Hi Elaine! Thanks for the reply!! I would be very interested in having you as a contact and learning from your advice and experiences! Would you be interested in meeting for a coffee sometime? I have a car! Thanks
Sam
Hi Jena and Daniel, Great to hear from you. I would be very interested in knowing more about your projects especially regarding the garden? I am quite a distance away but if there is a good mutual opportunity I would be very happy to know more!!! I am very open to your suggestions and ideas! I am always excited for new challenges! If there is accommodation with you I would be happy to consider a visit! I look forward to your reply.... Cheers SAM
Hi Sam
Welcome! Ongi etorri!
We too are in South West Aquitaine in the heart of the Basque country. We live in a small village on the pilgrim route to Compostella.
I speak reasonably fluent French so have now embarked on learning basque. Everyone tells me its difficult ā¦ its not really, just very different!
If you would like some British contacts in the area please let us know.
Hi Sam, welcome I arrived a month ago from Australia ... I sympathise with the overwhelm feeling ... my french is not good either ... but it is improving slowly . We are in Mazamet ... and could do with your gardening expertise and help but query its too far for you to travel? We are both into art and botanical inspiration so are planning a grand garden and artists studio here. I hope you feel more settled soon contact us if you are in this neck of the woods. Cheers Jena and Daniel
Hello Sam - we're in South Aquitaine too..!
Hello everybody,
My name is Sam Wilson; I have recently moved to South Aquitaine to be with my Basque girlfriend whom I met in England! Life is good most of time here but as for anyone moving country; a culture change and at times a language barrier! ESPECIALLY BASQUE!!! I have just undertaken an intensive French course here and my language skills are progressing well but I still need time and practice! I am a professional gardener and horticulturalist with eight years of diverse experience. I am 24 year old Englishman, full of motivation and enthusiasm. I am university educated in my sector of work and very passionate. I am very interested in meeting new professional contacts to develop a network and to have some advice on life in France and possibly horticulture here. If possible I would like appointments formal or informal; professional or otherwise. Especially concerning the outlook for my situation and what opportunities could be available to me. Any advice would be sincerely appreciated. I'm very flexible and have transport so whenever or wherever available and convenient I am available. So if you could possibly help then fantastic, even if just a message! I am on Linkedin and Facebook under my name Sam Wilson.Thanks again, Merci!
Sadly no. Millau has grown into a thriving metropolis, complete with horrendous traffic and parking restrictions. We made it into town for a quick drink and escape for dinner at a small town along the way. That turned out to be excellent.
We all liked the tour of the Roquefort caves, finding it a little over done, all the same. The cheese was excellent, but the best part was when I said to the others that I was afraid to ask a question because I doubted that I would understand the answer. My wife then went and asked a question and the answer was long and completely incomprehensible to all of us, but worth a laugh.
did you also go to the glove museum in Millau Alan, thatās worth a look, they manufactured there for some very famous actresses in their days. Not too
Impressed with the Roquefort Caves tour, too much behind glass, story of how caves discovered interesting tho! I do Like Roquefort cheese, especially the softer one, but prefer Auvergne, after Stilton of course! I believe the other caves tour in Millau is supposed to be better. Roquefort trades on its name and prices of course.
Hi. Good luck with your car. We've had visitors again. The last for this year, and we took them to Roquefort and Millau. just come back from Cordes, which is nearly as far as one can go in the Tarn, and our car loves the long drives. We expect to sell it when we leave France.
Sorry, but I don't know any gardeners. You may try Care.com, as they provide such services.
Yes, we must catch up and share stories.
Alan
Hi Shirley thankx for your welcome ... no I've got CPAM on my list ... waiting a fortnight till hubby arrives he is British, I cant register without him. cheers jena
Hi ... thats sounds great Alan about your car ... a wonderful coincidence. Sounds like it fell in your lap almost. What will you do with it when you are away? I looked around at some here but now I'm looking at buying one in Germany, a friend will help me with that - he said prices were cheaper there. We will see. its nice to hear you fell in love with Mazamet. Ive got the moving to a new country town life house blues this week ... I am liking it a lot already and its getting sweeter the more I find and search out ... but you know its a lot to sort out. My husband arrives in a fortnight 13 days but whos counting. Im sure it will look sunnier then. Do you know of any good gardeners you'd recommend. or any recommendations and or advice ... don't hold back ... all and any greatly appreciated ... maybe we 4 should meet for coffee when my other half hits town.
cheers jena
Pah, if only I had looked at this earlier for you.. we are just back from a week at our house in Roumazieres-Loubert. Unfortunately, not due back till February. Good luck with the hunting.
Weāre coming but not until next spring. This will be our second move to France, we first came in the early eighties with three small children and lived in the region Parisian. Joe my husband worked for a French company ( Axa ) they asked us to go to the New York office and we have been here for around 18 years. Now that we have retired we want to live in France again although that will mean leaving behind our daughter and two grandchildren. We have to be able to build at least four round trip flights to NYC into our budget. Our oldest son has been in France almost the whole time since he was a child he lives and works in Paris, our daughter has two very cool coffee shops in Brooklyn NY and our youngest son lives in York UK but will be moving with us along with his American wife. We like the Charente so are making lots of trips to choose a town that we like.
But not rushing into anything, we canāt decide if we should renovate or do a new build, itās so long since we lived there I think the France we knew no longer exists, we will have a lot to learn but hopefully we can find plenty of resources amoungst the group members.
Canāt wait! Gail Allen
I was in that area last year....stayed in the village of leucate and then on to Pezenas.
hi Jenna, bienvenue en France et Mazamet! 1st came across just before OH and I had bought a holiday Apartment in Port Leucate - having previously rented a gite near Carcassonne Cite, to start exploring The SW. I see a couple of others live in or near you, but as I remember the area well, just thought Iād say Welcome - sadly donāt live down that way anymore.
I hope you all enjoy your new life there. 
PS Donāt forget to Register with CPAM!
North rside of the Montagne Noir. Carcassone is on South. Or leaving BĆ©ziers and Heading w,lāy direction Will also take you there following signposts. Google Earth it!
In the Tarn, 20km south east of Castres ;-)
Hi Jena,
Welcome to Mazamet. Pam & I arrived in Mazamet a year ago and started off with mixed feelings about the place. Now, 12 months later, we want to stay for another year. Sadly, we don't own a house here, as we have done a home exchange, and it comes to the end in March.
On the subject of buying a car, we thought hat it would be difficult and tedious, but we saw a note in the window of a car that had parked opposite our house. Two weeks later it is ours and we love it. Insurance and immatriculation all done and dusted.
Talk soon
Alan
Mazamet is on the road between Toulouse and Beziers, that goes North of the black mountains. ie not via Carcassonne We are about an hour due North ofCarcassonne.
where is Marmazet please?