Tuesday 12 August 2014

moving to france

Rustic life in France!!

Don't imagine that you will parachute into France and live happily ever after!!

For sure if you are lucky enough to have a tasty pension you can settle in reasonably well and even more easily if you wish to settle into ex pat ghettos....your choice.....

If you want to work here for yourself and break into "entrepreneurial'ship", do make sure that your heart rules your head when it comes to buying any sort of property here in France, that you have excellent advice and a business plan that you have worked to death - as if you were seeing the ghastly ****s who might wish to terrorise you on Dragons' Den......

Be prepared for several years of worrying about the white envelopes which arrive on your door mat demanding monies about which you have no idea - and the not even veiled threat - that if you don't pay they will add a penalty, and be sure that you can survive without any income at all for at least five years.

Accept that you will be working long hours for a small income, but more than likely in a beautiful if crumbling place with land which is awash with brambles (who who who did invent these things?) and open your mind to the great people who live around you, and then yes, sure, you can dress up your horse and take him to the 40th anniversary party of good friends......

Nothing in life is easy - unless you had the silver spoon treatment or a lot of talent - which we have seen today can have terrible consequences.

Go for it.............

Wanting to get it from the horse's mouth - try accommodation in France or walking holidays in France - spacebetween ......where you can have a great holiday with real people, and eat and drink well.  Vegetarians who despair of eating well in France are very welcome - plus wolves at Alpha on tap!





Christmas snow shoeing in France


Want to get away from the hustle and bustle of commerce overload over the festive season?

It's fun to be with like-minded people on holiday - good walking - good eating - good company - sounds the perfect break.

The obvious snow holiday is of course to slap on the planks or the surf board and zip down hill in your pretty resort.

What your hosts - spacebetween are very pleased to offer are snow holidays, just a stone's throw from the French Riviera, where you can pad around in the wilds on snow shoes, and enjoy both views down to the Med, and up to the massif of the Mercantour.

These holidays start over the Christmas and New Year period and then continue until the end of March.  However with mountains up to over 3000m there is snow (even now as I type) on high level walks until the summer.

Snow shoeing is quite strenuous as an exercise but does not require any great skill - with a bit of "oomph" in your thighs - it takes a tiny amount of time to master your "tennis rackets! - no they are not really like that these days!! - and be proficient. 

What is then a delight is to put your "heels" on to help you up hill, and then "yay" attach the back of your shoes for some downhill "pfloofing" - a spacebetween  trademark word - if not registered!

For the inexperienced, this is running down hill in powder like a maniac and then diving over!

What could be more fun!!!

 Fly to Nice and let spacebetween take the strain!!






snow shoeing holidays in France
snow shoeing holidays over the festive season
Christmas holidays in the snow
New Year in the snow
Vegetarian holidays over Christmas
Vegetarian holidays New Year




Vegetarian holidays in France


Ever been on the prowl for vegetarian food in France in Nice or wherever?

Everyone to a man (or woman) these days does stress just how important food is to the holiday experience.....and quite rightly so......

SO - want to come and have a great hiking holiday in France in an unspoilt national park but just an hour north of Nice?.......already sounding too good to be true...,,,,,

..............AND YES then - what's more - come to France for a walking holiday with spacebetween in the Mercantour and if you stay with your hosts in Berthemont les Bains - you can also have a good say in what you want to eat, and if you are a veggie, gluten free, organic, vegan, allergic to all manner of things - you can be safe and sure that you will have something tasty to eat wtihout endangering your health!!  and there will be no omelettes!!!  If you choose the chambre d'hote option for your holiday you can also be sure that Luc and Christine in the Grand Chalet will look after you extremely well.

It's quite strange that many of the classic food dishes here on the Med either are, or could be, vegetarian with a tiny bit of flare.....thinking socca, salade nicoise, pissaladiere, tarte aux blettes (savoury or sweet), pizza, polenta, courgette fritters, tapenade....never mind the gorgeous selection of fresh vegetables which strain at the edges of local potagers!!

It's often much easier to pop over the border to Liguria, Italy where at least you can be sure of a plate of home made pasta, with, if you are really lucky a good spicy tomato sauce.

Come and stay in the Alpes-Maritimes and play - ask for info from spacebetween for ideas on the coast and in Italy where your hosts have great friends who cook up a storm - such as Marla and Fab at Bella Baita. ....

There's much happening here for the rest of the year - and then there is always the huge filip of the Nice Carnaval and Menton Lemon Festival in February 2015 to get us all going again after the winter.



Photo - thanks to Paramo

vegetarian holidays in France
vegan holidays in France
foodie holidays in France
walking and good food holidays in France