If you asked me a week ago if it was going to be a big deal to not have Josh around for 3 weeks, I would have told you no, it's not. He's not really here I would have said. He leaves before the kids go to school and gets home a half hour before bedtime. The day to day routine falls to me. Where I figured I would notice his absence the most was on the weekends when he is here all the time and spending quality family time with the kids and myself. Well, I was wrong. Who knew that someone who isn't here very much could have such a great impact on our day to day lives without us even realizing it? Sure, we've talked several times a day, and I have to say, I'm so proud for how he's taken the challenges in Barcelona by the horns and just gotten stuff done. He's not letting anything get in the way and he's helping me to feel that I will be able to handle it as well.
So while Josh has been gone, I thought everything would be rather ho-hum in the Marcus household. We would continue to work on packing things away and getting ready for the final move in a few weeks. I would have some good quality time with the kids and our friends. Sure, I've done that, but I've also had a few misadventures and it's only been a week... I can't imagine what the next 2 will bring at this rate.
Thurs Dec 3 - Josh leaves for work and then from work, to Spain. Not much happened today. Liam was with me all day and we just kind of hung out.
Fri Dec 4 - Both boys are in school today. When I was drying my hair this morning (with my head upside down), I noticed how horribly disgusting under my bed was - tons of dog hair and dust! That needs to be vaccuumed! So I took my handy dandy Dyson and grabbed the hose and started to reach under the bed to clean it. I must have pulled too hard on the hose and the vacuum came tumbling over...on to my head. Swearing a bit, I rubbed my head feeling for a bump. When I pulled my hand away I noticed immediately that it was covered in blood! Ok, so day 2 here and I've already gotten a head injury! I rushed across the street to Rich since I knew he was home and just said, I've hit my head with the vacuum (I'm sure he was trying to figure out how I did that) and I'm bleeding badly - can you look at it. He had a bit of a panicked look on his face after he looked at it but told me to go home, wash it down and ice it. Doing as I was told I sat on the couch for an hour waiting for the bleeding to stop and icing it down. The rest of the day was, thankfully, uneventful - horseback riding lessons and hanging out with the kids.
Sat Dec 5 - Aidan had his tennis lesson this morning. It was raining out (again) and we came home, played the wii (Super Mario Wii ROCKS) for a little bit and then Aidan ended up going over to Max's house for a few hours. It was a nice mellow afternoon for me, spent doing some packing, some reading and then when Liam got up, playing with him. Again, relatively uneventful.
Sun Dec 6 - It's snowing!!!! Ok, we got maybe an inch of snow but it was enough to get the kids outside, get them on their sleds and for me to break out the shovel for at least the walkway and stairs. We took a walk down to the Fasoldts house and Aidan ended up spending the afternoon over there. God, I love playdates!!!
Mon Dec 7 - The snow is pretty much gone and what I thought would be an uneventful day was not. Both kids were either with my mother-in-law or at school. I was supposed to have lunch with a friend but it got rescheduled. So I now have the day to myself and some extra time that I hadn't anticipated. So what should I do? Work??? Nah... overrated! And slow lately... Shop!!! Yes shop! I had just gotten to DSW to do some schmoozing when my sister-in-law called. She was in Seekonk and not feeling well - can I come get her. Of course my answer is yes and I don't hesitate... I grab my Bertucci's pizza that by that time I was waiting for and go get her. I love my sister-in-law and felt badly she wasn't feeling well and wish it had been different circumstances because I would have loved some one on one time with her without the kids - whenever I talk to her I'm pulled in multiple directions by the kids at the same time. Typical! Anyways, turns out she had a case of the stomach bug which we found out later. My in laws met us in Seekonk later that day to do a Liam/Becky exchange and get her car home.
It's dinner time and we're in Seekonk so I decided to take the kids to Vinny T's... I haven't been there in YEARS. Thank god no one was around me after all that garlic. It was the most fabulous dinner I think I have ever had with the kids - we were mellow, we chatted, we weren't rushed - there wasn't that moment of hurry up, child x is going to have a meltdown any moment, kind of feeling. It was just a genuinely nice time. I wish they could all be like that!!
Tues Dec 8 - The kids know how to make up for being good by being not so good. Liam was super whiny today. And on the way home from the bus stop, Aidan decided to open the door to the car while the car was still in motion... into the garage door. Not a wise choice I must say. And it was met with the wrath of mommy. He's lucky I didn't tell daddy...(ooops guess I'm telling you now Josh...don't worry, it's just a scratch). Not a pretty sight... Tues night continued while I was watching tv. I heard what sounded to be a rattling, kind of like if you have an item with a zipper in the dryer... only I didn't have anything in the dryer. I muted the tv, slowly edged my way into the kitchen where the noise sounded like it was emmenating from... and listened. There it was again! And it's coming from my oven! Or more specifically... the drawer below my oven! You've got to be kidding me... I've GOT A MOUSE!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! Fearful to open the drawer because it sounds like an entire family in there, I call across the street. Rich is putting the kids to bed and will be over in a while. A while???? Ahhhh... I go on my FB and IM with Lisa W. She offers her Rent-A-Husband who somehow takes that same while to come over. He arrives and of course, it's not been close to a half hour since I first heard the sound and for the last 5 mins I've heard nothing. And so he pulls the drawer out and I'm ready... I've put on shoes in case it escapes!! And.... NOTHING. But we did find mouse droppings there (and no where else in my kitchen thankfully). So at least I was right and he was there. But where did he go? There was no hole anywhere to be seen. Rich comes over too and we all get a laugh out of it... sort of... I'm sure they think I'm a bit neurotic. Bill goes home and grabs some traps for me and puts one in the drawer and one in the garage. I go to bed praying it doesn't make it's way upstairs.
Wed Dec 9 - The day starts off fine. Nothing big going on. Then part way thru my morning I hear that rattling again. You little f**ker... I will get you!!!!! So knowing Bill and Rich are at work, I call Dave...no answer. I call Bill F. No answer. Shit shit shit! I'm afraid to open the drawer - it could jump out at me and be a total attack killer mouse! You know you are thinking the same thing! I finally get a hold of Bill F. Meanwhile I've been IMing with Josh in Spain this whole time freaking out about the mouse. Bill gets here and of course, the mouse is gone. But there are droppings and mouse hair on the trap... little bugger managed to escape. Time to bring in the big guns and get some good traps. Went to Target and bought some - not the head decaptiating kind but the kind where they go into the trap and can't get out. Haven't caught him yet. But I will!!!
Thurs Dec 10 - Well it's been a full week now since Josh left. I've had my ups and downs, the kids are still alive, I've cut my head open, found a mouse and scratched Josh's car (well Aidan did that). So what's next? A bird of course!!! This morning I went to take some trash out to the garage and when opening the door to the house to the garage, something flew over my head. A bird. I, of course, screamed, which in turn freaked the kids. The bird must have gotten trapped in the garage overnight and when I opened the door he thought it was his way out. WRONG!!! So I've now got a mouse and a bird... it's a freaking menagerie over here! I open all the doors to the house to hope that he will find his way out. For those who haven't seen my house, I have a large picture window in my entry way (it's a 2 story entry) and so he flew up the entry to the house and kept slamming himself against the window, even though the front door just below was wide open. He finally gave up on that after about 10 mins and flew into my living room where the kids where hanging out, oblivious. You would think it would have interested them more, but alas, Spongebob has a bigger draw apparently. So the bird makes itself at home on a curtain rod next to the Christmas tree - I'm surprised he didn't go in the tree but it's not real and maybe he sensed that too... who knows. I call next door but Dennis left for work early. I call Bill F again... hey, got a chuckle for ya. I haven't caught that mouse yet but now do you want to help me catch a bird? BTW, it's not even 8AM when I called there. He laughs hysterically for a moment and says he'll be over in a few. In the meantime, I grab the broom, tell the kids to go upstairs because I don't want this thing to swoop and then take their eyes out (because he's a super vicous tiny bird right?). I wave to him (because I'm an idiot) and tell him, over here little birdie, over here...the door is open over here. You know, because he understands English... right? Yeah not so much. He flies over to my entry way again and at this moment Rich pulls up in his driveway and sees me in the doorway with a broom. I said to him... it's a bird now. He also laughs. Hey thanks guys!!! The bird swoops over me, I scream and Rich yells to me from across the street...he's out! I take my hands off my head where they were protecting me from this vicious monster and say thank god he's gone!!! What a way to start the day.
How do you think the second week alone will go?????
Julie
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
The next few days
I was having my TV & DVD player installed on Saturday with a 4 hour window 11-3. Early in the morning I went out to explore the neighborhood again. It was a nice hour walk and I found a store that had a lot of household odd and ends. I ended up filling up two bags of items then back to the apartment to wait for the TV & DVD delivery. Two hours passed and I was getting a bit nervous - did they not get the address right or are they trying to screw me. After another hour they finally showed up. Between broken English and Spanish conversations everything was all set. However, I realized the DVD player was not a multi region one like the clerk said in the store. It played a few of my burned movies even though it was set up to only support EU region DVDs. I knew getting the DVD player to accept all regions would be a straight forward hack. I jump on the internet and realize the apartment complex router (shared between all apartments) was not connecting to the internet - it was barely working for the next few days so I was cut off from my research.
I love my black out metal shades in my bedroom - complete darkness. Jet lag must of caught up to me on Sunday along with complete darkness allowing me to sleep until 11 AM. I was shocked I had not slept that late since we had children - going on 6 years. It felt great. I took a short morning walk and then some lunch. After lunch I looked at the Mediterranean in the distant and just started walking to it. I did not make it all the way but it was a nice long walk. Of course with the sea on one side the mountains on the other meant the walk back was a slow incline all the way.
I tried off and on to get onto the internet from my apartment with limited success trying to find the hack for my DVD player. I have such luck, instead of a simple combination of secret key strokes on the DVD remote I need to download a file and burn it on a CD - this would be as simple as apple pie if the internet connection was not constantly going down. I finally was able to download the small files I needed to burn on a CD after a few days of trying. It worked like a charm.
I went to go get my foreign id Monday morning with some help from Vistaprint HR. The foreign id is the Spain equivalent of a social security number. We arrived at 8:45 with the single form and my passport. Apparently, there is only one location in Barcelona to get your foreign id and we were lucky there was no long line. We got in and took a number, just like at the deli. Once my number was called we went to the desk and handed the guy our form and passport. A few minutes later that step was done. We then had to go to the bank to pay the government. I am not quite sure why you can't just hand them 10 Euros at the office. We went to the bank and processed the payment which returned a receipt that we had to go back and give to the foreign id people. There was another line for this step and luckily we were first in line. Overall, it was a very simple process. It probably keeps a dozen or so people employed as for some short money the whole process could be moved online.
The metro is very nice over here. It much cleaner and simpler then Boston. However, I think a scooter maybe in my future. It maybe took me 45 or an hour to get to work from the foreign id office and it takes less than half an hour by scooter.
I hope to finish my to do list for the family soon so I can get in some more sightseeing.
I love my black out metal shades in my bedroom - complete darkness. Jet lag must of caught up to me on Sunday along with complete darkness allowing me to sleep until 11 AM. I was shocked I had not slept that late since we had children - going on 6 years. It felt great. I took a short morning walk and then some lunch. After lunch I looked at the Mediterranean in the distant and just started walking to it. I did not make it all the way but it was a nice long walk. Of course with the sea on one side the mountains on the other meant the walk back was a slow incline all the way.
I tried off and on to get onto the internet from my apartment with limited success trying to find the hack for my DVD player. I have such luck, instead of a simple combination of secret key strokes on the DVD remote I need to download a file and burn it on a CD - this would be as simple as apple pie if the internet connection was not constantly going down. I finally was able to download the small files I needed to burn on a CD after a few days of trying. It worked like a charm.
I went to go get my foreign id Monday morning with some help from Vistaprint HR. The foreign id is the Spain equivalent of a social security number. We arrived at 8:45 with the single form and my passport. Apparently, there is only one location in Barcelona to get your foreign id and we were lucky there was no long line. We got in and took a number, just like at the deli. Once my number was called we went to the desk and handed the guy our form and passport. A few minutes later that step was done. We then had to go to the bank to pay the government. I am not quite sure why you can't just hand them 10 Euros at the office. We went to the bank and processed the payment which returned a receipt that we had to go back and give to the foreign id people. There was another line for this step and luckily we were first in line. Overall, it was a very simple process. It probably keeps a dozen or so people employed as for some short money the whole process could be moved online.
The metro is very nice over here. It much cleaner and simpler then Boston. However, I think a scooter maybe in my future. It maybe took me 45 or an hour to get to work from the foreign id office and it takes less than half an hour by scooter.
I hope to finish my to do list for the family soon so I can get in some more sightseeing.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Josh's first day in Barcelona
Two days ago I headed out of Boston to Barcelona. I will be working here for the next 3 weeks with the rest of the family still in Attleboro. Besides work, my mission is to get the apartment ready for the family so they can just move in.
It took awhile to make it out of Logan. It all started when I arrived as one of my two suitcases was 3 pounds overweight. I had to purchase another bag, repack and pay a fine. The plane pulled out of the gate and I thought we were all set - wrong. We returned to the gate to pick up two people that had missed the flight. So a few hundred were delayed for 2 people - nice cost benefit analysis by northwest.
The flight was pretty uneventful. I watched a few movies, read and slept only a few hours. About 12 hours later I was in Barcelona.
I meet Mele our realtor and picked up my keys. We had to do an inventory with the owner and with some time to kill we went for a coffee. The owner was suppose to meet us at 1:30 but did not arrive until around 2 - she was at court. The owner was very nice and the walk through was quick. The apartment is mostly furnished but to my surprise came with a hair dryer, toaster and iron - check 3 items off my to do list. Also since the other 2 apartments are short term rental I can use the maid's vacuum - check another item off my list. I was also able to get the owner to purchase and install a dryer for us, of course we are going to pay for it. My to do list is getting shorter by the minute and I have only been here a few hours. The apartment comes with wireless internet but is really slow. On the flip side I would be going crazy without it.
After everyone left it was pretty quite. I throw in some snoop, nwa and dre to get the blood going after being up for over 36 hours. After a little light up packing I went out to see the hood.
I must admit I was very impressed by the hood. We have pretty much everything in walking distance. The deli has legs of ham hanging from the ceiling -hmmm, the fish market is pretty stocked including some nice whole fish and the grocery store sells Old No.7 - that's Jack to you rookies. There is probably everything we need within a 3 block radius - still looking for the Irish bar nearby.
The grocery store was an interesting expedition. They do have most items from the US but very little choice. Then there are the little things that are missing like paper towels and cold milk. I bought a box of some milk like substance - I went with the one that had the best cow picture. I still have not tried the milk - perhaps today. I did find cheesy hot dogs but no dice on cheesy sausage. There was thin spaghetti and sauce for Julie.
After food shopping I took another trip around the block. I stopped for some late tapas and ordered some kind of white fish. It tasted fine - like scrod/cod. As I continued exploring I found many more bars, hair solons and the like. I am not sure why but there is at least 2 hair salons on each block. I ran across an electronic store. I wanted to buy a TV and DVD. It was easy picking out which ones I wanted then it was time to order and the fun started. It took 3 clerks to find the one that somewhat spoke broken english. I was trying to get the items delivered the next day. It came down to simplifying what I wanted to two words - mañana inicio. KISS works again. Then the paperwork started, we made it up as we went along. I don't have a local Spanish phone number or foreign id so their computer software was complaining. We worked around it as I showed them how to enter all 0s or 1s in those fields - they laughed.
I got home and tried some 3 euro red wine I got at the store while spinning up GI Joe on the computer. I feel asleep shortly after the intro. When I got up it was about 11 pm and the place was cold. I borrowed a quilt from the maid closet and got the heat to work in the room. It took awhile to figure out the heat but I got it and the day was done....
Josh
It took awhile to make it out of Logan. It all started when I arrived as one of my two suitcases was 3 pounds overweight. I had to purchase another bag, repack and pay a fine. The plane pulled out of the gate and I thought we were all set - wrong. We returned to the gate to pick up two people that had missed the flight. So a few hundred were delayed for 2 people - nice cost benefit analysis by northwest.
The flight was pretty uneventful. I watched a few movies, read and slept only a few hours. About 12 hours later I was in Barcelona.
I meet Mele our realtor and picked up my keys. We had to do an inventory with the owner and with some time to kill we went for a coffee. The owner was suppose to meet us at 1:30 but did not arrive until around 2 - she was at court. The owner was very nice and the walk through was quick. The apartment is mostly furnished but to my surprise came with a hair dryer, toaster and iron - check 3 items off my to do list. Also since the other 2 apartments are short term rental I can use the maid's vacuum - check another item off my list. I was also able to get the owner to purchase and install a dryer for us, of course we are going to pay for it. My to do list is getting shorter by the minute and I have only been here a few hours. The apartment comes with wireless internet but is really slow. On the flip side I would be going crazy without it.
After everyone left it was pretty quite. I throw in some snoop, nwa and dre to get the blood going after being up for over 36 hours. After a little light up packing I went out to see the hood.
I must admit I was very impressed by the hood. We have pretty much everything in walking distance. The deli has legs of ham hanging from the ceiling -hmmm, the fish market is pretty stocked including some nice whole fish and the grocery store sells Old No.7 - that's Jack to you rookies. There is probably everything we need within a 3 block radius - still looking for the Irish bar nearby.
The grocery store was an interesting expedition. They do have most items from the US but very little choice. Then there are the little things that are missing like paper towels and cold milk. I bought a box of some milk like substance - I went with the one that had the best cow picture. I still have not tried the milk - perhaps today. I did find cheesy hot dogs but no dice on cheesy sausage. There was thin spaghetti and sauce for Julie.
After food shopping I took another trip around the block. I stopped for some late tapas and ordered some kind of white fish. It tasted fine - like scrod/cod. As I continued exploring I found many more bars, hair solons and the like. I am not sure why but there is at least 2 hair salons on each block. I ran across an electronic store. I wanted to buy a TV and DVD. It was easy picking out which ones I wanted then it was time to order and the fun started. It took 3 clerks to find the one that somewhat spoke broken english. I was trying to get the items delivered the next day. It came down to simplifying what I wanted to two words - mañana inicio. KISS works again. Then the paperwork started, we made it up as we went along. I don't have a local Spanish phone number or foreign id so their computer software was complaining. We worked around it as I showed them how to enter all 0s or 1s in those fields - they laughed.
I got home and tried some 3 euro red wine I got at the store while spinning up GI Joe on the computer. I feel asleep shortly after the intro. When I got up it was about 11 pm and the place was cold. I borrowed a quilt from the maid closet and got the heat to work in the room. It took awhile to figure out the heat but I got it and the day was done....
Josh
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Josh flys over the "drink"...
Josh is off and running tonight! His flight took off around 7:30 tonight though he went to work today so as far as I'm concerned, he left this morning. Now, he comes home late from work all the time, goes out at night, has boys weekend...and yet, it's never that big of a deal for me to be with the kids on my own. But something just feels weird about this. Maybe it's because I know it's for 3 weeks and not just a night or two? The house just seems empty without him here and we all miss him already. And I feel like he's going to miss out on the festivities of the holidays which are always such a big deal in our house - not about the gifts but about the time with family.
I think that this day also marks one more day closer to us all leaving. It's exciting and scary all at the same time. I know I've mentioned that before but it's true. I've been facing constant ambivilance for the longest time now and we're beyond the point of no return. Part of me is relieved about that because I can't say, nah, I changed my mind...forcing me out of my comfort zone which I know is what I need to do. But part of me is in a panic knowing that just one month from today, we will be on a plane (with 2 small children, god help me!!) to Spain!! The countdown is on! That this isn't just going for a week vacation or even a month, but for 2 years. 2 years in our lives is really just a blip on the screen but you know what? It's still 2 years! 2 years of trying to communicate in a language I'm not fluent in; 2 years of not driving except when we go on vacation; 2 years of eating food I'm not familiar with (maybe I'll expand my tastes!); 2 years of living in cramped quarters.
I feel like such a complainer and I don't mean to be. This is the opportunity of a lifetime and I plan to embrace it with all that I can. I think there is just anxiety of the unknown. And now that Josh is on a plane on his way, I know that it is coming and it's coming fast! This is a long time in the making and now it's becoming a reality. I find it interesting how much more planning seemed to be involved and I think it was related to it being a non-English speaking country. Josh printed out maps last night before he left so he would know where the stores were that he has to go to. If we were moving to England, would he have printed out maps here or would he just ask someone how to get there? Probably the latter, right? I feel like the language barrier is really what scares me the most. That terrifies me actually! But we will both get past it. I think that Josh's 3 weeks will be a good trial for not just him, but for me as well. Hearing his successes (and hopefully not many) and failures can only help to make it not so much the unknown for me. I'll have a better idea of, hey, stay away from that store... or, this is a really good place to get fruits and vegetables. I know he'll be working full time (he starts on Mon, no rest for the weary!) but he'll still have some time to do some exploring. And for now, I'll live vicariously thru him. I'm sure I'll be posting some of his adventures (or maybe he'll do some posting...hint hint Joshy!).
Julie
I think that this day also marks one more day closer to us all leaving. It's exciting and scary all at the same time. I know I've mentioned that before but it's true. I've been facing constant ambivilance for the longest time now and we're beyond the point of no return. Part of me is relieved about that because I can't say, nah, I changed my mind...forcing me out of my comfort zone which I know is what I need to do. But part of me is in a panic knowing that just one month from today, we will be on a plane (with 2 small children, god help me!!) to Spain!! The countdown is on! That this isn't just going for a week vacation or even a month, but for 2 years. 2 years in our lives is really just a blip on the screen but you know what? It's still 2 years! 2 years of trying to communicate in a language I'm not fluent in; 2 years of not driving except when we go on vacation; 2 years of eating food I'm not familiar with (maybe I'll expand my tastes!); 2 years of living in cramped quarters.
I feel like such a complainer and I don't mean to be. This is the opportunity of a lifetime and I plan to embrace it with all that I can. I think there is just anxiety of the unknown. And now that Josh is on a plane on his way, I know that it is coming and it's coming fast! This is a long time in the making and now it's becoming a reality. I find it interesting how much more planning seemed to be involved and I think it was related to it being a non-English speaking country. Josh printed out maps last night before he left so he would know where the stores were that he has to go to. If we were moving to England, would he have printed out maps here or would he just ask someone how to get there? Probably the latter, right? I feel like the language barrier is really what scares me the most. That terrifies me actually! But we will both get past it. I think that Josh's 3 weeks will be a good trial for not just him, but for me as well. Hearing his successes (and hopefully not many) and failures can only help to make it not so much the unknown for me. I'll have a better idea of, hey, stay away from that store... or, this is a really good place to get fruits and vegetables. I know he'll be working full time (he starts on Mon, no rest for the weary!) but he'll still have some time to do some exploring. And for now, I'll live vicariously thru him. I'm sure I'll be posting some of his adventures (or maybe he'll do some posting...hint hint Joshy!).
Julie
Friday, November 20, 2009
Moving Day!
Today was the day we have been waiting for now for months. Moving Day! All this preparation, purging, packing, purging more and packing some more has now been for a goal that we can actually see. It's exciting and sad to see our things go. Exciting because we've been waiting so long for this point and quite honestly I'm sick of packing and purging and would like this part of the process to be done. Sad, because it means that our time here is short and that we will be moving along to Spain in just a matter of weeks. Josh actually leaves in just under 2 weeks now with the rest of us following around the 4th of January - about 6 weeks from now. The movers were a little late in getting here but nice guys. They only broke one thing and were very apologetic about it - oh well... at least it was just a frame and I ran out to Target and bought a new one. Let's just chalk it up to one more thing to do before we leave. I was thankful that most of the goods were in the garage though - the big guy had really really bad BO. I feel bad for the other two that had to ride to and from with him to Acton!
As I mentioned in my last post, the last few weeks have been extremely emotional. I can say that I was depressed - no doubt about it. I'm feeling a lot better now and am coming to terms with everything but the two weeks after we got back from our Discovery Trip, I really didn't want to talk to anyone, felt angry at the world, and cried - a lot. Seeing our backyard and thinking that the kids wouldn't have one in Spain brought me to tears several times, packing away my kids clothes to ship, packing up half my clothes to stay and half to go - just the reality of it all set in. The last several months have been about purging out the junk, making donations, etc. This was the time to actually pack it all up. It's amazing that we were able to take all of our personal possessions that we will need for the next 2 years and put it on one side of our garage - and that includes the furniture we got from IKEA too. Some is in our basement - a lot was donated. When we leave in a few weeks, Jonathan will have furniture, electronics and small appliances here and that will be about it. It is all moving along. Finally...
Friends of mine said that packing up our goods was going to be hard emotionally and it was. They said having the movers pack it up (correctly) and take it away would be harder. Perhaps that will settle in later because I actually almost felt some relief. Now maybe, at least temporarily, my life, our lives, can go back to normal. I don't remember the last time I had a full, focused work day. I'd love to have one of those again. To any of my clients that read this - I'm sorry I've been out of it for the last few months. Hopefully we are nearing the light at the end of the tunnel here. I'm determined to get our lives back to normal as quick as possible over there but yet other friends are saying to me that that is when the hard work begins.... so what you are telling me is that this gut wrenching process that was the move is not the hard work? That it's only just beginning? I think that is where the depression was coming in the last 2 weeks - I think deep down I knew this was the easy part. The move - packing it all away to arrive in Spain... that part is the easy part. Our goods are scheduled to arrive in Barcelona on Dec 17. Josh leaves to come back on Dec 22, so the odds of the container getting to Josh before he leaves for the US is slim to none, I'm thinking. So when we arrive in Spain in early January, we will still have to arrange to have the movers come to our apartment and will need to move in. Josh is bringing VERY little with him in a few weeks - clothes, a set of sheets and I think that's about it. Amazing how little guys can live on!!! We may have to have a slumber party with the kids since I just realized I sent all the sheets with the movers - ooops!!! My hope is it will just be for one night and we'll arrange in advance for the movers to come the day after we arrive ... that's my hope. Reality may be a totally different thing.
BEFORE AFTER (can't wait to see the kids' reaction)
Next will come the adjustment to a new culture, new people, new home, new school, new surroundings, and most of all, new language. I've been a slacker on my Spanish the last few weeks - now that the moving part is done, I need to pick back up on that too. I'm determined to do more than just get by as I hear so many people tell me they can do over there. I don't want to just get by. But I'm also terrified of being "alone" in a sense and not being able to communicate well over there. I suppose time heals all things and that will hopefully be one of them!
As the movers take away our belongings, I look at my now empty garage and think of the next stage of our lives ahead of us. I feel like I'm in a good place right now and am looking forward to the adventure, though with absolutely apprehensive feelings. But I'm good. And together, as a family, we'll make this work.
As I mentioned in my last post, the last few weeks have been extremely emotional. I can say that I was depressed - no doubt about it. I'm feeling a lot better now and am coming to terms with everything but the two weeks after we got back from our Discovery Trip, I really didn't want to talk to anyone, felt angry at the world, and cried - a lot. Seeing our backyard and thinking that the kids wouldn't have one in Spain brought me to tears several times, packing away my kids clothes to ship, packing up half my clothes to stay and half to go - just the reality of it all set in. The last several months have been about purging out the junk, making donations, etc. This was the time to actually pack it all up. It's amazing that we were able to take all of our personal possessions that we will need for the next 2 years and put it on one side of our garage - and that includes the furniture we got from IKEA too. Some is in our basement - a lot was donated. When we leave in a few weeks, Jonathan will have furniture, electronics and small appliances here and that will be about it. It is all moving along. Finally...
Friends of mine said that packing up our goods was going to be hard emotionally and it was. They said having the movers pack it up (correctly) and take it away would be harder. Perhaps that will settle in later because I actually almost felt some relief. Now maybe, at least temporarily, my life, our lives, can go back to normal. I don't remember the last time I had a full, focused work day. I'd love to have one of those again. To any of my clients that read this - I'm sorry I've been out of it for the last few months. Hopefully we are nearing the light at the end of the tunnel here. I'm determined to get our lives back to normal as quick as possible over there but yet other friends are saying to me that that is when the hard work begins.... so what you are telling me is that this gut wrenching process that was the move is not the hard work? That it's only just beginning? I think that is where the depression was coming in the last 2 weeks - I think deep down I knew this was the easy part. The move - packing it all away to arrive in Spain... that part is the easy part. Our goods are scheduled to arrive in Barcelona on Dec 17. Josh leaves to come back on Dec 22, so the odds of the container getting to Josh before he leaves for the US is slim to none, I'm thinking. So when we arrive in Spain in early January, we will still have to arrange to have the movers come to our apartment and will need to move in. Josh is bringing VERY little with him in a few weeks - clothes, a set of sheets and I think that's about it. Amazing how little guys can live on!!! We may have to have a slumber party with the kids since I just realized I sent all the sheets with the movers - ooops!!! My hope is it will just be for one night and we'll arrange in advance for the movers to come the day after we arrive ... that's my hope. Reality may be a totally different thing.
Next will come the adjustment to a new culture, new people, new home, new school, new surroundings, and most of all, new language. I've been a slacker on my Spanish the last few weeks - now that the moving part is done, I need to pick back up on that too. I'm determined to do more than just get by as I hear so many people tell me they can do over there. I don't want to just get by. But I'm also terrified of being "alone" in a sense and not being able to communicate well over there. I suppose time heals all things and that will hopefully be one of them!
As the movers take away our belongings, I look at my now empty garage and think of the next stage of our lives ahead of us. I feel like I'm in a good place right now and am looking forward to the adventure, though with absolutely apprehensive feelings. But I'm good. And together, as a family, we'll make this work.
Julie
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Day 4 - Discovery Trip... the long road back home
We're on the plane back to Boston. Finally... It's been such a long week and yet, it's really only been 4 days if you count our day of travel to get here. We've just barely adjusted to our new time difference and now it's time to change things up again and head back home. I miss the kids terribly. I miss our friends too. And of course, our family. And right now, I already miss the Barcelona weather of 70 degrees because I hear there may be snow in Boston when we arrive!! Grrrr.....
I'm handwriting this all in a notebook as I'm on the plane. Josh thinks I'm crazy that I'm writing my blog out in my notebook before putting it online. But since I don't have a computer handy at the moment, this is my only way to do it while it's all fresh on my mind.
So anyways, as I sit here on the second leg of our trip from Dublin to Boston - the much longer leg of the trip, I realize how much this back and forth to Spain is going to suck and it's going to suck even more with kids, though maybe it will go by faster since I will need to entertain them. It's not exactly a short trip. Though to my friends who want to visit, I say, hey, it's super fast...don't let the plane ride deter you from coming!!
Communicating with home this week was a bit of a challenge but I think it will be much easier once we are established in Spain and have a routine going. The internet connection was terrible at the hotel and I was using web based email instead of my outlook which seems to work faster. And since we were constantly on the go we didn't get to check the time much to see if it was ok to call home at that point or not. I think it's going to be relatively easy to stay in touch with our friends and families thru email, facebook and the phone. The challenge is going to be Aidan and his friends. 5 days a week he's in school 8:30-4 and when he gets home from school, his friends will be in school. And they won't be home from school until 10PM our time and obviously he will be in bed by then. So he won't be able to call them most likely except for the weekends. I feel badly for that since I know it's important that he stay in touch with everyone regularly. I hope all of your kids will send him letters (I'll send the address before we leave) and we'll set up an email address for him or else you can use ours. I know he'll send letters back home too. It's especially important that he stay in touch since he will be coming back home in 2 years to the same neighborhood, so it's not like he's moving away for ever.
So anyways, the flight from Barcelona to Dublin was uneventful though thought provoking. This week has understandably been an emotional rollercoaster. Everything is starting to come to a head and is happening very fast. We've been preparing for this day for well over a year when the opportunity was first presented to us. We've been purging and packing for 6 months (yet my house looks no different and I still have a way to go - says a lot for the crap we had here). And yet, suddenly this is all so real and quite honestly, it's scary. Very scary. I'm terrified for that matter. This week just reinforced that. I am going to be living in a foreign country, where let's be honest, I can barely speak the language at this point, no matter how much I've been studying. And I'm not doing this by myself but with my family - with my two young kids who will be just as scared and confused as I am and I'm going to have to set that fear aside in order to be strong for them and enable them to survive. 99% of the time it will be up to me to communicate - Josh will be at work all day in an English speaking workplace. I find myself near tears a lot lately (and to be honest cry as I write this but only for a moment - it felt good to get it out). Have we made the right decision? I feel like we have and yet I think understandably, I have doubts. To stay would no doubt be the easier option. To go is most definitely an opportunity and a challenge that we are embracing. So don't get me wrong, we will go, but I'm scared. Neither Josh nor I have ever lived outside Massachusetts, much less the country! There are going to be some significant changes to our lifestyle. I think we will grow from the experience, I keep telling myself that and will find a way to convince myself. Regardless, this is happening at this point - there is no turning back no matter how much of a basketcase I've become. I'm snappish and angry a lot - and my poor kids have had to suffer the brunt of that which is unfair. I know it's just my emotions getting the best of me and it's not their fault. I keep telling myself that it will be a lot easier once we are there, unpacked and back to our so-called regular life. Only it won't really be our regular life any more. It will become our regular life though. Just the idea of how to get Aidan to the bus stop in the morning seems like a daunting task to me. Because it's not a traditional school, they don't have bright yellow school buses. It's a regular city bus that is chartered for the school. How am I going to know exactly which bus is his and what if I'm on the wrong corner of the street and they go by?? I know this all sounds minute and silly but it's stuff like this that stresses me. Josh doesn't get it but I think it's because it's not his problem is it? What if I'm a minute late for the bus? Or what if they come early? It's not like the bus can sit on a busy city street and wait right? The unknown does and always has put the fear of god in me.
Things like this are the stupid shit that take over my mind at night when I can't think of anything but the giant list ahead of me, the daunting task of packing, forms, kids, work etc etc. Yes, people move every day but I think it would have been easier to just sell both houses and go. I think that it's deciding what stays, what goes, what gets donated, renting the houses, moving mail, contracts, etc etc that is making this process all the more complex. Do I regret not selling it all to go to Spain? No, absolutely not. We love our home and our friends. I'm just saying it would have been much much easier (that's how much we love you guys!).
Ok, enough about how I feel. I'm feeling like I'm being a spoiled brat since most people would jump at an opportunity like this. And don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled at the opportunity we've been presented with and excited about the new adventures that we are going to have. I just wanted to touch upon the fact that while I am excited about it, I'm also quite scared. I think the best way to deal with it is that I keep saying, it's just 2 years... it's just 2 years. Yeah, we'll 2 years isn't exactly 2 months. It's still a long time. But it's not a lifetime and that's what I need to get my arms around, and I will. It will just take some time.
On a more positive note, I found that after just a few days in Barcelona that I was adjusting a little bit to the language. It's a bit exhausting when you have to focus so much more on what people are saying to try to interpret it unlike here where it's just a part of your natural functions during the day. It's not tiring to listen in your own native tongue. But when you have to actually sit there and try to translate it in your head as you are listening, it can get exhausting after a while. But the good news is, I was picking up on bits and pieces of conversation and understanding them, or at least the big picture of what people were saying. Could I communicate back? Absolutely not! I still have a long way to go. But it gave me a glimmer of hope that after just 2 days, I was comfortable using the few words that I knew, saying Perdone instead of Excuse Me when I needed someone's attention. Saying Gracias instead of Thank you. It just started coming naturally. I know it's just a few words, but the fact that I was instinctually saying them instead of having to think first, hey, I need to remember to say them in Spanish... to me that was an accomplishment in and of itself. Apparently I need to do some fast tracking on my Rosetta Stone in my "free time".
So far people have been really patient with the whole English/Spanish thing but I've really only communicated with the hotel staff (who work at an international hotel so it's their job to be multi-lingual) and cab drivers (and all they need is for me to point out an address on a piece of paper), and at the kid's school where the primary language is English so it wasn't an issue. So it will be interesting to see how people are once I actually get out there and need to talk to someone.
I know the kids are flexible and resiliant but now that I've had just a few days to try to communicate with people and have experienced the frustration of not being able to get my point across to someone, I can't help but wonder how this is going to affect the boys and their self esteem. Especially for Aidan. Will they jump right in and absorb it like sponges or will they shy away and pull into themselves in fear of the unknown? My hope is that it is the former but I guess we won't know til we get there.
My other concern, unrelated to the language is the flight. I know kids fly every day and fly long distances (like Colin & Tatum!) but as I write this I'm something like 6 hours into flying today and that doesn't count all the waiting at the airport and you know what? I'm fucking exhausted!!! I can't even imagine doing this with both kids? But like I said before, maybe because I will need to entertain them, it will make the flight go by faster. Let's hope! Though have you met Liam??? I've already told Josh, he's all his for the flight. The kid could bring a plane to its knees with one of his tantrums as well as with all his energy! I may need Benadryl! It may actually come to that!
My mom always told me that if you could build a house with someone, you had a pretty good, stable relationship. And while this upcoming move has not been all peaches and cream for Josh and I, we have not killed each other yet and actually made it thru these 3 highly stressful and emotional days without one argument. Now that could be because we were just too exhausted to fight. But I'd like to think that it speaks to our strength as a couple, as a team. And while I have not necessarily felt like a team thru this process til now (though talk to me in a few days as I actually write this), I see the pieces all coming together. We are like a well oiled machine, a flawlessly choreographed ballet. We know and predict each other's moves before they happen. And it is this bond that is going to make this trip a success. I'm sure there will be a pissed off word here and there but not every day can be all roses can it?
Julie
I'm handwriting this all in a notebook as I'm on the plane. Josh thinks I'm crazy that I'm writing my blog out in my notebook before putting it online. But since I don't have a computer handy at the moment, this is my only way to do it while it's all fresh on my mind.
So anyways, as I sit here on the second leg of our trip from Dublin to Boston - the much longer leg of the trip, I realize how much this back and forth to Spain is going to suck and it's going to suck even more with kids, though maybe it will go by faster since I will need to entertain them. It's not exactly a short trip. Though to my friends who want to visit, I say, hey, it's super fast...don't let the plane ride deter you from coming!!
Communicating with home this week was a bit of a challenge but I think it will be much easier once we are established in Spain and have a routine going. The internet connection was terrible at the hotel and I was using web based email instead of my outlook which seems to work faster. And since we were constantly on the go we didn't get to check the time much to see if it was ok to call home at that point or not. I think it's going to be relatively easy to stay in touch with our friends and families thru email, facebook and the phone. The challenge is going to be Aidan and his friends. 5 days a week he's in school 8:30-4 and when he gets home from school, his friends will be in school. And they won't be home from school until 10PM our time and obviously he will be in bed by then. So he won't be able to call them most likely except for the weekends. I feel badly for that since I know it's important that he stay in touch with everyone regularly. I hope all of your kids will send him letters (I'll send the address before we leave) and we'll set up an email address for him or else you can use ours. I know he'll send letters back home too. It's especially important that he stay in touch since he will be coming back home in 2 years to the same neighborhood, so it's not like he's moving away for ever.
So anyways, the flight from Barcelona to Dublin was uneventful though thought provoking. This week has understandably been an emotional rollercoaster. Everything is starting to come to a head and is happening very fast. We've been preparing for this day for well over a year when the opportunity was first presented to us. We've been purging and packing for 6 months (yet my house looks no different and I still have a way to go - says a lot for the crap we had here). And yet, suddenly this is all so real and quite honestly, it's scary. Very scary. I'm terrified for that matter. This week just reinforced that. I am going to be living in a foreign country, where let's be honest, I can barely speak the language at this point, no matter how much I've been studying. And I'm not doing this by myself but with my family - with my two young kids who will be just as scared and confused as I am and I'm going to have to set that fear aside in order to be strong for them and enable them to survive. 99% of the time it will be up to me to communicate - Josh will be at work all day in an English speaking workplace. I find myself near tears a lot lately (and to be honest cry as I write this but only for a moment - it felt good to get it out). Have we made the right decision? I feel like we have and yet I think understandably, I have doubts. To stay would no doubt be the easier option. To go is most definitely an opportunity and a challenge that we are embracing. So don't get me wrong, we will go, but I'm scared. Neither Josh nor I have ever lived outside Massachusetts, much less the country! There are going to be some significant changes to our lifestyle. I think we will grow from the experience, I keep telling myself that and will find a way to convince myself. Regardless, this is happening at this point - there is no turning back no matter how much of a basketcase I've become. I'm snappish and angry a lot - and my poor kids have had to suffer the brunt of that which is unfair. I know it's just my emotions getting the best of me and it's not their fault. I keep telling myself that it will be a lot easier once we are there, unpacked and back to our so-called regular life. Only it won't really be our regular life any more. It will become our regular life though. Just the idea of how to get Aidan to the bus stop in the morning seems like a daunting task to me. Because it's not a traditional school, they don't have bright yellow school buses. It's a regular city bus that is chartered for the school. How am I going to know exactly which bus is his and what if I'm on the wrong corner of the street and they go by?? I know this all sounds minute and silly but it's stuff like this that stresses me. Josh doesn't get it but I think it's because it's not his problem is it? What if I'm a minute late for the bus? Or what if they come early? It's not like the bus can sit on a busy city street and wait right? The unknown does and always has put the fear of god in me.
Things like this are the stupid shit that take over my mind at night when I can't think of anything but the giant list ahead of me, the daunting task of packing, forms, kids, work etc etc. Yes, people move every day but I think it would have been easier to just sell both houses and go. I think that it's deciding what stays, what goes, what gets donated, renting the houses, moving mail, contracts, etc etc that is making this process all the more complex. Do I regret not selling it all to go to Spain? No, absolutely not. We love our home and our friends. I'm just saying it would have been much much easier (that's how much we love you guys!).
Ok, enough about how I feel. I'm feeling like I'm being a spoiled brat since most people would jump at an opportunity like this. And don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled at the opportunity we've been presented with and excited about the new adventures that we are going to have. I just wanted to touch upon the fact that while I am excited about it, I'm also quite scared. I think the best way to deal with it is that I keep saying, it's just 2 years... it's just 2 years. Yeah, we'll 2 years isn't exactly 2 months. It's still a long time. But it's not a lifetime and that's what I need to get my arms around, and I will. It will just take some time.
On a more positive note, I found that after just a few days in Barcelona that I was adjusting a little bit to the language. It's a bit exhausting when you have to focus so much more on what people are saying to try to interpret it unlike here where it's just a part of your natural functions during the day. It's not tiring to listen in your own native tongue. But when you have to actually sit there and try to translate it in your head as you are listening, it can get exhausting after a while. But the good news is, I was picking up on bits and pieces of conversation and understanding them, or at least the big picture of what people were saying. Could I communicate back? Absolutely not! I still have a long way to go. But it gave me a glimmer of hope that after just 2 days, I was comfortable using the few words that I knew, saying Perdone instead of Excuse Me when I needed someone's attention. Saying Gracias instead of Thank you. It just started coming naturally. I know it's just a few words, but the fact that I was instinctually saying them instead of having to think first, hey, I need to remember to say them in Spanish... to me that was an accomplishment in and of itself. Apparently I need to do some fast tracking on my Rosetta Stone in my "free time".
So far people have been really patient with the whole English/Spanish thing but I've really only communicated with the hotel staff (who work at an international hotel so it's their job to be multi-lingual) and cab drivers (and all they need is for me to point out an address on a piece of paper), and at the kid's school where the primary language is English so it wasn't an issue. So it will be interesting to see how people are once I actually get out there and need to talk to someone.
I know the kids are flexible and resiliant but now that I've had just a few days to try to communicate with people and have experienced the frustration of not being able to get my point across to someone, I can't help but wonder how this is going to affect the boys and their self esteem. Especially for Aidan. Will they jump right in and absorb it like sponges or will they shy away and pull into themselves in fear of the unknown? My hope is that it is the former but I guess we won't know til we get there.
My other concern, unrelated to the language is the flight. I know kids fly every day and fly long distances (like Colin & Tatum!) but as I write this I'm something like 6 hours into flying today and that doesn't count all the waiting at the airport and you know what? I'm fucking exhausted!!! I can't even imagine doing this with both kids? But like I said before, maybe because I will need to entertain them, it will make the flight go by faster. Let's hope! Though have you met Liam??? I've already told Josh, he's all his for the flight. The kid could bring a plane to its knees with one of his tantrums as well as with all his energy! I may need Benadryl! It may actually come to that!
My mom always told me that if you could build a house with someone, you had a pretty good, stable relationship. And while this upcoming move has not been all peaches and cream for Josh and I, we have not killed each other yet and actually made it thru these 3 highly stressful and emotional days without one argument. Now that could be because we were just too exhausted to fight. But I'd like to think that it speaks to our strength as a couple, as a team. And while I have not necessarily felt like a team thru this process til now (though talk to me in a few days as I actually write this), I see the pieces all coming together. We are like a well oiled machine, a flawlessly choreographed ballet. We know and predict each other's moves before they happen. And it is this bond that is going to make this trip a success. I'm sure there will be a pissed off word here and there but not every day can be all roses can it?
Julie
Friday, November 6, 2009
Discovery Trip - Day 3
Is it seriously Day 3 already? The days are starting to blur into one another. Once again we hit the ground running first thing this morning. While 10AM is late for us, it's relatively early in Spain. However, Josh and I had work to catch up on so we spent the earlier part of the morning trying in vain to make the internet work fast at our hotel so we could check email. What normally takes 15 mins took an hour. Quite honestly it was painful and I hope it's not how the internet over here works all the time... I just hope we were away from the central hub in the hotel since it was wireless.
Today we are off to hopefully sign a contract on our new place today. We're very excited about it though of course going back and forth hoping we made the right decision. Before meeting up with Mele, I decided to run down to grab some breakfast in the hotel restaurant while Josh was doing some of his work. Thus far, neither of us have really used any Spanish. Our contact at the bank spoke broken English, we stopped at Vistaprint where everyone speaks English and Mele speaks English and Spanish so she communicates with the other realtors. Oh and at the hotel they speak English. But I know that we can't count on this always happening and I really feel the need to just jump in and say something just to do it. Kind of when I ran my first (and only) 5k - I just needed to do it.
So anyways, I go down to the lobby and enter the restaurant. I knew they would need my room number so before she could ask me, I said uno y veinteuno. She said, "Marcus". I said, "si!". Turns out it should have been ciento y veinteuno but hey, she got it right? Then the waiter asked me, if I wanted coffee/cafe. I said, "No, zumo (juice) por favor". Baby steps, right? I can handle phrases. It's complete sentences that scare me. I was so proud of myself for just making the step to attempt to speak their language. Then on my way out, I asked "donde esta el cuarto de bano?" (where is the bathroom). I didn't understand a word she said but she pointed and I made it there without peeing my pants. So I'm going to call it a success!!!
Off we go with Mele to meet with the other realtor to sign our contract (hopefully). We walked from the rental place to our new apartment - Mele wanted us to get a feel for the neighborhood. We took a lot more pics at the house (all the ones posted from yesterday actually were from today) and took some measurements. Storage is DEFINITELY going to be an issue. We will be hitting IKEA this weekend. Not far from our 'hood is this beautiful Gaudi Church (I forget the name and if I have time later I will google it). It's been under construction for no joke, more than 100 years. The guy died in the early 1900s and it's still under construction.
This other realtor usually deals with short term rentals (over there considered 1-11 months, long term is 1-5 years). This particular place they were looking to do for 2 years so it's not their standard contract. Similar to the US, often an owner will ask for a security deposit. However, here in Spain they can ask for up to a year security and it can only be used as security - it doesn't go towards rent or anything if you don't pay. We really lucked out and they told us it would be 2 months of security plus one month rent in advance plus 16% VAT (value added tax - also considered a commission there) on one month rent. Plus we needed a letter from Vistaprint stating Josh's salary and that he has a position here for 2 years. We will eventually need to supply them with our NIE number (like a social security here but we won't get it til we get there). Not too shabby and could have been significantly more expensive - our luck is finally changing. So how do we pay? Apparently some places will deal in cash. Sorry Charlie, I don't play that cash game. No receipt, no proof that we paid...uh uh. Bank check? Yup, an option. The other option was a wire transfer which over there seems to work much faster than here. So they gave us the amount to transfer and we promised (they are very trusting over there compared to here) that we would transfer the funds that afternoon. Because we use the same bank as them it would likely go thru the same day.
Now on to the contract. We signed a pre-contract - basically saying that we had paid the deposit and VAT and that they would be drawing up an actual contract that would need to be signed by Nov 15. They will send that to our realtor who will interpret it for us, we'll print it, sign it and scan and email back and be done. Josh will pick up the keys when he goes the first week of Dec. We're hoping the contract goes smoothly and that we will have that early next week.
In Spain (not sure of all of Europe), the law actually protects the tenant more than the landlord. We could trash this place and the landlord CANNOT kick us out. He can only use the law against us if we leave prior to one year. All long term contracts are for up to 5 years. So technically we could stay on for 5 years and if he wanted to sell at 2, tough noogies to him. We wouldn't do that of course, but just to give you an idea of the way it works. This guy wants us out at 2 and 2 works for us. So that will be in our contract.
Once again I feel the need to point out the driving in Barcelona. It is 100x worse than Boston or NY. It's downright scary!! I'd also like to point out that I have seen, no joke, 3 American cars. I'm not talking 3 brands...literally 3 American cars. Lots of Audi, BMW, Peugeot, Rineault, etc. So we decided to take the metro back to our hotel and then walk from the stop to the hotel. We didn't follow Mele's directions very well though. We took the metro just fine. It was the walking that was an issue! We apparently went north when we should have gone east or something like that. We ended up in Las Ramblas which is a big touristy area (with lots of pickpockets - beware if you visit). Being somewhat pressed for time because we needed to do our wire transfer and then head out to see the kids' school, we grabbed a cab, again... so success on the metro. Not so successful finding the hotel. All in good time I guess. I find this frustrating because I consider myself to have a good sense of direction and I feel very displaced here at the moment. I really need to sit down and study a map.
We stopped quickly at the hotel, did our wire transfer, stopped for a VERY quick bite to eat. The guy was annoyed when 20 mins into the whole meal we asked for our check. Everything is very leisurely here and people will take offense if you don't act the same. But we had places to be. We went to visit the Benjamin Franklin International School (BFIS) where the boys will be attending. We LOVED the school. And the people we met. The school's primary language is English but there are children from 40 different countries represented in it's 500 students (grades K-12). So it's a small, close knit school. Aidan will do about an hour a day in kindergarten of Spanish. Art is a VERY big focus here and you saw it everywhere you walked. The kids are taught independence which I personally really like. And each class has 2 teachers so while Aidan is in a class of 18, the teachers will often separate them into groups of 9 which will give a lot of individual attention, which we also very much liked. I also though the school itself was pretty - it's an old old building that they have added on to and made into a very small campus. They have a building (2 small floors) of just K-5. I didn't get any pics of that, actually I only managed to take 2 pics because I was so busy chatting with my contact there. And it seems that they incorporate the indoors with the outdoors a lot which is probably the norm in their climate, whereas you could never do that in Boston! Oh and before I forget, I swear that I saw Ricky Schroeder driving by the school in a minivan! Turns out I may very well have seen him - I just did a google search for him. http://www.hollywood.com/news/Schroder_swapping_Hollywood_for_Spain/5721428
So after our very long day so far, we're in for another late night. We get back to the hotel around 5:30/6 to freshen up. Tonight we are going out with some of Josh's co-workers in the BCN office. We thought it would just be the 5 or 6 people from CapDev that we ran into in the hallway yesterday. Turns out to be 25 of his co-workers. And being excited to try some Spanish food, we were off...only to find out we were going to the same place we went to last night with Nick & Brenda. El Greco. Good thing I liked the food there!! But a bummer that we didn't get to try a traditional Spanish restaurant. I suppose we have 2 years to do that. Aaron, the guy who organized the dinner, mixed things up and everyone drew a card with a number and that's where you sat. So not that I rely on Josh to help me with my conversation but we weren't even at at the same table. I had considered not going to dinner that night because I was just exhausted but Josh convinced me I should. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I did - I met some really nice people. But given that it wasn't as intimate a group as we thought and we didn't even sit together, I probably could have gotten out of it. Oh well! Best to enjoy our time out while we can since we don't yet have a sitter and who knows when we will find one!
Will do the final update on our trip tonight!!
Julie
Today we are off to hopefully sign a contract on our new place today. We're very excited about it though of course going back and forth hoping we made the right decision. Before meeting up with Mele, I decided to run down to grab some breakfast in the hotel restaurant while Josh was doing some of his work. Thus far, neither of us have really used any Spanish. Our contact at the bank spoke broken English, we stopped at Vistaprint where everyone speaks English and Mele speaks English and Spanish so she communicates with the other realtors. Oh and at the hotel they speak English. But I know that we can't count on this always happening and I really feel the need to just jump in and say something just to do it. Kind of when I ran my first (and only) 5k - I just needed to do it.
So anyways, I go down to the lobby and enter the restaurant. I knew they would need my room number so before she could ask me, I said uno y veinteuno. She said, "Marcus". I said, "si!". Turns out it should have been ciento y veinteuno but hey, she got it right? Then the waiter asked me, if I wanted coffee/cafe. I said, "No, zumo (juice) por favor". Baby steps, right? I can handle phrases. It's complete sentences that scare me. I was so proud of myself for just making the step to attempt to speak their language. Then on my way out, I asked "donde esta el cuarto de bano?" (where is the bathroom). I didn't understand a word she said but she pointed and I made it there without peeing my pants. So I'm going to call it a success!!!
Off we go with Mele to meet with the other realtor to sign our contract (hopefully). We walked from the rental place to our new apartment - Mele wanted us to get a feel for the neighborhood. We took a lot more pics at the house (all the ones posted from yesterday actually were from today) and took some measurements. Storage is DEFINITELY going to be an issue. We will be hitting IKEA this weekend. Not far from our 'hood is this beautiful Gaudi Church (I forget the name and if I have time later I will google it). It's been under construction for no joke, more than 100 years. The guy died in the early 1900s and it's still under construction.
This other realtor usually deals with short term rentals (over there considered 1-11 months, long term is 1-5 years). This particular place they were looking to do for 2 years so it's not their standard contract. Similar to the US, often an owner will ask for a security deposit. However, here in Spain they can ask for up to a year security and it can only be used as security - it doesn't go towards rent or anything if you don't pay. We really lucked out and they told us it would be 2 months of security plus one month rent in advance plus 16% VAT (value added tax - also considered a commission there) on one month rent. Plus we needed a letter from Vistaprint stating Josh's salary and that he has a position here for 2 years. We will eventually need to supply them with our NIE number (like a social security here but we won't get it til we get there). Not too shabby and could have been significantly more expensive - our luck is finally changing. So how do we pay? Apparently some places will deal in cash. Sorry Charlie, I don't play that cash game. No receipt, no proof that we paid...uh uh. Bank check? Yup, an option. The other option was a wire transfer which over there seems to work much faster than here. So they gave us the amount to transfer and we promised (they are very trusting over there compared to here) that we would transfer the funds that afternoon. Because we use the same bank as them it would likely go thru the same day.
Now on to the contract. We signed a pre-contract - basically saying that we had paid the deposit and VAT and that they would be drawing up an actual contract that would need to be signed by Nov 15. They will send that to our realtor who will interpret it for us, we'll print it, sign it and scan and email back and be done. Josh will pick up the keys when he goes the first week of Dec. We're hoping the contract goes smoothly and that we will have that early next week.
In Spain (not sure of all of Europe), the law actually protects the tenant more than the landlord. We could trash this place and the landlord CANNOT kick us out. He can only use the law against us if we leave prior to one year. All long term contracts are for up to 5 years. So technically we could stay on for 5 years and if he wanted to sell at 2, tough noogies to him. We wouldn't do that of course, but just to give you an idea of the way it works. This guy wants us out at 2 and 2 works for us. So that will be in our contract.
Once again I feel the need to point out the driving in Barcelona. It is 100x worse than Boston or NY. It's downright scary!! I'd also like to point out that I have seen, no joke, 3 American cars. I'm not talking 3 brands...literally 3 American cars. Lots of Audi, BMW, Peugeot, Rineault, etc. So we decided to take the metro back to our hotel and then walk from the stop to the hotel. We didn't follow Mele's directions very well though. We took the metro just fine. It was the walking that was an issue! We apparently went north when we should have gone east or something like that. We ended up in Las Ramblas which is a big touristy area (with lots of pickpockets - beware if you visit). Being somewhat pressed for time because we needed to do our wire transfer and then head out to see the kids' school, we grabbed a cab, again... so success on the metro. Not so successful finding the hotel. All in good time I guess. I find this frustrating because I consider myself to have a good sense of direction and I feel very displaced here at the moment. I really need to sit down and study a map.
We stopped quickly at the hotel, did our wire transfer, stopped for a VERY quick bite to eat. The guy was annoyed when 20 mins into the whole meal we asked for our check. Everything is very leisurely here and people will take offense if you don't act the same. But we had places to be. We went to visit the Benjamin Franklin International School (BFIS) where the boys will be attending. We LOVED the school. And the people we met. The school's primary language is English but there are children from 40 different countries represented in it's 500 students (grades K-12). So it's a small, close knit school. Aidan will do about an hour a day in kindergarten of Spanish. Art is a VERY big focus here and you saw it everywhere you walked. The kids are taught independence which I personally really like. And each class has 2 teachers so while Aidan is in a class of 18, the teachers will often separate them into groups of 9 which will give a lot of individual attention, which we also very much liked. I also though the school itself was pretty - it's an old old building that they have added on to and made into a very small campus. They have a building (2 small floors) of just K-5. I didn't get any pics of that, actually I only managed to take 2 pics because I was so busy chatting with my contact there. And it seems that they incorporate the indoors with the outdoors a lot which is probably the norm in their climate, whereas you could never do that in Boston! Oh and before I forget, I swear that I saw Ricky Schroeder driving by the school in a minivan! Turns out I may very well have seen him - I just did a google search for him. http://www.hollywood.com/news/Schroder_swapping_Hollywood_for_Spain/5721428
So after our very long day so far, we're in for another late night. We get back to the hotel around 5:30/6 to freshen up. Tonight we are going out with some of Josh's co-workers in the BCN office. We thought it would just be the 5 or 6 people from CapDev that we ran into in the hallway yesterday. Turns out to be 25 of his co-workers. And being excited to try some Spanish food, we were off...only to find out we were going to the same place we went to last night with Nick & Brenda. El Greco. Good thing I liked the food there!! But a bummer that we didn't get to try a traditional Spanish restaurant. I suppose we have 2 years to do that. Aaron, the guy who organized the dinner, mixed things up and everyone drew a card with a number and that's where you sat. So not that I rely on Josh to help me with my conversation but we weren't even at at the same table. I had considered not going to dinner that night because I was just exhausted but Josh convinced me I should. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I did - I met some really nice people. But given that it wasn't as intimate a group as we thought and we didn't even sit together, I probably could have gotten out of it. Oh well! Best to enjoy our time out while we can since we don't yet have a sitter and who knows when we will find one!
Will do the final update on our trip tonight!!
Julie
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