Owens88

[quote user="desperatedan"] Blimey what a post I started. Opened up a whole can of worms I guess [/quote]   Good luck in whatever you do.  Everybody needs it. As for forum responses I always think it is best to treat them as valid as the answers you might get sitting around a British bar. Some tosh, some prejudiced and a lot with nuggets if you can sift them fast enough. You might take into account the weightings of each type of response you get and wonder whether the isolation of living in France inreases the negativity, and if so why? Bonne Courage John

I understood that other permitted drivers could take the car out, but the excess was doubled/tripled.

[quote user="Iceni"] [quote user="Owens88"] Those of us who want Ryanair to thrive on our chosen routes would welcome sustainable business models, and that involves a balanced mix of passengers not merely the stag/hen night travellers (plus the near-commuters / second homers) that their policies encourage. [/quote] Snob [:P] John [/quote]   No way was that my intention !   In my youth I might have been a more frequent Ryanair weekend / short -break tourist. And yes I would have included drinking as part of that.  In my middle age I have a French property but have not yet tried living there and also travelling 'back'  frequently. I recognise the convenience for those who do. Both market segments have their validity. My response was to a poster who was saying 'it works for me so please stop whinging'. My point was meant to be 'are those market niches enough for an air operator ?' Funnily enough it seems that we cannot criticise some of Ryanair's methods without being accused of being anti-Ryanair. If you contrive to p*** off other market segments such as  family travellers and those on longish breaks who don't own  their destination property, then there is a good possibilty that the mix will fail. (True 'Market Economics'). I will regret any losses of service If you compare Ryanair to other low cost operators than they (R) have adopted a much harsher official and visible stance.   At some point this will rebound. I might prefer the subsequent model.   Cheers

[quote user="Sandg"] Dear All, I travel fairly regularly from either East Midlands or Liverpool to Limoges and back again via Ryanair. If it wasn't for them I couldn't get to "Our place in France" so often. Its quick, convenient and beats 12 hours on the road interspersed with 90 minutes on a ferry. Please stop whinging - just keep your fingers crossed that they continue to operate and so cheaply. Regards G and SE [/quote]   The fact that Ryanair is so often talked about reflects the fact that they are widely useful, whether for cheapness or just the airports they serve. The fact that Ryanair is so often talked about in a bad light reflects the harshness of their operation, openly and proudly supported by their head.   Those of us who want Ryanair to thrive on our chosen routes would welcome sustainable business models, and that involves a balanced mix of passengers not merely the stag/hen night travellers (plus the near-commuters / second homers) that their policies encourage. Ryanair have shown a willingness to abandon routes as fast as they started them up and any low yields resulting from a skewed business model will undoubtedly result in an eventual switch of service. Complaining about Ryanair's harshness (especially when compared to other low-cost operators) is not always 'whinging', there is such a thing as valuable customer feedback, but hubris can affect listening abilities!   If you look at other businesses and their cycles (e.g. car rental or mobile phones) the day of the 'simple pricing but good value' operator has yet to come to this flight sector, but come it will.   Virginair anyone ?

Whereas Super U are opening for the morning. 

If you have a VOIP account you should be able to pick up anywhere you connect.  It is late and I cannot dredge up the 'how ', but that is part of the Voip service. John  

[quote user="Braco"]Hi Owen88 So your spiritual home is Munich in October?[/quote] I have not done that trip since my student days, way off in a previous century. Funnily enough I am not a great fan of German beers but I did down a few Dunkels bieres the other night (bought in Leics, UK !).   As regards your other posts. I bet that fluency in english and greek means that you would acquire skills in whatever language you were surrounded by quite quickly.  I think that most of the posts in the thread were referring to the 'new language avoiders' that get up people's nose whether they be in France or the UK. G'night John      

I have used a lot of these external devices over the years. The ones that have  cable and a separate directional box/aerial are usually better than straight plug-in 'stubbies'. Nothing seems to beat an onboard device though. Good luck.   John

[quote user="Braco"]Hi Owens88  I detest nationalism in all its forms. I would be interested to discover what you would consider ‘some of you norms’ as I suspect that they are either universally held or just particular to your life experiences. Tens of thousands of mainly Eastern Europeans are currently establishing themselves in the UK [/quote]   yes the Eastern Europeans fit in well (and have done so for decades ) because they learn English quickly and drink beer (one of my norms, smile !).    I wouldn't want a debate that hung on precise meanings of words but I do detest racism of all sorts, not just colour. I don't have a problem with there being some form of regional (or national) identities and pride. In fact I enjoy and respect differences.

[quote user="Quillan"] Couldn't agree more about retirees, some have retired normally, some early and some very early, you can't make a blanket statement. [/quote]   Fair cop Guv. I think I was oversimplifying. John

[quote user="desperatedan"][quote user="KathyF"][quote user="desperatedan"] Oh well thanks very much for all your advice. Very negative most of it!  [/quote] Dan, I would rather say that it is realistic and very well-meant.  No-one is trying to be nasty. [/quote] No offence taken whatsoever. I am enjoying reading the responses. I fully accept Im open to a lot of negativity given the title of my thread. Like the title says we are 'debating' the move. Its been 12 months of debating! [/quote]   I have no experience of living in france but have been reading the forums for some time.  It does strike me that many people who have moved to France don't recognise  that they are immigrants, with all the problems that brings wherever. Outisde of that there are visitors (like me) however frequent and retirees on a UK pension. Both are different situations than emigrating to France. Good luck whatever you choose.   John  

Language tests and the like hark back a time when nationalism/insecurity ruled. ... I just wonder if there is not an element of elitism in the fluent French speakers. Surely it is just a matter of practicality.   Braco. wherever you call 'home' would you be impressed by immigrants who made no attempt to accommodate to at least some of your norms, including language ?  I haven't followed the full thread so if anybody has implied that fluent french is needed to mix here then I beg to disagree with them. I have schoolboy french plus shrugs and body language, and more fluency when we share a drink ! However, yes I regret losing the detail on occasions, and YES  I regret and miss  the rapid exchange of nuances  that can happen within one's mother tongue or other fluent language. But when in France I regard that as my fault not anybody else's. IF I lived in France I would HAVE to speak workable French quickly, as a matter of honour and practicality.  

My roof was re-roofed with a mechanical tile thingy about 6-8 tiles in area, then 'faced ' or 'topped' with original tiles. You cannot see the difference and the result is MORE weathepoof and cheaper.   I will look up the terminology if you are interested. John

We live in the East Midlands (near Swithland) and the last few weeks have indeed been wonderful with nature's colours. If only July and August were so reliable.            

Good luck. For info I believe that French tradesmen are dual skilled. Our electrician is also a plumber.    

65mm   Get Victoria Beckham to go down and fetch it ?  

It all depends ! The Mairie has the powers to set standards. e.g. in the centre of Vernet white is prohibited and strong colours are the norm.  

>Yes I could lock the cat flap at night but doing that every night and making sure the cats are in isn't a option.< make home, HOME. There are cat flaps that selectively allow entrance. The selected cats have to wear a magnet round their collar. Ours have managed over many years. Worth a try ?

[quote user="Quillan"] Being a bit new to the Gite business myself (I shall be opening 3 next year) I have a couple of questions about this sort of situation. I have spent a bit of time looking at gites on the Internet both through GDF and other commercial websites and it seems to me (and its how I will price my gites) that the price is for the gite and not the number of people staying in it. Basically its a very short term house rental. The only thing I can see is that there is a limit on the amount of people who can stay in the gite by the capacity given i.e. sleeps 6 as an example. Therefore I would have thought legally you only have the opportunity of redress if the capacity goes beyond this. [/quote] Hi Q Yes and No to this.  We would not charge per head, but we do get numbers and names on the booking forms. We have even allowed renters to have overnight guests if they tell us names. We would therefore reserve the right to exclude (or more practically hold something from the deposit) if something had been abused. However we do have an optional 'linen-charge' per head (because the mainland continentals generally drive and bring their own, and expect a discount ).   Our apartment will 'dine for nine' and entertain for many more so we would never seek to limit numbers for socialising (inc. using the loo) as long as the neighbours are not upset. Though as I type this I now wonder about somebody camping in the meadow/garden and using our facilities . Hmm.   Good luck with the gites John

Do we pay extra to watch the escape (cf Chicken Run).  

Its in the Midi Uk  

Dunno if we count as suitabe, we don't have a pool,  but some weeks still free.   Good  luck   john

I am quite interested in this. Our place is well suited for being the base for  a very wide variety of motorbike runs, and we have a garage. Please share the ideas publicly.  John

Interesting comment about cats.   I was looking at Coir or Sisal , but sisal stains so not for houses with cats. I thought that seagrass was impervious (hence it always has a greenish tinge).   As regards the OP. Seagrass has been rated as one to avoid if you have desk (castor) chairs as it takes an impression easily.

Phase 6:  Phoning to check whether the flight is a).  still operating,   b). delayed, and   c). diverted. £5 per call, multiple queries charged pro-rata.   Let us face it. We know that the real reason Ryanair want to go luggage free is to release the space dedicated for luggage. Now, given the frequency of their flights, you might think that they would then be well set up to offer small freight services on their flying busses (anybody remember 'red star' ?). However I think it is to pave the way for a really innovative phase.....   The default offering will be to travel in the hold, in a container with enough measured Oxygen for the journey.  Everything else above that (e.g. a seat in free air) will be a chargeable extra.   john