Cerise

That's obviously me then Lisa - and you should see my line in pinnies.[:D][:D]  Now I'm off to see my friend - although she is French she may be becoming a Brit, cos like me she likes going out!  Don't see why it would make me a better person if I enjoyed being housebound, wherever I lived.

Sorry to ruin your dreams of wealth - yes that is Trevor the LF rescue dalmatian.  He is orange spotted (an unacceptable colour) but he is a real dalmatain.  Orange is an OK colour in setters don't know why not in dalis.  He and Kiri (whi is blackspotted) guard the B &B and look set to disturb the peace of all them honeymooners[:D]

Benjamin - I have noticed how little my French neighbours go out.  It is one very good reason that I do not wish to be like them even when I am 95!! I like going out[:)]

As far as I can see it is the muslims themselves who are paying for it, not the corporation.  The corporation can grant planning permission, but so what - if any religion want to spend loads of money on a church why can't they?  Sure we could build a nice protestant church in France if we had the money and we wanted to do so.  

Agree with Christine - and also most refuges will make sure you get the right dog if you tell them honestly about you and your lifestyle.  When we got Trevor from the Vaucluse, I told the girls on the phone that even though I was experienced with dogs I couldn't take a really difficult dog because of our lifestyle - with the B & B we could not take a dog who was difficult with strangers or did not get on with our other dog.  They went to a great deal of rouble testing him in different situations, with children, other dogs etc and they even sent me a video of him so I could see his behaviour for myself.  That didn't mean he was perfect, I still had to house train him, teach him to walk on a lead and generally work on his education but it meant that we were pretty certain he would be OK for us when we got him.  When you get a rescue dog treat him as though he was a new puppy e.g don't expect that he won't chew the sofa because he is 4 years old, expect that he WILL and act accordingly.  If he turns out to be already educated then great surprise and if not you are starting off on the right foot.

Yes - know him and all his mates!  This is the latest and best - should the ending be KINKIEST regards?[:D] Greetings,  I enquire for reservations for 5 couples coming for their honey moon at your property,I would like you to get back to me   with the following.  1. The availability of the dates  2. The Daily cost for the required dates  3. The total cost for the lenght of their stay.  4. Do you accept credit card payment.  The arrival date for the couples will be 4th july and they will depart on 14th july 2007 ,Their stay will last for 10 days.  do  get back to me with the requirements as stated above.  Kindest Regards,  Mr William

Mandy - if you are a financial worrier then you will find being in a foreign country with no income pretty worrying even if you don't have a mortgage.  To buy a house (even one without gites), do it up, and live for 2 or 3 years whilst you learn the language and sort out jobs will cost a pretty penny.  Unless you plan to buy in central London you can buy a house even in southern England for that kind of money.  So, if you haven't got enough money to buy a house in UK then have you realistically got enough to move to France.  Only on TV programmes people find 'bargains' for £50,000 and do them up for a fiver.  If you don't speak French then getting a job will be hard and commuting is expensive.  I too am a financial worrier and we did what you are thinking of doing.  For us it has worked and we have jobs here, but we are a great deal poorer than we were in the UK (even without the mortgage) and the most difficult thing is that, unlike the UK, you can't just go and get an extra job or a loan to tide you over any difficult patches.  When the car packed up and we had to buy a new one here it was a real drama, whereas in UK we earned enough money that in the same situation we would simply have taken out a loan for the new car and worked some extra hours to pay it off.  Credit is also not easy to come by here. Not saying don't do it, but you are not very old and unless you have enough money to support you until retirement (unlikely as you say you would need a mortgage in the UK) the fact is you need to work.  Learn the language and try to find some employment before you leap and you have a real chance of making it work for you. Good luck Maggi

Susie - I have just read this and hope your dog is OK.  It is not normal.  Did you/vet weigh her before op, as it sounds as though she may have had too much anaesthetic, or she may be allergic to whatever was used.  Trust she is recovered this morning.

My dear sausage is that you behind the placard?  My dog wot I got from Living France is called Trev.  Trev is an OK name.  My dog does not run a forum - he has a life.

Poor little girl - let's give her a boost to the top

You can, quite legally,renew your English passport in the UK whilst there on a visit.  The same day service costs more than the postal service, but it does mean that you don't spend time without a passport.  Several people have told me this is not legal, but both my husband and I have done it without any problems.  We made the appointments from France, at the passport office we were asked for an address where we were staying (relatives) and I used my Carte de Séjour as one extra piece of identity so we did not try to pretend we were not French resident - in fact I had nice chat with the girl behind the desk about living in France.  Dropped the paperwork off in the morning and picked passport up late afternoon.  This may be more convenient for someone who has to return to UK regularly for work etc.

Panic, panic - with them and Mr Cerise (who I swear eats the stuff) I'd better hope Geant Casino is on a 3 for the price of 2 offer[:D]

Vickybear hasn't done anything illegal but the rules are very unclear and a problem is that a French vet (other than the person's own) could refuse to give the tick treatment etc as in their eyes if the dog is French resident its passport is not up to date.   This would cause the owner problems if they were already on their way to the port for example.   Although Vickybear's dogs were OK, I think anyone who is French resident would be sensible to stick to the French rules.  The rabies jab is done with your other annual jabs so it is not as if conforming to the rules costs an arm and a leg.  Better safe than sorry. Maggi  

So sad - but thanks to Amanda the end of his life was filled with love and kindness.  Well done to them and hope they have much happiness with Speckles.

Patf  - people did think I was horrid when I was so tough about the language, but I honestly felt that we would just become angry and frustated if OH couldn't do things independently.  It can't be good for anyone's morale if they can't order things for themselves and enjoy their own hobbies without assistance from their partner.  It was a bit tough to start with, but Mr Cerise has just become a committee member for his classic car club (his great passion) and I know that the other guys would not have elected him if he needed to bring his wife to translate.  To start with he needed help with phone calls etc but I would always make him try before I came to his assistance.  He now has a job working for someone French and although he is not completely fluent he no longer needs my help for most things.  If your husband can manage when you are away he probably just needs a little push to feel more confident - even if he moans about it he will feel proud of himself when he succeeds and you in turn will feel better about the language issue.

When we moved here I said 'I'm your wife, not your nanny - learn French!'  I refused to translate for him except in real emergencies, we only have French TV (boring) and French magazines etc.  Tough, maybe but it worked.  It was hard at first when Mr Cerise, who had no French, went off to do things looking like a scared school kid to get CT for his car etc, but the consequence is that he has a job, friends and a life just like in the UK.  We are not retired so work is essential and we are too young to potter around at home all day.  We love each others company but I personally wouldn't want us to do everything together, can't see that it takes 2 people to trail round Leclerc, whoever is not going can get on with something else.  We also like to have our own hobbies (easier here for him than for me).  We did spend the first 18 months together doing up the house and enjoyed it very much, but we did discuss before we came here whether being together all the time would be a problem.  Looking at others I think the main problem is where one of the parners doesn't speak French or, often for the ladies, where they don't drive making them very dependant on the other.

Books in people's houses.  All English friends have loads, French friends rarely have any. Dog training classes.  The only one I can find is miles away and the training methods pretty harsh.

Signed too.   It was nice to see you at Crufts Nettie. Hope you got to see all those greyhounds on the Greyhound Trust stand. Maggi

Beryl - OH is addicted to Nouvelle Star and I agree it is painful to hear the renditions in english.    I can just about cope with the final few weeks of it, but all these auditions have the merit of keeping my ironing up to date as on Wednesday evenings I seek refuge in the laundry room!

If your dog is fit enough to go to (say) Southampton in the car, then he is OK to come to France.  When we moved here one of our beloved dalmatians was 10 years old and the vets treated me as if I was cruel and heartless and shortening his life.  What a load of rubbish!  He died last summer aged 15 and spent over 4 very happy years here.  In my avatar he is the dog lying on the terrace and the photo was taken not long before he died.  The process is painless - although you do have to wait 6 months from the successful  blood test before you can return to the UK.  The only difficult thing may be if he is not used to the car, but if he is an OK traveller there is absolutely no reason why you should not have a happy time together in France. Good luck Maggi

blossom - it is hard to find work in France - but not impossible.  However, you may have to accept something you wouldn't have thought of doing in the Uk to get your French up to an acceptable standard.  All those people I know who do translations or English teaching do it alongside something else - don't know anyone who makes a living at it.  You wanted a cheerful story though, so will tell you that my husband - who spoke no French on arrival - spent 3 years renovating our house and learning French and then was offered a job re-training as an electrician and plumber (he was a car salesman running a Honda dealership in UK).  His employer is French, installed our central heating and was so impressed by the work he had done on our house that when he was looking for someone else to join him he phoned and asked if he would like the job  He has a CDI and is 2 years into his training.  We joke that he is the oldest apprentice in the world - 44 when he started - but after 3 years he could legally start his own business if he wanted to.  The wages are not fantastic, but it does give us a reglar income and he enjoys it very much.  We are fortunate to have a retired French engineer next door who has been very patient and helped him with the theory, which if he were younger he would be doing at college. I also know a younger lady who was dumped in France by her husband (literally - he left her here with the kids and disappeared) and she has managed to get various jobs through the ANPE and is now re-training as a plasterer!  That despite very poor French. Try not to be too dispirited by the forum.  It is better to see the reality and still want to come than to find your pretty pink bubble bursting when you are in a foreign land without money or job. Good luck Maggi

Draw a circle about 80 km around on your map.  Look at the place name and postcode then go to www.viamichelin.fr put in the village name in point of departure  and then aeroport toulouse in the destination and that will tell you how long it will take you to get there.  We are 1.20 min from the airport (do it so often) and same from Rodez.  The distance by road is about 110 km.  Nearer Toulouse houses are more expensive and the catchment area is spreading. Don't be too keen to pick people up, make them rent a car or catch the train!!  You may regret your generosity otherwise[:)].  There is a navette from toulouse airport to rail station so if you move to a village/town with a station it may be helpful. Hope that helps a little Maggi EDIT Great minds think alike - posted at the same time.

Yes - 3 cheers for Mrs Animal and all the work she does.  And those of you out there still looking for a new pet - do contact her I'm sure she'll be able to pair you up.  Better than any dating agency[:D].  A dog is for life.

Depends when you want to go - there are charters to Crete from Toulouse in the season - but think going via Athens may be cheaper.

Yeah OK TU reading a book is good, but I feel guilty when there is so much housework to do.  When I was a little girl my mum used to say she thought I would live in a tent when I was older as I had no interest in homemaking activities.  I guess I'm still a bit of a nomad and cabin fever sets in quickly for me.  I watch my neighbours who often don't seem to go further than the boulangerie for months on end and wonder how they can bear it.     Have to say they do seem to work pretty hard though.  They in their turn think I'm mad as I'm always off somewhere.  Horses for courses ..