• gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works
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    9 days ago

    Chief among the drawbacks of life in Nimes, McIsaac-Kierklo says, is that she can’t often get good produce to cook with — she notes limp celery for sale at the local grocery story. And, she says, the wonders of French cuisine haven’t really won her over.

    “People go, ‘Oh my god, the French food is so fabulous.’ Yeah, if you want to eat brie, pâté, pastries and French bread all day long,” she tells CNN. “But who eats like that?”

    Also: the couple has struggled to make friends, McIsaac-Kierklo has not yet mastered the language (or learned much of it), and the bureaucracies behind the healthcare system and banking system, and getting a long-stay visa, have been nightmarish.

    …who the fuck are these people? How do you not like French food? How are they NOT finding excellent produce? It’s fucking EVERYWHERE in France, and miles better on average than what we get in the states. And not bothering to even learn French, and then being annoyed that it’s hard to make friends is just… what…?

    • wjrii@lemmy.world
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      9 days ago

      The CNN article is actually even better. HERE for example is some some of the so-called terrible produce. I also liked this:

      “I said to Ed one day, ‘I haven’t talked to one person here in three months…’ I just miss interacting,” she says, adding that she doesn’t necessarily “want to hang around with expats” as “that’s not exactly why we came on this adventure.”

      Locals have been friendly and welcoming, but Joanna hasn’t managed to “strike up friendships” the way she would have hoped to, conceding that the language and cultural barrier have made things more tricky.

      I think maybe the most clear evidence that these two are idiots and California cliches with no ability to self-reflect, however, is that they agreed to the story at all. Okay, you were DINKs for a long time and now you have money to burn and did something slightly dumb. Why in the holy hell would you tell the world?!?!?

      • anytimesoon@feddit.uk
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        8 days ago

        Those peppers are stunning. What is she complaining about?

        Even the rest of the stuff on the shelves looks beautiful. I’m legitimately confused

      • PrincessLeiasCat@sh.itjust.works
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        9 days ago

        Joanna explains that she and Ed bought and sold three different homes during their first 15 years of marriage, “giving us a comfortable amount of cash to afford us the option to travel and even relocate to anywhere we wanted.”

        In 2010, the couple bought a summer home in Northern California and spent eight years or so “going back and forth to San Francisco.”

        “I think every married couple needs two places to live, because you’ve got to get away from each other,” adds Joanna, who previously worked as a healthcare executive.

        Oh fuck off you entitled POS.