MAYBE you are looking to start a business in France, or are just keen to find out a little more about your local commune, well drop in on Insee’s Statistiques Locales.
Insee is the official statistics authority and compiles facts and figures on a wide range of subjects, to a quite dizzying degree sometimes, but their stats on local communes can be quite eye opening.
A REGULAR feature over the coming months on This French Life will be a simple quiz on all things France written by author Andrew Whittaker.
Some of the questions will be drawn from Andrew’s book Speak the Culture: France, but he is also promising to include brain teasers on current affairs and subjects that didn’t make the book.
So you might cross questions on sporting events, politics and the arts, hopefully though you will gain a little insight into France and the richness of its culture.
WHEN I received a Meilleurs Voeux 2008 card from a friend in Paris it featured a colourful illustration of a Parisian shopping arcade.
People were bumping into each other, with bags packed full of goodies, whilst snowflakes drifted in the night sky and in the corner I could have sworn I saw Nicolas Sarkozy.
The artist behind the illustration is Joanna Walsh, whose website Badaude features both the New Year picture, and many of her distinctive views of Parisian life.
PENNY Zoldan is one of the most recognised names in the world of French property and is a regular contributor to magazine and newspaper articles.
Since starting Latitudes French Property Agents in 1989, Penny has helped thousands of people find a new home in France, and that experience has also been condensed into a book, Buying Property in France (see review).
Here Penny offers her thoughts on what the coming year may hold for people looking to buy in France and why the country has such an appeal to many.
France is incomparable to any other country in terms of diversity of architecture, types of properties and variety of terrain and facilities in the different regions.
MOST builders are happy to put their feet up after a hard day on site carrying bricks and mixing cement, but for Trevor Morris his day job has become his writing muse.
His experience of running a building company in the Tarn region of South West France is the back drop to his book Vive la Rénovation, which features tales from the property restorations he has been involved with.
Since crossing the Channel with his wife, Sue, and their feline friends the couple have settled into village life in a small hamlet just outside Albi.
TO the strains of accordion music and the songs of Edith Piaf, thousands of people strolled around the exhibition hall at Olympia, in London, taking in The France Show.
ARE you tempted to tell the boss to keep his job, hand back the commuter season ticket, chuck all your suits in a bag for the charity shop and do something a little less stressful in France?
All well and good, but what’s the reality of taking such drastic action?
If you long to downshift abroad, it’s a good idea to look at the broader implications of this radical change and try to ensure you are not one of many who head back to the UK, with their tail between their legs, because it all went horribly wrong.
THERE is nothing like a waist-expanding Christmas to put you in the frame of mind for change, writes Tracey Smith. Especially if over-indulging in spending didn’t really jingle your bells.
Perhaps you found yourself craving more time with loved ones instead of shopping for them; it could be time to shift down a gear.
If you are aiming for a more self-sufficient lifestyle, look at the year ahead as a comfortable learning curve and prepare yourself as much as possible, perhaps for donning those wellies in the Ardèche.
IF your home is heated by fioul and you are living on a very low income then government support is available towards the payment of bills.
Householders who were not required to pay any income tax in 2006, and who have filled up their heating system from November 10 and up until January 31 can apply for a €150 assistance package.
More on Service Public: Chauffage – une prime à la cuve de 150 euros
THANK you for subscribing to the This French Life RSS feed, your free .pdf ebook will work on PC’s and Mac’s.
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In the ebook you will find an overview of the buying process in France as well as a selection of other articles.
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Craig
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