Deby

One recent winter which I remember was so harsh, I remember temperatures plummeting to -17 and it felt warmer outside than in!  Finally when the cold spell broke, I remember feeling warm at 9 degrees, two weeks later it was in the mid 20's and in my haste to burn the recently chopped foliage I nearly set the newly cut grass on fire as it dried out so quick!  Such extremes was welcome but surprising. I would really like a nice long hot summer...... the heatwave of 2003 now seems attractive. Deby

Everyone told us paint was more expensive, depends where you shop. We did a price comparison with B&Q brand and 4murs, 4murs were about the same price and I didn't have to drive to England for it (7 hour drive plus cost of petrol)! Yes, but was it any good!  We found french paint to be watery and basically rubbish even the higher priced stuff, I think we went through all the brands and eventually got a delivery from England!  Hope it works for you. Deby

I am also going to have a moan about Aer Lingus - they advertise their fares Belfast to London Heathrow 19 quid one way inc taxes, but it never is!  There fare is quoted as £1 then they load the taxes on it - you would think hey here comes the other £18, but no!  add another £6 to the £18 which is a 'handling fee'.  In all their advertising it states £19 flights inc taxes, but then you pay the handling fee, plus any card fee.  Mr O Leary must feel victimised. Deby

You could try an internet cafe, check in there and print the necessary document.   Thats what we did recently on a trip to Rome, cost us 1 euro for internet access and another to print off boarding cards, there were other people in their doing the same thing!  I think most Ryan Air destinations would have an internet cafe - it is not as if destinations are in outer Mongolia -  mind you in rural France you might struggle! :-) There site seeem very slow though. I know Ryan Air get alot of bashing, but their low fares are superb and you do get what you pay for!  I am never certain that things will run smoothly as there is little back up service when things go wrong, but for us, so far so good as we havent been stuck in an airport or destination for days waiting for a flight out or chasing luggage.  BA is another story. deby

In 1957 when France signed the Treaty of Rome, circa 90% of its total workforce was engaged in agriculture. The results of that heritage linger still today. So it is up to the EU then to disband the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) - if only they would!  This outrageous, unfair, ridiculous, stupid policy has been re-worked over the years always in favour of the French.  If someone was brave enough to say b u g g e r  off - and stop giving the French handouts and work for a living, it might dawn on the farmers that they would have to become efficient and competitive! And god forbid they might put pressure on the french government to stop wasting money on idiotic bureaucracy and wasteful functionnaires. I am truly disappointed by Sarkozy's reforms - or should I say lack of.  He is still failing to free up employment laws and offer small business incentives to help stimulate the economy in order to improve the buying power of its citizens. The restaurant in our village is now forced with closure as they want to increase their business turnover but need to employ people and simply cannot afford to do so due to the social charges/taxes imposed upon them.  Being truly french they want a work/life balance as they have a  young family and choose not miss out on their children's upbringing, which is understandable.  They want a good quality of life, the other side of the coin is they are not entrepreneurial - whether this is part of their culture I do not know.  They like to do the french thing in august and close the restaurant sometimes for 2 weeks which is their main season. They close it because they are French and it is August, it doesn not dawn upon them to close in say late Sept or October and have their holiday then?  I am amazed by this, but then I am not French. Deby    

Just a question, is there an option to send her to the UK to stay with a helpful relative to do further study, she could support herself by getting a job.  If she has 3 languages she should be able to find work using her languages at a higher rate than waitressing and her hours could be flexible.  I am thinking call centres tend to offer more flexible working hours in a shift pattern, she would get some business experience as well. Deby  

The other consideration should be is that people tend to prefer private gites and the trend is towards privacy.  People also do not like sharing the swimming pool.  Are you gites all connected or sharing the same viciniy, it is something you should consider.  Also contact the owners of other gite complexes within the region and they will be able to tell you exactly how it is. Deby

When returning to live in the UK, I was horrified to discover I'd actually adopted the french way when using roundabouts!! By just going for it - overtaking on the inside, not indicating and generally having the attitude that I was the only one on the road!  After a few weeks, of being hooted at, sworn at and general near misses, my husband informed me that I was becoming a car crash waiting to happen.  So I am delighted to say that I am now more respectful! Deby

Actually when I saw the topic for this thread - I interpreted it as to some transexual/trans gender person asking for information. Deby

whats the story then, why does he have to shut down?  Am flying on 23rd with RA, hopefully all goes to plan!!

Who? Qui?

I know I paid around 80 pounds for 24 days and my brother was able to drive in France too.  If you go to one of the sites you will be able to get an on line quote. Deby

RH, for the record, I think you are wrong on this one.  It is not naming and shaming as this has already been reported in the media.  Censorship of this type is very dangerous.  So what do I have to do to report this type of censorship, could you explain the process please. I am not being awkward here and do not wish to score points with you and it is not personal. Thank you. Deby

Your sister can get temporary cover through companies such as www.daycover.com and dayinsure.com   I looked into this when my brother was coming over from New Zealand and I wanted him to be able to drive my car.  These type of companies are specifically for relatives coming from abroad and enabling them to use/drive a car.  The AA do something but they direct you to a 3rd party company.  I think the maximum coverage is 28 days. Have a look. Deby

i'm scared of all this teenage stuff!   Surely not my two - my lovely 9 yar old girl who talks to me + my 6year old boy who loves his mummy!!!! Tell me its not true - please! Deby

have to say isnt that really a nice thing to do. Deby

Hi, can anyone recommend a nice hotel in sw france,  we want to stay for around 5 nights and Sun - Thurs.   Really like the SWest Perpignan, Catalonia or even Northern Spain.  Even Pays Basque. It would be for 2 adults an 2 children in August circa 10th onwards. Thanks, Deby

France's current economic position is somewhat different from Britain's in 1997, and the world situation is vastly different too, so I can't really see the Bruni effect doubling the value of our particular bijou chateauette. Damn! :-)

Of course wooly but to find the bad eggs a few good ones have to be cracked too. There will always be the ones in genuine need and then others who just play the system to their own gain.  What an awful analagy! We are dealing with people here and peoples' lives.  Imagine if your mother, father, close friend was one of the good ones and was to be 'cracked too' for the greater good of the taxpayer. It is a very emotive subject, but we do need a safety net and we pay for it through our taxes.  My poor mother lives in constant fear of these assessments, articles in the papers and media who demonize those in receipt of IB do not help.  It seems that we love to 'pick on' this area of society because we are all hardworking individuals who probably have our own stresses and deal with them very well until one day it might just happen to us! Deby

www.hotel-grandes-ecoles.com All I can say is fabulous and well worth the money.  You are just paying slightly more than your bog standard 2 star. Deby

The family is wealthy, well educated, motivated and my belle mere was Maire of a big town in Brittany. They have all the advantages it is possible for a french kid to have, money, contacts, influence, you name it. Any English kid who gets an incorporated position here has acheived something quite remarkable. Getting a real job in France for a school/university leaver is almost impossible.    I am truly shocked by this.  I really hope France will make it much easier for their youth to find jobs.  As an outsider looking in surely they need to make employing people easier. When you think of statistics both for UK and France are similar in terms of GDP etc, the French are obviously doing something right! I know I have my opinions based on my own personal experiences and for those that live in France raising families I do admire you and you all have your very own personal reasons and success stories.   Who knows whether returning to the UK for us as a family is the best route or for those that raise children in France.  I think time will only tell.  I think we will all have our own successes and failures.  After all we are all different. Deby

I'm interested in this as well, we're only 35-40mins north of Bordeaux and this would be excellent for us.  Keep me posted. Deby

When we lived in France,  all the english families which I knew of in Grenoble (some circa +) who had raised their children through the french education system sent their children to UK universities or they were working in restaurants, chef, waiter(ress). Few jobs for the youth and even less for foreigners even though their children had been raised in France.  In rural france it is ever harder! Hopefully it may change but when I am not so sure. Deby

A good one to make a comparison is www.skyscanner.net  

The term fraud is a bit of a misnomer. If the trades has produced a massive profit for SG, would they have still termed it a fraud? I don't think so. It all went pear shaped and they got their fingers burned. Sounds about right, I am sure he was/will be set up as a fall guy - what other motive would he have to do this?  I think he will be made a scapegoat - as you say if he was making huge profits then all is well. Makes you wonder if other banks do the same thing.... Deby