Wander & Nest

We are so fortunate to have so many friends in France. Most are people we’ve known for 10 years, since Wylie and I lived in Paris, but also in just a few months in Toulouse we’ve met several families and new friends. It feels like we’ve been more social in the last few months than we had been in years!

Our good friend Corrine, aka auntie Corrine, came to Toulouse from Paris to visit us just 2 weeks after we arrived. Corrine is like family so the fact that we didn’t have a coffee table or guest sheets when she arrived was no big deal. And thanks to her encouragement we ordered some real adult furniture – a coffee table and buffet set that we love! That then inspired the start of our String shelves everywhere project. There happened to be a wine festival in Place du Capitole the weekend she was in town, so obviously, we went. We sampled and bought a lot of local wine for a tiny fraction of what it would cost in the US, I think wine really is cheaper than water in France.

One of our favorite spots is Port de la Daurade for close proximity to home and school, the view, the playground, and terrace bar when the weather is nice – what could be better! We spent many afternoons here in our first few months, with Corinne, with friends we made in town, with friends we met at the bar, or just the three of us. The bar closed for the season once fall rolled in, but the park is still a favorite spot after school and has been a great place to meet and chat with other parents.

Since moving, we’ve taken one trip up to Paris. It was during Mara’s first school holidays. Every 6-7 weeks all kids in France have 2 weeks off of school for the vacances scolaires, plus 2 months of summer! That schedule is just so built in to life here. You don’t hear things like “what am I going to do with my kid?! I have to work.” Of course parents do work, but since these holidays are part of the culture, it’s easy to plan for. And not just planning for childcare but planning for vacation and activities and family time together.

So for our first school holidays we took a few days to visit friends in Paris. We made sure to find some child-friendly activities with friends who also have kids, but for the most part Mara is just along for the ride in Paris. Whatever we do, she does. Of course we didn’t have enough time in a few days to see all our friends or do everything we wanted to, but luckily Paris is just a train ride away.

In Toulouse, we have been pleasantly surprised at how quickly we have met people. We joined an English-speaking group for parents of young kids called Tots in Toulouse and that has been a great resource to meet other families. Some people we only see at official Tots meet ups, but even then it’s nice to see familiar faces. Others though have become real friends, like Alexia, Michael and their boys Paul and Lucas. We’ve gotten together several times and the kids have a blast together, it’s so great!

I’ve also met a few new friends at my coworking space, Etincelle. I always have to give myself a little pep talk before joining a midday social event or even eating in lunch room at Etincelle, but every time I join I’m glad I did. Sometimes it can feel a bit awkward with the language barrier in addition to being one of the new people, but it’s definitely worth it to meet really nice people, some we’ve even hung out with! And it’s a great way to practice my French comprehension and speaking.

Speaking of learning French, that will surely be a years-long if not lifelong journey! Wylie, Mara, and I are improving, bien sûr, and we can certainly get by day to day, but I still feel pretty far from full language independence. During the fall I took six weeks of intensive courses at Alliance Française, a French language and cultural organization. Intensive meaning 9:00am-12:30pm every weekday plus homework. It’s great for learning grammar, vocabulary, and some culture, though not ideal for practice so that has to be supplementary. However, it’s a great place to meet people! I’ve made a few friends through AF who I’ve hung out with, including Nidia (to my left in the pic below) where our only common language is French.

We’re looking forward to so many more family outings, friends trips, and to welcoming old friends and family to visit our new lives in Toulouse.