Berlioz

I wonder of anyone knows how to track down a missing parcel?  I have contact lenses for my daughter which have not been delivered.  I have a USPS tracking number that does not work internationally. The very rude american call centre person said it was 'probably stuck in customs' and to give the tracking number to the post office or customs.....(local? regional? national?)  I have lived here 5 weeks, long enough to know that even something simple like a buying a stamp takes forever. I paid with a debit card not credit card so don't think I can get a chargeback. Please does anyone know where I should start :-(  

Thank you Steve, that is working like a charm! We were surprised not to have restrictions, I made himself double check at the Mairie, until we saw how much it rains when it rains.......  We do have a meter though a new thing for us...    : - ( Donna

Some damage limitation advice please. As the water level had dropped below the black line on the skimmers my daughters advised me that we should fill the pool up before himself arrived back from earning a crust in England at the weekend. The instruction book is in techie French. I don't know how to adjust the salt etc as he is in charge of this but I am guessing that the levels will all be way out. I will obviously have to confess but would like to have some answers ready...... Sadly the tap was left on yesterday (my fault) and the pool is very full, about 3" from the top edge.  Should I:  Take the bubble cover off and pray for 2 days at 40c? (have done this) Empty some out ? (How???) Syphon some out ? Hope to find a good divorce lawyer?  :( Edit:  Our landlord also is supposed to have supplied a pool alarm, we moved in 5 weeks ago and it has still not arrived, who is liable legally? Him or Us under the regulations? We have chased him a couple of times but moving in in August with everyone on holiday didn't help I suppose.

Thank you all very much.  I will sit down tonight and have a really good look at what I should plant in the Autumn.  I learned in my last garden that plants are either happy or not!  I suspect I will have to give apples a miss and get good with things that like 35c and occasional torrential rain :-) Pat I just' Tom Tom'd Mirande and it is an hour and a half from me, I'm just off the road to Auch so may well plan a visit. Donna

Please can someone point me in the direction of mail order or Internet nurseries in France.  I would like to plant a few in our very new garden and also train some dwarf ones in large pots for when we move again. I am near Toulouse and have seen container planted trees in localy but they seem very expensive compared to what I was paying in Cambridgeshire.  Also is there list of varieties that do well in this area anywhere on the web? I have bought some hot/dry/french gardening books but they are a bit light on the veg/fruit info!  

Thank you Tresco, Cassis and Tony F. Yes it was a French home grown Geoff or Monty lookalike translated into English! sorry for the confusion. I know there is a TV prog on TV5, but that is as far as i'v got on the French answer to celebrity gardeners! The two books on Amazon I do all ready have, they are a bit light on actual vegetables if I recall ( I am a bit of a bookaholic) I did get a copy of the Rustica magazine and a couple of others and can understand a bit, Moon planting seems interesting, although I'm not sure I'm organised enough for that! The 3/4 week forward is helpful Tony, I realised they are way ahead when I saw young plants in a Market weeks before mine were even pricked out! Not looking forward to -8 let alone anything colder  Brrrh.

Thank you for the link, 31 is red on the map. Situation préoccupante which I guess is not good! The English pages don't work and my french isn't good enough to find what the restrictions are, anyone else in a red area?

Hello to you all, I have just been reading some oldish posts while I'm supposed to be packing for our move to a barren new plot next week.  I am trying not to think what the new people here will do to my beloved roses and organic vegetables. Can anyone recomend a gardening book in English about growing organically in the SW ?  I have a couple, Louisa Jones Kitchen Gardens of France and Louise Ranck Jardin Paysan.  What I'm really looking for is a English translation of a French Geoff Hamilton or Monty Don or the Vegetable Expert. Does anyone live in the Toulouse area and know what the gardening climate is like compared to East Anglia which is cold and damp most of the year, except for heat waves!) I have raised beds here but they dry out so fast I had to install irregation hoses and an automatic timer. Is the SW winter very mild, when are the first and last frosts, will I need a greenhouse? (having to leave mine behind because I cannot find anyone to take it down ;-() My French is going to need intensive intervention before I can read a gardening French book.  I have bought a French/English gardening glossary to get me started!  

I'm very busy packing but as I was sorting out the greenhouse I wondered if there is a hosepipe ban, or other water restrictions about pool topping up etc? I don't want to arrive next week to an empty pool and no way to water my well travelled plants! Please can anyone in the area advise me?

I had a look and there does not seem to be a GRETA in Toulouse or 31 at all so I think it will be AF pour moi! D

Thank you for the links Hagar, I will have a good look later on today. Donna

Hello Our move is finally going ahead on 1st August.  Our wedding is planned for 28th October in France.  We have all our bits of paper except régime matrimonial. Please can anyone point me towards a posting /info/link regarding the various options? I have been reading old posts but most seem to apply to changing the contract /property purchase only. Our situation is that we are over 40, I have 2 children from a previous marriage, OH has none. There will not be any more! .  We both have living parents, (only my mother my side) and lots of siblings so there are protected heirs. We are renting in France for two years and then plan to buy a house in France. We both currently have buy to let properties in the UK which we may or may not want to sell to buy in France. I would probably want to return to the UK if OH dies first or at least downsize, he would want to stay. We would want to avoid having to get permission from protected heirs/forced sale. As our choice of marital regime now will affect present and future property I do want to get it right.  I have a list of English speaking notaires in our area (from the link Debra posted to notaires web site) but would like to have a clear understanding of all the potential issues regarding future inheritance on first death, taxes, etc before seeking the advice of a Notaire. I do apologise if I have totally missed a relevent topic. D  

Hi Emmajay I joined http://www.americansintoulouse.com/  (a lot are English)  which is an English speaking group.  They publish a guide to living in toulouse, everything from Shopping, Education to Doctors.  I have found them so helpful with our move in 4 weeks getting very close. There is a monthly Lunch Club, things in the English Pub in Pibrac, walking tours of intersting places in the area etc.   Everyone has been really friendly and helpful and they are very well organised. There are loads of members in Colomiers. (We are moving to Tournefueille with our girls 16 and 11) AIT have also just started a forum. Donna

I have replied via PM.  I seem to be having a problem with incoming e-mail where people hit 'reply' but 'new' ones seem to get through.  Will shoot Tech Support when he gets home ! I havn't had much time on the forum, busy selling house and packing! Donna

For some reason my previous reply isn't here, so I'll thank you all again! I actually don't mind shopping in France when I have time and my other half around for complicated stuff, I'm happy enough in the supermarket (although I cannot carry heavy bags due to back/shoulder injury and I also find it very tiring ) and in other shops I can point, smile and say combien!   My problem is that we are arriving much later in the summer hols than expected and my other half will only be arround for 3-4 days before having to return to London for 7 days work.  I am also going to start intensive French lessons on 4th Sept every morning so won't have a lot of time to shop. So I am trying to find ways of making life a bit easier! Talk about hit the ground running.......

Thank you All for your swift response. Off to France telecom then I think.  Last time we visited the house there were lots of wires and pipes etc exposed but not terminated so impossible to see what was what and we didn't want to make the mistake of assuming ANYTHING would be included in France just because it is in the UK.  Ok , next thing on list........  

Thanks, I will sign up! Other alternaive was one that seemed that anyone over 20 was geriatric. I will let you know how I get on. I have worked out how to do the school run, park, catch sncf, then metro and arrive in time (in theory) D  

Great new section! I need to find on-lne suppliers for: School supplies 6eme (probably won't arrive until mid August... Ahhhhh) Do the supermarkets deliver ?  (Will Tesco go bust when I leave? ) Fridges etc, have seen the post below-thanks! Gluten free/sans gluten food ( I have some links but new ones welcome) Anything else I havn't  worried about yet. I will obviously have to  go shopping eventually (hopefully after an intensive french course) just having a panic about finding the 101 things needed to move in when I won't be able to go shopping! D

Has anyone tried them?  I am thinking of an intensive (3 hours per day, 5 days a week) beginner’s course when we move to Toulouse in Jul/Aug. starting in September for a month then scaling down to a couple of sessions per week. I took one look at the questions on AF test sheet and decided that I don't know much grammar at all! I could read the questions which is something I suppose. I do speak but cannot understand the answers, too fast! I found evening classes no use at all, I needed to see everything written down to recall an answer (too visual memory/too many pills  I suppose) on the basis that in management training they always told me that if the same method fails 3 times it is the wrong method, I moved to Michael Thomas in the car (nothing written, just sounds to remember and lots of mnemonics,) I dread not being able to answer the phone (although I did the other day and managed to take down a French phone number) or speak to the girl’s teachers.  My OH (fluent) will be away 10 days per month. Part of our reason for moving is my health  I  have 'brain fog/memory problems'  so my confidence at learning anything new  is rock bottom although my motivation is 100%   !!  Donna  

(also posted in SW France) We need to get telecoms/Broadband sorted out quickly as my OH needs to be in contact with his London office ASAP after the move in late Jul/early Aug..  Speed of installation (especially as there may not be a Telecom cable, it is a new house), rather than the quality of broadband, or the cheapness of the deal will be most important with the time scales involved.  Also customer service and reliability, no point having a fast installation that does not work well and impossible to sort out!!! (He speaks french so does not need to have English speaking customer services, instructions) I would appreciate comments & links .  We are visiting again 22-25th June so could visit in person companies with outlets if this would help. I have sent my OH the link to the FAQ Internet. (he is tied up with clients so I am left to investigate yet again...!)  Those of you who work from home occasionally will know that it is vital to get this right! Many thanks Donna

(I will also post this in the telecoms forum) Our move looks like finally going ahead end July/Beg August. We need to get telecoms/Broadband sorted out quickly as my OH needs to be in contact with his London office ASAP.  Speed of installation (especially as there may not be a Telecom cable, it is a new house), rather than the quality of broadband, or the cheapness of the deal will be most important with the time scales involved.  Also customer service and reliability, no point having a fast installation that does not work well and impossible to sort out!!! I would appreciate comments & links from anyone in the area.  We are visiting again 22-25th June so could visit in person companies with outlets if this would help Thank you, Donna  

Thanks Miki, I'll get a copy!

What a great topic!  I have been so busy with legal, health, education etc that my gardening passion has been on the back burner.  We are moving mid July to Toulouse, is anyone close?  I would love to find a gardening club. I have all the usual questions, what is the actual gardening climate like? will I need a greenhouse? what won't grow/should I leave behind.  I too have 1/4 acre of beautiful 3 yo borders, roses (mainly old french!) raised bed organic veg plot.  I'm gutted to be leaving it behind especially as during the winter the move was looking uncertain and I didn't dig/split ANYTHING I could kick myself now as I will lose so many old friends.  Is there anything I can move this time of year that could live in a pot for 2 years or should I admit defeat? We are renting for 2 years does anyone know if you are allowed to plant veg in a rented garden????? (don't trust the agent not to fib about this)  will buy runner bean seeds as french beans can't touch them for taste in my opinion.  I use white flowered ones as they usually set well in hot weather as they seem to be self fertile. Donna  

I found what I was looking for at http://www.nisbets.fr/   have exactly the chairs I was looking for. (silly really as I use the UK one a lot for kitchen supplies, it didn't realise they did furniture and were in France too, doh!) http://www.restaurantmagazine.co.uk/  is the link for Resturant Magazine Thank you all for the links and tips, Donna  

Is there a trade publication in France similar to 'Resturant Magazine' with adverts for wholesale/bulk Cafe /Outdoor furniture in the back, or a web site? We have bought trade chairs in the UK at a fraction of the retail prices and want quite a lot of cafe style outdoor furniture.