Free-spirit56

Bonsoir! I am hoping to relocate next year and have identified a house near Flers. It is about 8 minutes drive from Flers itself. I know very little about Flers. Can anyone give me advice? It seemed to be more lively than Vire. Having said that, I loved Vire; very quaint and attractive. I was told by a local in Vire that it is very quiet in the evenings. Flers certainly seemed to have people bobbing around in the evening so perhaps a bit more going on? I would love to commit to the house but need to know that I will be able to access some activities and possibly some work if my French ever becomes good enough! I am a nurse. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

cardi

It's a bit of a dump. A lot of standard industry in the area
High percentage of social housing.
8 minutes drive away is far enough but don't go to town during morning/evening/lunch rush hours.

dmu

Hi, and welcome to the Forum!
I don't know Flers at all, but you must be able to speak French in order to work as a nurse here. Your Diploma is transferable, but you as a foreigner would have to pass an exam. in French before you could work either in a hospital or as a "Libérale". Hope this helps a little!

Free-spirit56

Many thanks ! That surprises me - it looked fine to me. I guess the other direction is Conde sur Noireau and not too far from Clecy either. The little town the house is in is Montilly sur Noireau. Thanks for the info re nursing- yes I know about the exam requirement and may not become proficient enough at French so I may well plan for a semi retirement. Any more info on the area wd be very much appreciated !

Novocastrian

I happened to drive through there a couple of weeks ago. It's more of a hameau than a little town. I've just looked on wiki and the pop. is 740 with no commerces or non-farm employment.

Have you considered Clecy, which you mention? That would be my choice for that area.

Free-spirit56

Yes it's true - there's nothing there but houses although not far from nearby towns. Price is a big factor and this property was a good price. So many fab areas to choose from. A lot of English may nit be a problem for me as I would be on my own and it wd help initially ! Thanks !

EuroTrash

I don't know Flers well but I wouldn't call it a dump. My impression was a down to earth town where people work for a living, rather than a manicured tourist/retirement town, and it has residential outskirts and industrial parts as real towns do. It has a fine castle. It's one of the administrative hubs of the Flers-Argentan economic network so you will be on the spot for training, business advice etc. Not the most affluent part of Normandy but has initiatives in place and seems to be making an effort rather than quietly decaying away. The town itself seems to have a good number of restaurants, and a cinema. Never been there of an evening so couldn't say how lively or otherwise it is, but Normandy, or at least my bit of it, tends not to have a lot going on in the way of nightlife apart from places like Caen and Honfleur - most people are at home having their dinner at 8pm and don't usually stir after that. It all depends what lifestyle you envisage living.

Free-spirit56

Thank you (Eurotrash?) - interesting username - ! I'm sure you're not! Gladdened by your more encouraging description of Flers. Lifestyle - well essentially a homebod but have lived in cities , Manchester Sydney so enjoy being able to access a bit more of a buzz now and again. Plus the opportunity to 'get involved' volunteering or something ...

EuroTrash

Bear in mind that Cardi has higher standards than most, remembering another thread from yesterday where people were discussing whether any of France's university cities are beautiful:
Being eurotrash, I've seen some dumps in my time and I certainly wouldn't class Flers amongst them - nor even Nice so as usual it all comes down to personal perception. You need to go there and make your own mind up.

Luciole

As mentioned on many previous posts, I would highly recommend that you go there and stay for a while and see what you think. Many smaller towns & villages might appear to be lively during the weekend, but sometimes it's unbelievable how dead they are during the week.

LordMayor

I stayed in this area for a few months ,a few years ago,and I loved it. I was staying in Pont d'Ouilly, tremendously beautiful. Clecy is just as gorgeous. Conde-sur-Noireau too. My partner wanted to buy the castle there! We had beautiful food nearly every where, the people were nice and very helpful. There was no night life in the mentioned places, but Flers is a bit more alive, which is normal, being bigger than these absolute gorgeous villages.

EuroTrash

I live in a small town not very very far from Flers. The social scene seems a lot more structured than in the UK. People tend to go out when there is something to go to, rather than because they're bored at home. Here, the streets are generally empty in the evening during the week and weekends alike apart from when something is arranged, such as a concert in the salle des fetes, and then everybody goes along en masse and it is all very convivial and jolly. I lived in towns in the UK where it was the opposite, people went out every night but if somebody put on a concert, hardly anybody bothered going along to support it.

Village fetes and fairs are still tremendously important, round here of course it tends to be cider festivals, or cider and cheese festivals but there are also book fairs, chocolate festivals and all kinds of events. Often there is a street parade as part of the festival, with floats and marching bands and troupes of dancers - the traditions that died out a long time in the UK are still kept up here, which I think is great. Every commune of any size has an annual programme of events, and a long list of associations that you can join and get involved in and they always welcome ideas for new ones - associations are seen as being at the heart of communal life. If you're prepared to volunteer, there are organisations like Restos du Coeur who will certainly welcome you.

Hope this gives a better idea of social life in Normandy! (as I see it, at least)

Tweedpipe

I agree.
I've never been to Flers, but taking many things that our friend Cardi says with an outsize pinch of salt, I thought I'd visit the place.
Just done a 10 min virtual tour around the centre on Google Earth, and (assuming I was in the same Flers) a dump it is not - imho of course. And as I 'strolled' up Av. de Dijon, down Rue de Paris and turned into Rue de Messei, the sun actually put in an appearance.
So to the OP, the lesson is clear, others opinions are nothing more than good or bad guidelines, you really have to see for yourself and make up your own mind. Good luck on whenever you make your trip.

Free-spirit56

Thanks for all replies - I'm keen to make the right choice. Going to have a good look September. The direct train to Paris is a bonus so that may swing it . Bon nuit !

Tweedpipe

Bonne nuit.