One Sip at a Time: Learning to Live in Provence

Keith and Val had a dream – to live in Provence, the land of brilliant sunlight and charming hilltop villages.

But there were two problems: they weren’t French speakers and they had full-time jobs. So they came up with a plan…

Follow their adventures (and misadventures) as they quit their jobs, become consultants and split their time between two countries. Laugh along as they build a life in Provence, slowly mastering a new language and making friends with the locals over long meals and just a bit too much wine.

This light and breezy memoir is full of wry observations on France, like the power of cheese to sway elections, the right and wrong ways for men to kiss each other, and the law requiring that blood donors must speak French.

If you’ve ever dreamed of changing gears and learning what joie de vivre is really all about, you won’t want to miss this delightful book.


From the Book

Joyeux Anniversaire: The chef had written a cookbook and I bought one for Val, which he signed. His inscription read, "Valérie, vous êtes jeune et délicieuse comme les fèves du printemps" ("Valerie, you are young and delicious like the fava beans of springtime.") . . . I had so much to learn from the French.

How to Kiss a Frenchman: Here, not far from where we had stayed the year before, it was two kisses on the cheek rather than three. How were we supposed to know this? Was there a border we had crossed but somehow missed the sign? (“Welcome to Eastern Provence. Please Follow the Local Kissing Regulations. And Enjoy Your Lunch, Especially the Asparagus, Which is Delicious Right Now.”)

A Night at the Opera: There are many words that are the same in French and English, like nation, pause, and danger. If I don’t know a word in French, sometimes I will just fake it by using the English word with a French accent. It works most of the time. But you have to be careful. There are words that exist in both languages and have entirely different meanings. These are the infamous faux amis, or “false friends.” Ask Val about the time she shocked her co-workers by talking about preservatives in food. Oops, preservative means “condom.”

Interregnum: France had started to capture our hearts. It wasn’t just a place we visited; it was becoming one of the places we lived. Thomas Jefferson is supposed to have said, “Every man has two countries – his own and France.” Maybe he was on to something.

• Are We French Yet? Keith & Val's Adventures in Provence
• My Good Life in France: In Pursuit of the Rural Dream
• Uncorked: My year in Provence studying Pétanque, discovering Chagall, drinking Pastis, and mangling French
• Gone with the Wine: Living the Dream in France's Loire Valley
• A Small House in France: How an English couple turned a neglected French cottage, an acre of land and a walnut orchard into a holiday retreat
• Passion for Provence: 22 Keys to La Belle Vie
• A Season of Surprises at the Villa des Violettes
• Pensioners in Paradis
• In Foreign Fields: How Not To Move To France
• I'll Never Be French (no matter what I do): Living in a Small Village in Brittany