Bonjour from the French Alps!

So this explains why I haven't posted on my blog for (cough) some time. Its because my family and I moved to France - yay! (sort of). Now, let me fill you in about why I say 'sort of'. In the past 3 months not only have I been trying (and I stress the word 'trying') to complete my PhD, but I also had to pack and store three wardrobes of vintage clothes and organise everything associated with moving a husband and two young children to Europe from Australia. To say it was stressful is an understatement.

However, I am here! And I am glad to say I love it here in France. We are living in Grenoble, which is a lovely city three hours from Paris, at the foot of the alps. As you can see from the photo above, it is still a bit wintery here, but the sun still comes out during the day (I think technically-speaking it is Spring here in Europe?!). Whatever the season, it was great to bring my 60s hot pink Lilli Ann coat out for an airing in France.  That photo was taken right outside our apartment building. Coming from Australia, where large backyards are very common, I was a little concerned about living in an apartment with two small, very active children, but so far it has been great because this park is right outside and our neighbours have similarly-aged children who have already made friends with mine, so all is good (or I should say 'tres bon!)

Photos of Grenoble - Courtesy Grenoble Tourism

These are some photos from Grenoble, courtesy of the Grenoble Tourism office. The photos may not do the city/town justice, as it is very pretty. There are a few things which are striking about living here, and I am not sure whether it is just Grenoble or France in general, but everything is so clean and there is hardly any pollution. I think this is largely down to the absolutely fantastic public transport and cycle lanes here - everyone cycles and it is really safe as most roads have dedicated cycle lanes. The public transport (mainly trams, but also some buses) are super clean and super cheap. I always found driving in Melbourne incredibly stressful so I am just so happy not to have to drive here.

Overview of Grenoble, showing the mountains in the distance

I do hope to post much more often now I am in France (and once I finish my PhD, hopefully in 3 months time). I am going to Italy and New York in May so I will be posting lots of photos of fashion from those trips so stay tuned. I packed all my Dior New Look dresses and hats in my bag so I am hoping to get lots of outfit posts taken in front of lovely French sights.

Thank you all for being patient with my intermittent posts. I really appreciate it.

Au revoir for now from France! (if you couldn't tell by now, my French is shocking)

Outfit details

1960s vintage Lilli Ann trapeze coat in hot pink ebay UK

pink gloves Love Vintage fair, Sydney

scarf Myer Melbourne