Moving phone and email to Paris

As I posted before, we're quite hopeful that we'll be able to take our current home phone number with us. But ... it ain't gonna be so easy I'm afraid. It's more likely that for the first two weeks, you won't be able to reach us by phone at all (though we'll post our new French cell phone numbers here when we can). Then after we get our long-term apartment, we'll try hooking up the Vonage there, with our current Vonage number (202) 536-4200. THEN we'll try to get our current number to switch over to Vonage.

Same kind of craziness is true with our @verizon.net email addresses. If you use them, you probably want to update to the ones listed in a previous post. We're TRYING to get Verizon to understand how someone might want to maintain them but not have a Verizon phone number ... but it hurts their brains.

Wish us luck.

Counting down ...

We're here at mission control, M minus 4 days until my Mom arrives, P minus 8 days until packing & loading days (2/15-17), D minus 12 days until we take off for Paris. Yes, it's complete chaos - you'd think FEMA was managing things here. OK, it's not that bad, every day we do make some progress, but it's incredibly draining on Betsy and me and the boys as well. Think happy thoughts! But don't be too surprised if we can't find our way to the phone or email to respond to your good wishes these last few days ....

Maps

I love google maps, but it doesn't yet cover the world. Google Earth does though - check out the annotated Paris satellite image above.

Our vacation apartment

Here's some details about the apartment where we'll be staying. It's at 17, rue de la Comete, in the 7th Arrondissement. I *think* I managed to grab the map and stick it next to this post - we'll see. Anyway, the apt is very close to the rue Cler shopping district.

Here's Rick Steves, the guidebook author our friend Robin turned us on to over 10 years ago, on that market street ...

Rue Cler — traffic-free since 1984 — offers plenty of space for tiny stores and their shops to spill into the street. It's an ideal environment for this ritual to survive and for you to explore. The street is lined with all the necessary shops (wine, cheese, chocolate, bread) as well as a bank and a post office. If you see anyone in uniform, they're likely from the Ecole Militaire (military school, Napoleon's alma mater two blocks away).

Carter's school

We finally got the word from our first-choice school, and Carter's in! He'll be starting in March in first grade (Cours préparatoire > 11è) at Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel . It's a bilingual school, with half the instruction in French and half in English. His campus of the school is at 15, rue Edgar Faure, in the 15th, which will help us focus our housing search.

Test post by email

Well our relocation consultant, Mme Betsy Forinash, found us a great apartment to stay in while ... looking for an apartment. It's in the 7th Arrondissement (sp?), between the Eiffel Tower and Les Invalides (Napoleon's tomb). We'll be staying there after we arrive on Feb 20th, until we find and move into an apartment, or March 3rd, whichever comes first. Check out the place --- http://www.vrbo.com/20673. Our target for more permanent lodging is a 3-bedroom in the upper 15th, so if you know anybody with a place near La Motte Piquet - Grenelle, drop a line!

Communicating with us

We're four weeks out from our departure from Paris, and you (and we!) might be wondering how we'll keep in touch. We have a few things going for us. First, this blog should make quick updates easier. My next post will update you on our search for an apartment and school for Carter. Second, we all have permanent email addresses to go with us.

Chris - christopher.forinash@alumni.duke.edu
Betsy - bforinash@gmail.com
Carter - CJFparis@gmail.com
Calvin - CTFparis@gmail.com

Also, we just signed up with Vonage, so we have a US phone number you should be able to call to reach us in Paris ... once we have our apartment and internet set up, of course. It's currently 202.536.4200 - but if this thing works out the way we hope, we'll actually take our current home phone 703.908.0796 with us! Wacky, eh? You'd call our regular old Arlington home phone number, as a local call if you're in our area, and reach us in Paris?!?!?! Yup.

We also have a Skype account - you can reach us at cbcc4nash. We've tested it a bit - I think it requires a computer, unlike Vonage. But still, between email and phone we should be able to stay in touch. Oh, and IM, but I can't remember our screen names right now.

c.