Bonjour tous le monde! Anyone out there in the Mayenne?!!

[Rosie]

[:D] Hello... We are a sociable young family (well, the kids are young, us not quite so....) about to move (for our job) close to a small town called Ernee, in the Mayenne (53) region, not far from Fougeres and Laval.  (I think it's officially Pays de Loire region, but most people Ive spoken to refer to it within Basse - Normandy (?))

Anyway! Would love to hear from anyone else living in the area and get the inside gossip on what it has to offer. Know little about the region, except its abundance of cows and mist. I'm sure there's more to it......................

We have a 4year old boy and 2 year old girl who will be starting the local school - ive heard mixed reports on the attitude to English kids in this area - anyone had any other tales to tell?  And also any good recommendations for family days out in the area - got to start convincing my 4 year old France will be FUN! We are quite outgoing types (more outdoorsy than sporty- anything involving adventure, camping, and general pottering around outside with friends and good food and wine)

Lastly, can anyone recommend any good language schools or teachers in the area - although my French is ok -ish, my grammar is absolutely rubbish! 

Look forward to hearing from fellow 53'ers![:D]

Rosie

[Cassis]

We're next door in 72 (the Sarthe, Pays de la Loire), but our nearest town is Alençon (61 the Orne, Basse Normandie).  Yes, Mayenne is Pays de la Loire, but if you're near the north end then it feels more like Normandy.  We usually describe ourselves as Lower Normandy as people have a better idea where that is.

Try a day out at Sillé le Guillaume with the kids - big lake with boats, beach etc.  NB the lake is outside the town itself.  Do a Google on it.  If you go on our website and go to the What to See page there are lots of ideas for days out and places to go.  Some may be near enough for you.

There are some Brit ghettoes in the Mayenne which are not very popular with the French.  Not naming which places!

I'm afraid language teachers are few and far between in our area (72 north and 61 south) and cost an arm and a leg - about 40 euros an hour one on one, as there are not enough Brits learning French to make it worthwhile having classes.  Maybe around Domfront or somewhere there may be someone cheaper or even classes.

[Rosie]

Thanks for the ideas, Cassis! Have also been warned about the Brit explosions in the area before... hmmmmm - hopefully shall not add to their unpopularity as we plan to make as many French friends as possible over time - after all our kids will probably know only French kids, as their school is very small. Obviously its easy to see why Brits are drawn to other Brits, but thats not the reason we are moving to the Mayenne - its where the job is - so hopefully we can find a happy medium!

Will check out your site too - thanks again![:)]

[Cassis]

Don't get me wrong - the Mayenne is not overrun with exiles from God's Own Country (to borrow KKK's phrase) [;-)]. 

Having children will help you settle in a lot more quickly than you might otherwise - if you take them to school you'll meet a lot of parents.  You could even go early for the pick-up journey to meet more!  And find out who's in charge of the PTA (there must be one) to find out about events, kermesses, fundraisers etc.  Your help at events will be appreciated and it's another way to meet people.

All the best with your move!

[Billybongles]

Try looking at this site http://www.euromayenne.org/