NEW from Hilke Maunder Le Midi Cookbook. A wonderful cookbook full of recipes from the South of France. We especially love the book because it puts the local producers in the South of France in the spotlight!
The ingredients are available to order in our e-boutique .
Update 13 June 2022
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Hilke Maunder talks to Sarah about her life in France in times of Corona and reports on her experiences as an emigrant in France and her favorite places in Provence.
Culinary delights, culture, travel tips and even politics. Thanks to her clear and up-to-date information on Corona measures in France, her blog has experienced rapid growth since 2020 and has broken all visitor records.
Hilke, you come from Hamburg, where your daughter also lives. But you also have a second base in France. How do you organize your life around these two places of residence?
My daughter attended the Lyçée Français de Hambourg, the French foreign school and preschool in Hamburg, which she left with the Abibac. This school had full-day classes - and perfectly timed holiday periods at Easter, in the autumn and for more than two months in the summer. We were able to travel together and discover a lot of the world - and a lot of France too. Today my daughter is studying in York, UK. So we now have three places to live: Hamburg, France, York - with friends and family.
Was it easy to settle in France? Were there any hurdles you had to overcome to build a life here?
As a staunch European, I am happy that the EU allows me to feel at home in France, to live and work just as much as in the other countries in our community. And despite all the years that I have spent studying France, living and working there, I am always surprised at how different everyday life and work are. And the bureaucracy too. For example, I paid the audiovisual fee in France for years, even though I still don't own a TV or radio. Because I thought that in France you had to pay this broadcasting fee like in Germany if you own a computer. But that's not the case. I usually only discovered such differences by chance.
What would you say are the biggest differences between your everyday life in Germany and in France?
I think it's wonderful that people talk to each other so much here in France - and yet private matters remain and are really private. Communicative and distant at the same time, I like that.
At the beginning, I also noticed how much more value the French place on good food, the quality and processing of food. And also the conviviality and social life that is closely linked to this. I think I am now so integrated that I rarely notice differences - and I carry both cultures and ways of life within me.
You spent the first “big” lockdown, the confinement , in March 2020 here in France. How did you experience this time?
The lockdown fundamentally changed life and everyday life. I lost book contracts that I had already closed, was no longer receiving any orders as a freelance editor - and had to completely reinvent my daily work routine, find new sources of income and diversify my profession, my knowledge and my services. However, I did not feel locked in - I was used to working alone at home in front of the computer for many hours and only going for a long walk in the evening.
During the first hard lockdown, I was only allowed to do this within a radius of one kilometer for an hour. It became a bit of a sport to find the longest possible routes through our village within the official guidelines.
I was shocked by two things. It was so quiet. No one was working anymore, all windows and doors were barricaded. All life, all contact was digital. When I went shopping, I saw how quickly the shelves emptied. After ten days of lockdown, there was no flour or yeast. But yogurt and bread, pasta and rice, canned goods and everything else that could be eaten also disappeared. And was only rudimentarily replenished. The supply situation was so catastrophic that I was glad to have got hold of seeds for tomatoes and rocket. In the first lockdown, there was only rice or pasta for weeks... I discovered yoga with Mady Morrison, met for virtual aperitifs and noticed how much the internet helped to put the situation into perspective, keep in touch and remain mentally stable. So I started posting daily updates on Corona in France on my blog.
On your blog, you not only provide information about the classic travel topics. You also report comprehensively and clearly on the current situation regarding the Covid-19 measures in France. What topics are your readers most concerned with at the moment?
With regard to Corona, two topics dominate: vaccination – and the question of when one will finally be able to travel again and enjoy France and its way of life without worries.
"With regard to Corona, two topics dominate: vaccination - and the question of when one will finally be able to travel again and enjoy France and its way of life without worries."
Many of my readers have an enormous longing for France. I help them to get information and to experience and enjoy France, at least virtually. With reading tips and recipes they can bring France into their home, with travel stories they can plan or dream, with Corona information and current news they can assess the situation.
“Live like God in France!” Is there any truth to this saying?
The expression originally comes from the Yiddish "men ist azoy wie Gott in Frankreich" and dates back to the time when France was the only country in Europe to emancipate the Jews and make them full citizens. The expression was later adopted by the Germans: glücklich wie Gott in Frankreich.
And yes, I think there is something to that. It starts with freedom. In Germany, the registration office knows exactly which house and which floor a person lives in. In France, there is no registration system of this kind. In France, the electricity bill is enough as proof of residence. And if you want to be particularly private, you can leave the name on the doorplate. Because, unlike in Germany, it does not have to be on the doorbell.
Trends sometimes take a little longer in France than in Germany, for example. The slow food movement and the trend towards small, local production, on the other hand, seem to be a tradition in France. Quality instead of quantity. How do you feel about that?
The French are very proud of their homeland and their products - and protect local diversity to a great extent. Shopping is a process in which the benefits and preparation are discussed with passion. I find it incredibly exciting - and I keep discovering new delights. It's simply wonderful!
Which French products do you miss in Germany? What do you bring back from France?
I'm a huge cheese fan. And I love French wine. But I don't think I'm missing it. Back home in northern Germany, there are so many delicious local products. When I'm there, I enjoy them. I'm so happy that Europe offers us so many new worlds and homes!
You have published various travel guides for Marco Polo, Baedeker and DuMont, as well as illustrated books about the south of France. So you know the region very well. Can you tell us your favorite places in Provence?
Provence is an incredibly exciting and diverse region, and my favorite places would fill an entire book.
But Marseille and its nearby coasts of the Côte Bleue and the Calanques are definitely included. As are Sisteron and the Haute-Provence. The Alpilles and the Montagne de Regagnas with beautiful places like Auriol, La Destrousse, La Bouilladisse, Peypin and Belcondène. And, because dear friends from Hamburg live there, of course the Drôme Provençale too!
In the Calanques near Marseille, Photo: Hilke Mauder
Would you like to buy products directly from producers in the Drôme Provencale? Take a look at the shop !
More information about our producers can be found in the blog in the category of the same name.
Well-founded, independent and up-to-date. My France is one of the leading German-language online magazines about France.
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Workplace at the airport, photo: private
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