I left Ireland with just a suitcase and a vague dream of the perfect life in France in 2005 and never got any further than my first stop, the beautiful Carcassonne. I had ditched my "real job" as a journalist and editor in Dublin and instead got a job as a waitress in a restaurant in Carcassonne's fairytale castle. My French improved fast and I next got a job at the local Irish pub.
I returned to journalism in 2007 with an editing job in Castres, where I met my UK-born husband Matt, and we married in Carcassonne in 2010. We now have two beautiful bi-lingual children, Oscar born in 2012 and Céleste born in 2015. With an Irish business partner, I set up a new Irish bar, The Celt, in 2008 and, in January 2015, my husband and I bought and launched Maison Fortunat, our family's home and holiday rental business.
Maison Fortunat is under continual redecoration. We will update the photos as the redecoration progresses (it may look even better than you expect when you arrive). We look forward to welcoming you to Carcassonne, a town we know very well.