31 Hours in Valencia

A How-To Guide

Step One: Make sure you are listening to O Valencia! by the Decemberists as your flight lands in Valencia. Have your husband waiting for you at the airport.

Step Two: Have a great lunch on the patio at Cuvee Restaurancion. We highly recommend the tempura vegetables and calamari. Try out your Spanish by ordering "dos cervecas, por favor"

Step Three: Take a walk down to see the magnificent buildings designed by Calatrava.


Step Four: bus back to the old centre of the city, and buy sunglasses.


Step Five: wander through the many plazas admiring the old buildings. And the oranges.


Step Six: stop for a drink and marvel at how cheap the drinks are. Our record this weekend was 3euros for a glass of wine and a coffee.

Step Seven: wander through a church that we had visited previously with Karina. Marvel at the painted panels and ceilings that we under restoration when we had been before.


Step Eight: stop for tapas on the Plaza de la Reina and admire the views of the old church.


Step Nine: Have an aperitif at Tula, a cute cafe near the hotel

Step Ten: Eat an amazing tapas dinner at Tapas Gastronomik. All the food was fantastic, and the service couldn't have been better.

Step Eleven: Go for drinks at Marasquino, just around the corner from the restaurant. Again, be amazed at how little they cost.


Step Twelve: The next day take advantage of the extensive hotel breakfast.

Step Thirteen: walk up to the Modern Art Museum, and visit for free because it's Sunday.

Step Fourteen: Eat Paella for lunch at a restaurant in the Plaza de la Reina, and decide to walk back to the hotel.

Step Fifteen: stumble upon a covered marketplace that is filled with little cafes. Stop for one last glass of wine.


Step Sixteen: Pick up your bags at the hotel, and cab to the airport. Wish you could stay longer.

PS. Erik got new glasses. What do you think?

Progress

I know, I know, it's been awhile, and I'm sure that you're all dying to know what we've been up to here at our humble abode. Aside from a nasty case of assumed food poisoning (my stomach of steel apparently wasn't up for steak tartare) we spent this weekend buying, painting and installing the baseboards in our main room. In case you were wondering, yes, two metre pieces of baseboard do fit on the metro, but not easily.

So, here's your tour:

Lighting fixtures on one wall. I don't know if Erik is more proud of the installation or the fact that he's wearing a suit.

I'm still not 100% crazy about these sconces, but they are certainly an improvement on the bare bulb look we had going on before. There will be different sconces on the other wall, but their bases are smaller than the boxes in the walls that the cords come out of, so, there will unfortunately be more plastering and dust in our future.


Last weekend I finished painting the toilet. I love it! The bottom colour is the colour that we had originally chosen for the main room. I think it looks much better in here.


And now that the baseboards are installed, we can finally start putting things against walls. We saw the floor in the centre of the room for the first time in almost a month tonight! It was dusty.


And don't worry Howard, your atelier is still alive and well. But getting smaller....

The Top

So it's not all wall paper removal and wall building fun around here! Today after mom and I finished painting the bedroom, and after Rob joined us for a great couscous lunch, we paid a visit to this guy:


Surprisingly there wasn't any line (we figured it was because of the lousy weather and the big screen above the ticket window that was advertising limited visibility from the top), so we bought three tickets and took the express train (or elevator) straight to the top. We didn't find the visibility limited at all, and spotted all the important landmarks. The view from the top (first time for all of us!!) was spectacular, and I can't believe it's taken me so long to get up there.


The Champ de Mars (with the Tour Montparnasse in the background)


Can you spot Invalides?




Trocadero with La Defense in the background


I love this city!


A long way from home...


My mom and I have the same smile!

The Chinese, The Germans and Erik.....

.....what do they all have in common?

This weekend we said aurevoir to the pipe, and bonjour to a new wall (there's your hint!)!


Now you see it....







...now you don't!

Observant readers may have noticed that a) the wallpaper is gone, and there is a new colour on the wall, and b) that the studs supporting our wall are metal. Apparently this is the French way, and according to Erik we will never do it this way again. So there is your tip for the day: wood studs are infinitely easier to work with. Just another thing that the French have complicated for us!

Heat and Other Highlights

Fall has officially arrived here in gay Paree, and although the days can occasionally be sunny and cool, the nights tend to be more on the damp and cold side. I was thrilled to discover that the heat had been turned on at school this morning, and even more excited to discover that the heat in our apartment has also been turned on. It's the small things that tend to make my days lately.

Small things like the lights in the toilet and the bathroom. This is old news for Howard, because he and Erik took care of this more than a week ago, but I thought you would all like to see photos of these great lights.




Other highlights in apartment land include the installation of the freezer (still not plugged in, but pretty looking)


The construction of our closet by moi (no doors yet, and they will eventually be placed properly against the wall and in the corner but there's still wallpaper hiding behind there...)


And I think I mentioned in the previous post how Ross and Katie had fun de-wallpapering our toilet. They also had fun signing it. :)

Visitor's Part Deux

We just said goodbye to our second wave of visitors this morning. Our good friends Katie and Ross were here for a week, and were kind enough to say many nice things about the construction site that we were all living in.

No construction this week, although Ross did a great job of peeling the wallpaper out of the bathroom. They can come back anytime!




The wine harvest in Montmartre was being celebrated this weekend, so we headed up there last night for the fireworks. We had a snack of escargots before the show.


A really bad shot, but the fireworks were amazing! None of us had ever been so close before. We were sitting on the hill in front of Sacre Coeur, and they must have been lit from the big park just below. It was great!


We had dinner after at the Zebre. Champagne for the ladies.


I'm not sure what to say about this shot. Let's just say that it was an entertaining night.

More photos

The photo tour continues with some more realistic shots of our humble abode. The place is a mess, and I make no apologies. As soon as this post is finished, I'm going to dump the contents of the bedroom on the bed to make room for the assembly of our new wardrobe. Fun.

You know what else is fun? Spending seven hours at Ikea on a Saturday. Anja and I went out for what I thought would be a well organized quick pick up trip. Hah. We got there around 12:30, and by 6:00 we were just lining up for delivery. An unexpected problem at the cash had me picking up the pieces for our wardrobe by myself in the warehouse. The main pieces are about 50kgs and 230 cm long. I like to think I'm strong, but there was no way I could get those suckers onto the stupid rolling cart by myself. Anyway, I eventually got everything through the cash, and we got out of there a lot later and a lot more tired than we had expected. The kicker is that I didn't get everything we need, so we'll have to go back at least another time. Fun.


Let's start the tour in the 'living' area of the main room. Please note the original style of wallpaper removal.


The 'work' area of the main room. Howard has taken to calling it his 'studio'. Or more appropriately his 'atelier'. This is where the magic happens. It also seems like the freezer (on the left, in it's box) is being used as a workbench.


The entry way, leading into the kitchen.


I wonder if this is up to code??


My lovely kitchen. The only room that is almost completely unpacked, and with electricity. No light though.


Please note the counter that Howard made for us. The freezer will eventually go in the space next to the stove. I'm not sure why it hasn't been installed yet. I try not to ask too many questions.


The bedroom. The arrival of the armoire should help tame the many clothes monsters that we have developed. The cord hanging down the middle of the shot is for the temporary light hanging from the ceiling. Best to ignore that and just appreciate the view of the courtyard.


The bathroom with our temporary shower fixture and plastic sheeting coverred walls. Surprisingly I haven't seen this look in any of the decorating magazines I've been reading.


Howard's handywork removing the bidet and installing a drain and vent for our washing machine. The lead drain pipe was bent into shape with a hair dryer, and he bent the taps back by hand to allow the machine to sit more completely in the corner. You can also see the wire casings propped up in the corner. The goal this weekend is to get light into the toilet and bathroom. Cross your fingers!!

Photos

Here are some photos of the boys hard at work.  Obviously taken before we moved, it's hard to remember how clean and big the place looked.  I'll have to take some more today so you can see how we've evolved.  And no, there still isn't any light in the bathroom.  Or any room other than the kitchen.  But we do have a working washing machine and a makeshift counter.  As one of the teachers at school said to me yesterday: "petit a petit, l'oiseau fait son nid."*  I have however completely unpacked the kitchen, and had Anja over for dinner.  There is so much cupboard space that one whole side and most of the upper shelves are empty.  And the kitchen is so big, all three of us were able to be in there as I finished making the meal.  What a treat!  One other advantage to our new place is the huge shower.  And I used to think the shower stalls at the gym were spacious!

*"little by little, the bird makes it's nest.

Day Two

Status: We have a working kitchen!!  Turned on the gas stove for the first time since we bought it in June.  Fridge is busy cooling, and we expect the freezer to make an appearance within a week. 
We celebrated with a fanatastic Thai dinner, and I think that we will all sleep soundly tonight.  Cold milk on cereal tomorrow, what a treat! 

The Big Day

Moving day has come and gone, and I know I've been promising pictures for a couple of weeks now, but you're just going to have to wait a bit longer.  The card reader for the camera is packed in one of our many boxes, and as we don't really have anywhere to unpack, I can't say when it will surface.  But I am taking pictures, and you will see them soon!

Yesterday was the big move.  We got started early, picking up the truck at 8am.  We found a great parking spot just outside our building, and Erik and I got to work right away, taking the bed apart, and moving the matress into the truck while we waited for our movers (aka strong friends) to arrive.  Thomas and Alex arrived, and we quickly started loading up the elevator and sending it down.  We had gotten most of the big items out before the elevator jammed and we had to call the 'depanneur'.  While we waited for him to arrive we continued to run up and down the six flights of stairs with most of the remaining items.  An hour later, the elevator was unstuck, and we loaded the last things into the truck.  Then we hit the road en route to the new place.

Parking at the new place was a bit more complicated, and Erik decided that our best bet was to simply park in the entry to the underground parking garage and then move the truck whenever someone needed to get in or out.  Lucky for us, a friendly stranger showed us how to pull up two guard rails so we could park the truck on the pedestrian walkway right next to the building.  Unloading the truck was pretty quick, being on the ground floor everything went in through the window. 

By 1:00 we were amazed that it was all finished.  We headed out for a pizza lunch, and then an exhausted Thomas and Alex left, and Erik and I went back to drop off the truck--four hours early!!  We should have gone to Ikea or something, but we all know that Ikea and exhaustion are a recipe for disaster.  The afternoon consisted of more Leroy Merlin for Erik, and old apartment cleaning for Torie (so dusty!!).  I'll go back today to finally empty out the fridge, and collect our deposit.  I'm sad to be leaving that place. 

Life in the new apartment is rustic.  It's a bit like camping.  The only difference is that there is no tent, and the toilet is right next door.  Also, there's no campfire or smores, which are pretty much the only reason to go camping, right?  Anyway, all that to say that there isn't much electricity yet, and aside from two work lights plugged in by extension cords to the one working outlet in the entry, we were in the dark last night.  Howard has a handy headlamp, and there is a very powerful LED flashlight/torch that serves as the bathroom light. 

At 10:00 we were all crazy from exhaustion and hunger, and headed out in search of food. The first place we passed was a Turkish/Greek restaurant, and in honour of Joan and Karina's trip, and due to the fact that it was open and really close, we stopped in.  It was great.  Simple, tasty, satisfying and cheap.  Three course dinner for 15euros!  We'll be back.  It was a good way to end a long day. 

Moving

So.  We're moving.

Every time anyone mentions our upcoming move, I automatically state how much I hate it.  Don't get me wrong.  I'm still excited about the potential 'final' destination, but it's all the stress and boxes and dust and WALLPAPER in between the start and finish that make me just want to curl up and stay forever in my bright yellow furnished apartment.  (Have I mentioned that I will never ever ever in my life willingly wallpaper a wall?  Please remind me of this time if I ever consider putting paper on our walls.  Mom how did you deal with all the wallpaper in our house?  I can remember at least two different patterns in my room...)

So.  I've taken myself off wallpaper duty, and fully invested myself in packing duty.  One of the things I hate most about moving is the packing.  And the unpacking.  I hate living out of boxes.  I unpack as soon as I get home from trips because it drives me nuts having clothes in a suitcase for longer than necessary.  The best part about this move is that there won't be anything to unpack our lives into.  Fun.

Our landlady is coming over tomorrow night to check out the place, so I've brought up all the boxes of her stuff that we stored in the cave, and have spent the afternoon washing the disgusting brown glass dishware that lives here.  (Was it ever possible to make food look appetizing on brown glass plates?  I can't look at them without being reminded of beer bottles, and I can't think of a less attractive colour for dishware).  I've also packed up all our dishes and pans, helpfully packing the baking dish I need to make tonight's dinner at the bottom of a box.  The worst part is that because we've been living in a land of boxes for a couple of months now, it doesn't even look like I've accomplished anything. 

Apologies for the grumpy post.  I'm so far down the box tunnel that I can't see the light at the end.  The internet is really slow in here too, which doesn't make things any more fun.  However, Erik tested out the new line at the apartment today, and the phone works, same number as before.  I don't think they're leaving the phone plugged in, but if you send an email, they could probably organize a phone call.

The latest news from the new apartment is that they've finally started drilling, and Erik got to use his new angle grinder finally.  I'll try to remember to send the camera with them tomorrow, although it's unlikely I'll be able to upload photos until we move. 

There you go.  The happy update in our moving adventure.
:)

No more internet.  Our line has already been moved, and so we are technologically stranded until we move. 

Also, removing wallpaper is not fun. 

:)

It's Ours!!!

So, looks like we no longer have a phone.  Apparently our tv/phone/internet provider has already moved our service, but our internet is still going strong, for some reason (knock on wood).  If you need to get a hold of us, email is best, cell phones if it's an emergency.  Or maybe it's a good time to start Skyping :)

The Countdown is On!!

This will be our last weekend as renters. 

Money has been wired to the notary, certified cheques have been printed, new bank accounts opened, insurance bought and fingers have been crossed, many times.  Everything seems to be in order (knock on wood).  The owner should have moved out yesterday, and is hopefully now spending a delightful weekend cleaning. 

On Tuesday afternoon we will sign the final agreement of sale, and receive our keys.  We will then trek directly over to the new place with a bottle of Champagne and a screwdriver.  While I celebrate with a glass of bubbly, Erik will be anxiously pulling out outlets to get an idea of what to expect for the Great Electrical Adventure that he and Howard are undertaking, where our new apartment will be electrified to meet all and any possible electrical needs for the next 2000 years.  Which might be the cause of our most recent stress:  aesthetics vs. electrical code.  I'll let you guess which side I'm on.  I'm also pretty certain that my side is not going to win.  But hopefully any resistance from my camp will prevent the installation of light switches in the middle of walls. 

Two more days....I've been looking out of our window at the Eiffel Tower a lot lately, and I'm sure going to miss the view!  I'm also going to miss our Monoprix, and the Indian restaurant downstairs.  And the really good Korean place that we found too recently (why hadn't we gone there sooner??).  I'm going to miss being on the sixth floor, and being so close to the metro.  I know that there will be lots of things to love about our new location, but now that we're into our last couple of weeks here, it's hard to imagine living anywhere else. 

When we were kids....

I found these gems while I was cleaning out my inbox the other day. I think they are circa 2004. Erik's first comment was "who are the kids in these photos??"

And, funnily, Erik was actually wearing that same sweater the other day.