The following day

I looked out the window this morning and saw hundreds of schoolkids walking down the street to board 2 buses. I suppose they were going on a field trip. They were so cute all bundled up in their coats and hats and mittens. There is no doubt I will miss the daily laughter and chatter of schoolkids.

So we met Mdme Helleport at 9:00 am prompty. She laughs about "French time" vs. "American time". The French don't take time as seriously as we Americans do, but Mdme is quite different - more on that later. We met at the bank. Evidently, one doesn't just walk into a bank in France and open an account. Imagine the dialog WE would have....
"You want to open an account. What is your address?" answer: "I don't have one."
"Do you live in France?" answer: "no"
"Do you work here?" answer: "well no, not yet"
"Do you have any Euros to deposit in our bank?" answer: "no, I really don't"

So thanks to Mdme Helleport, we now have a bank account. Mdme is Belgian and has lived all over the world. She lived in India, South Africa, UAE, (and someplace in N. Africa - can't remember..), Paris, and now Lyon. She has a unique understanding of the details involved in an international move. She took us to meet with a banker who specializes in expatriate banking. We would never have known about this on our own. Thank you Mdme.