Janine Marsh, journalist - has written for numerous magazines and newspapers. A complete Francophile who now concentrates on writing about France and all things French.
After reading Mark Greenside’s first and extremely entertaining book, ‘I’ll Never Be French (No Matter What I do): Living in a Small Village in Brittany, I couldn’t wait to start this one, and I was not disappointed! The first book tells how in 1991 a reluctant Mark agrees to visit Brittany with a girlfriend, and […]
Girton, Cambridge. Nice house, good jobs, lovely friends. The most frequent question I’m asked is, ‘Why did you leave the UK?’ The most honest answer is that we left because we could. I mean, why not? We were happy in Girton, but sometimes it’s a case of wanting to do something different, something a little […]
Patricia Sands, the author of the Love in Provence series returns to the South of France with a poignant portrait of a woman who must learn how to create a new life for herself… Sixty-two-year-old Arianna arrives in the South of France for a two-week artists’ workshop full of anticipation but burdened by guilt. Back […]
Bonjour Here in France we’ve been through a bit of a cold spell the last week. Even in the normally not too frosty south, my friends have been complaining of below zero temperatures. I quite like it when it’s cold out. After several years here, I’ve got the hang of making sure there’s enough wood […]
The French celebrate Christmas on the evening of the 24th of December when ‘Père Noël’ leaves gifts for good children in shoes beneath the tree. Start with a champagne aperitif with nibbles or amuse bouches (literally nibbles that amuse the mouth). Then the serious task of feasting commences. There are usually several (sometimes as many […]
Jonathan Fenby provides an expert and riveting journey through he history of France from First Revolution through two others, a return of Empire, catastrophic wars and period of stability and hope. “The definitive guide to understanding France”. With the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815, the next two centuries […]
French Expressions in every day use In this video, there are some sentences that the French really use in everyday life. These are typically French expressions that you’ll hear in friendly conversations, in the streets and cafés. Use them and people will immediately think you’ve been living in France for years! Learn how to use expressions […]
Today the sun has been shining all day long and summer feels like it is well and truly here. I’ve been out and about in St Omer and nearby villages in the Nord-Pas de Calais region in the far north of France. I visited a boulangerie with an award winning baker who makes the most […]
Bonjour from France! The big news this week has been the announcement of the winners in our spring 2014 writing competition. We were amazed to receive 104 entries from all around the world and the standard was incredibly high. Authors Susie Kelly, Kimberley Petyt, Deborah Lawrenson, Patricia Sands, Julia Stagg and author/publisher Stephanie Zia had […]
Complete list of public holidays France 2014 – both fixed and changeable date bank holidays. There are a number of fixed public holidays (bank holidays) each year. They are fixed to a specific date regardless of whether it falls on a weekday or weekend. This is different from some countries where a public holiday falling […]
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Sur le Pont d’Avignon L’on y danse, l’on y danse Sur le Pont d’Avignon L’on y danse tous en rond Many of us learned that song as kids, about the famous Pont d’Avignon in Provence (real name: Pont Saint-Bénézet). For those of us lucky enough to visit Avignon and see the bridge in all its […]
I love all my animals, five cats, three dogs, four geese, 13 ducks and 25 chickens. They’re part of the family though the birds don’t live in the house with us. At least not permanently. When they’re a bit poorly, I’ll bring them in for some TLC until they’re well enough to go out. Sometimes […]
I live part of the year in Provence and one day I was reading Le Monde and a headline about a “sexy politician” caught my eye. “Well, those are two words you don’t see together very often,” I thought. So I read the article and found out that there had been a poll asking French […]
It was lunchtime in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés area of Paris, and I was ravenous looking for a place to eat away from the usual tourist traps. I turned down a quiet street and saw the most unassuming bistro. In fact, I wouldn’t usually have considered going in but I decided to take a chance. As soon […]
Catharism has been described as “the most successful heresy in history”. In Languedoc, “Pays Cathare” signs dot the countryside. One cannot drive far in any direction without coming upon the ruins of a Cathar fortress. Who were the Cathars? “Cathar” is allegedly derived from the Greek word, katharos, meaning “pure”. The Cathars were also known […]
The people of Provence have been raising sheep for centuries. You see flocks of them all over the countryside, grazing under the watchful eye of shepherds. But Provencal summers are scorching hot and sheep have heavy wool coats so they’re moved to cooler pastures. The transhumance in Provence The answer to dealing with the heat, […]
There have been many famous families in history. Take the Curies, for example: Marie Curie won two Nobel Prizes and her husband, daughter and grandson each won one. Quite the talented family! And then there are the Wright brothers and the Brontë sisters. And let’s not forget those comic masters, the Marx brothers. But imagine […]
“They are NOT babies, they are chickens” remonstrated my French neighbour Jean-Claude. He had come to inspect the eight point of lay hens and two “babies” with which I had returned from the local street market. “I’m going to call that scrawny baby one Eaglet” I said “Non, non, non” came the emphatic response “You […]
