Living the Dream (Mostly): An Honest Look at Expat Life in France

Because a dream with language barriers, driving tests, and no almond flour is still a dream worth chasing.

Before we moved to France, I braced myself for homesickness. For culture shock. For missing Trader Joe’s dark chocolate peanut butter cups.

What I didn’t expect was that I’d need to explain a suspicious skin situation to a French-speaking receptionist without sounding like a deranged mime.

To be clear, I love living in France. We live in the dreamy countryside. There are fields of sunflowers and crumbling stone buildings that make you feel like you’re walking through a film set. But for anyone imagining our expat life as a nonstop picnic of brie and baguettes, allow me to offer a peek behind the linen curtain.

Here are just a few of the real-life challenges we’ve had to navigate as Americans living in rural France.

Language, language, language

We’re actually pretty decent at French now. But “decent” doesn’t always cut it when you’re trying to explain a preschool rash or challenge a mystery bill from EDF. In the countryside, almost no one speaks English. And you will get charged extra for not understanding things. I call it the Parlez-Vous Anglais? tax. We’ve learned to read the fine print…and sometimes phone a fluent friend.

Fancy health food is a logistical operation

Organic almond flour? Plastic-free sea salt? They don’t sell that at the corner market. I usually end up ordering these things online - from Germany. Or I pay 1.5x the price to import them from the U.S., which feels deeply ironic when I’m trying to avoid carbon footprints and plastic bags. The reality is that France is not in a health crisis like the U.S., so there’s no urgent need for these fancy health foods. But we’re still health-conscious Californians at heart and need our bougie ingredients sometimes.

French schools are not bilingual hugs

When our kids started school at ages 2 and 4, they didn’t speak a word of French. And no one at their school spoke a word of English. It was rough. There were tears (theirs and mine). There were awkward school pick-ups where I didn’t understand a single sentence from the teacher. But we stuck it out. Our oldest now speaks fluent French, our youngest is well on her way, and they’re thriving. It was worth the struggle, but wow, was it a journey.

The driving test nearly broke us

To drive legally in France, we had to pass the “Code de la Route” exam. Imagine your U.S. driver’s test, but written by philosophy professors who moonlight as traffic engineers. It’s hard. But I will say, we’re much better drivers now. Mostly because we now know the complex blinker etiquette at roundabouts.

The art of finding stuff

In L.A., I could buy almost anything and have it delivered the next day, usually with free shipping. In France? Not so much. They protect their local markets by making imported goods more expensive, which is great in theory…but sometimes a girl just wants her Target staples without paying customs fees! Over time, I’ve adjusted. I now know the exact corner of the obscure magasin that stocks coconut oil. Victory.

Booking doctor appointments is a heroic act

There’s a site to book doctor appointments online. Which sounds modern and easy… until you learn that most doctors don’t accept online appointments. So you have to call. And the receptionists? Lovely, but 100% French-speaking. I’ve had to ask my French brother-in-law to call in dermatology appointments for me, which is exactly as awkward as it sounds. (“Hi, yes, I’m calling about Kamille’s mystery rash…”)

And yet, all of these things, while occasionally frustrating, are completely manageable. We figure it out. We get better at the language, we find new sources, we laugh at our blunders, and we keep going. Because the beauty of this life far outweighs the occasional almond flour drama or phone call-induced panic sweat.

Living in France has taught us patience, resilience, and how to read a street sign written entirely in abbreviations. And honestly? I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

À bientôt,
Kamille

---

Paid subscribers get Castle Diaries: the chateau renovation journal, written in real time.