It's a dream come true - move to Paris, live "la vie en rose" in a quaint Parisian apartment, shop the outdoor markets and roam the brocantes, searching for the perfect piece of furniture or light fixture for your pied à terre." HA! The reality is quite different.
When we first arrived the relocation company put us in a temporary apartment - the location was great, just down the street was the Eiffel Tower, my husband's commute to the office was just 30 minutes and the girls' school was only 20 minutes away by walking or 10 minutes by Metro. All good - EXCEPT… it was tiny - tiny kitchen, tiny living room, tiny bathrooms, only 3 tiny bedrooms and one toilet for the 5 of us! This just didn't work for us.
So I started searching for an apartment and without help from the relocation company - because in August EVERYONE goes on vacation! And August is not exactly the best time to look for an apartment either because EVERYONE goes on vacation!
When we first arrived the relocation company put us in a temporary apartment - the location was great, just down the street was the Eiffel Tower, my husband's commute to the office was just 30 minutes and the girls' school was only 20 minutes away by walking or 10 minutes by Metro. All good - EXCEPT… it was tiny - tiny kitchen, tiny living room, tiny bathrooms, only 3 tiny bedrooms and one toilet for the 5 of us! This just didn't work for us.
So I started searching for an apartment and without help from the relocation company - because in August EVERYONE goes on vacation! And August is not exactly the best time to look for an apartment either because EVERYONE goes on vacation!
After a crash course in real estate lingo "en Français," some frantic footwork, hours of internet searching and a few arguments with the spouse, I found an apartment that we thought would meet our needs - it had four bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and a fully equipped American style kitchen - move in ready!
But I forgot about a few things - or didn't realize the potential for problems! The first big issue was that the common area of the apartment was only one big room - for all 5 of us! We didn't think about how much time is spent in the living room or how small a room can get with 3 adolescent girls! The other issue pertained to laundry - see the picture up above? Notice the washer and dryer - LOCATED IN THE KITCHEN?! Now imagine the piles and piles and piles of dirty laundry that 5 people can generate - despite repeated pleas to wear clothes until they smell or show dirt! And then try to imagine cooking with the piles of laundry on the floor. And here's an interesting fact - the washers and dryers here are high efficiency but take FOREVER. I mean like an hour for washing and 2 1/2 hours for drying - ONE LOAD!
Needless to say these two problems caused some major fights, headaches and general unhappiness in our house. Finally we just couldn't take it anymore. We had to move - again.
Back to the real estate search - but this time I had a plan, a goal, a vision in mind. We had been to several other friends' apartments and knew a lot more about the types of apartments and what to expect and what was possible. I made a wish list - what I thought the ideal apartment in Paris should have. If you are going to do this, then do it right! Ask for it all because you just might get it!
Needless to say these two problems caused some major fights, headaches and general unhappiness in our house. Finally we just couldn't take it anymore. We had to move - again.
Back to the real estate search - but this time I had a plan, a goal, a vision in mind. We had been to several other friends' apartments and knew a lot more about the types of apartments and what to expect and what was possible. I made a wish list - what I thought the ideal apartment in Paris should have. If you are going to do this, then do it right! Ask for it all because you just might get it!
The Paris Apartment of my dreams:
| How close did I get to fulfilling all of the items on this list? Pretty close. How many apartments did I look at? I saw between 15-20 listings. How did I do that? Well that is a funny story and I will tell you about the crazy Paris real estate search next time. |