Italy or France

For as long as I can remember, I have dreamed of moving to France, but the books I read and the movies I watch revolve more around Italy than France. Why is that? Am I subconsciously thinking about a move to Italy instead of France? Am I the person who can make a decision and stick to it (not so far)?

The first book or movie I remember about either of these countries is Under The Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes. I recently re-read the book and had forgotten how much I loves it (and the movie) and could absolutely picture myself living in a town like Cortona and living the Italian life.

At the same time, I remember sitting in French class in high school and looking at a book about the Chateaus of the Loire valley and thinking about how wonderful it would be to live there. I love the idea of living in Paris and being as close to a Parisian as one can be as an American. I love the idea of shopping for food on a daily basis and having it so fresh that it would go bad if not eaten. I love the idea of fresh bread and butter that is so creamy that it actually has flavor. The thing is, I can have this in either country, so what is so special about France that isn’t special about Italy? Having never been to either country, I simply don’t know. There is just something about Paris that calls to me, but what is it, exactly? Is it the architecture? The food? The history? If it is the food, I tend to go for Italian over French. If it is the architecture, Italy has some pretty impressive architecture too (the Coliseum in Rome, the Trevi Fountain, the Duomo in Florence [a city I once dreamed of honeymooning in], the Ponte Vecchio, the Basilica San Marco in Venice and many, many more).

How does one decide which place speaks to them the loudest when one is unable to visit either of them currently due to a worldwide pandemic? I can read books, watch movies, read blogs (of which I follow no fewer than 3 about living in France, but most of them aren’t about Paris). The good thing is that there are many, many Americans living in both countries and there are countless books about living in both countries.

As for moving to Paris, I have been seeing signs everywhere from artwork at a thrift store to meeting people from the Paris region randomly outside of a Target to finding a Julia Child cookbook on the Facebook marketplace for $5. Maybe the signs are telling me that I need to move there or maybe they aren’t. I’ve seen many more movies about Paris and France (An American in Paris, Julie and Julia, Gigi, Chocolat, Midnight in Paris) than I have about Italy (Letters to Juliet, Under the Tuscan Sun, Roman Holiday). I also find books, coffee cups and other items about and from Paris and I often buy them.

Perhaps I should stick with my original plan to move to Paris by 50 and then while there, travel throughout the European Continent and see as much as I can before returning to the United States. Both countries have a lot to offer from healthcare, to history to romance languages. I know much more French than Italian, but believe that I could get by either way.

Since France has been on my radar for far longer, I’ll continue my research before making my final, final, FINAL determination. Who knows, maybe I’ll meet the man of my dreams, fall in love and get married and the decision will be made for me.

DISCLAIMER: ATTACHED IMAGES ARE NOT MINE

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