By Keith Van Sickle: Mark Greenside's 'Mastering the Art of French Living' is even funnier than the first. It's a charming and insightful exploration of la belle France.
FROM vagabonde Jun 8, 2019 at 7:23 AM - Edit - Reply
I don’t know how I found your site, but I am pleased I did. Your review of Mark Greenside’s book makes it sound very interesting. I rarely read books like this because of being French I do not think I need to find out more about my bad French sides! But, you know, there are things that I take for granted, that sound so natural to me and really I should read this book to see why I get surprised in the US, after all those years, because they don’t act like I expect. I often go to the pharmacist for help and rarely get any, I thought all pharmacists were like the French ones, they go to specialized schools so should be able to give ample recommendations, but they don’t, even after I painstakingly explain what I need and why. I also had to laugh about the author’s accent problems – I have the same problem, in the reverse, still have a French accent and often people don’t quite understand what I say. Thanks for the review.
FROM Keith Van Sickle May 23, 2019 at 4:48 PM - Edit - Reply
Hi Jin,
I rent my place so I’m afraid I don’t know what it takes to own a place and keep it maintained when you are not there. As for finding a rental (much less hassle!) I’ve had good luck with websites like VRBO and Homeaway. You can also google “house rentals” plus the name of the town or region you are interested in, and the local tourist office often has lists of places. Good luck!
We have explored many different places in France but as we are getting older we picked Provence as where to find a permanent summer or winter home. I d like to get some info as to how to manage finding a small place and keep it maintained for the rest of the time we are not there. Thank you.
FROM vagabonde Jun 8, 2019 at 7:23 AM - Edit - Reply
I don’t know how I found your site, but I am pleased I did. Your review of Mark Greenside’s book makes it sound very interesting. I rarely read books like this because of being French I do not think I need to find out more about my bad French sides! But, you know, there are things that I take for granted, that sound so natural to me and really I should read this book to see why I get surprised in the US, after all those years, because they don’t act like I expect. I often go to the pharmacist for help and rarely get any, I thought all pharmacists were like the French ones, they go to specialized schools so should be able to give ample recommendations, but they don’t, even after I painstakingly explain what I need and why. I also had to laugh about the author’s accent problems – I have the same problem, in the reverse, still have a French accent and often people don’t quite understand what I say. Thanks for the review.
FROM Keith Van Sickle May 23, 2019 at 4:48 PM - Edit - Reply
Hi Jin,
I rent my place so I’m afraid I don’t know what it takes to own a place and keep it maintained when you are not there. As for finding a rental (much less hassle!) I’ve had good luck with websites like VRBO and Homeaway. You can also google “house rentals” plus the name of the town or region you are interested in, and the local tourist office often has lists of places. Good luck!
FROM Jin May 18, 2019 at 11:18 PM - Edit - Reply
We have explored many different places in France but as we are getting older we picked Provence as where to find a permanent summer or winter home. I d like to get some info as to how to manage finding a small place and keep it maintained for the rest of the time we are not there. Thank you.