Amour, Wine and Real Estate in Southern France

"Amour, Wine and Real Estate in Southern France" is California artist Marques Vickers' memoir and mediation on five years of his passionate pursuit of la belle vie in France's Languedoc rustic refuge. Vickers' 45 evocative and original vignettes illuminate the enchantment behind southern French culture and village life. His insider's profiles into the region's history, eccentricities and charm become an indispensable guide for the visitor wishing to lift the veil behind French mystique. For expatriates wishing to integrate seamlessly, his insights bridge the divide of nationality. His diverse and humorous essays become as delicately layered as the alchemic blending of fine Rhone Valley style wines. The edition offers practical advice on the realities of investing and renovating stone village properties with purchasing and resale strategies. Commentary is abundantly seasoned regarding the often confounding and intruding French bureaucracy on matters of immigration, health care and regional wine classifications. "Amour, Wine and Real Estate" is a gourmet indulgence as flavorful and aromatic as the diverse natural herbs fronting limestone caged mountain ranges crowned by mediaeval castle ruins. France's Languedoc region boasts the world's largest wine acreage, pristine and vacant white sand Mediterranean beaches and internationally renowned cuisine including foie gras, cassoulet, duck specialties, pastis and varied fresh seafood delicacies from the spawning waters. The savage regional winds, climate and landscape extremes stimulate a beauty that has both haunted and inspired artists such as Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. The writings escort you into the cloistered halls of a seasonal truffle auction, adjacent regional caverns boasting scrawled 10,000-year-old drawings and 400 year-old graffiti and the remnant legacy of the Cathar religion that barely escaped total annihilation. Savor this gourmet delicacy at your favorite patisserie accompanied by