The Penners

We're professors and we’ve had 5 very successful exchanges—Padua, Italy in 2004, Newlyn (Cornwall), UK in 2003, Hanover, Germany in 2001, Neuchâtel, Switzerland in 2000, Shoreham-by-the-Sea, UK in 1999. We’ve arranged an exchange over the Christmas holidays this year in Sydney, Australia.

We want to find an exchange in Montreal, Candada, for the summer of 2007. Our holiday preference is to begin an exchange between approximately from the last week in July through August 16-17, negotiable – Maurice has a conference in Montreal August 11-14 he wants to be sure to attend. Otherwise the dates are somewhat negotiable depending on your vacation plans. We prefer to use public transportation so would want to be within 15 minutes walking distance of a bus, train or subway system.

We live in Emeryville, CA, very close and with public transportation (15 minutes) to San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley. Our home is a condominium facing the San Francisco Bay, in a very safe and friendly community. There are 2 heated swimming pools, 2 hot tubs, tennis and gym, all free, within easy walking distance. A grocery store is also within a few minutes’ walk. We will have a neighbor stop by and show you how to find the laundry (upstairs, elevator available) and answer questions. We will scan a few pictures of our home to post or e-mail to you upon request. The Visitor’s Guide to Emeryville is at: http://www.ci.emeryville.ca.us/visitorsguide.html

Children are welcome, but if 3-4 people are coming, we have only one bedroom. However, we have a living room sofa that converts to a double bed, and a futon mattress. We have 2 full bathrooms. Our apartment is all-electric and easy to maintain. We leave instructions and phone numbers for reference.

Our own needs are fairly simple—a bedroom, bathroom and kitchen, in a reasonably safe neighborhood located near public transportation. We enjoy cooking so will want to find grocery stores in the area if possible.

We would appreciate you watering plants on our deck once a week, but we can arrange for someone else to do so if necessary. You will see egrets, gulls, ducks and the occasional pelican in our “back yard,” but you don’t need to care for them. We will discuss any needs you have for the care of houseplants, garden or pets.

Our insurance company does not cover exchanging automobiles, but we can give you detailed information on car rentals and will leave guidebooks and maps for your reference. We do not exchange computers, as ours is not working well and might crash.

Please let us know if you want more information or if you have any questions.

Susan & Maury (Maurice) Penner