Thomas and I have learned a very expensive lesson. You cannot just buy a plug adapter so US plugs fit French outlets and expect US purchased appliances to work in France since most US appliances run only on 110 volts. Before plugging anything in ... in fact before packing it up and shipping it over, it is best to check that electronics will be able to work on France's 220 Volt electric system. Thankfully most laptops can work on voltages between 100-240V. I had no fear of ruining my new Toshiba laptop by plugging it in here in France. Unfortunately, we were not so lucky with our not-even-a-year-old Dyson vacuum cleaner. We even bought a voltage converter for it. But as soon as we plugged in the Dyson into the converter and then the converter into the French outlet we heard a small thud. This was either the fuse blowing, the Dyson crapping out on us, or both. A quick google search (which we should have done back in the States) led us to believe that even with a converter, the Dyson is not going to work or at best the motor will wear out before long. Same story with our fancy schmancy Cuisinart coffee maker. Lesson learned this week - check voltage requirements, and leave incompatible electronics at home.
On a happy note, we are getting a free car from some one who is leaving the organization and heading back to the States. He also received the car for free, so now he is just paying it forward. It's a 1997 Nissan Primera. It's old, but it's clean. And, it functions. Having a car should make grocery shopping easier. Sometimes we have to make two trips into the center of town because we can't fit everything in our shopping caddy and shopping baskets. We are also looking forward to some weekend road trips!