Just to show that everybody’s different, some friends of mine have recently moved from the Gers (near the snigger-worthy town of Condom) up to damp and soggy Normandy - they found the summers too hot, and also the distance to drive back to visit family in the UK was a factor I think.
It’s one of the fascinations of France that the climate varies so much (OK it does in the UK as well but not quite as much), so finding your “spot” can be tricky, especially as short visits don’t give you the full picture.
I’m leaning towards “somewhere middle left” (i.e. between the Loire Valley and Angoulême/Limoges) when I make my move as I am not fond of the damp but don’t want to be roasted either!
That said, with climate change all bets are off probably!
The Corbieres are generally colder than the Minervois unless you go to the eastern end. Not sure the beach and civilisation would be 1hour away, as it takes us 1 hour to Gruissan, Narbonne plage etc and we’re way north of Carcassonne.
That is the problem I believe. Brittany seems to have become a lot wetter over the past couple of years though I realise that this year seems to have produced excessive rain in many areas. It is most certainly exceedingly damp although summers can be glorious.
Ironically we have found a property in Francescas (L et G) which is not far from Condom. Having lived in hot climates the heat does not bother us too much…hopefully nothing that the customary a/c unit cannot deal with anyway.
We considered that “middle left” area where we have friends in Ruffec but decided its a little too quiet and the winters are decidedly chilly and can be lengthy.
Bit of a typo. About 15 - 20 minutes from the motorway junction on the east side of Carcassonne.
Google says it’s 1 hour 9 minutes, but I generally do it a bit better than that.
Probably a stupid question but not been over “there” for going on for 8 years and have no idea but is there any problem in taking nice french things like paté and cheese in a suitcase these days and probably anything else edible or drinkable?? I asked family but no one seems to have any idea any more about anything about travelling these days apart from its a pain in the a**e!
…and since the UK Government still hasn’t got around to implementing food safety or standards checks on anything from the EU yet (in an effort to avoid delivery delays and food shortages), you could probably bring a lorry-load in and nobody would bat an eyelid.
Supposedly checks on commercial food imports are due to start at the end of April, having been postponed FIVE times previously since Brexit.
Going the other way, the EU were ready from day one and truck drivers had their cheese sandwiches confiscated.
FYI bringing in kumquats from outside the EU is strictly verboten.
Be careful not to do what I did the other day - do not pack a good quality cheddar in your carry on bag with an iphone battery extender alongside. Cheddar shows up exactly the same as Semtex on a scanner. A battery alongside gets every red light and bell going and a mad rush of security personnel - in Stansted at least
(This was coming the other way. I knew the risk of cheese into the EU, but worth doing for a good taste.)
No problems, don’t have a mobile phone so no cables or battery thingies to worry about. Would rather bring some teabags back than cheese to be honest as cheddar is available here locally in Super U, Leclerc and Carrefour.
