Anyway, I don’t have a great deal of news, seems I’ve been too wrapped up in my own stuff to pay much attention to France [...]]]> It’s been a while since the last post. I’ve been busy with a renovation project and I’ve been on holiday (which I needed after lugging plasterboard, etc up and down ladders!).

Anyway, I don’t have a great deal of news, seems I’ve been too wrapped up in my own stuff to pay much attention to France in general – except the Tour De France, which almost got exciting

One thing I have found that could prove to be very useful to you is a new website which lists all kinds of English speaking businesses: EnglishSpeakingFrance.com.

If you haven’t quite got the hang of speaking French yet, or you’re comfortable having a chat to your neighbours but worried when it come to dealing with builders, banks, insurance etc., then this might be just what you’re looking for.

The site’s pretty new, but I’ve had a word with the owners and they’re adding new listings every day to build it up. They would also like to hear from you if you are having trouble finding a trade or service.

If you have your own business in France you can add a simple listing for free – although you might want to take advantage of an upgrade to give yourself more impact (which is hardly going to break the bank at just a couple of Euros a month).

Businesses of any kind can be listed, including gites and chambre d’hotes – and English or French – the only rule is that you must have at least one person who can speak English. More details here.

It will be interesting to see how it develops. I read somewhere that there are a couple of thousand English speaking businesses in France so they’ve got their work cut out!

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I don’t expect you’re going to come by here every day to see what I’m at – which is just as well ‘cos I’m unlikely to add things that often!

However, some of [...]]]> Just a quick note to give you a couple of ways to keep up to date with new French stuff that I add here.

I don’t expect you’re going to come by here every day to see what I’m at – which is just as well ‘cos I’m unlikely to add things that often!

However, some of this living in France information might well be of use to you so if you know how RSS works you can click up there top right where it says “Posts” and get updates that way.

For those of us who are less techie, I’ve got a free newsletter that I will send out from time to time that arrives in your email. Just fill in your details over there on the right where it says Free Newsletter.

Don’t worry, I’m not going to bombard you with spam or offers for French cheese or holiday vouchers, I’ll just send something out occasionally when I think it merits it – like if it will save you money or help you in some way.

If you don’t like it, just cancel any time.

Finally, a note about getting in touch. It’s better all round if you post a comment using the box that appears after each post. That way we can have a “conversation” about it and everyone else who visits French Life 4 Real can benefit. If you want to send me a personal message (…sounds interesting…) then use the contact form here.

Why the picture? I just thought I would brighten the place up a bit with some typical French scenery. This is part of the beautiful Ardeche Gorge and no, I don’t live near there.