I’m going to leave that question largely unanswered at this stage. For now, let’s clarify some of the things that we will not be doing.

First, we will not be working while in France. Thanks to baby Nick’s arrival five months ago, Jennie was going to be out of the workforce on parental leave anyway. Stephen is going to use up his annual leave then will also be on parental leave for the rest of the trip.

Second, we will not be travelling much. Oliver and Tomos will be at the local school for the whole of the school term leading up to the main summer holiday. So our holidaying will probably be limited to the first week or so after arrival, when we will be tourists in Paris and the Loire Valley, one or two long weekend trips in the region, and the final week or two before heading home to New Zealand in July.

I plan to give in later posts more specific answers to the question of what we’ll be doing.