We are getting closer and closer!
Southern France has been experiencing record-breaking temperatures of late, more
than 20 degrees higher than the average. Since our current Airbnb does not have
A/C, we finally surrendered and found "a little vacation from our vacation
rental" in Toulouse. We ran that little a/c unit from morning to night, and
cocooned inside the little apartment for a couple days relief from the heat and humidity. We ventured out only to the front gate
for Uber Eats deliveries. With the exception of taking Murphy to a groomer for
a shave--this is no weather for his heavy coat. It figures that there was a
market day happening just outside of the dog groomer's space. It couldn't have
been easy maneuvering through the narrow, unknown streets full of pedestrians
and bicyclists. I'm frankly amazed at how well Bill does driving in France,
especially not knowing how to read many of the street signs. My hero.
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Murphy is trying to stay cool |
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Speaking of
driving...... we FINALLY picked-up our new-to-us car yesterday. A driver from
the dealership in Toulouse, brought the car down to us and helped us sign the
paperwork, and then we gave him a ride to the train station so he could get back
home. He even brought us a bottle of champagne! Given how challenging it was to
buy and register the car (since we do not have proof of residency yet)-- I found
this final part of the process to be wildly amusing.
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Toyota Yaris Cross |
Speaking of Toulouse.....
another benefit of spending a few days in the city, was that I found a Mexican
grocery store! There are no Mexican restaurants in the vicinity of our AirBnB,
in fact there are very few in the whole country, AND even the grocery stores are
void of Mexican food. The exception is chicken burrito kits: which contain
tortilla shells and a foil packet of salsa that bears a striking resemblance to
ketchup. Ewww. So, what's a Mexican-food-loving family to do? I make (as a last
resort), a version of refried beans that involves mashing up kidney beans from a
can and sautéing that with a little butter and onion. It's plausible, at best. So when I saw there was a Mexican
grocery store in Toulouse, we headed over as soon as they opened, and stocked up on dried beans, refried beans,
black beans, cumin and TWO types of salsa. Yeah baby!
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Trader Joe hot dogs in a jar, found at a French Aldi's
Another big obstacle in our rearview
mirror: we closed on the Arizona house today. If you've been following, you
already know what a roller coaster of bad luck we've been on--everything from
over-zealous inspections, a fickle market, Trump-era tariffs taking tolls on the
exchange rate, and even a con artist committing bank fraud. But that's all
behind us now, thanks to the hardest working realtor in all of Arizona, Julie Gutwein.
NEXT STEPS: We will be signing a letter of intent on the new house in Moissac
tomorrow (July 4) and then meeting with a project manager and crew at the house
on Sunday to discuss what renovations are needed. Tomorrow, we pack up our
suitcases and move into the next Airbnb while we wait to take possession of the
new house--which could take anywhere from 1 to 3 months. Our new rental property
is in Aigues-Vives. Unfortunately, its even more remote than our current
rental. But, it has air conditioning! It's also very near to Narbonne and the
Mediterranean Sea, so new things to check out, while we're there.
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