I find other cultures completely fascinating. I’m quite sure this is the reason that I’ve always been compelled to travel. Actually being in a place gives you insights that you will never find in a book or on-line. But no matter how many times you visit a destination, you never quite develop the same understanding […]
The Distant Francophile Blog
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Recently, I’ve been delving deep into all things style related here on Distant Francophile. These pieces have been inspired by the emails I receive each and every day from readers keen share their style triumphs and challenges. Naturally – me being me – I’ve tried to include a touch of French flavour to the posts […]
Do you have a style icon? Someone whose way of dressing informs and inspires your own style? Someone you wish you could be when you (finally) grow up? Identifying style icons can really help you to develop your own style. Taking inspiration from looks you admire can assist you to build a wardrobe you love. […]
I love the fact that the French are completely committed to the very best of everything. I find their dedication to quality both fascinating and inspirational. As a result, I continually try to upgrade the quality of every area of my own life. With those words as background, I’m sure you’ll understand why I was so […]
“Our clothes truly do more than just clothe us”. This was the final line in an email I received from a Distant Francophile reader. And it stopped me in my tracks. In just nine words, this lovely reader perfectly articulated the thoughts that had been swirling around in my head for ages. You see, […]
People say there are no guarantees in life. But they are wrong. If you’re going anywhere near Bordeaux on your next trip to France, it’s a given that someone will point you in the direction of Saint-Émilion. In fact, it is an absolute sure thing. I know that every time I breathed the word Bordeaux, […]
I guess it’s no surprise how much women love handbags (or purses as our friends in the U.S. sometimes call them). We tend to carry one almost everywhere. And they often contain not only our daily essentials but our precious memories too. It is not lost on me that France has produced some of the […]
One thing French women appear to have the ability to do time and time again is create a wardrobe that makes chic dressing look effortless. From skinny jeans, via perfect little black dresses to nonchalantly tied trench coats, their wardrobes seem filled with items that communicate two of my very favourite ‘E” words – elegance […]
Today’s post is from Sherry of Save. Spend. Splurge and it delivers another dose of French culture. As the title suggests, here we are delving into the world of French holiday traditions. When I first read Sherry’s piece, it got me thinking about our own holiday traditions – or rather, the lack of them. The festive season […]
One of the many things I love about Paris is her colour scheme. Wherever you look, whether from street level or above, you’ll see consistent colours. Beautiful hues. The neutral sort. There is no doubt about it – charcoals, mid-greys, slate blues, russets, taupes and sands dominate your view. These colours are everywhere […]
Happy December to you! Yep, that’s right. It is December already. And if you’re anything like me, you’ll be super excited. Dressing up for parties, fun with family and friends, twinkling lights, presents and all that yummy food. Seriously, what’s not to love about December? With the festive season firmly in the front […]
Before we get into today’s post, I just want to take a moment to recognise the Thanksgiving holiday and to send all of our U.S. readers some love. I hope you are enjoying a time of peace and togetherness. When you stop to think about it, there really is so much to be grateful for […]
There are days when I feel like I’m a bit of a stalker. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not following people home or setting myself up outside their workplaces, binoculars in hand. But I do engage in an awful lot of people watching. On our most recent trip to France, I set myself the assignment […]
Forget the Louvre. Ditch Notre Dame. And scrap the Eiffel Tower. If there is only one destination you visit while you are in Paris, it should be a pharmacy. French pharmacies are renowned the world over for the wealth of skincare lotions and potions that can be found just below a flashing green cross. On […]
A little while ago, I asked you what you’d be keen to see more of on Distant Francophile. And many of you replied that you’d love to learn more about some of the cultural differences that pop up between France and other parts of the world. In order to ensure that I could provide enough […]
Welcome to November! Scott and I arrived home last night, after spending almost all of October in France. As usual, we had an amazing time. But, honestly, we would have been hard pressed not to with cities and towns like Annecy, Bordeaux and Toulouse on our itinerary. Highlights for me included a small plane flight […]
When it comes to looking stylish, there’s a lot to be said for a good coat. We’ve just spent most of October in France. And while the weather was quite warm when we first landed and during our time in the South, it has cooled down markedly now that we are heading for home. As […]
I’m breaking my own rules today. Regular readers will know that I rarely recommend accommodation options here on Distant Francophile. To my mind, choosing where to stay while travelling is a very personal thing. Tastes, budgets and expectations of a perfect getaway all come into play when we decide whether or not we like a […]
We were there the day the cows came home. If you want the sentence above to make sense, I’m going to have to give you a little context. Just recently, we spent a week in Annecy, a large city in France’s Haute-Savoie region which is located in the east of the country. Annecy is well […]
Thanks to attending university as an adult I am a pretty fast reader. Very fast in fact. It is extremely helpful when it comes to reading reports at work. Those reports, sadly, make up the majority of my reading when I’m at home. Yep, apart from a handful of blogs that I follow, I don’t […]