Maureen Dor: From Paris to a 200-Year-Old Home in France’s Diagonal of Emptiness, Cooking on an Old Stove and Storing 13 m³ of Firewood (27 People per km²)

Leaving Paris to settle in a house more than two centuries old, that was the bet Maureen Dor took on a few months ago. The former Belgian presenter chose to radically change her surroundings by laying her bags in the heart of the countryside, in an area she describes as part of the ‘Diagonal of Emptiness’. On Instagram, she shared a few details of this new life, very different from what she knew in the capital. Here, Parisian habits yield to a a more rustic daily life, which she seems to be growing fond of.

Maureen Dor: a house over 200 years old with walls up to 80 centimeters thick

It’s been four months since Maureen Dor left the capital to settle in the countryside. And she hasn’t chosen a particularly lively environment. To give an idea of the place’s tranquility, the presenter says: “There are 27 people per square kilometer”. She notes that it isn’t the countryside favored by city dwellers seeking a bucolic backdrop: Not the one for the bobos!

Her new home also has something surprising to offer. Maureen Dor has invested in a building over 200 years old, whose walls measure up to 80 centimeters thick. An architectural detail that isn’t without advantages, especially when temperatures rise. The main person involved considers them “perfect during heat waves”. This old house thus provides a lifestyle quite different from her former Parisian daily life.

In this house, Maureen Dor learns to cook with an old stove

In the kitchen too, Maureen Dor had to change her habits. Here, there are no induction plates or state-of-the-art appliances: she now prepares her meals with “old skillets”. One of them even serves as an oven. A way of cooking that is very different from what she knew in Paris, more traditional, which requires her to become familiar with methods from days gone by.

The presenter also says that she is still learning to master cooking. She must specifically find the right setting to avoid the fire being too powerful or, conversely, not strong enough. But this isn’t the only adjustment to make in this new house, because the arrival of winter also demands good organization.

Thirteen cords of wood already ready to face winter

This preparation includes the heating setup to cope with winter temperatures. Maureen Dor has already built up a substantial stock for the coming months. “I’ve brought in 13 cords of wood for the winter”, she reveals. A quantity that gives an idea of the preparation required to heat her new home.

Between the thick walls of her house, the stove-equipped kitchen, and the wood-fired heating, Maureen Dor has thus had to rethink a good portion of her habits. But she does not appear to regret her choice. She presents this rural life with a great deal of self-deprecating humor, even joking about her status as a ‘tradwife’. And to sum up her excitement after these four months away from Paris, she simply states: In short, I’m having a blast.