Many dream of living abroad but Shelley and her husband, Mike, did it. They left the security of their careers, the comfort of their home, and the familiarity of their neighborhood and moved to France. For ten months, they made their home in the village of Cotignac in southern France. From their house on the hillside overlooking the village, they lived like a local and soaked up all that life had to offer. Shelley’s book, "Living Like a Local: Stories of Our Life in France," is a compilation of her stories written during their year abroad. Her stories speak to everyday life activities like baking bread, unexpected experiences like shopping at the truffle market, and feelings from life lived in another country. Welcome to our journey. Since you will be traveling with us, we would like to tell you a little about what we did, and why.   Our dream was to live in southern France and be immersed in their lifestyle. We didn't appreciate how long we would hold our dream or through what obstacles we would persevere. Mike overcame cancer, and we lost part of our savings in the stock market. Through five years, we held our belief that eventually the pieces would fall into place - with focused planning.   Ultimately, we settled in the village of Cotignac in Provence. From our house overlooking the valley, we walked to town for Mike's daily baguette, the weekly market, or coffee at the Café de Cours. We met shop owners like Frank at the hardware store, Marie at the Brasserie Quatre Saison, and Thomas at the Modern Bar. We attended local functions like the Coyote Dancers' performance, the mussels and fries dinners for the boule association, and the Quince Festival. I harvested grapes and olives. We shopped at the Aups truffle market. We did laundry, searched for plastic wrap, paid bills, and experienced the little things of ordinary life. We just did them from our home in France.   In the course of ten months, we learned what a different life felt like. We learned about ourselves and our relationship. Reflecting back, we can say without reservation - it was worth every minute of preparation.   We our hope you will find enjoyment and maybe some inspiration from our stories of living like a local in Cotignac. These stories are our best souvenirs. How fitting that the French word, souvenir, means "remember." Many dream of living abroad but Shelley and her husband, Mike, did it. They left the security of their careers, the comfort of their home, and the familiarity of their neighborhood and moved to France. From their house on the hillside overlooking the village, they lived like a local and soaked up all that life had to offer. Shelley's book, Living Like a Local: Stories of Our Life in France , is a compilation of her stories written during their year abroad. Her stories speak to everyday life activities like baking bread, unexpected experiences like shopping at the truffle market, and feelings from life lived in another country. Shelley Row has been a successful transportation engineer for more than two decades. As a woman engineer in a male environment, she is no stranger to tackling challenges.  Over her career, she rose through the ranks to become part of the Senior Executive Service for the U.S. Department of Transportation. She is an award-winning leader, sought-after speaker and author of numerous professional articles.    At the peak of her career, she took a year off and moved to France. From there, she and her husband lived and traveled fulfilling a long-held dream.  Achieving their life goal required determination and courage to overcome obstacles like her husband's bout with cancer.    Today, Shelley is a speaker, writer and coach. She works with organizations and individuals to assist them engineer their success.   Shelley shares her expertise in achieving professional and personal goals and developing leadership skills through self-knowledge. Shelley also coaches on how to effectively communicate technical information to non-technical audiences. Shelley has designed and delivered presentations for audiences from twenty to 1000 across the U.S. and abroad.  Her presentations and workshops are filled with practical tips and are peppered with stories from her travels.    Shelley is a native Texan but she now lives with her husband, Mike, in Annapolis, Maryland.  She has run three marathons, served as president of her neighborhood association, and was asked by two mayors to provide expertise on transportation plans for the city. Shelley holds degrees in architecture, civil engineering and a masters degree in business administration.   Shelley owns and is the founder of Shelley Row and Associates, LLC.  Find out more from her website (shelleyrow.com) or contact her directly at shelley@shelleyrow.com. Used Book in Good Condition