latest news
Easing of Mask Wearing With covid cases reducing dramatically in France each week, it looks as though the rules of mask wearing will continue to relax. Since the 28th of February, you no longer need to wear a mask inside a public indoor space where a vaccine pass is required to enter. Olivier Véran (health secretary) has said if the pressure on the hospitals continues to improve we might see an end to all masks by mid-March.
WATCH OUT FOR TICKS Temperatures are rising, days are getting longer, and flowers are blooming again. Yes, it’s tick time. An estimated 15% of ticks in France are carriers of Lyme disease and the Nouvelle Aquitaine is one of the regions that has its fair share of cases. This doesn’t mean you have to stay indoors until winter, but it does mean you should keep a careful eye for these little creatures when you’ve been outside. They love the long grass, so try to avoid walking in these areas (or if you do, just do a quick check each time afterwards). If you have been bitten you need to remove the tick as soon as you can. Gently pull it out with tweezers, making sure to grab it from as close to the skin as possible and pull straight. It’s a good idea to put the tick into a sealed plastic bag and put it in your freezer - if you get any symptoms (bullseyeshaped rash or flu-like symptoms, contact your doctor straightaway (you can request a preventative anti-biotic treatment within the first 24-48 hours). Don’t forget to check your pets regularly, and choose a prevention method for them as well.
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BLAH BLAH BLAH CHECKOUT We are loving this. Carrefour supermarket has recently been testing the concept of ‘chatty checkouts’ and it’s proven to be a huge success. The idea originated from the Netherlands and has now found its way into France. Not only can customers move through the checkout more slowly (so if you don’t like rushing, or the stress of it all, this will be perfect for you) it also gives customers the opportunity to have a chat with their cashier. While supermarkets have been spending time and money into automating everything, it’s fantastic to read a scheme that is bringing things back to basics - human interaction.
ACCESS GRANTED Vintage cars will soon be able to use a special sticker to enable them to enter low-emission zones (ZFEs) in four major cities in France. The vintage car group la Fédération française des véhicules d'époque (FFVE) has spent the last 4 years negotiating and has now successfully argued for
classic cars to receive a special dispensation on the usual Crit’Air emission sticker system in the cities of Paris, Rouen, Reims, and Nice. It is thought that other areas, including Greater Paris, Toulouse, Lyon and Strasbourg, Toulouse and Lyon, could also introduce the waiver soon.
