Forget standing out in the cold waiting to see if a groundhog is afraid of his shadow – let’s celebrate Crêpe Day instead. The French traditionally flip crêpes while wishing for prosperity while Americans celebrate Groundhog Day – which one sounds more fun to you?
France
Happy Bastille Day!
14 July is the French national holiday. English speakers call it Bastille Day, but the French name is much more matter-of-fact: le Quatorze Juillet.
Learn more facts and fun stuff about the celebration of Bastille Day and make some French food to celebrate!
Understanding Charlie Hebdo
On 7 January 2015, two men stormed the offices of the satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo. They murdered 12 people, including the five most famous and beloved cartoonists (one of whom was the editor) and two police officers, and injured 11 others, 5 seriously. Those are the basic facts of the tragedy, which you undoubtedly already know. But what you may not understand is why – beyond the horror of murder and mayhem – this event has touched every French person so deeply. As one internet meme says: “12 dead. 66 million wounded.” Why is Charlie Hebdo so important and iconic? Continue reading
It’s over!
When last I wrote, we’d just finished the état des lieux and moved out of the apartment in October. So what’s happened since then and now? Everything! Continue reading
Landlords from hell, part 3
Two days later, our neighbor told us that what we needed was a huissier de justice, which is sort of a cross between a lawyer and a judge. A huissier performs a variety of functions, but in the case of an état des lieux, he goes through the apartment and files an impartial report about the damages, which can then be used in court if, for example, the owners lie about broken windows or missing fixtures. That was exactly what we needed, Continue reading
Landlords from hell, part 2
During the 2 years and 8 months that we lived at La Grande Palmeraie, we saw the landlords only a few times, but each one was memorable in its own way.
They’d bragged about the lock on the balcony door that makes it impossible to open from the outside… and I’m sure you can guess what happened. Continue reading