If you missed the denouement of our Paris story, be sure to read the previous post.
Bonjour from balmy Houston! We have been back for almost two weeks, so I am feeling like it’s time to breathe some life into this poor blog, which has been languishing for a while now.
A fabulous crew of four or five men arrived at the apartment bright and early on a Thursday morning. They were so friendly and so professional that I really couldn’t resent them too much for turning my dream Paris apartment into a maze of boxes and packing paper. It took them a day and a half to box everything up (including the furniture) and a half day to get it all into the shipping container. Oh yeah- and over an hour to get the enormous truck onto our street and parked in front of our building.
After everything was boxed up the guys went down to the street to wait for the truck. They waited and waited- and put boxes out to save a parking space the length of the city block. The first time the truck tried to turn on to the street it couldn’t make it because the turn was too sharp, so he somehow backed out and went around the block to enter from the other end. It was quite the spectacle. My palms got sweaty just watching it all unfold from above.
this small truck blocked the traffic from that direction until the truck could get all the way over to the curb
a crane was unloaded and set up behind the truck and under one of our windows
all the boxes were moved into the front room where the crane was
boxes were loaded one at a time out the window and onto the crane, which could move six or so medium cartons at a time
down the crane track
and into this behemoth container
I spent most of the time tucked away in this bedroom, where a twin bed that was staying behind offered me a quiet place to hide out from the madness. I listened to podcasts, read, and even took a little nap- anything to avoid feeling sorry for myself. And I looked out this window a lot.
I had forgotten what my kitchen looked like when it was this tidy.
that would be because it was never this tidy
Yep- it was a bittersweet couple of days. At the end of the first packing day I stood at the window and watched the planes fly over in formation, practicing for the Bastille Day celebration that would be happening the day after we left. It felt like a little “au revoir” present from France.
So now the container is on the Atlantic. I picture it floating gently on calm seas, bringing my favorite earthly belongings back home to Texas. After watching those guys pack it all up, I am confident that all will arrive in good shape. The Paris dust will eventually be wiped off of all the furniture, although some of the fabrics will no doubt retain some remnants of the dirt that blew in our open windows. That seems fitting, as Paris will linger in our hearts and memories forever.
We made the most of our final weeks in and around Paris, and I will be sharing that with you soon. But probably not too soon, as we leave Tuesday for Vancouver and a cruise to Anchorage, with a few days in Seattle at the back end. I won’t be taking my computer, but I will be posting photos on Facebook and Instagram, so don’t be a stranger!
Stay cool out there.
Mais Oui Paris 