Category Archives: French life

How Does Voting Take Place in France?

Posted on 26/05/2019 by nessafrance

For people like me who are not French citizens, voting here is a rare event, confined to the municipal elections (every six years) and the European elections (every five). The last time I voted was in March 2014, for the … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Top tips | Tagged European elections, European Union, SW France, voting in France | 8 Comments

The Life of an Agricultural Labourer in France in 1900

Posted on 17/05/2019 by nessafrance

Originally posted on Vanessa Couchman:
Market place in Villefranche-de-Rouergue, which had several large monthly agricultural fairs at one time. The fountains are a 21st century addition. At the turn of the 20th century, the world of agricultural labour in France…

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Emma Calvé: Forgotten Singing Star of the Belle Epoque

Posted on 18/04/2019 by nessafrance

Originally posted on Vanessa Couchman:
?Emma Calvé, Wikimedia Commons, SIP 89-12, by Reutlinger Have you heard of Emma Calvé? I hadn’t, until I read about her in a French novel. However, she was one of the brightest stars of her…

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Clock This

Posted on 31/03/2019 by nessafrance

I hope you remembered to put your clocks forward last night if you’re in Europe, otherwise you’ll be a bit behind everyone else. We posted reminders throughout the house so that we wouldn’t forget, but there’s always at least one … Continue reading →

Posted in French life | Tagged Daylight Saving Time, European Union, summertime, SW France, Time zones, wintertime, World War II | 7 Comments

New Technology Lands on La Lune

Posted on 17/02/2019 by nessafrance

Life on La Lune passed its 9th birthday last week on 14th February. A few things have changed since then, not least our ability to access the internet. When I published my first post (the present one is the 628th), we … Continue reading →

Posted in French life | Tagged Broadband connection in France, French rural areas, high-speed internet, Internet, Life on La Lune, SW France | 14 Comments

French Christmas Quiz 2018: the Answers

Posted on 30/12/2018 by nessafrance

I hope you had a lovely Christmas if you celebrate it. How did you get on with the quiz? Now is the time of reckoning. The answers are below. And there were a couple of trick questions, but if you’ve … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Quiz | Tagged Facts about France, France, French Christmas quiz, French culture, Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz | 3 Comments

French Christmas Quiz 2018

Posted on 23/12/2018 by nessafrance

A very happy Festive Season to all my readers. Thank you for reading the blog this year and for your stimulating comments and emails. Welcome to the 2018 – and 8th – Edition of the Life on La Lune French … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Quiz | Tagged Facts about France, France, French Christmas quiz, French culture, Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz | 6 Comments

Ma Vie Française #8: Chris Bockman, Sniffing Out News Stories in SW France

Posted on 09/12/2018 by nessafrance

There’s been a slight hiatus in posting, as I’ve been dealing with some family health issues. However, this week, I’m delighted to bring you another interview in the Ma Vie Française series. Chris Bockman has been keeping his finger on … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Personalities | Tagged Are You the Foie Gras Correspondent?, broadcast journalism, Chris Bockman, French society, quirky news stories, SW France, Toulouse | 4 Comments

Rentrée Time

Posted on 02/09/2018 by nessafrance

Here we are in September again. How did that happen? Surely Easter was only last week. Actually, I don’t mind. This is my favourite month of the year, perhaps because I was born in September (cards and presents welcome). We … Continue reading →

Posted in Customs, French life | Tagged autumn, la rentrée, la rentrée politique, la rentrée scolaire, summer, Summer holidays, SW France | 6 Comments

Ma Vie Française #6: Author Jane Dunning

Posted on 19/08/2018 by nessafrance

Today, I continue my occasional series of interviews with people who have made their life in France or who have a particular attachment to it. Jane Dunning’s love affair with France began in earnest in the 1990s and she has … Continue reading →

Posted in Books/writing, French life, Ma Vie Française Interviews | Tagged France, house-sitting, Jane Dunning, novels set in France, Provence, Stolen Summer, Thirty-five Minutes from St Tropez | 24 Comments

British, French or Irish? Or all Three?

Posted on 13/08/2018 by nessafrance

I don’t write about politics on this blog. Of course, I have my views, but I generally keep them to myself. So I haven’t mentioned the ‘B’ word (okay, Brexit) in my posts so far. However, I can’t ignore it … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Rants | Tagged Brexit, Carte de séjour, European Union, French citizenship, implications of Brexit, Irish citizenship, SW France | 37 Comments

A Local WWII Resistance Group: Update

Posted on 05/08/2018 by nessafrance

Today, the causse above the riverside village of Cazals is a tranquil place with superb views of the Gorges de l’Aveyron. It’s covered with juniper and scrub oak and the only sounds are birdsong or the occasional whirr of … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places, World War I & II | Tagged Allied invasion of Normandy, Armée Sécrète, Cazals, French resistance, Maquis d'Ornano, Resistance in Tarn-et-Garonne, SW France, World War II | 4 Comments

Summer in Southwest France

Posted on 03/07/2018 by nessafrance

Summer is here, les grandes vacances have begun and the foreign number plates in the area have multiplied. And to go with them, a little present from the French government: a drop in the speed limit on secondary roads from … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Chapelle de Teysserolles, fete, French markets, lavoir de Caylus, summer, summer fêtes, Summer holidays, SW France, Teysseroles fête | 11 Comments

Eight Years On…

Posted on 11/02/2018 by nessafrance

A little celebration is in order. Life on La Lune will be eight years old on Wednesday, which just happens to coincide with Valentine’s Day. Since February 2010, I’ve published some 586 posts, learned an awful lot about France … Continue reading →

Posted in French life | Tagged Beaumont-de-Lomagne, Château de Saint-Projet, French property, garlic, Jardins du Quercy, Limogne-en-Quercy, Oradour-sur-Glane, pastel trade, SW France, truffles | 13 Comments

The Pros and Cons of Brits in France

Posted on 28/01/2018 by nessafrance

Peter Mayle, the doyen of writers about the good life in France, died recently at the age of 78. His book, A Year in Provence (1989), describes how he restored an 18th-century farmhouse near Ménerbes in the Luberon with the … Continue reading →

Posted in Books/writing, French life, Personalities | Tagged A Year in Provence, British expats, France, French rural society, living in France, moving to France, Peter Mayle, Provence, rural France, rural life | 12 Comments

S.O.S. French Towns

Posted on 26/11/2017 by nessafrance

A few days ago, I had coffee with two friends in the centre of Villefranche-de-Rouergue. This Aveyron town, some 25 km from us, is one of my favourite towns in the region. It’s an attractive place, steeped in history and … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, Collégiale de Notre-Dame, Montauban, out-of-town superstores, SW France, town centre decline, Villefrance-de-Rouergue, Villefranche-de-Rouergue market | 25 Comments

Summer’s Lease Hath All Too Short a Date: La Rentrée

Posted on 05/09/2017 by nessafrance

Yesterday, the summer holidays ended in France as children went back to school, people packed away their holiday gear for another year and workers prepared themselves for the routine of métro, boulot, dodo (subway, work, sleep). The eight weeks or … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Weather | Tagged autumn, autumn signs, canicule, heatwave, la rentrée, summer fêtes, Summer holidays, SW France | 9 Comments

20 Years of la Vie Française

Posted on 29/08/2017 by nessafrance

Last weekend marked the 20th anniversary of moving into our house in France. We had arrived in France a few days earlier, but we regard the occupation of the house as the true anniversary. This year I had a long … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged culture clash, France, French culture, French restaurants, la vie française, living in France, moving to France, SW France | 13 Comments

Bons Voisins – Good Neighbours

Posted on 15/08/2017 by nessafrance

I’m constantly amazed at French people’s ability to conjure up a social event from unpromising components, whether it’s an apéritif, an improvised barbecue or a full-blown fête. Last night, some neighbours organised a repas de quartier, a neighbourhood meal, which … Continue reading →

Posted in French life | Tagged country fêtes, Fêtes in France, French farmers, French fête, living in France, repas de quartier, rural life, SW France | 23 Comments

Un café, s’il vous plaît

Posted on 27/07/2017 by nessafrance

Coffee fuels the French, who have a penchant for strong black espresso-type coffee. Having to use coffee substitutes during World War II must have been a real hardship in that case. A chance remark to that effect during a recent … Continue reading →

Posted in Food/drink/recipes, French life | Tagged café culture, cafés, coffee, coffee substitutes, French cafés, French coffee, SW France, World War II | 17 Comments

Water, Water, Everywhere – But Not a Drop to Drink

Posted on 06/07/2017 by nessafrance

The joys of living in a rural French commune. We currently have to collect our drinking water daily in bottles from the Syndicat des Eaux (local water board), which for us involves a round trip of about 18 kilometres. The … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged drinking water, rainfall, rural life, Source de Livron, SW France, tap water, water | 16 Comments

Chèque ou Espèces? Cheque or Cash

Posted on 22/06/2017 by nessafrance

It often takes a holiday in another country to throw into relief the quirks of the one you live in. We returned recently from 10 days in Sweden (hence the blogging hiatus), where things are a bit different from France. … Continue reading →

Posted in French life | Tagged cash in France, cheques in France, credit cards in France, France, French money, living in France, Moneo, SW France | 16 Comments

Getting a (Social) Life in France

Posted on 04/06/2017 by nessafrance

Making friends is difficult when moving to a new country. Twenty years ago, our Brummie removal men asked, “Do you know anyone here?” When we said no, they shook their heads in disbelief. If you move to la France profonde, … Continue reading →

Posted in Customs, French life | Tagged aperitifs, French social customs, la France profonde, living in France, rural life, social customs, social life in France, SW France, Teysseroles | 9 Comments

Finding Our House in France

Posted on 26/04/2017 by nessafrance

Today is a very special one on La Lune. It’s 20 years ago to the day since we first saw our house. During our five days’ house-hunting in France, among the legion of properties we saw only two fitted the … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, French property, living in France, Lot, property-hunting in France, real estate, rural life, SW France, Tarn-et-Garonne | 23 Comments

Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz 2016: the Answers

Posted on 30/12/2016 by nessafrance

I hope you had a great Christmas. How did you get on with the quiz? I promised you the answers today and here they are – a little late because I got engrossed in writing my next novel. Don’t forget … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Quiz | Tagged Christmas, France, French Christmas quiz, general knowledge quiz, Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz, SW France, trivia | 10 Comments

Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz 2016

Posted on 23/12/2016 by nessafrance

First, let me wish all my readers Season’s Greetings. Thank you for following my blog this year and for your stimulating comments and emails, which I always enjoy reading. Thank you also for the many Tweets and shares on Facebook. … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Quiz | Tagged Christmas, France, French Christmas quiz, general knowledge quiz, Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz, SW France, trivia | 4 Comments

19 Years in France

Posted on 26/08/2016 by nessafrance

Time for a little celebration. Nineteen years ago today, we moved into our house, but we had arrived in France a few days earlier. The time has passed quickly, although much wine has flowed under the bridge since then. A … Continue reading →

Posted in French life | Tagged France, French customs, la canicule, living in France, Montauban, moving to France, SW France, Tarn-et-Garonne | 11 Comments

Caylus Car Rally Revived

Posted on 02/08/2016 by nessafrance

Our village formerly held an annual car rally. This wasn’t a race with souped-up vehicles – fortunately – but a “rallye touristique”, i.e. following a circuit between checkpoints around the commune. The event faded, as these things do, but … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Caylus, Caylus Notre Village, lavoir, lavoir de Caylus, patrimoine, rallye touristique, SW France | 12 Comments

Summer Arrives at Last in SW France

Posted on 18/07/2016 by nessafrance

C’est l’été and the weather has finally caught up with the calendar. We’ve had wall-to-wall blue skies and hot sunshine for the past few days. This was a particularly good thing this weekend, since we sang in a concert … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Weather | Tagged Abbaye de Marcilhac-sur-Célé, climate, Goldfinch, Marcilhac-sur-Célé, Mozart Requiem, rainfall, summer, SW France, Weather | 8 Comments