6 Months In France
I was planning to write a totally different post today.
As you know from my last post we’ve maybe, very-possibly-definitely, bough a new RV (wheeeeeeee!!!). I’m obviously super excited & dying to write about it, but I’ve decided to hold back, for a very important, but purely superstitious reason.
You see she’s not actually 100% ours yet 🙁
Car buying is a process here in France, so although we’ve already paid our deposit & signed the papers, we’ve got ~3 more weeks to wait before our dealer can process the mountains of French-required paperwork & other details to actually hand the rig over to us. I don’t expect any issues, but you just never know….
So rather than tempt fate, I’m going to hold back on the full reveal until she’s actually parked in our front yard. It’s pure superstition I know, but sometimes wishy washy feelings have to be validated, and this is one I don’t want to risk messing up.
So I apologize folks! I know I teased that this was going to be THE intro post, but you’re just going to have to wait a smidgen longer. Forgive me, please (and keep your fingers crossed everything goes smoothly)?
Waiting, Waiting….
Of course, that begs the question WHAT am I going to write about for the next 3 weeks?????
Given that our minds are full of the new rig, it’s going to take some serious work to pull me away to other topics. Thankfully I do have a few on-hand. Of course I’ve got more French bureaucracy stuff to wrote about (specifically the whole process of Paul getting his carte de sejour), and I’ve had my first, personal experience with the French healthcare system. Some recent painful back issues (an old, recurring problem) have introduced me to how it all works, and it’s cool stuff (not the back issues, but the healthcare system).
I Went to Paris With Dad!
I’ve also got a travel goodie to share!
Just recently my dad and I flew to Paris for a few days. We did the jaunt primarily for paperwork (renewal of our Danish passports), but in the process I also got to show dad around a city that’s quite close to my heart.
You see Paris was the first place I lived after I left home as a teenager. My first solo experience as an adult, if you will. I spent a year there right after High School (before heading to College) and got to know the place quite intimately, discovering little gems that most tourists never see.
My mind has admittedly gotten a little mushy over the past 30 years or so, but surprisingly most of those memories are still there. So in addition to taking my dad to all the regular tourist spots, I was also able to offer him a “back-roads” tour, taking him to some of the places I used to hang out in & visit as a youth. It was a super cool few days that I can’t wait to share with you on the blog too.
We’ve Been Here 6-Months
In between all this, Paul and I both realized we’re about to approach our 6 month-mark in France. 6 months!!!!???!! It still seems like yesterday that we left the USA, and it surely doesn’t seem like 6 months since we landed here, but there you go.
In some ways we’ve accomplished a ton. We managed to get ourselves, 12 paws and all, into France and legally settled (paperwork and all that), got our stuff over, bought a car, battled through several important health issues (both paws and human), bought an RV (soon-to-be-complete) and basically just accustomed ourselves to French language & life. In other ways it seems like we’ve accomplished very little. We moved, we settled and have really just been hanging out, right?
But these are the practical details. Perhaps the more interesting questions for folks who are dreaming about doing something like this themselves are: How do we like it? Do we miss the USA? Have we regretted our choice?
Have We Truly Transitioned?
As with everything in life, it’s been an interesting ride.
When we sold “the beast” and left our traveling life in the USA, we were both ready for a change. It was something we’d talked about for a long time, and we were both 100% in agreement on making the switch. However being ready for a big life change doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t still go through doubts and reflection after-the-fact. I wrote in detail about this in my post “Dealing With Post-Transition Angst, Regret & Adaptation” and our move here has been no different. Plus as a couple, you experience the depth of those transition feelings individually.
Before our move Paul was perhaps the “most ready” for a change, in that he was completely ready to try something new, and had been feeling this way for quite a while. So, when we moved to France he adapted almost immediately. He was thrilled with the switch and slotted in like a local, launching himself 100% into French lessons, French food and French lifestyle. There are certainly things he misses about the USA (family, is a big one), but he loves our new life here, and hasn’t really looked back. He is completely in the moment and totally excited about our up-coming Europe travels & explorations.
I was perhaps “less ready” for a change, not in the sense that I didn’t want to make the switch, but in the sense that I was still quite comfortable with our USA RV life, and could probably have kept going several years more. So although I was mentally ready, and I’ve lived in France before, my adaptation to this particular move has came more slowly. Over the past months I’ve caught myself yearning for our US travel days, and feeling deep pangs of nostalgia, especially as I followed fellow RVers travel around this summer (pics from the PNW really got to me!). So there were moments where I struggled, despite the fact that there were tons of things I truly loved about our new life here too. It sounds contradictory, I know, but that’s what big life changes are often like.
However sometime this past month I finally made “the full switch”.
Looking at new RVs no-doubt helped (re-stoking that travel bug, ya know), but it was much more than that. I can’t recall the exact day it happened, but I can pin-point the exact moment. A few weeks ago, as I was walking with Polly in the field at sunset I finally felt it, that feeling of being “home”. It was a sudden and very powerful sense of belonging, of being in the right place at the right time, of not thinking about the past, and truly enjoying THIS place & THIS moment, rather than longing for another.
I had finally, completely transitioned, and pretty much exactly on that magical 6-month mark that I talked about in my previous post. It was a sweet, sweet moment.
So there you go. 6 months passed in France. A mere moment in time, yet a lifetime of moments. In some ways I still can’t believe we’re here, but it’s finally sinking in that we’re truly in this place and not just on a temporary vacay. This is it, the European adventure we dreamed of so many years ago, and I feel darn lucky that we get to do it. We’re really here, we’re really living it, and I’m totally ready for it. Bring it on, ma chère France, bring it on…!
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Wow, has it really been 6 months since we watched your plane fly away??
While we miss you oodles… I’m so so so happy and thrilled for you both finding your grove in your new chapter. Much love coming your way.
I know….can’t really quite believe it myself. Seems like just yesterday we were eating sushi together in Miami. Miss you guys oodles too!
Nina
So happy for you even though I miss you lots… never doubted for a moment that you wouldn’t do great with the transition.
Thanks Jil! And miss you guys too!
Nina
It’s hard to believe it’s been 6 months already. I was so enjoying your musings and your lovely images throughout this post, and when I got to the line “It was a sudden and very powerful sense of belonging, of being in the right place at the right time, of not thinking about the past, and truly enjoying THIS place & THIS moment, rather than longing for another.”, it gave me chills Nina. We are all so often forward or backward-thinking, but when we allow our minds to quiet, and stay firmly in the present moment, life’s little mysteries and lessons are revealed. So pleased for all of you! And bring on those European RV adventures!
I wish I could say that I’m able to “live in the moment” all the time, but that simply wouldn’t be true. It feels truly wondrous when we have those moments of calm and appreciation, perhaps all the more so because they tend to be so rare. I keep working on it, but it’s never that easy. Maybe one day, I’ll get better at it 🙂
Nina
I love following your French adventures. I worked for CDC at Sud Aviation in Toulouse for a year in the 1967-68 timeframe (yes, including the May 1968 riots!) and loved it. I married a French former Holiday on Ice pro skater and through her and her extended family I got to know the country as a native. We have visited several times over the years, of course. I’d move and live there if I could afford it.
What a cool, cool story! Toulouse has always been a huge aviation center, so it does attract quite a few foreigners, even today. There’s a rather active expat community there. What a wonderful time you must have had…and falling in love too. The full French story.
Nina
Time is Flying and as you noticed it wasn’t always Fun. Now that you have finally settled in as Near Natives and the RV is all equipped you will truly be at Home.
Be Safe and Enjoy!
It’s about time
Lovely post, Nina. Very helpful in thinking about all kinds of life changes and your photographs complement those thought perfectly. I look forward to the big reveal!
Hard to believe you guys have been gone six months–so glad things are perking along for you all.
I know, it’s crazy. Time really flies.
Nina
Wow – those sky colours are dazzling! Good luck on the RV paperwork.
I’ve been blown away by the sunsets recently. Ever since fall started we’ve had rich, crazy, intense sunset colors…of the kind that I haven’t really seen outside of the SW desert. It’s warmed my heart.
Nina
So good to hear that you are all adjusted and settled in to your home. As LuAnn said, the line you included, “It was a sudden and very powerful sense of belonging, of being in the right place at the right time, of not thinking about the past, and truly enjoying THIS place & THIS moment, rather than longing for another” hit home for me. This is what I am trying to do. I am feeling more settled in BC and the house but do still find myself occasionally looking back. I still so have my past with out MH travels and now I need to be present and in the moment when in the house which I do enjoy. Can’t wait for a detailed tour of your home on wheels!!
The transition can be surprisingly difficult, at times. It’s human nature I guess…longing for something past or something different….and that longing is only intensified when it’s something we’ve loved (e.g. RVing). Of course these are minor issues in the grand universal scheme of things, but they’re still personal and important to us. You’ll get there!
Nina
A lot to be said for our favorite superstitions. I have a few of my own.
Jerry
Wonderful that you’ve found your France groove and embraced the change. You both look like you’re loving life! Of course I’m looking forward to seeing the new RV and your first road trip – but three weeks is so worth doing the reveal when it’s right.
Six months seemed not too long ago! And here you are finally exhaling after all the humps you have to go through to enjoy the moment. I dread the day when we stop RVng, not sure what I would do, but like you somehow it will come and hopefully, we can transition with less effort.
After your reveal, can’t wait to see all your Europe adventures.
Wow, that time flew by! You guys have seemingly settled in to your new life and are now taking steps to carry on with doing what you love – motorhoming! I’m excited for your reveal. It has really been difficult for us to rig hunt from the U.S. with so many differences. We still have that cute Hymer B544 Classic at the top of our list, but we did find a 2011 Burstner we fell in love with. Unfortunately, the payload was 345kgs. UGH!
How are plans for your Camino hike coming along?
Hi Guys,
Really,really enjoy your blog. A little about me/us. I’m a retired American living near Chiang Mai, Thailand with me Thai wife. We are planning on heading to Europe in March/April and buy a used motorhome and spend a year or so from Nordkap-Greece-Portugal. Besides my USA passport I have an EU (Irish) passport. Being that I’m an Irish citizen I can purchase a vehicle but it’s not quite that simple. In order to purchase I must get “registered”, probably in Germany. In order to “register” I have to have an address and Proof. I guess Proof is a rental contract or power bill or??? I have an address but am trying to figure out how to Prove that I’m a Resident.
Further, according to EU regulations my non EU Thai wife can come with me and travel to any of the EU countries without a visa once she obtains a Resident Permit Card. This will eliminate the Schengen 90 day visa. It seems all of this is dependent on getting registered in an EU country.
As you are experiencing with your purchase of a motorhome, there is nothing that happens easily in the EU. However once you are on the road again it can be an amazing adventure. If any of you out there have further information concerning finding my way through the roadblocks I’d sure appreciate hearing.
So, a couple of questions in here and I’ll try to answer them all:
1/ Your non-EU spouse – A residence card definitely needs to be your first order of business, since your wife won’t be able to travel around without it. As a Thai she’ll probably have to apply for a temp visa (?) before coming, and then apply for the residence card (as your spouse) after you land. This means you will need to settle “somewhere” in EU, at least temporarily to get that done. I’m only familiar with France (at this point) and I’ve just written a detailed post about that process. Here it took us just over 3.5 months to get the card, and we couldn’t travel outside of France while we were doing it. I don’t know if Ireland, or another country would be easier for your case. Or if there are ways to get a longer visa for her before you arrive. You’ll have to research that.
2/ Address Proof – yup this is tricky. You need it for just about everything in France, and I think most of EU is the same. I know folks who’ve gotten French long-term visas with a rental contract, so that’s an option. Otherwise if you have friends or family who will attest that you live with them, that’s another option.
3/ Buying A Motorhome – this is actually the easiest of the lot. Yes, if you want to buy via the traditional route you have to register, and to do that you need an address. BUT if you’re only planning a year here, you might want to look at buy-backs or look at working with a registration agency. And you don’t need an address for this. I wrote about both these options in this post (scroll to bottom): https://www.wheelingit.us/2018/06/13/moving-to-europe-viii-renting-or-buying-an-rv-campervan-motorhome-in-europe/
Hope that helps! I think once you get the visa issue sorted everything else will be easy. So I’d recommend focusing on that. If you’re starting your journey in France, then the French Consulate/Embassy in Thailand would be the right place to start. Good luck with it all!
Nina
Hi Nina,
Thanks much for the quick reply. Being that you EU passport is from Denmark did you have to register in France before you could initiate the paperwork for your husband to obtain the Resident Card?
We have two possibilities, Irish or Germany. Actually as I understand it I could go to any other EU country, register and then walk the journey to get my wife a Resident Card. Did you investigate the possibility of going to other EU countries to obtain the Resident Card?
Thank you for take my time to reply to my original email.
Jack
No I did not have to register in France, but I think that’s actually something specific to France. It’s one of the very few EU countries where you do not have to register if you’re coming from another EU state. If we’d traveled to the Netherlands, for example, I would have had to register myself, even though I have an EU passport.
And yes, as an EU passport holder you should be able to settle anywhere in EU, and from there get your wife a residence card. We only investigated two countries before we came…UK and France. We chose those mainly because of family. UK would have been workable, and the process similar to here, but because of Brexit we ruled it out. So France it was! I haven’t really researched other countries, but I know folks who’ve registered in Spain (similar to here), Italy (also similar) and the Netherlands (which I’ve heard is easier, especially if you bring in a small startup biz). I’d definitely recommend that you research both Ireland and Germany, if those are your best possibilities. You might find definite advantages to one versus the other.
Nina
Howdy folks,
congratulations to your new RV (or as we would say in german: Wohnmobil). Many beautiful hours and travel with it.
Is it a Carthago c-compactline? What a great decision! One of our favorites. We like Carthago very much.
We have just returned from a four week autumn tour of France in our Hymer Exsis I 504. We love to travel France. This time we were almost close to you – on the A75 south from Millau to Marseillan Plage. Not for the last time, hopefully.
If you want to come to Berlin just get in touch. We have a small aire on the lot where you can park your RV. And there is free german strong beer for you.
Greetings from Berlin!
Leif aka Concordino
@Nina: I like your pictures from the US southwest most of all…
YES it’s a Carthargo c-compactline. We fell in love with it at first sight so we’re very excited. We did look at many Hymers too, and I have to admit we came close to buying one. They’re outstanding quality.
And wow…thank you so much for the offer of a spot in Berlin. How cool! And with beer too (you know our weak spot LOL). We will definitely be taking you up on that! Can’t wait to explore Germany.
Nina
Congratulations again. A really beautiful RV. If you have any questions or problems, feel free to contact us.
We wish you many beautiful and interesting journeys through France and Europe.
See you in Berlin or somewhere on the road.
Greetings from Berlin!
Leif
great shots!