Bonjour to Bergerac

[junebaby]

Hi there, I'm new here - very helpful and informative website [:)]

We are going out to Bergerac in February to look for a property and I just wanted to post a couple of questions:

1.   We would very much like to get in touch with anyone already living in the Bergerac area, perhaps with a view to meeting up in Feb? We have a 6 year old daughter who would appreciate any positive comments another child could make about living in France!

2.   Anyone got any good property websites?

3.   I know that the Dordogne area (especially the north) is prone to inclement weather but I wonder how inclement it can be?  For instance, I've been on the ViaMichelin site today and it said that the temp in Bergerac was -7!  Whatever happened to milder winters!!! [8-)]

Any other comments anyone can make would be most appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Bugsy]

Hi and welcome.....................

Have a look at the magazines on this site, or www.french-property.com

............and it's only freezing here  [8-|]

 

[Dave Plumb]

Hi Junebaby

You could have a look at www.prim.net

It can only tel you the worst

Dave

[Bob T]

45 minutes north east of Bergerac and yes it has been cold, -5 at night and for the past few days around zero. Today was a nice and sunny 8. The summer is nice and hot but the nights in the winter can be very cold. If you look at my blog you will even see the snow that we had here last Jan. But I would not ever think about moving back to the UK.

Welcome to the area.

[Suze01]

[quote user="junebaby"]

Whatever happened to milder winters!!! [8-)]

[/quote]

What milder winters? In the Dordogne we have very hot summers and very cold winters. If you want a mild winter I suggest you look at southern Spain.

[junebaby]

This kind of reply is fantastic.  There is a misconception with many including a writer in a "moving to france" magazine (not this one) who said that the Dordogne is popular because of it's not too warm summers and mild winters.  Getting the inside information from the people on the ground is exactly what we were looking for.

Also, I didn't put in my message above that we were looking to be near an expat community where there may be the odd English child at school for our daughter, any recommendations?

Many thanks for your replies, very helpful [:D]

[Bugsy]

[quote user="junebaby"]

Also, I didn't put in my message above that we were looking to be near an expat community where there may be the odd English child at school for our daughter, any recommendations?

[/quote]

I would think very carefully about that, scattered English neighbours is fine, but I would avoid, like a plague, the places where virtually the whole community is 'Brits.

Personal view, of course..................................[:)]

[Bob T]

I would tend to agree with Gary, but that is not what everyone wants. You will find that it should not take too long for you and your daughter to fit in with a French community, much longer if you want to live in a brit populated area. Perhaps I am not one to comment as I have no children, but I would bet that it will take less than a few months for your daughter to speak enough French to have some good French friends.

The summer here is long, but the winter can be very cold, that is the reason why most houses have heating.

[junebaby]

Thanks guys.   I know what you mean about keeping away from Brits (we do it when we go to France on holiday!) but we were concerned about feeling isolated as our french is not up to standard yet [;-)].   For that reason we were looking for a property in the countryside / hamlet but now feel a village situation with a large garden would be better for us - what are your views on this? What makes a hamlet into a village (shop, bar?)

Also, are there any areas in and around Bergerac / Dordogne you would avoid (other than the ones with too many English!).

Thanks again

Vicki

[Bugsy]

Vicki, I've PM'd you.

[junebaby]

Thanks Gary, I can only collect my e-mails at work so I will read and reply as soon as I can.

Vicki

[WJT]

Junebaby, it is something that has absolutely no appeal to me and I would personally avoid but if you really want an ex-pat life the two areas of the Dordogne that are notorious for being taken over by ex-pats are the Eymet area in the south near Bergerac and Riberac in the north. The latter in my opinion has most of the newer immigrants many with families. I know it is a sweeping statement and there are many exceptions but this is the reputation of these two areas.

Of course you will find Brits scattered throughout the whole of the department and many near Bergerac as well because of the low cost carriers flying in over the last four or five years. But in many areas the Brits have integrated better than others. As has been mentioned by other posters, (and again just a personal opinion) I believe your daughter would in the end feel more comfortable in France and integrate more quickly if she is not surrounded by ex pats. I would suggest the best way to get a feel for an area is to spend time here yourself and decide what feels right to you.

As far as the weather, my experience outside of it being a freezing damp cold here at the moment and most winters, it does get extremely hot and humid in the summer and gets a lot of rain. It is a very wet climate, hence it being so green and lush.

Good luck.

[Hoddy]

January's copy of "Living France" has an article about the British community in Eymet which you might find interesting.

Hoddy

[Cat]

[quote user="junebaby"]

Thanks Gary, I can only collect my e-mails at work so I will read and reply as soon as I can.

[/quote]

Vicki, you can read and send forum PMs without use of email, just go to http://www.completefrance.com/cs/user/PrivateMessages/

 

[Le 47]

Hi junebaby

We have young children in the maternelle and primary school. We think the following issues are important in being comfotable here; being close to a decent school, as you will be making the journey 2 times a day minimum and up to 4 or 5 times in certain circumstances icluding after school activities and homework clubs, being closeish to a reasonable supermarket, doctor etc. Everyday things that really can become a bind if you have to spend 30-40 minutes in a car to do them.

We have met some people who have not enjoyed their time here because they went 'full-on'  French and were relatively isolated e.g 15-20 mins to the school - which can create problems with meeting up with school friends, amonst other things. You can be isolated geographically and socially if you don't speak reasonable French. We have found that over time there has been a tendnacy to gravitate to other Brits because there is no other way to have proper conversations. This probably does not apply to those with a good command of French.

We live close to Castillonnes and our kids go to school there and despite being only 15 minutes from Eymet there are only 4 families with Britsih kids across both schools. The maternelle has 4 classes with about 100 children and the primary has 7 classes with about 200 children. There are in  Eymet, I understand,some schools with 20% Brit families. There are also many other issues to think about really.

Regarding hamlets and villages, there are very few with shops, bars etc., there is not enough trade to support them.

If I can help with anything specific please ask.

Bill

 

[Pommier]

We only moved to the area in October from Manche, and so far we`ve found that it`s been drier and less windy than Manche, with some warm days even in November. It`s been very cold during the last couple of weeks or so, but yesterday and today it been sunny with blue skies in the day.

We thought that there was a large British population in Manche, but there are far more here! The postman told us that Eymet is 50% British, but we haven`t noticed any resentment from the French (yet!).

We are on the edge of a small town (Castillonnes in the far North of Lot et Garonne), which we think will suit us better than being miles from anywhere as we were previously. I would think that your daughter would have more opportunities to mix with friends if you bought a place close to a decent sized village with a school.

Good luck with house hunting!

Cheryl