  There are three museums on the grounds, the Musée de l’Armée (Army Museum), Musée des Plans-Reliefs (museum with three-dimensional models of battles), and the Musée d’Histoire Contemporaine (Museum of Contemporary History which started as the Library-Museum of the War.)  Located on the site are the graves for many of France’s war heroes, including Napoleon Bonaparte.

Alan, Tracy, Liz, and Adam in front of L'Hôtel National des Invalides
Alan, Tracy, Liz, and Adam in front of L’Hôtel National des Invalides

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From Les Invalides we could see La Tour Eiffel (the Eiffel Tower) through the surrounding buildings, our next stop.  We had made reservations to go up into the tower for this evening as it was the only time available.  Reservations fill very quickly to go to up to the observation areas.

Eiffel Tower seen from the 7th arrondissement
Eiffel Tower seen from the 7th arrondissement

The wrought iron Eiffel Tower is named for engineer Gustave Eiffel who built the tower as an attraction to the 1889 World’s Fair.  Originally intended to be a temporary attraction, but it quickly became the iconic symbol of France and Paris that remains today.  The Tower is the tallest structure in Paris and the second tallest in France.  At 1,063 feet it is taller that the Washington Monument (555 feet) and Space Needle (605 feet) and was the tallest structure in the world for 41 years until the Chrysler Building was completed in New York in 1930.   (With its current communication antenna the Eiffel Tower is currently 17 feet taller than the Chrysler Building.)  “Impressive” and “awe-inspiring” are perfect descriptions as the tower is much larger than we expected.  We arrived at twilight to be able to watch night fall over the “City of Light” from the observation platform.  At 11 pm we were also treated with light show of lights sparkling all over the Eiffel Tower.

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Adam and Liz had by now been awake about 48 hours straight, so it was now time to head to the Métro to get them some well deserved rest.  Passing dozens of unlicensed souvenir hawkers, each offering the same wonderfully cheesy, glowing, blinking Eiffel Tower models, we finally made it back to our hotel in the Montmartre district. The “last chance to get a blinking Eiffel Tower” had already become the humorous theme to the kids’ trip. It would continue until they left, with a comment about maybe being able to get one of the most desired souvenirs in Paris before they got on the plane to return home.

Our First Visitors: Adam and Liz Travel to France

| Alan

We were thrilled to have our first visitors since we started our expat life abroad.

Our youngest son Adam and his fiancée Liz spent 18 days with us.  We combined the visit with travel to Paris, Barcelona, the Mediterranean Sea, and sharing our adopted home in Carcassonne.  I plan to write about their visit by breaking it up into an individual blog postings for each of the different locations we enjoyed exploring together.

Alan, Tracy, Liz, and Adam in front of the Pyramid at the Louvre Museum in Paris
Alan, Tracy, Liz, and Adam in front of the Pyramid at the Louvre Museum in Paris

It was such a pleasure to share our new life with Adam and Liz (and to congratulate Adam on earning his bachelor degree just a few weeks previous to their visit.)  We explored shared interests in great cities, history, cultures, lifestyles, art, travel, architecture and enjoyed conversation, food, and drink.  Adam and Liz are vegetarians so we had an opportunity to examine a totally different food culture in our travels than we had previously had a chance to try.  Adam juggled on the streets of Paris, Liz sampled Sangria in Barcelona, we splashed in the Mediterranean, Adam and Liz demonstrated their Spanish language skills, we celebrated Adam’s 22 birthday (and Adam and Liz attended a performance of his favorite band that just happened to be in town on his birthday for Festival de Carcassonne), and all of us (including Kiara) watched France’s biggest fireworks extravaganza for Bastille Day with the medieval city of Carcassonne as a backdrop.

Adam, Tracy, Kiara, Alan, and Liz having a wine, beer, and champagne break in Place Carnot in the Bastide of Carcassonne
Adam, Tracy, Kiara, Alan, and Liz having a wine, beer, and champagne break in Place Carnot in the Bastide of Carcassonne

All in all, it was a spectacular visit which made us look forward to our next visitors.

We Are Pedestrians And A Granddaughter Visit

| Alan

We are rushing toward our departure date and frantically working on our final minimizing with 29 days to go.

We needed to sell our last remaining car.  We really wanted to have that major “loose end” completed with the car sold with registration and insurance cancelled before we leave.  In addition to listing the car on Cars.com and Craigslist, the Mercedes-Benz/Smart Car  dealership’s very helpful representative, Emily, had previously sent an e-mail about their Buy-Back program.  Apparently it is difficult to maintain Smart cars in their used car inventory since the owners hate to part with them.  A road trip to the Mercedes dealership in Sacramento resulted in a sold car.

For the first time since 1973, I am without a vehicle.  I really enjoyed the Smart car over the last four years.  The weather over the last week was pleasant enough to have the ragtop down.  I so understand now how Tracy felt after she sold her convertible.  After years of used minivans, station wagons, and SUVs, it was a real pleasure to have cars we enjoyed driving every day.  Tracy and I are now totally pedestrians.  We will sparingly rent a car or use the bus for our remaining transportation needs.

In between working and running errands this week we had the pleasure of granddaughter Lorelei visiting from Utah.  Although Lorelei was fighting an illness we did get some time for games and trip to the park.

Second Packing Trial Run, Carmel, and San Martin

| Alan

As our countdown gets below 40 days until we depart, we keep finding there is still more and more tasks to get done.  We made a quick drive over to San Martin, California to see Tracy’s Aunt Debbie and Uncle Gerry.

We delivered some family heirlooms Tracy received from her grandfather, Deb’s father.  With our efforts with minimizing possessions, we have been distributing keepsakes to family members before we go.  Tracy brought photos, papers, memorabilia  collector money, and a family Bible from her grandfather that she thought should go back to her Aunt Deb.  We also asked Deb to keep a three-inch binder of legal documents for us:  certified birth certificates, marriage and divorce paperwork, baptismal certificates, etc.  We are bringing a smaller zippered binder with us to Europe with our essential legal documents.  Debbie is kind enough to hold our extended paperwork collection should we need any additional documents while abroad. Deb would be able to send needed documents by DHL when and if the need occurs.

We were able to squeeze in a hike in at Uvas Canyon County Park and Waterfalls.  Deb and Mac the dog guided Tracy, Kiara, and me through the green, lush park.  Great hiking trail with scenic bridges, flowing streams, multiple waterfalls, and quiet pools.  One of those amazing “pocket parks” tucked away unexpectedly at the end of a county road.

The next day we drove to Carmel-by-the-Sea.  Carmel is a favorite locale of ours and the visit let “California Girl” Tracy see the Pacific Ocean a final time before we relocate.  It was a beautiful day walking along the beach, watching the waves, looking up at Pebble Beach golf course, and a picnic lunch.  Dog-friendly Carmel welcomed Kiara to have her first visit to the ocean and opportunity to walk along the beach.

On our way back home we discussed the logistics of travelling with eight bags and whether or not we needed to rent a car in Toulouse in order to transport it all to Carcassonne.  We decided we could minimize our luggage still further from our first practice run packing our luggage.  We believe we could lighten the load from a three bedroom house to luggage still more.

We repacked our bags using our first packing list.  We started this time with eight bags weighing a total of 270 pounds.  We then unpacked and split the contents into “must have,” “maybe,” and “eliminate” piles.  It wasn’t just the idea that extra bags cost progressively more, it was the realization of the work and potential frustration trying to move eight bags with only two arms each.  We considered the cost of replacement versus the cost for items compared to re-buying the item in France, the necessity of having the item in the first place, and the frequency of use for the item. Could we justify a $100 for an extra bag, $285 for a third or fourth bag?  Could we justify having rent a vehicle to transport luggage rather than just using public transportation?  Would the replacement of an item be difficult or extremely costly in France?

Immediately we reconsidered the books we slated to bring. We are “book people” and wanted art, history, and language references to come with us, but you just don’t realize the weight of a stack of books.  We had already gone digital with Kindles for our recreational reading, so we reduced the number of physical books to just a few art books.   We decided to scan and digitize the remaining books into PDF files we could upload to our computers and Kindles.

We further eliminated packing materials, a few clothing items, some carry bags, decorator items, and an additional “back-up” camera.  We decided to pass some additional keepsake items on to the kids. I replaced my previous carry-on bag with the maximum size possible carry-on bag.  We re-shuffled and re-organized the contents from eight bags down to six bags weighing 200 pounds total:  a single checked bag and a carry-on bag each, with a camera bag for me, and Kiara’s carrier for Tracy.

The final results was that we eliminated two checked duffel bags and 70 pounds from our initial packing practice.  Tracy is already talking about a third trial run to maybe eliminate still more.

Super Bowl And A Trial Run With Luggage

| Alan

In our family, Super Bowl is a non-traditional holiday that combines football, food, funny TV commercials, good-natured “smack talking” between team fans, and general family fun.  Even the kids that didn’t like football liked the annual Super Bowl party.  This year we hosted our last family Super Bowl event and were lucky to have at least some of the adult kids and their significant others join us, Nick, Adam and his fiance’ Liz, and Casey with his girlfriend Nicole.  Sarah had another commitment and Danielle, Tyler, Dirk, and Dallas are all out-of-state.  It was a great time with kids that could make it and those participating via text messages.  We had former University of Nevada – Reno quarterback Colin Kaepernick starting for the 49ers so he and his team as our hometown favorite had all of us (a first for our family) cheering for the 49ers. The kids followed Kaepernick from his first start to his last with UNR with season tickets and/or UNR v. UNLV games.

Tracy and I had made up a buffet of meats, cheeses, veggies, soft drinks, and craft beers. Lots of visiting, laughs, cheering, and Kiara received lots of attention. Kiara, however, is not a fan of football or Super Bowl. We loved the pre-game performance with Jennifer Hudson and Alicia Keyes and made fun of Beyonce’s fetish outfits at half time.  Though a dramatic and close game right to the end, the Ravens won 34 – 31, a bittersweet ending to our last Super Bowl party, but we really enjoyed it all the same. Special thanks to Dallas for being our official Ref [as in reference for rules of play] there was a bit of discussion about a play involving a player falling with the ball, getting up and running it again that ended with a text message to Dallas for the official ruling.

The following Tuesday (which continued into Wednesday) we held our “pre-flight” check. A trial run of the luggage/items moving abroad with us.  We have minimized from a three bedroom house into a one bedroom apartment and now into eight bags.  We will be carrying one carry-one bag each, one personal item each (a camera bag for me and Kiara’s carrier for Tracy). Our checked baggage will be one suitcase and one duffel bag each.  We are limited to 50 pounds per checked bag.  The first checked bag is free, a second bag is an additional $100, a third checked bag and any subsequent bag is $285.  A bag over 50 pounds has an additional $100 penalty with a maximum limit of 70 pounds per bag. We opted for a second bag each (at the $100 rate) and to limit our bags to 45 pounds or as close to it as possible. It was surprisingly difficult to equally distribute the weight to be at our prescribed limits. Most of which entailed packing the bag, securing its contents, weighing the bag, unpacking the bag, repacking the bag and weighing it again, and again, and again. What we thought would be a few hours turned into most of the day and part of the next. After several hours of lifting and checking the weight of the bags the decisions to discard some items became easier and easier and easier.

To make certain that our actual packing day runs smoothly, we created a database, cataloged and photographed not only each piece of luggage but each packing cube contained within the luggage so that we know exactly how each bag was packed and where each item was inside the bag. Approximately 50 percent of each of the bags are still packed and our database notes which items have been removed for use through the end of March. The idea was to know exactly what had to go back into each bag so that the next time around it is done easily and quickly.

Tracy and I previously made  a decision to travel with only two checked bag.  Our plan is to move and live in a different city every year or so.  We want to be able to travel light, especially with our intention to use public transportation and not own a car. Our packing trial run forced us to make some final decisions to lighten our load.  We each packed a week and a day of clothes; eight complete wardrobe selections, two pairs of shoes, jackets, scarfs, and hats.  Since we decided to make use of furnished apartments we packed very few household, picnic, and home office items.  We have Kiara’s flight carrier, playpen, bed, chest carrier, harness and leash, and her wardrobe and blankets (hairless micro-dogs get cold easily.)  We packed a few essential hard copy books, but for the most part we have gone digital for reading and reference.

Our biggest indulgence is technology.  MacBooks for each of us, a PC netbook for me and a iPad for Tracy, multiple external hard drives, a principle camera and a compact waterproof camera for both of us, GPS unit, a Doxi portable scanner, Kindles for each of us, and finally personal iPods.  Photography is our principle recreation and method of sharing our travels, we need the computers to communicate with family back home and to keep learning languages, the GPS with a pedestrian option to help us find our way despite lack of language skills, and iPods and Kindles for recreation and language studies.

Our luggage is meant to nest and store inside one another for compact storage after arrival and for use on future road trips around Europe.  Amazingly, over the last 18 months we have managed to reduce our personal possessions from filling a 3-bedroom house to two large and two small bags each with a total weight of 270 pounds.

Christmas And Unexpected Delay

| Alan

We had a fun Christmas at home, the last we expect to have in the US for quite a while.

For Christmas brunch we had ravioli, tortellini, wine, Christmas ale, gifts, and fun conversation with the kids that are still in Reno –  Sarah, Nick, Casey, Adam, and Adam’s fiancee’ Liz – made it a great day.  Kiki the micro-dog enjoyed all the special attention.  Through the day we also had “Merry Christmas”  telephone calls with Danielle, Tyler, Dirk, and Dallas, the “out-of-town” kids.  We have been enjoying the time with all the adult kids over the last few months and holidays, we know we are going to miss them all.  After brunch with the kids we visited with more family at Tracy’s mom’s house.  Nana, Tracy’s sisters Tammy and Trina, nieces, nephews, and even a great-niece.  Once Tracy and I made it back home she finally got her wish for a “white Christmas.”  Snow was finally falling in the valley and we had a romantic nighttime walk through the falling snow to finish Christmas night.

We just learned that we have an unexpected delay in our departure date moving it from January to late March.  We have to resolve a couple of paperwork issues with the consulate.  Rather that leaving the first week of January, we will be making a road trip to the consulate.  We are now processing yet more paperwork and re-scheduling flight tickets and apartment reservations.

Oh well, if there is not a few “bumps in the road” you don’t appreciate the final outcome.  We are a bit disappointed with the delay, but in the whole scheme of things an 11 week delay isn’t that big of an upset.

Thanksgiving, Final Good Byes, and Final Notices

| Alan

As we race toward our rapidly approaching departure date for Italy (which is now just 38 days away) we are trying to spent extra time with family and friends to say our good-byes.  As much as their work and college schedules will allow, we have had lunches and dinners with the local adult children, Sarah, Nick, Casey, Adam, and Adam’s girlfriend Liz. We’ve spent time with friends Kelly, Kathy, Cindy, (another) Kelly, and Echo and Dan.  We realize that in the very near future visiting won’t be so convenient and intercontinental flights back to the States will not be frequent.

We enjoyed Thanksgiving with Tracy’s Aunt Debbie and Uncle Gerry in San Martin, (outside Gilroy) California.  Nineteen people, two Chihuahuas, two Pit Bulls, and one very large and tasty turkey. Along with Tracy’s mom, sister, brother-in-law, aunt, uncle, nieces, and nephews we got to spend time with daughter Danielle, her husband Joe, and granddaughters Lorelei and Lily.  We also visited with son Dirk, his boyfriend Trey, and their “fur baby” Milo the chihuahua.  There was a great traditional Thanksgiving feast, great conversation, and all around fun.

After the Thanksgiving celebration, Tracy headed to Long Beach with her mom, sister, aunt, to meet two Northern California cousins, and one more sister for a farewell “Girls’ Cruise” to Catalina Island and Ensenada on Carnival Cruise Line.  It was a chance for Tracy to spend some final one-on-one time with her family.

I drove back to Reno, with Kiara the microdog in the passenger seat (“Dog is my co-pilot”), to finish out teaching my final semester and to take care of some additional departure details.  I cancelled our post office box which has been my primary mailing address for the last twenty years.  I also gave final notice to our apartment manager to advise her that we will be vacating our apartment New Years Eve.  Our remaining car is listed “for sale” on Craig’s List and we are waiting for an agreeable offer.  Those are a couple more small steps toward cutting loose our remaining ties in the US.

I’m somewhat apprehensive as we continue to cut our domestic links since our visas from the Italian Consulate still haven’t arrived, but we are being bold and proceeding on faith since people request and are granted visas all the time and we believe the documents’ arrival is just a matter of time and patience.

Thanksgiving 2012
Thanksgiving 2012

Pre-Planning Communications Abroad

| Alan

A question we have repeatedly been asked is how Tracy and I plan to stay in touch with family and friends back in the States after we relocate to Italy.

We are planning to make maximum use of today’s communication technology.  We won’t have cash flow to make frequent trips make to the US, so we plan to stay in touch through the constantly evolving technology.  The cost of international phones calls and the nine hour time difference the west coast can make traditional telephone calls problematic.

SOCIAL NETWORKING:  Tracy and I started this WordPress Blog with the principle goal of staying in touch with family, old friends, and new friends we will make.  We wanted a central platform to journal our new lives, share travels and events, post photography and communicate.  We will also create “An Italian Point of View” FaceBook page and link it to this blog to mirror the posts and provide an easy second method of access for FaceBook users.  FaceBook Chat allows us real time communication when we and another person are online at the same time.  A third access method is to link the Blog postings to Twitter so people know when we have updated our Blog.

E-MAIL:  The Blog allows for an e-mail notice whenever there is a new posting to the Blog.  Tracy and I both have new G-mail addresses for traditional asynchronous e-mail.  Google Docs (soon to be Google Drive) allows us to create real-time, cooperative documents, like a vacation itinerary, that can be shared a with a friend planning to visit while updates and edits can be done on both sides of the Atlantic before their departure.

WEBCAM:  We have had good previous experiences using Skype and ooVoo for free video chats with family.  We hope to expand on that to see family and friends frequently and see the grandkids getting bigger over time.  G-mail also have a video chat service available that we want to explore more.  There is also a premium service from Skype and ooVoo that allows multiple participants in a video conference call that we intend to investigate.

WiFi:  Italian anti-terrorism and anti-mafia laws limits free WiFi Hotspots like we are used to in the States.  There are free and paid WiFi locations in Italy, but there is a more elaborate sign-in process. We will also have WiFi at our apartment, a MiFi system, or mobile WiFi cards for our laptops.  Broadband Internet is one “luxury” that we consider a necessity for our life abroad.  It is our key to staying in touch with family and friends in the US.

TELEPHONE:  Before leaving the US we will purchase an unlocked cellphone with an Italian phone number that we can share with family and friends in the event there is an emergency that requires that we be contacted immediately.  Cellular Abroad, sponsored by National Geographic, has unlocked cell phones available with the Italian SIM cards and a “pay as you go” payment option.  This is useful for us since we don’t plan to have much need for a phone in Italy immediately, but still need one for emergencies and business related calls.  Italian government agencies will often use phone text messaging for notifying clients.  Cellular Abroad provides its cell phone services through the Italian cell phone company, Vodafone, which provides phone service nationwide in Italy.  We don’t expect family and friends to pay international rates to chat on the telephone when video calls, text chats on the computer,  and e-mail is free, but we wanted the telephone option for an exceptional events, emergencies, and for our local use in Italy.

Ask us next year if these “best laid plans” worked as we intended.

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Letting Go: The Art of Minimizing

| Alan

It has been big year for minimizing and downsizing our material world to prepare ourselves for retiring to Italy.

In July 2011, Tracy and I put our house up for sale.  After living in the same home for the last 12 years, it was a big commitment minimize our possessions to move into a one bedroom apartment in preparation for moving into what will probably be an even smaller living space in Florence.

We went through the contents of the house and donated, recycled, sold, and trashed, trashed, trashed. We disposed of everything that would not be going to Italy with us and we would not be using through 2012.  We delivered surplus household items to the Salvation Army, Goodwill, Committee to Aid Abused Women, Truckee Meadows Community College, Silver State Law Enforcement Museum, in-laws, children, friends, and Disposal Services.  The adult kids in town helped too with hauling things away.  Guess how quickly two college aged sons respond to the text message of, “Would you two want a bar for your apartment?”  I didn’t realize how much furniture sons Casey and Adam could fit in back of a Subaru hatchback.

Absolutely amazing the sheer volume of  material that can accumulate over the decades from two adults with eight children.  (Seriously, who still needs three bulletproof vests after being out of police work for a decade?) Even with trying to repurpose every item possible in the house, we filled one 14 cubic yard dumpster, two additional 6 cubic yard dumpters, and a 14 foot U-Haul truck with debris.  We mistakenly thought that the adult children had taken all their things with them when they moved out into the world.  No exactly true. Incredible how much is actually in what we thought was an “empty” house.

It’s incredibly liberating to free yourself from “stuff.”  Comedian George Carlin had a whole stage routine about “stuff” overtaking lives.  Tracy and my plan is to move to Italy with two large suitcases each.  We are passing keepsakes on to the adult children now and starting to live a minimalist life.

Moving from house to apartment was a huge step, next up is selling Tracy’s car over the summer and my car come November.  After years of used cars, minivans, station wagons, SUVs, Tracy and I love driving our two-seater convertibles, but they are not going to Italy with us so it’s time for the next major step in minimizing.

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