Further settling in

Nothing big to report, just further settling into our new apartment, city, and life. Today is one of our two anniversaries, this is the "legal" one, 11 years ago at the Fluvanna County Courthouse, but we really date our relationship as 29 years old. We are going out to eat this evening at a place that is out of our normal price range. That's how old folks celebrate. 

We got two rugs delivered today and they look nice. I think we'll be getting a few more from the same company. It's making our apartment looked more lived in. We've also purchased a printer and have a bunch more stuff being delivered from |IKEA on Friday. We've finally worked out an organization system for the closets so we know where to find things. All the suitcases are empty and stored away but we still have a few more things to bring over from the old apartment. We are beginning to get the kitchen stocked and doing a little bit of cooking at home. 

Bailey continues to demonstrably earn and establish her title as the Most Fun Dog at the dog park. Today we walked in and found probably seven dogs just standing around with their owners doing nothing. She had them all running within the first two minutes and everyone had a good time. She's still spooky about city traffic and sounds, but our new place is only four blocks from the park and it's a pretty quiet, low-stress walk to get there, at least most of the time. I take her out early in the morning to poop and pee and then we go out for a long walk and dog park visit in the afternoons when I'm home from class.

We went to an afternoon concert at the opera house this week. It was weird, discordant music and people were laying on mats on the floor throughout (we sat on a long bench on the side of the room). It's something the new opera director is trying and they had a good turnout for it. We went mostly for the experience and to see the inside of the opera house, although we still haven't been in the central theatre part. This was part of a series of concerts they are doing and we have tickets for at least one more. We'll see actual opera there at some point as well.

We went to the Lille Street Food Festival last weekend, lots of food trucks and breweries. It was nice.

She has really been enjoying walks on the long line through some of the open fields in the park.

It gives her the chance to roll in the grass and hunt small creatures like she used to do in our pasture.

A quiet time at the dog park.

Cementing her title as Most Fun Dog.

The kitchen is very small but functional. The refridgerator (on the left) is huge by European standards.

The empty space under the counter is where a dishwasher could/should go, but after buying the refrigerator, washer, and dryer, we decided to wait on a dishwasher.

My only real cooking so far as been breakfast dishes, above and below, and I only have time for that on weekends. 

A few shots from the concert at the opera house this week.

This is a side room, outside the main central theater. 

Those laying on mats on the floor could stare at the ceiling, which was better than the music.

A piano, cello, clarinet, flute, and violin. The group calls itself dissonArt and makes strange sounds on their instruments. 

Bailey, leading the chase

Queen of the hill, and Most Fun Dog

I can't say that she's loving city life, but we are finding ways to make it fun, and she's more attached to me than ever. 

Proof of (good) citizenship

Bailey has been registered with France and has her own passport already, but yesterday we received another certificate for her — the Canine Good Citizen Certificate. Bailey had taken and passed the test before we left the states. I can confidently state that her good citizen skills have improved during her time here. Initially I was very hesitant and cautious about taking her to the dog park, but she has proven herself to not only a good canine citizen, but also Most Fun Dog. 

A lot of the dogs who come into the dog park don't seem to know how to play. Bailey tries with every one of them but backs off if they aren't interested. The other day we hit upon a good play group and she led five or six of them in a chase around the park. The other owners seemed very happy to see their dogs run and play. A lot of the dogs that come there are puppies and she's good with them too. She still meets new dogs with her hackles up, which I'm not crazy about, but we are seeing less of that and a faster transition into play mode. Yesterday a woman was there with her pup, a five month old long-haired Weimaraner. Bailey got her dog to play and she remarked about what a nice dog Bailey was. That made my day.

Not all of the fun dogs come into the dog park. There is a big open field near the dog park and many folks just let their dogs play there, often off leash. I'm not prepared to go off leash with her but I bought a 20 meter long line and I tried her out there with that attached to a harness. There were no dogs around at that time but she enjoyed being off leash in the open space and rolling in the grass.

Like any proud parents we put her certificate on the mantle over the fireplace. 

Checking in

My last blog post was 15 days ago. I haven't gone that long without posting something probably since the first year of my blog. Everything is fine but we've been busy. It hasn't all been fun stuff, much of it not worthy of mention, but it's all been mostly good. 

The language class, five days a week, three hours a day is kicking my butt. I haven't had that much time of a scheduled, must-do activity in many years. Even when I was working my schedule was very flexible and I flexed the hell out of it. Now I have to be somewhere at 9:30 a.m. every morning. And before that I have to get Bailey out for a morning walk and make breakfast. It has me yearning for the weekend in a way I haven't done in years. The class is necessary and we're almost at the halfway point. I won't be more than a very beginner even when it's over, but I'm going to pursue less structured learning for the next stage.

We've moved to our new apartment effective a couple days ago. There's still some things at our old place that we need to move, but most things are here and we are getting settled, stocking the refrigerator, and that sort of thing. There's still stuff we need to get but we have enough to be a functioning household now. This move has been accomplished by Clay almost exclusively. In addition to finding the place he has dealt with getting utilities turned on, moving our stuff, waiting for furniture and appliance deliveries, and assembling the same. Everything is working now and we moved in shortly after the Wi-fi was functioning. 

Our house in Virginia has sold! The final closing happened either Monday or Tuesday, and it's no longer ours. There were problems that kept popping up right up to the end (inspection, septic, failed water test, etc.) but thankfully it's all been resolved. It's nice to not be a home owner.

Just as I was beginning to recover from my cold, Clay came down with it. It has also made the rounds of my language class. I don't know that they all got it from me, but I'm sure Clay did. Clay and I are both better now, but some in my class are still dealing with it. 

Bailey is doing well. She handled the move very well, although we still haven't left her home alone at the new place. We are closer to the park now but further from a nearby green space for early morning and late night outings. She's still freakishly scared of normal city things like cars, trucks, bikes, motorcycles, scooters, and e-bikes. It is a lot and it often seems like things are coming from all directions, mostly because they are. And yet the city is full of happy, confident, seemingly fearless dogs, including an alarming number of them being walked off leash. Bailey has recovered from the traumatic experience that was the Braderie, but she still has a long way to go. For now the Citadelle remains her favorite walking place (and mine too) and she really enjoys the dog park. She's great with all the dogs in the dog park, most of which seem to be smaller and aren't deemed to be worthy playmates. But she's found some who can give her a good run and she's been good with all we've encountered, both in the dog park and on walks, even those who are off-leash.

The front of our new residence, from the courtyard inside the front entry gate. Our rooms are on the left half of the building, on the second floor. 

Some fun dog park pics.

Bailey will "up" on anything I ask of her and she now makes a habit of jumping up and walking along the many downed trees that line many of the paths at the Citadelle. 

A narrow alleyway that we pass on our walk to the park. I love these and some are actually streets.

There's been quite a few crocuses in bloom. I'm sure they will be many more in the spring.

A couple weeks ago was the heritage weekend in France, where a lot of historic places, but public and private, are open to the public for tours. We took in three of them, including the Chamber of Commerce building in Lille, where these pictures were taken. 

I had to look at this closely to determine that it was a tapestry, not a painting.

The white fleur-de-lys on a red background is the symbol of Lille.

Bailey has one on her collar. 

We saw this red marble in several places on the tour, and there's some in our new place too.

More from the dog park.

On point for a squirrel on the other side of that fence.

Leading the chase at the Cani Parc.

Queen of the hill.

She comes and lays down near me when there's nothing fun happening.

This is the view of the upper part of the front gate at our new place, from inside the courtyard.

This is the Quai de Wault. It's a remanent of the canal system that was once quite extensive throughout Lille. There is still the main canal but the small bits that went into the neighborhoods are mostly gone, having become silted in heavy polluted and finally just filled in and paved over. This bit remains and it's on our four block walk to the park from our new place. This shot was yesterday evening and the picture below was from this morning. The water is clean enough to swim in although it's not generally allowed.