My favourite French language site. Free, easy to follow and comprehensive. A great resource for total beginners and practiced speakers alike. french.about.com/
Rosetta Stone
Top rated language learning software. Expensive, but well worth it if you need to learn French quickly. Their courses are designed around their "Dynamic Immersion" technique, which is similar to how children learn languages. www.rosettastone.co.uk/learn-french
Bing Translator
An automatic language translator from Microsoft. You can translate text snippets or whole websites between almost any languages. Keep in mind that while this is machine translation at its best, do expect some errors and take the results with a grain of salt. www.microsofttranslator.com/
WordReference.com
Online French/English dictionary. Other languages also available. Simple & accurate. www.wordreference.com/
Bilingual Kids
If you are raising bilingual kids in France, there is a good summary of what to expect at The Connection
Emergency terms
It's easy to forget while living in this beautiful country that bad things can happen. If they do, be sure you know at least the basic words and phrases to use in case of an emergency. Emergency terms at about.com
For those longing for a bit of home cooking, try this charming English run cafe with a beautiful rear courtyard in Vouvant. Their carrot cake is especially good. www.inthevendee.com/vouvant/
intheVendee.com
Featuring local news, classifieds, property listings and also the Vendée Chippy page, if you fancy a fish & chips. www.inthevendee.com
the-vendee.co.uk
Angela Bird's Vendee pages from the author of The Vendée guide book. A massive amount of information, especially useful for tourists. www.the-vendee.co.uk
Great English run bar in Vernoux-en-Gatine. Irish & English drinks served, and frequent music & events. Find their number in their add in the Deux Sèvres monthly.
Deux-Sèvres Monthly
Excellent free English magazine distributed in Deux Sèvres & Vendée. Online version and business directory also available. www.thedeuxsevresmonthly.fr
English language tourist site for Deux Sèvres with accommodation listings & more. www.itafrance.com
Pays de Gatine
Official site for this administrative area of Deux Sèvres. Lots of documents in English covering all kinds of practical information on local government services & more. www.gatine.org
Red, White & Blue
English grocery seller based near L'Absie. Bacon, sausages, proper tea, cheddar, curry sauces and other English delicacies. www.paulmeadsonline.com
Great place to advertise, buy & sell, with region specific listings. Also, a good place for general information on moving to, living or working in France. france.angloinfo.com
One of the busiest English language forum communities in France. Excellent place to share your experience & ask questions. www.totalfrance.com
FrenchEntrée.com
Excellent resource for property, holiday rentals, tourism, classifieds and living & working in France. www.frenchentree.com
French-property.com
Good property site, business listings, and lots of information on living & working in France. Best of all, fabulous imperial to metric conversion tools. www.french-property.com
French bank with English speaking staff & services in all areas of France. Very popular with newly arrived expats who are still learning the lingo. www.britline.com
Utilities
English speaking service contact details for the major French utilities companies. france.angloinfo.com
SOS Help
Free English language listening line in France if you just need someone to talk to. www.soshelpline.org
