French life & expat France

Hints for avoiding French telephone salesmen

Boris — Tue, 22 May 2012 05:27:23 +0000

In France it is important not to actually answer the phone when it rings because you will then spend half an hour trying to evade a pushy salesman who wants to sell you photovoltaic panels or a computer voice that wants to tell your fortune. It is much better to have an answering machine deal [...]

Wild Swimming France – a book review

Boris — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:18:36 +0000

I have been asked to review a book called ‘Wild Swimming France’. Happily it was a pleasure. Without spoiling the conclusion I can tell you straight away that is going to be an indispensable addition to the books I take with me when I go away, and you should rush out straightaway and buy it [...]

Websites – and facebook, google plus, twitter…

Boris — Mon, 14 May 2012 08:00:49 +0000

Anyone who has a website – for their gite or any other business – will know that this years buzzword is ‘social’. If your website doesn’t have a community, we are told, you must just as well pack up bags and go home. Of course, it’s not true – although google and the other search [...]

Welcome to socialist france

Boris — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:42:12 +0000

What exciting times we live in! Due to a curious set of circumstances which involved Sarkozy making himself as unloved as possible by as many people as possible over the course of the last five years M. Hollande now gets the chance to try running the country for a few years. We wish him bonne [...]

Yes, April is the cruellest month

Boris — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:26:14 +0000

Or so TS Eliot said*, and it seems likely he was thinking of me sorting out our garden today. Having at last got the gites flood free and re-decorated in time for the first arrivals on Saturday it is time to turn our attention to the garden. I say ‘our’ although Mrs B has sneaked [...]

Plumbing your French house for winter

Boris — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 16:12:41 +0000

Since the big freeze a couple of months ago we have had various plumbing problems (mostly leaks) come to light – partly because I’m an idiot and partly because of poor plumbing. I’ll share their causes in the hope that someone else can avoid some of the same problems… As a little background, the house [...]

Getting ready for gite guests 2012

Boris — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:46:56 +0000

This year it was all supposed to be different. We planned ahead, I even wrote out a project plan, that would ensure we wouldn’t get to the point where we are only a couple of weeks from gite season and have too many jobs left to do. As every year the reality is different, and [...]

When to visit France – and where to go?

Boris — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 11:14:58 +0000

Having just spent a very pleasant week in and around Menton it is clear that some places are lovely at one time of the year – but at other times would be intolerably crowded, a traffic and parking nightmare, or have weather that would keep you inside all week. But lots of people need or [...]

Medieval reenactments

Boris — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 17:15:20 +0000

Did you know Menton (near Nice in south east France) claims to have 316 cloudless days a year? Now that is a lot of sunshine. I’ve been here three days now, most of which I have spent staring at the sky in the hope of seeing at least something small and fluffy to prove them [...]

Replacing a rather horrible wall

Boris — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 12:31:26 +0000

When we first arrived in France our house was lacking pretty much everything, including bathrooms, so you won’t be surprised to know that getting a sink and toilet fitted was something of a priority. We quickly got various plumbers around and discussed our grand plans for en-suites here and power showers there – typically to [...]