France is known for its wonderful markets, but one of the best times of year to visit is during the Santa season. There are several Christmas markets throughout France, with wonderful handcrafted ornaments, gifts and food items.

Every year, when Christmas comes, Strasbourg, in Alsace, enlightens. Lights sparkle throughout the city and the atmosphere is one of meeting friends and sharing the festive spirit. Mulled wine is sampled in front of the opera or the cathedral, arms are laden with hundreds of gifts and children are the centre of the celebrations. Strasbourg is seen as the undisputed capital of Christmas the world over. This year, with the French presidency of the European Union, Christmas is of course taking on a specific shape. Fifteen countries from the Union will form a craftsman’s village in Place Gutenberg, just a few metres from the “Noël du livre” (Literary Christmas) event. At this time the city also shows its true face: that of a city that is both anchored in tradition, with a Christmas Market that is almost five centuries old, and a modern city capable of offering a wealth of activities, partly due to its concentrated network of associations; concerts, events for children and adults, guided tours, exhibitions, sporting or cultural events, etc.

Paris also features several Christmas markets, with most starting sometime between late November and early December. There, you can get an original taste of the City of Light in the Santa season. The Christmassy atmosphere is just wonderful in this city!

In the South of France, the city of Aubagne organises a “clay Christmas” as the speciality of the city is the “santon”, understand Christmas crib figure. It is open from the 21 Novembre to the 31 Decembre. There, you will find poteries, decoration items, jewels and... Christmas crib figures! Everything for a warm and very Christmassy Christmas! With sweets, colours, music, lights and mulled wine. Probably only the snow will be missing…

As many as 500,000 Brits could be leaving the UK to become expats by the end of 2009 reports Axa, one of the world's biggest insurers. It is difficult to use forecast figures as a barometer of intent to be fair, but there is no doubt that the trend for moving abroad is increasing.

In 2006, official figures from the Office of National Statistics showed that 400,000 people emigrated from the UK, and by the end of last year, Axa had seen an 11.7 per cent rise in the number of inquiries for international private medical insurance, and a 28.6 per cent increase in inquiries from those looking to relocate elsewhere in Europe.

It is on the basis of the continued rise in inquiries in the first half of this year - up 15 per cent again on the same period last year - that Axa has calculated its figures.

It points out that 500,000 people is equivalent to the entire population of Leeds, and there is good reason to think that the number of people moving overseas is accelerating.

YouGov figures, for example, suggest that one in three of us is considering a move abroad to improve his or her financial position.