Hi Maria, it shows that the novelty has worn off and you wish things were more like home.
When you first move, the excitement carries you along for a while. You're in a honeymoon period as you concentrate on getting used to new things, new people, your new home. Once you're established then you like things be homely, but living in France is abroad and so things are not like they are in the UK.
It's a constant niggle, if you like, a stress of having to cope with the language and unfamiliar ways of doing things. In the end you just want to go back to things being familiar. I think it's a that point that some people do go back and others decide to sweat it out and see what happens.
Now is a tipping point for you. You'll either tip towards the UK or staying in France. If you can get over this feeling you'll find that you don't yearn for home so much. Standard of living is not actually as important as peace of mind. You have to find the right balance.
Although we have had the house since 2003 we have only lived here 19 months so no wishes to return to the uk i will not say homesick because France is home now my wife misses her family and daughter but is constantly on the phone with free calls its no big deal ,my daughter loves it here but cant live permanently yet ,my son, well i never knew most of the time which country he was in a stint in Aruba,Dubai, Iraq,Afghanistan he vowed never to go back to the uk but hes there now, i think the time in Bangladesh finished him perhaps his wife had a hand in his decision though he still has to travel mainly europe so my family has travelled and separation has been a way of life, i had the same house in the uk for 40 years but closed the door for the final time and never looked back said goodby to the few friend who are left, now i have more friends in France than i have left in the uk only reason i would return to the uk is when the next band reunion is planned then it will be a fleeting visit no plans what so ever to return permanently
Thanks everyone I am pleased to hear its not uncommon and have definite empathy for people like Jean, can definately relate to that situation...oh well praps it'll be hot and sunny tomorrow, that always makes things seem better!!!!
Hayley I think that skype is a great help with kids etc...though my mum cant use it! and I cant skype my two kids in Dubai...its illegal there...but certainly if I feel a little blue..a chat with my friends cheer me up even facebook
Changing from one place to another is like changing the backdrop of your life. There's no doubt that for me, as I look out of my studio window at the snow-tipped peaks of the alpine mountains around me glinting in the sun, that the new backdrop is infinitely more beautiful than any I had in the Uk for the last fifty years or so. However, having only moved 6 months ago, there is a still a huge amount of work to be done on the foreground - making new friends, learning the language, integrating into this strange new culture generally.
You can change the backdrop in an instant, but filling in the details of your new life will take many years I think and it won't happen at all without a committed sustained effort on your part. That's my two cents worth!
Oh don't be fed up! I sometimes get homesick too, so here's what you do; use the internet to access web cams on the M25, the M4 almost anywhere in London, Edinburgh, Manchester especially at peak travelling times. Then get into your car and drive at eight thirty in the morning to your biggest local town in France........ I rest my case! More seriously, you surely must be able to visit friends and family?
Sorry to hear that Jean...friends of friends who moved to France 10 years ago had the same experience. In the end the wife said she would go back on her own if husband refused...he agreed after she finally said she was booking her flight..he put the house on the market for a silly price...well over the value...expecting never to sell...and blow me down if it didnt go in 2 months! she is elated..he miserable..but as she said, it was his turn to compromise! I think some people just find its not for them...shame if one of you always has to be the one to compromise...maybe spend more time in the UK?
Hi Maria, been here for years and still homesick and when I go back to the UK I settle straight in and can almost forget France exists, cry on the plane on the way back and am back tempered and grumpy for days afterwards.Trouble is my husband loves it here and doesn't ever want to go back whereas I would move tomorrow. Would miss the lovely countryside and the pace and quiet but would have my family and lifetime friends to compensate. Always compromises! And I seem to be the one to make them, and in my experience its usually the woman who feels like this. You will probably always be a bit homesick I'm afraid. No real answer to this one.
We've been living in France for 12 years now. We didn't come by choice but through my husband's employer in Germany which merged with a French company. Lately I have been feeling extremely fed up with France and its people. When I go back to Germany where my family live I see only the positive sides and when I visit my son in London or my husband's relatives in South Africa I think that the grass is so much greener there and that I would be so much happier.
The truth is that I would probably also get fed up in all those countries with all kinds of things that irritate me: be it the weather, the people or the crime. I think the problem lies in oneself and not in the country. One solution might be to go back to the UK for a while to check out whether you would really like to live there again permanently or whether you would miss your present life here in France!
Been retired here 5 years now; we go back once a year to see family and friends (who also come out here annually for hols) + buy a few essentials like Heinz Baked Beans and B&Q paint; but haven't yet felt like returning to UK. Watching the UK TV news re-inforces our reasons for coming here in the first place as much as the quality of life here. France is such a massive country and we've resolved to get out more and visit other departments/regions in the coming years.
yes - I think most of us get those feelings. I conquer mine with a mantra - no car tax, lower rates, easy parking (particularly if visiting a hospital), no travel insurance/green card.The list can go on! We are economic refugees as life here is cheaper. (Sorry no photo - am a dinosaur and can't get the hang of it)