Preparing to Live in France for Three Months
Today I thought I'd share some thoughts on how I'm preparing to live in France for an extended time and especially as my family will be remaining in Australia mostly while I'm away. Thinking this might be helpful for you in case you also have plans to one day live for some time in another country, these are my personal preparation plans and what's been happening over at my house for the last week or so.
Just for context, our family have a second home in a tiny farming village deep in the Brittany countryside that we have been visiting on and off over the last 12 years. We are now entering the next stage of our life with independent grown children and starting to make plans to see if we can create a life in France for ourselves on a more permanent basis. As with all major life changes, we are being flexible and taking it one step at a time.
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So for now, it's me on a plane heading to France for three months and we'll go from there. While that sounds simple, there are some essential practical details that I have to work through and thought you might like the inside story.
Packing my Suitcase
Deciding what to pack is a bit different this trip because of the longer duration of the visit, the necessity of running my AFC business while away and the special items I want to relocate to my French house. Clothes are definitely mix and match, as always, and I'm wearing my bulkier items on the plane (such as my trusty trench coat, sneakers and jeans) to free up some suitcase space. Given that I have a wardrobe of clothes at the house, my bag is filled with an eclectic assortment of stuff rather than mostly clothes. Packing mix and match layers of clothing is always a good idea. For more packing tips to help you, read our Essential Packing Guide.
Camera and all camera extras, chargers and business paperwork, journals, water painting textbooks, water paints and favourite brushes, laptop and iPad are in either in my hand luggage or buried deep in my suitcase. I have oil paintings from my favourite Aussie artist Ros from roslynmary art rolled in a strong mailing tube (these will be framed while I'm there), a favourite recipe book, the card game 'Village Green' (perfect for one player) and even a little blue and white planter pot that I know will look amazing on the sideboard in the lounge! These are just a few of the more eclectic items. Taking what will be difficult for you to re-find, will provide you comfort if alone (my favourite recipe book), or will help you think of home is a good idea too.
Obviously it makes sense to buy books (in English) from Amazon and have them shipped, rather than take them there myself. Finding books in English is difficult in my nearby towns, so as soon as I pass customs and enter the airport lounge at Sydney International Airport, I'll purchase the shortlist of books sitting in my Amazon cart. That way, the books will be delivered when I'm at the house and ready to receive them. I'm certainly looking forward to quiet evenings by myself with my head in a good book. Think ahead and make sure that all delivery times will match up for when you are in your new location. Not all items get delivered on the same day from Amazon and there are varying delivery dates from different suppliers so double check this carefully.
Paperwork and Admin Stuff
My podcast schedule has been a bit lacking over the last few busy months so I'm really looking forward to recording a bunch of new podcasts once I've settled in. The easiest way to do this is to create a duplicate set up so like my books, I'll be getting the microphone, headphones, boom etc sitting in my Amazon shopping cart, and timing their delivery for when I've arrived. Taking heavy items might not be worth the trouble if the cost of a duplicate set up won't break the bank. Think carefully about your priorities and what you can easily resource.
Internet and phone banking needs to be slightly modified when overseas because the authentication SMS authorising each transfer obviously does not work when you change to a French Orange SIM. Sorting this out with an Orange Holiday SIM and access to enough cash while away has now been organised. Think of your daily activities step by step and try to envisage doing them while away - some activities are so routine we forget that they might not be possible in another country.
Household chores
Engaging a nearby friend as housekeeper to keep the kitchen tidy, put clothes washing on and iron daily will help with the smooth running of our household. Having organised this helps me feel confident being away from the family for so long. I went shopping the other day for an extra couple of bedding sets for all beds to make sure that even in continuous wet weather (and we've been having a lot of that lately) there'd be plenty of fresh linen for everyone.
I've relocated some of my beloved indoor plants away from large windows into more protected areas of the house so that keeping them watered during winter days with the heaters on will not be quite so important, and if forgotten for a few days, they'll still be alive when I come home. A small thing, but one that's important to me. Depending on your family, organising your household may look very different to what I'm doing. For me, knowing that day-to-day chores will be taken care of gives me great peace of mind - priceless!
Meal Preparation
With my husband busy with business projects and sporting activities and my sons constantly on the move with university studies and working ... and cooking not being a passion for any of them, I've been cooking and freezing meals for them all. After the first 25 meals, I realised I was going to need a chest freezer to hold everything I was preparing, so I rung my local white good suppliers trying to find a store that had a freezer in stock. Supply and delivery is certainly affected at the moment, but luckily I was able to source one and get it delivered quickly. So now there are over 50 meals ready to keep my family well feed and there's loads more cooking planned for the next 14 days!
I've set up a 'click and collect' repeat grocery order with Woolworths so that once a week it's a simple job of collecting all the groceries from the supermarket for the coming week. Some bathroom and laundry essentials I've bought in bulk over the last week and stashed them away so that there will be plenty till I return.
Catching Up With Friends and Family
Good friends and family are simply the best aren't they? In the last week and a half, I've been so lucky to catch up over delicious long lunches, sophisticated brunches and informal family meals with some of my favourite girlfriends and family members. We've been celebrating my trip, catching up on the latest happenings in everyones lives and generally enjoying each other's company over food and wine. Taking this time out from meal prep, blogging and working has been really good for me and I've loved these special occasions.
So there's just a few of the ways I've been preparing to live in France for the next few months. Hopefully this helps you also.
