It was only two years ago that we bought our house in France so that we’d have a home-base to go to from Africa that was a bit closer to Congo than Canada was. I’ll never forget my Dad’s reaction,…
That Time I Got Malaria in Africa
Palu. That’s what they call it here. In French, malaria is referred to as le paludisme, or palu for short. Where I originally come from, it’s not a word that’s even in your vocabulary unless you’re on your way to…
Namibia: Things to Know Before You Go
A few years ago my husband suggested we go to Namibia on holiday. Having Africa nowhere on my radar at the time, my first question was, “Is it safe?” I really knew nothing about Namibia at all. We started to…
South Africa: The Must-See Highlights
Our recent trip to Cape Town was a once in a life time adventure. Access to flights made it a bit tricky for us to get there, but we knew it was somewhere we needed to visit while living in…
Third Culture Kid. What’s That?
You may have heard me talk about third culture kids, or maybe you’ve wondered why I sometimes add #tck to my Instagram posts. Before I was in the expat circle, and became a parent abroad, I’d never even heard the…
Why I Will NOT Take a Year-Long Family Trip Around the World
Last summer my husband and I were talking about what our ‘game plan’ was going to be. We talked about where we wanted to end up in five years, and what we want for the kids in our future. Deep,…
How to Lay Over in Ethiopia Like a Boss
If someone would have told my younger-self that I’d one day bring my family to Ethiopia, I’d have said they were wrong. I knew nothing of the country, aside from what I’d see on North American TV, which didn’t always…
Love yourself.
Preface I’ve come to learn that people can take on different personalities when they are operating in another language. This is true for many bilingual people I’ve met, and very true for myself. I’ve spent the last eight years either…
Why I (Still) Blog
It’s kind of hard to believe I’ve been hacking away at these keys for almost three years now! When I starting blogging I had very few expectations of where my blog would end up or what it would mean to…
It Takes a Compound to Raise a Child. How Ironic.
If you look at it the right way, irony has a great sense of humour. Before we left on vacation in December, I had been in Congo since August. It was easily a record for me, who usually leaves for…