Essentials to live in France

Your morality. Expectations of fidelity. And don't forget your concept of female solidarity and sisterhood.  Welcome to the land of cheaters

Do not pack preconceived expectations.  Do pack a sense of humour, some basic French phrases and a determination to enjoy..

patience

Yes it is an advanced Nation. But dont expect things to happen in a day. This is still a Pen and Paper country. So like someone said, patience is virtue.

Patience. As previously mentioned. Don't be afraid to talk to everyone. This country still very much works on a system of who you know. Otherwise, in the cities, you can find everything you'll need. Clothes are more expensive here. If you like ziplock freezer bags- that's basically the only thing I can't find. Otherwise, it's getting used to French appliances like washing machines that take 3 hours!

All you need to pack is a good attitude - the intention to try to fit in.  Look for French friends, eat French food and integrate!

If you must eat baked beans, fish and chips and speak English, then just forget it and stay at home!

Watch French TV, listen to French radio and go to French bars and restaurants.

Horseradish (raifort)
sweetcorn (Plant your own)

Teabags.....a must if you're a tea drinker.  Lot's and lot's of patience - be ready for the cultural shock period, which can happen at any moment.  Have lots of friends to support you - French and mother-tongues ones.  Pick up each challenge as you come to them particularly when you will have to deal with the Administration here - it is improving but it's a very slow progress.  Enjoy the food and the beautiful sights.  Get out as much as you can and don't ruminate too much.

@Luluseattle:    I'm sorry for your obviously unfortunate experience in France.  But it's grossly unfair to suggest that infidelity and lack of morality are the rule rather than the exception, just as it would be in the UK and definitely in the US.

@Randy 1:    Excellent post.  Absolutely spot on.

Good Southern BBQ

Bagels and Cream Cheese

Peanut Butter

Large Cups of Coffee

Chipotle

In-N-Out Burger

24/7 stores

There are tea bags a plenty all over France!!!!

Strong Yorkshire Tea! (Don't believe anyone who tells you that Lipton Yellow is 'just as good as the English stuff'....)

I have found that a stock of random things you didn't think twice about in your home country, but which are weirdly comforting when abroad, is always useful to have hidden for times of homesickness emergency...

https://alpinemummy.wordpress.com/2013/ … esickness/

Yes, definitely Yorkshire......but now we have M&S back in town it's not too bad.

I'd start with an open mind.. and leave those pre-conceived ideas behind.

You should for sure bring you trad dictionary. I'm french but looking around and french people do NOT speak english ! If you can come with some french words honestly your life we'll definitely be easier

My experience of French people is that although a larger number than you might think understand English, few admit to speaking it as they consider their accent awful. Yes, the same accent that we find so charming! 
ParkingGratuit is right though - don't plan on coming here without a working knowledge of French. We'd expect French expats in England to speak English - it works both ways.

Hi
Having lived here for 2.5 years, I would say, in no particular order:-

Bring with you/stock up on return trips:-

Tights (upwards of €7 here)
Jeye cloths or whatever you use to clean your worktop - the only thing available here is those Spontex things with an abrasive side and a spongey side
Nuts, if you eat anything other than cashews or almonds, v dear, and brazil nuts v hard to find
Books! French books v v dear, a paperback can cost €20
Anything electrical, especially white goods, v v dear here and not a huge amount of choice, though supermarkets (especially Auchan) sometimes have good deals
DIY materials and paint, ridiculously dear here, a Spanish builder I know finds it worthwhile to buy all his materials in Spain and bring them up for jobs here. Brits also regularly go back to the UK to buy their materials
Curry spices or sauces, the French simply don't eat spicy food, period

For bargains, go to:-

LeBonCoin, like an online Exchange and Mart, or EBay, but includes holidays, property, clothes, furniture, you name it, and covers the whole of France. Beware of the odd con though, people asking for money upfront, occasionally happens (ditto with your phone, cold calling cons are quite common)

The French don't do charity shops to the extent that the Brits do, but having said that, there is:-
My favourite, Emmaus, yes the charity, huge warehouses all over France, some better than others, but the bigger ones sell clothes, books, furniture, building materials, prams, bikes etc for a fraction of full price;
Croix Rouge, usually listed on "Pages Jaunes" online, great for cheap clothes
Secour Populaire, not so common but again good for clothes

And "vide-greniers, literally "emptying the attic", more than a car boot as people literally sell barn contents etc at these events. Most villages will have at least one a year, and you can buy a book listing the year's vide-greniers in your area (buy at the tabac)

French supermarkets usually stock fruit and veg in season, they're nothing like UK ones in terms of ensuring you can get fresh papaya all year round! Also, check packs very carefully, their stock control is not great and it's quite common to find in-date produce which is mouldy/rotten

Customer service is an almost unknown notion to the French.....someone help me out here if they think I'm wrong! ...but it's sadly quite common to be treated with less than courtesy and promptness if you have a problem/complaint

French car mechanics are notoriously macho and are known to ignore female car-owners and speak only to their partners

Yves Rocher have lots of shops and sell good cosmetics/toiletries, many either organic ("bio") or benzo-free. They have a loyalty card entitling you to discounts, and some branches also have in-house beauty salons

Good hairdressers are surprisingly hard to find, though there are hairdressers everywhere!

If you're on a budget, go for the "formule" in restaurants, usually very good value, typically a 3 course formule meal can cost from €9-18.

"Cafe gourmand" is lush! As a dessert, you get a coffee plus 3 little desserts

Very important - wherever you are, whatever the situation, always start a dialogue with a French person by saying "Bonjour"......especially in shops, the French regard it as very rude if you don't, they are far more concerned about saying Bonjour, than with please and thankyou. Even at supermarket checkouts, make sure to say "Bonjour" when it's your turn.....and try not to mind when the cashier has a chat with other customers, who then rummage in their bags to write a cheque!

Also....the French are generally upbeat, a bit proud, and cheerful....moaning is not de rigeur....and it is normal to flirt!

If you're feeling stuck/lonely, there's loads of expat websites/blogs/Facebook pages, LIFT (ladies in France together) on FB is great, AngloInfo is good and carries a lot of small ads, Survive France is another, plus most departements that have significant Brit populations, have their own Facebook selling/courses/exchange page

Writing cheques is still common practice, and proof of ID is not usually requested
Credit cards are not used very often, "carte bleue" is more normal (bank debit card)
While on the subject of banks, they are very wary of money laundering, so expect to be quizzed if large deposits are made in your account
If you have a French bank account, it will have a daily/weekly/monthly withdrawal limit, which the bank may not think to tell you, so be sure to ask

If you're looking to rent property, the usual tenancy agreement here with a French landlord, is for 3 years. French tenants have much more rights than the UK equivalent

And talking of property, check before signing on the dotted line, that you can get a) mobile reception and b) broadband, it's not universal

Bureaucracy....haha, the minefield here! Be sure to bring (as you will regularly need them) birth certificate, marriage certificate, obviously passport, and divorce, decree absolute certificate, the French love their forms ( which drive even the French mad....a French friend of mine had to complete a 20 page form to renew an Hgv licence.....)

The French generally like the Brits, and consider most of us to be extremely pleasant and polite, and they love our accents when we speak French.
They (mostly) love that we buy up their old decrepit stone houses and restore them, while they (often) prefer newbuild bungalows which are insulated against heat/cold, and are low maintenance
What they DON'T like - Brits expecting them to speak English automatically (itis France, not the UK, after all?); lack of respect for their food/mealtimes (12-14:00 is sacrosanct), and excessive drinking. In general, the French will drink to appreciate a wine, but won't have more than 2 glasses. They look askance on public drunkenness

If you want to impress your new French neighbours, invite them in for "aperos", this is an early evening aperitif, you can serve pretty much anything to drink, but in Poitou-Charente, "pineau" is the local (very strong) aperitif.....and they will expect lots to eat, and you need to serve enough for everyone to be able to eat quite a lot, even though you're not cooking a proper meal, be sure to do several plates of snacky things.....they will love this

When the French entertain, don't eat all day beforehand!! It is quite normal to get 5 courses!
French women are pretty much always on a diet, if you watch them closely at these blowout meals, they nearly always have a glass of sparkling water, and maybe 1 glass of wine, and they eat and drink very slowly (I didn't realize this initially, and piled on nearly a stone in less than a month)

The French LOVE crumble! And roast chicken......

They always eat dessert with a teaspoon

And, surprisingly, pizza - no shortage of pizzerias here, they prefer thin and crispy

Hope that helps! Good luck and bonne aventure! It's a great place! (Blimey, think I should write a guide!)

Totally agree

Oystercatcher's wonderful post filled in so many blanks.. but the one thing she missed out was - sarcasm and irony.
Thankfully the French never (in my experience) use sarcasm and irony.. and aren't they the better for it! I find it refreshing to be with people who actually say what they think - instead of the reverse 'humour' that passes for 'wit' in the UK.
Yes, there are downsides to living here (I believe) but are they annoying enough to make me want to return to Emma Thompson's “tiny little cloud-bolted, rainy corner of sort-of Europe, a cake-filled misery-laden grey old island”? Not a chance.
We've never been happier since we moved here 8 years ago.

Totally agree! The French are extremely direct, sarcasm is hardly ever used, they are much more assertive than we Brits tend to be. Well spotted.

Brillo pads, ziplock bags, dawn dishwashing liquid and Tide!  I'm there for a month out of every year and while the French have anything and everything I hold dear, these items I can never find!  My suitcase is filled with them

Hi
My partner and I move to availles limouzine in 3 weeks!!! Thank you all for such amazing and insightful information.
A trip to Wilkos is now needed!

Bonjour Nicky aka OysterCatcher (bet that's an interesting story...) Thanks for caring enough to take the question seriously, instead of just a perfunctory phrase!  I tried to make a copy your suggestions  but with no success --too much superimposed print on top of the text. I'd love a copy for future ref. 
Really appreciated the list of used clothing/thrift shops you gave!!      I have a few qustions: (Q?)
         ****

Awwww that's disappointing I can find that here lol

Thank you for your insight OysterCatcher. Myself and my Boyfriend are moving to Pau in August.