Category Archives: Culture

Ask the French: Sex, Food and Conspiracy Theories

Posted on by
2

Which politician would you like to have a beer with? It’s a typical survey question. And as you would expect, a recent French poll named president Emmanuel Macron the winner.

Less typical was when French pollsters asked, Which politician would you like to have a summer fling with? French women responded with enthusiasm. (If they asked that same question here, American women would take one look at our politicians and immediately book a flight to France.)

The French love their polls and they cover every subject imaginable. Sure, there are the usual questions about political parties, potential legislation, and the state of the economy. But then there are the fun ones…

Read all about it at Frenchly.

A Trip Through Jewish History in Provence

Posted on by
1

Despite having deep Catholic roots, France has the third-largest Jewish population in the world, after Israel and the United States. Jewish communities have existed in the country since the first century and it has long been a center of Jewish learning.

You might think that Paris, with its famous Marais neighborhood, is the center of French Jewish life. And while that is true today, it hasn’t always been. For centuries, it was Provence.

Read more about Jewish history in Provence at Frenchly.

 

San Francisco, the Paris of the Pacific

Posted on by
Reply

San Francisco was known in its early days as the Paris of the Pacific. You might think this was because it was beautiful and sophisticated, like the City of Light, and you would be right. But it was more than that. It was also due to the city’s large French community.

Read about France’s outsized influence on early San Francisco at My French Life.

Taking Your Dog to France

Posted on by
4

Imagine a chic Française sitting at a Paris café with her chic chien. Now imagine yourself there with your own dog. Impossible? Non!

As the world’s most dog-friendly country, France is full of dogs in restaurants, hotels, boulangeries, on hiking trails, the Métro — you name it. So how American dog-friendly are they?

Learn the secret of taking your dog to France at Frenchly.

Driving in French

Posted on by
2

The French road system is excellent. The country is covered by a comprehensive network of autoroutes – similar to our Interstate Highway System – along with plenty of secondary roads. They are in uniformly good condition and are well-marked so you can find your way. If there is any downside to the French road system it would have to be…French drivers.

Find out why French drivers are NOT one of the glories of France at My French Life.

9 Reasons Why Provence is the Best Part of France

Posted on by
Reply

Everyone wants to go to Paris when they go to France. It’s one of the world’s great cities, with the Eiffel Tower, romantic cafés, great museums… what’s not to like? (Okay, the Parisians not so much, but the rest is great.) But you’d be wrong to put Paris at the top of the list. Instead, you should follow the insiders who know better and head south to Provence. Here’s why.

Read the rest of the story at Frenchly.

 

How to Make French Friends

Posted on by
6

Val and I are lucky–some of our best friends are French, people we’ve met while living in Provence.

We are sometimes asked, “How did you do it? Aren’t the French kind of standoffish?”

The answer is Non! There are wonderful people in France just like everywhere.

Having lived abroad twice now, we’ve learned a few things about making friends in a new country. Anyone can do it! If you’d like to know how, check out my article at The Planet D.

Ancient Treasures of Arles

Posted on by
Reply

What’s 2,000 years old, 100 feet long and used to float?

If you guessed a Roman barge, you win!  And you can see one now in the Arles Museum of Antiquity.

Arles was once an important Roman town, a trading center with a major port. Barges with cargo from all over the Empire plied the waters of the Rhone River.

Around 2,000 years ago one of those barges sank. It lay there quietly, covered by mud, until scientists discovered it about ten years ago.

Read the rest of the amazing story of how this barge was recovered and restored in Perfectly Provence.