Moving out

Our movers arrived yesterday to pack us out for our move overseas. We were pretty well organized upon their arrival, with furniture and belongings marked "Store", "Ship", "Air" and "Stay". All our luggage that we will have for the next three weeks before our arrival in Stavanger was also separated out.

It took only one day to pack everything in boxes. Then today the movers were back and loaded the truck with everything that will stay in storage for the next however-long-we-are-there. Tomorrow our shipping container arrives and the "Ship" stuff will be loaded. Finally, the "Air" stuff will go on the truck to be taken for final prep and sending. It will hopefully arrive in Stavanger about the same time we do.

We moved into the hotel last night. Sidney went to school today and promptly notified everyone we slept at the hotel (very nonchalantly - this kid is travel-wise!)

We took Alex to his new home this evening. We will take the fish over tomorrow evening and see how Alex did his first night there. It is very sad to us to leave this member of our family behind after 14 years of companionship and loyalty. He will be with a friend, so at least we can get updates. Had timing been different and allowed for the time to get his rabies titers, etc., we may have taken him, but there is the consideration of his age and ability to handle the long flight.

On a happier note, we will be flying down to Houston next week for our ex-pat orientation. We look forward to seeing a few friends in the area one last time during our very short visit, but unfortunately will only have one night to do so. We wish we could see you all!

So where is Stavanger?

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So many people have asked about where the city is, I added this map. Stavanger lies on the interior portion of a peninsula in Southwest Norway. It is the fourth largest city in Norway. The population is around 285,000 and is made up of many ex-pats (due to the oil industry) and native Norwegians.

Also located on the peninsula are Sandnes (to the south of Stavanger) and Sola (on the exterior portion of the peninsula along the North Sea. Hinna (the place where our apartment is located) lies between Stavanger and Sandnes. The Google Earth view shows the soccer stadium as a "work in progress", but pictures imbedded in the Google Earth view of the area show what things look like now, including our building.

We found a place!

After looking for a few days in Stavanger, then placing an offer (you actually can "negotiate" rent there), our offer was accepted for the apartment in these pictures.
As you can see, the view is SPECTACULAR. We are on the 7th floor, overlooking the fjord and mountains to the front and the Stavanger Vikings Soccer Stadium and practice field to the back. It is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath with a living room/dining room, family room, kitchen and two fireplaces. The complex also has additional bedrooms for rent if we need them for guests (nicer and cheaper than a hotel in town.) The train stop is right beside the stadium and takes 7 minutes to go directly to Stavanger city center. It is 10 minutes from Sidney's school, and has lots of playgrounds around it. It is also about a 5 minute walk to Vaulen Beach, a popular public beach, which is also visible from our front balcony. As you can tell, we are pretty excited!

Our visit to Sidney's new school was also good. She will start preschool probably in May, then go into the Reception class (roughly equivalent to Kindergarten) in August. The kids in the reception class are actually writing sentences currently, and they are only 6 months into the school year! I am sure Sidney is going to soak all this up like a sponge.

There is so much I could tell about our week there, but more will follow. We are getting things ready on this end to pack, travel, etc. We plan on leaving Findlay on April 8th, visit with the family in Germany over the Easter holiday, then arrive in Stavanger on April 14th. We will be in a furnished temporary apartment until our belongings arrive, which we hope will be around May 1st.

More updates and info to come!