2014: Year of Change

As we bid farwell to 2014 and welcome 2015, I, like the rest of the wolrd reminesce on what happened last year, and wonder what (hopefully good) things the new year will bring.

2014 was a year of massive change for our family. When it started, never did we suspect it would mean:

• New job for BabelDad.
• New job for me.
• New country, language, culture in the landlocked, yet huge melting pot, island that is Switzerland.
• Saying goodbye to dear friends that we made these last ten years in the North of England.
• Saying goodbye to our lovely house.
• Saying goodbye to our dream of going back to the South of France.
• Getting one sea nearer our families.
• And last but not least, new pregnancy with BK4 expected in February this year.

So here's to warm memories and new adventures!

Happy new year! Bonne année! Gutes Neues Jahr! عام سعيد

Your family or mine?

Earth-shattering news: Prince William will spend Christmas with his wife's family!

One of the advantages of being from two different and distinct cultures is the absence of conflict on where to spend the holidays. No dilemma over whether to spend Christmas or Eid with the wife's or husband's family.
Also, when we are either in Algeria or Germany, there is no taking turns for the grandparents to see their grandchildren. We all stay in the same house, and have no rule over how often to visit the in-laws.

An Algerian friend of mine and her Algerian husband live in Canada with their young children. Every two years, they visit Algeria for a respectable six-week period. In order to satisfy everyone, the woman stays four days with her husband and his family, then takes her children and goes to stay with her own family for the remaining three days. And so on every week. She actually goes straight to her husband's family from the airport. I would personally find this hard, as the only thing I have in mind as soon as the plane lands is to see the faces of my beloved parents waiting for us at the airport.

There are some strong traditions in algeria, whereby a married woman "belongs" to her husband's family. It is not uncommon for a man to marry in Algeria, only to move abroad for work soon after the wedding, and the woman stay with his parent, even though her own family live nearby.

If Prince William had married someone from a completely different background, he would have totally avoided the dilemma of whether to spend Christmas with the Queen or with the Middletons. Mind you, I can think of worse dilemmas to have.

Paris

We spent our half term holidays in Paris, with my sister. her husband, her two children and my visiting parents. We had a great time with my family.

Ages ago, I lived in Paris for 8 months. I fled what I considered its dreary weather for sunny south of France.
Eight years and a half later in the North of England, and I now think Parisian weather is lovely...

Our week in Paris offered the girls a double immersion in Arabic and French. BK1 is increasingly confident while reading French books.
We also stocked up on French resources. I went to a brocante, and got loads of books and dvd's in French for a mere 40 euros.

I am glad we managed to fulfill BK1's wish to climb the Eiffel Tower. Paris, on a windy and sunny day, fabulous!