The Good Life France podcast

The French are rather a superstitious bunch – and some of the superstitions are very odd - got 13 for dinner and think the number 13 is unlucky? Then go French, pop an egg on the table, now you have 14 for dinner! Tread in dog poo and think it's ruined your day? Non, non, non - in France it could be lucky, depending on which foot did the deed! Want to make a wish come true? Well that's simple, just find a French sailor, dressed in uniform including the traditional beret with a red bobble on top - and give that bobble a twiddle! What? Yes, these and more strange and fabulous superstitions will be discussed in this very fun podcast episode!Plus a listener asks a question about the seasons in France and we explain how the bonker French Revolutionary calendar could have made things very different with 10 day-long weeks, and 3 week-long months and a unique name for every day of the year! Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

Marvellous, magnificent and mesmerising monuments of France! The biggest and the best, the strange and the quirky, their history, legends and fascinating facts from the Eiffel Tower to the most incredible palace in France – built by a postman from pebbles collected on his delivery rounds more than 100 years ago. Notre Dame, Versailles, Mont-Saint-Michel, Pere Lachaise cemetery and more, come with us on a whistle stop tour of these amazing places. And we answer a listener’s question – want to know where to buy the best baguettes in Paris? – tune in and we’ll tell you!Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

The biggest and the best, the strange and the quirky, the festivals where you can eat yourself to a standstill, and the ones where you’ll have so much fun, you’ll want to go back year after year! Marathon races that serve cocktails – or Champagne. A strawberry fete where you’ll get a slice of the biggest strawberry tart in the world. Pig squealing, baptisms of a giant where the baby is nearly 7 feet long, son et lumieres and more. We reveal the real France, authentic and sometimes a little weird but always fascinating…And in the Q&A section we answer a question about the French law that requires men to wear itsy bitsy teeny weeny trunks in public swimming pools. Is it true – or not?Find out more in this fun episode...Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

For the French, cheese is a symbol of Frenchness. They’ve been eating great cheeses for a long time here, some of the most famous were being made thousands of years ago. In this episode we consider some of the most famous cheeses as well as some of the stinkiest, weirdest and frankly gross cheeses that France produces. One of them is officially the smelliest cheese in the world, one has creatures living inside (which apparently adds flavour), one was loved by a King so much it contributed to him losing his head – yes that’s you Louis XVI. It’s not just a slice of cheese, when it’s French, it’s also a slice of history and we explore some of the fantastic legends, stories and fun facts in this fun and fascinating homage to French fromage. And in the Q&A section we answer a question from a lady in Melbourne who says she read that France has banned UFOs! Is it true – or not? Find out more in this fun episode... Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

Discover the most popular places to visit in France, their histories and legends, but also the secret places close by so you get to travel to ‘real’ France. In Paris you must of course visit the Eiffel Tower, but how about a tiny chapel that was built before the great cathedral of Notre Dame with the most beautiful stained glass windows, you’ll feel as if you’re in a jewel box standing in this place. And of course the Mont-Saint-Michel is a wonder of the world, but nearby you can get amazing views of it and explore the area by a little train that runs around the bay. Versailles, the Loire Valley, Disney Paris and the lavender fields of Provence all feature. Loads of fun and fabulous tips, plus learn how France is the most popular tourist destination in the world – and beyond (according to one of us at least!)… Plus a reader asks “I’m going to Paris in May, it’s my first time and I want to see as much of Paris as I can, but I also want to do one day trip to see something different. Where should I go?” We give the perfect answer! Have a listen to find out… Don’t go to France without listening to this episode! Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

In this episode we'll be talking about a topic that's on everyone's lips in France - great classic French food! And especially food that has a fascinating history, cheese that has a 6000 year old past, stew that helped save a town from a siege by their dastardly enemy hundreds of years ago, mouth-watering cakes that were made by accident but passed into legend.Some dishes are just a bit more special because of their heritage, it makes them taste even more delicious. Plus we'll share some of the places where we've eaten these dishes so that you can enjoy them at their best too. And if you're feeling peckish at the end of the podcast, there are hundreds of great recipes on the website!And in the Q&A section a listener asks "Do the French really take a two hour lunch break?" Find out as Janine Marsh, author and editor of The Good Life France Magazine, and Olivier Jauffrit titillate your tastebuds with talk of all things tasty and tempting in this flavoursome French food episode!Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

Learn the three most important words in the French language in this fun episode - no test at the end we promise! Tu and vous - you and you - what's that all about? We'll explain what it means if a French person asks to "tu" with you! Plus - has one of us set a world record for the amount of times we said bonjour in one day?! And we also talk about the most popular attraction in France - the Eiffel Tower and reveal some of her secrets... Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

What if you were to browse the internet and see a photo of a neglected castle in the south of France, a ruin for sure but with a faded grandeur that pulls at your heart strings… Would you be tempted to give up your dream of a little house in the country and throw everything you have into restoring the castle to its former glory? Live without electricity. Chop wood to keep the fire going so you don’t freeze in winter as the snow falls all around and the bitter wind blows down from the Pyrenees Mountains. Give up your comfy life and a good job in Perth, Australia. Learn how to speak French and take on the mother of all restorations? That’s what Karina Waters and her family did when they bought the Chateau de Gudanes – a real life sleeping beauty that’s now been brought back to life.This is an extraordinary story, one that has captured the imagination of millions around the worldFollow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

Ever wondered what makes the French so… well French?! Janine Marsh, resident of northern France, author of three books about life in France for a frequently baffled expat and the editor of magazine and website The Good Life France chats to Olivier Jauffrit, a Frenchman who lives in London about how to be French. Is it dunking your croissants in a cup of hot chocolate, the weird and many rules of etiquette around cheese, and how you say oh la la? Touching on some of the quirk aspects of Frenchness, this is a laugh out loud episode and a whole lot of fun.And in the Q&A section we answer a question from a resident of Pennsylvania, USA "Do French men still wear the beret?" Find out more in this fun episode...Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

It might not surprise you to know that mostly – Christmas in France is all about food… so buckle up, or maybe unbuckle your belt, for a fun, festive and foodie episode – the A to Z of Christmas in France…Janine Marsh author of three international best-selling books about life in France and Olivier Jauffrit talk about aperitifs with the neighbours, desserts, jolly farmers riding around country roads in the buckets of tractors on their way home from parties, and the evil assistant to Father Christmas - if you live in Alsace! It’s a fun episode designed to put the merry in your Christmas podcast – so tune in to the A-Z of France at Christmas! Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

Our guest today is British author Stephen Clarke who lives in Paris. He has sold more than a million books world-wide including the hugely popular and hilarious Merde series which began with a Year in the Merde based on Stephen’s own experiences in France and with names changed to "avoid embarrassment, possible legal action, and to prevent the author's legs being broken by someone in a Yves Saint Laurent suit…". He talks about how a job as a translator at a French dictionary company led to becoming a best selling writer. He shares his tips for how to find a good restaurant in Paris, get a Parisian attitude with just one word and how the hero of his Merde books, Paul West, is perpetually 27 years old!We also answer listener's question - do French people hug... find out the surprising truth! Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

We chat to artist Perry Taylor who walked 900km of the Camino, from France to Spain, in six weeks. Famous for his humorous drawings of life in France, he put down his paintbrush and pens and walked the equivalent of a marathon every day for weeks on end despite extreme heat and painful blisters. Along the route he made new friends and says he couldn’t help but weep over the stories of some of the people he met walking the pilgrims route.Perry says in the end, and unexpectedly, it was a profound and life-changing journey. He shares his experience and advice for anyone planning to walk the pilgrims route.Plus in our regular Q&A section, a listener asks when does ‘bonjour’ become ‘bonsoir’?! Does everyone in France have a different opinion – it can certainly feel like it! Find out more… Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

Molly Wilkinson left Dallas, Texas, USA to train in Paris as a patisserie chef at the famous Cordon Bleu cookery school. What she didn’t expect was to fall in love with a Frenchman, set up home in Versailles on the outskirts of Paris and become a famous online cake maker teaching cake baking fans how to make the most perfect French gateaux from millefeuilles to merveilleux. Find out how it all came about and be prepared to drool as Molly and host Janine Marsh talk all things cake!And discover whether it’s true that French people eat a baguette every day!Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

The Good Life France Podcast Episode 3 with Ian Moore, a British author and comedian who lives in the Loire Valley where he runs a gite and dreams of killing his guests which has inspired a series of fun thrillers! He also has staring contests with goats, makes chutney and keeps hens who don't lay eggs! He talks about his fear of feisty French women over the age of 40, the quirky things about living in France, how being a mod and how wearing a suit in the chicken pen is a way of life! Author Janine Marsh chats about life in France and answers listeners questions - do French people really think it's lucky to tread in dog poo?! Find out in this fun and lively podcast - everything you want to know about France and more! Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

In this episode discover how spiders can bring joy and hope in France! Find out whether it’s really true you shouldn’t turn up on time for dinner at a French person’s house! And learn how to be a Parisian in less than one hour with Olivier Giraud, a Paris legend. He’s a stand-up comedian who has performed his hilarious English speaking show to more than 1 million people – and his advice will have you laughing out loud.Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!

An introduction to The Good Life France podcast – everything you want to know about France and more. Meet author Janine Marsh an ex-Londoner who lives in rural northern France, and Olivier Jauffrit from France who lives in London. Entente-cordiale – upside down! Follow us:On TwitterOn InstagramOn FacebookOn The Good Life France's websiteThanks for listening!