5 Top French Bloggers Tell Why They Love France
Why do you love France? Maybe it’s the romantic appeal of beautiful towns and villages, the proud French people and their traditions, mouth-watering food, historical buildings and gardens, priceless art or diverse landscapes? Or maybe its simply the appeal of sunshine, long lunches and a carefree life.
Everyone’s love affair with France starts differently and to showcase that I asked my five favourite French bloggers/writers to share with us what they love most about France and how they share their passion with others. You’ll see they share their love of France through publishing magazines, writing books, leading tour groups, running gîtes and online shops. Each story is different and engaging.
You will be fascinated at how their love affair of France has changed their work and personal lives. So let’s meet them and read what each has to say …
Janine Marsh from The Good Life France
Janine Marsh says…
I could fill an entire book with the reasons I love France – in fact I have! I could fill a huge website and a magazine with the things that have made me fall head over heels for all things French, you know what’s coming don’t you – in fact I have! Chateaux and gateaux and bright coloured markets – here are a few of my favourite things…
France is a land of fairy tale castles, indulgent palaces and bijou chateaux. It’s impossible to choose a favourite but my top three would be Vaux le Vicomte, so exquisite it drove Louis XIV mad with jealousy and led him to create Versailles, another of my choices. If I only ever got to see one Chateau again, it would be Chenonceau in the Loire Valley. I can imagine the fabled mistress of Henri IV who lived here, bathing in the waters that flow around the castle – apparently enhancing her beauty. Every room is filled with flower arrangements created by a legendary French florist and the gardens are stunning.
Baguettes, croissants and cakes that look like little works of art. Macarons and Madeleines, croquembouche and crepes, the gateaux of France are renowned and don’t contain any calories. Okay that’s not true, but life is short and cakes are sweet so… indulge and spoil yourself once in a while. And, who can resist the waft of a French stick just pulled from a wood oven in an artisan bakery? Or a flaky, buttery golden croissant melting in your mouth.
Finally – street markets. Every town has one, people shop at them as a way of daily life. Fresh local and seasonal produce is available year-round, jams, locally made butters and cheeses, local honey and a whole lot more plus a warm welcome await those who shop at markets. And, afterwards, a refreshing stop at a café, watching the world go by…
Janine Marsh author of best-seller My Good Life in France: In Pursuit of the Rural Dream; editor of www.thegoodlifefrance.com and The Good Life France Magazine – totally free to read online, download & subscribe. Follow The Good Life France on Facebook.
Keith Van Sickle from Life in Provence
Keith Van Sickle says…
For the last ten years, my wife Val and I have split our time between Provence and California’s Silicon Valley, and we love each for different reasons. We love Silicon Valley’s energy and enthusiasm and drive to constantly invent new things. And when we are in Provence, we relish the chance to slow down, appreciate the natural beauty, and maybe pour another glass of wine.
Provence has a quiet charm that captivated us the very first time we visited. It is a rugged land, dotted with olive groves and vineyards and fields full of brilliantly colored poppies and sunflowers and lavender. The Romans settled in Provence many centuries ago and it is fascinating to see what they left behind, with some still in use today, like the beautiful arenas in Arles and Nîmes.
One of our favorite things is shopping in the open-air markets, finding perfect strawberries or fennel or asparagus, and then using it to prepare a meal and enjoy it with friends. Because that’s the best part of France for us, our French friends—warm and generous people who are happy to share with us the small pleasures of everyday life. We enjoy talking to them and hearing their perspectives on the events of the day, often very different from our own, and our lives are enriched by knowing them.
Keith Van Sickle is the author of the best-selling One Sip at a Time: Learning to Live in Provence. You can read more funny stories about France on his website, Life in Provence, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
Phoebe Thomas from Lou Messugo
Phoebe Thomas says…
I was born in France, but that’s not why I’m here now. It’s a mere detail in the complicated question of “where am I from?” I’m a British and Australian passport holder, “from” no particular place with no home town, a true adult TCK (third culture kid) expat from birth. Having lived in 9 countries around the world I now live on the Côte d’Azur where I run a gite and write a blog, sharing my passion for France and travel in general.
Back to being born in France, it just happened to be where my parents were at that momentous moment in time, but we moved to Belgium when I was only a couple of weeks old. Little did they know I’d meet a Frenchman one day and end up spending the longest I’ve spent anywhere in France. We met in Hanoi, Vietnam and it was never a conscious thing to settle down here, it’s just how life turned out. When we moved to the South for my husband’s job in 2007 after 10 years in the Paris region I decided it was the perfect time and place to put into action a niggling idea I’d had for a while … to open a holiday cottage.
Travel is my all abiding passion and running a gîte I welcome guests from all over the world which helps keep my wanderlust alive when I can’t necessarily travel far myself. I love meeting these travelers, hearing their stories, swapping anecdotes and of course sharing my love for the area I now call home.
This part of France has it all: a fabulous climate, gorgeous light (no long grey winters here), delicious local cuisine, magnificent scenery – it’s where the mountains meet the sea (which means skiing AND beach), proximity to Italy for a quick change of scene, an international population (important to me as a world citizen myself), plenty of culture with top museums, international events/festivals and so on…need I go on? I still pinch myself that we ended up in this wonderful part of the world, by luck more than design, and almost despite myself I feel roots going down.
Phoebe Thomas is the owner of Gîte Lou Messugo, a holiday rental in the Côte d’Azur. You can read more about her life in the sunny Côte d’Azur on her website Lou Messugo and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.
Susan Hays from Our French Oasis
Susan Hays says…
A few years ago, with five children and a dog in tow, we moved to France. My husband spoke fluent French and mine was more than passable, but the children had only a sprinkling of words taught by us, the usual things, how to say their names, count to ten and most importantly ask to go to the loo (vital when you are at a new school all day long!). Looking back that all seems so long ago, the children are bilingual now, our Jack Russell has been joined by a French girl of the same breed and we have added more than a dozen hens and one rooster to our menagerie. Life in France suits us well it seems.
We live in the centre of a small village which is a fifteen minute drive from the coast in the Charente Maritime. We are able to walk to the boulangerie and our Sunday market and when our girls were younger they walked to the village primary school. Our garden stretches to just over an acre. I wish I could say it resembled the manicured excellence seen in a French chateau, but I would be lying. I wage a permanent war with the weeds and they always win, but despite the lack of perfection it does have a certain charm and is one of the places where I am always most content.
Susan Hays writes about her idyllic life in France on her blog Our French Oasis. She manages her Etsy shop with its vintage finds and you can learn more about the gîte on Our French Lifestyle. Follow her on Instagram.
Deborah Bine from Bare Foot Blogger
Deborah Bine says…
Why do I love France? That’s a question I ask myself every time I leave my new home. I can’t wait to return.
Perhaps I love France because of the beauty and diversity of the landscape. Perhaps it’s because of the history. Could I love France because of the people? My new friends and acquaintances are genuinely good and kind.
Mostly I love France because it brings out the best in me. Here’s how:
- I’ve learned to be a storyteller. A writer and journalist for 40+ years, now I write from my heart.
- I have more energy. At 65+ sometimes it surprises me that I find the energy to keep traveling, to catch the next flight or train.
- My world is bigger. Friends in France are from many nations. They are travelers and they are curious about the world. Fun times can be as raucous as a summer festival in Sete, or as cultured as a concert in the courtyard of the Place de Duchè in Uzès. We laugh, we drink lots of wine and we cry together when life gets rough.
Do I struggle about being across the ocean from my children and young grandchildren? You bet I do. Hopefully the legacy I leave my family is to be good to yourself, too. In some way, someday “follow your dream.”
Deborah Bine writes about her travels and tour groups on her website Barefoot Blogger. You can follow her latest adventures in France on Twitter and Facebook. Follow her French life on Instagram.
How inspiring are these amazing people with the ways they passionately share their love of France. I love that anyone can be transported to France via their blogs, books, newsletters, magazines or even better a holiday stay or tour in France – I really recommend taking a deeper look at each of their sites.
Thanks to our wonderful guest contributors for telling us why they love France and remember to get more of France + All Things French directly from us subscribe to A French Collection.
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