Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: Up until now, Robin has been doing all of the renovation to standard building codes (he has done some serious homework and seems to be the only person around here actually following the rules). We knew we would always need a little help with …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: The only people that don’t tip in French restaurants are tourists that read english language guides about France that tell them they don’t need to tip. It’s true that there isn’t much of a tipping culture here in France; thank goodness! I find the …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: May in Provence is the continuation of annual flower markets and the beginning of the abrivado season. Horse festivals, running of the bulls…For me, the season really starts with the 1st of May celebrations in Arles where the Fête des Gardians …Continue reading here for Ashley’s …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: Replacing the steep, narrow and dangerous staircase in our house with a space-effective spiral staircase was always part of our renovation plan. We looked online at beautiful industrial era staircases from Britain and compared those to the rickety plastic structures available at the local …

So we’re currently lying on the couch holding our bellies after we have been testing their limits all weekend in France’s gastronomic capital. Lyon is a city full of surprises and delicious specialties. I wasn’t expecting the buildings to be so colourful. As it’s so close to the Alps, I …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: The cherry trees are flowering in Provence and there are punnets full of local tasty strawberries varieties at the local veg shop. We’ve officially (only today) moved into our new house and though we’re quite busy- …Continue reading here for Ashley’s list of all the festivals …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: Things are starting to feel decidedly spring-like here in Provence. There are orchids in the grass, the almond blossom has just waned in time for the pear trees to start budding. We’ve had, as seemingly everywhere, a mild winter. We haven’t had anywhere near as …

Contributor Blog Post By Ashley Tinker: Shopping for Antique Patina Doors in Provence The treasure and charm of antique doors. It seems that we like to make our lives difficult; dating for 5 years long distance Montreal-London, moving to a new country without proper jobs, buying a tiny house in …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: Walking Tour of Marseille Offered by a Local Greeter Robin and I have been living in Provence for 2 years and can you believe it- we’ve never visited Marseille except for getting lost in the city on our way to the Calanques which was slightly …

Contributor blog post by Ashley Tinker: Our Renovation: More Ceiling Surprises So we’re still stripping back to try to get to the bare bones or our new tiny house. During the past few days we’ve gone back upstairs to take down the ceiling that consisted of fake wood made of styrofoam …