More time with the family
OK we’re half way through this interminable series of responses to the survey at Would you enjoy living in France – not far to go now, and I’ll keep this one brief.
I have nothing very helpful to say on this subject, since it depends entirely on your own personality, but I do know that it is a real issue for some people. Consider the following:
1) If one or both of you has always worked, you will have typically spent only a couple of hours together each day. Many businesses that expats start in France will mean that you are literally together almost all the time. To suddenly be together in the same place, always, can be stressful!
The answer is to ensure you have different interests, different friends etc so that you have things to discuss.
2) Understand that even if you like being with your partner all the time they might just not feel the same about you. It’s no big criticism, just that some people need more space than others. You might have answered ‘Yes that would be lovely’ and your partner ‘No thanks we would both go mad’. Make sure you know what each other have answered!
e have a lot of land so I can always go and chop down a distant tree if I need a bit of peace. Mrs B prefers to go off and meet people in exclusive restaurants or pop down to Barcelona for a few days. Sounds fair, don’t you think.
3) The other side of relocating to France is that you will see less of your friends. Or more exactly, you’ll see your friends less often – when you do see them they will stay three weeks, eat you out of house and home, and have you begging them to leave.
But still it is hard for some people to adjust to not having lots of neighbours where they can pop in for a cup of tea. Again, only you know how serious an issue this is for you.
Me, I’m a quiet type of person and a quick chat with the cat once a week and I’m happy. Mrs B prefers real people, and found it hard for the first year or two until she came to know people better.
Others find it completely intolerable (both seeing too much of their partners and seeing too little of their old friends) and return to the UK because of it.
Which type are you?