Rouen with love ...

                  

Hello

 

I have been living  in Rouen since 2012 and my wonder keeps growing. I unceasingly discover treasures ,  I often go out with my digital camera, even if I had a hard time getting started! Not that it is complicated to use, I am simply part of the "film generation" and, it is difficult to get rid of certain habits ....

I never know ahead what I'm going to photograph, I go along, depending on my mood. I can photograph a monument as well as a trash can. The main thing is to be careful when I look up and don't take care on which path I am walking.

Why?

Because some inhabitants forget that good citizenship also means picking up the dog's droppings! I'm a fan of pets, it's after the owners that I grumble, especially since this gesture costs nothing, the town hall providing the bags for free and, the city has no shortage of trash cans where to throw them ....

I am lucky to live in the center of Rouen, surrounded by the Seine river. I enjoy Rouen on the right bank, its middle-aged neighborhoods, its "chic" side and, I just as much love the Rouen on the left bank, popular, colorful where I feel at home. Between the two banks, I have a choice and, whether on one bank or the other, I never get bored.

Some will take me for a ingenuous naive because in general I find people nice there, the traders accessible, the administration efficient. I will answer "no, I am not a ingenuous naive ", I would say a simple hello, a smile is often enough to brighten the day of an  interlocutor, to find the way to friendliness and kindness.I am not completely naive, there are the "unrecoverable", these people who are naturally unpleasant and, will never do anything to change it. Too bad for them!

I often hear some locals complaining about the behavior of others, the lack of civility, etc. It does exist, it is true but, not everything is due in life and, we ourselves have to make some efforts. to be respected.

I was fortunate enough to live over 20 years abroad, so I know how to appreciate what our country offers. It is certainly not perfect, if it was, we should call France, Paradise, Eden ... but, we are rather spoiled. If there is better, there is also so much worse elsewhere. It's up to us to see the glass half full instead of seeing it half empty.

When I returned to France in 2012, I thought I was going to have a hard time with the authorities as it had always been the case in Greece where I had been living for 18 years. But no, I was always welcomed, informed, helped even if , as I have often been told, everything was more complicated in our case, being French citizens returning to France and not foreigners settling in France. If it was complicated for the administrations, imagine how it was for me who spoke the same language and, however, did not understand most of their talks, especially when they spoke to me in acronyms completely unknown to me. Everything had changed so much in 18 years!

The hardest part for us was actually finding accommodation. It was really easier in Greece (you can see that I am not that negative about it!). by these too expensive real estate agencies, I searched on the Internet and, by this type of agency in which we pay a listing of addresses. It is up to us to manage afterwards.

I will never forget (except, if I lose my mind) this good looking "chic"kind of woman who had put an ad to rent an apartment in St Gervais street. The photos on the site were nice, the "lady's spirit" much less and, the accommodation even less. Dilapidated it was, she showed us around as if we were in Versailles, snubbed us even when we pointed out the sad general state of her property. "Madame" took us high. So that's how a sleep merchant could look like !?

It was a really unpleasant experience but, an experience all the same.

Fortunately, the next accommodation was good, the owner too!

 

So, yes, Rouen is a beautiful city, in which I enjoy living and, I hope you will enjoy my pics and, will see why I find it beautiful, not perfect but, beautiful with its imperfections. its people. I got to meet really nice persons, friends, found my family and rediscovered a city even prettier than in little girl's memories. I am no longer isolated but, happy, and with a true wish to share through my site my moments of happiness during my walks in Rouen.

 

Thanks in advance if you take a moment to visit my pages

 

Alexandrine aka Gallida-Hellas