Au revoir, austin. au revoir, usa.
The Roamers are ready to fly.
Welp, we have finally arrived at this time: tomorrow is my retirement day, and in two days we are moving to Montpellier, France. Permanently. Here’s how we’re feeling: yikes/omg/can’twait/tummybutterflies/WOW!!! I’ve been counting down the days to retirement for almost a year, and it’s very odd to see “1 jour” on my phone countdown clock (I changed my phone to French to help with language skills).
We’ve really enjoyed our time in Austin. We love this city and have had fun exploring three different neighborhoods in our three Airbnb stays here. Now we’re in a hotel (yes, we’re doing three different hotels for our last three nights) enjoying a coffee before heading out to do last-minute errands. Here are some of the wonderful Austin sights we’ve enjoyed over the last couple of weeks.
Gender diversity inspiration
Unique Austin dog business
Austin cowgirl
Elvis shrine at the original Chuy’s
Our last weekend in Austin was the best! Our dear friends Joni and her new husband Scott came from Dallas for the weekend, staying in the apartment just below our too-small Airbnb. And dear California friends Carmen and Michael made the trip to Austin just to see us again before we leave (they also visited us in Denver when we were there). Joni and Scott arrived Thursday evening just in time for dinner.
Special bottle of wine from friends Paul and Jordan–wonderful!
The next day Joni and I did a little shopping in the SoCo district, and I found something for granddaughter Cora.
That evening Carmen and Michael arrived, and we enjoyed a feast on our Airbnb’s balcony. It was warm when we started, but we ended the evening wrapped in blankies!
Our wonderful friends. How did we get so lucky?
Joni and Scott brought their dog Yogi, who was a hit with this crowd. He is, of course, very photogenic.
Yogi being the center of attention
The next couple of days were spent walking, dining (mostly outdoors because Omicron), and basking in our friendships. Oh, and there may have been some adult beverages involved.
Joni at the sculpture garden
Carmen and Michael smooching at Z’Tejas
We finally had to say “a bientot” to these fabulous people, but they left with plans for their first visit to Montpellier. Our hope is that we have to keep a calendar just to keep track of many visits from friends and family!
And now we have a busy couple of days: final haircut and pedicure for me, a stop at our kids’ house to drop off/pick up things, shipping my company laptop, a couple of final work calls, COVID tests for flying, a final checklist to make sure we haven’t forgotten anything important, and on Friday evening a virtual sendoff from my colleagues. We leave Austin, and the U.S., with gratitude, and we’ll enter France with excitement and a sense of adventure. I will continue with this blog, which has been great fun for me (and I hope for you!) over the past two years. So, until my first post from our new home in France, à bientot!
Gratitude