Fay

Thanks Danny, that's really helpful!

Hi all, after 12 very happy years I'm finally selling my maison secondaire - I moved to Deal in Kent to be closer to St-Valery-sur-Somme but am so happy here (Deal) that I'm not using the French house even half as much as I used to. I'm lucky in that friends are buying it, and have said I can still visit! So, anyway, the sale is proceeding via a local notaire and we hope to sign the Acte at the end of the month. But I suddenly realised I'm going to have to let all the utilities companies know and get them (I assume) to come and do meter readings on the day. And the Mairie of course, and goodness knows who else... Does anyone have any useful tips about organising this? Thanks in advance for any help you can give.

Are you still searching? I will ask around if so.

Pye and I came back from two months in St-Valery-sur-Somme on Wednesday. She did not have to go to the vets for any checks at all. At the Tunnel they scanned her chip and checked her number and rabies validity in her passport as normal and then waved us on our way. Suspect a conspiracy of vets! :D

Only just saw this, but I can confirm that Pye has travelled back into the UK via the Tunnel three times since the rules changed and has not had to go to the vet for any treatment beforehand, and the only thing checked on her passport was rabies shot validity and microchip number. I was really nervous the the first time, In January, though!

i couldn't get the recipe link to work, but here's my recipe which always gets rave reviews and is as easy as can be: TARTIFLETTE (Serves 4 easily) 1 kilo potatoes 3 small or 2 big tubs smoked bacon lardons (or pancetta) 1 large onion, finely chopped 1 clove garlic, crushed (optional) 2 medium-sized tubs crème fraîche Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 small Reblochon cheese Heat the oven to 180°C/350°F (Gas Mark 4). Peel potatoes and chop into dice-sized pieces. Parboil for 10 minutes then drain and set aside. Meanwhile, start to sauté the bacon gently and, when the fat has run a bit, add the chopped onion and garlic and sauté gently but don’t allow to brown. Mix together the potatoes, bacon and onion, and the crème fraîche and season (careful with the salt because of the bacon). Pour the mixture into a shallowish, largish baking dish and level it out a bit. Scrape a little of the orange rind off the two flat sides of the Reblochon, then slice it horizontally into four rounds. Lay the slices over the top of the potato mixture. Bake for about 40 minutes until it’s all golden and crusty and bubbly. Serve with green salad.

I think that's the time that caused a lot of us 'oldies' to have the same joining date, isn't it? 23 August 2004 - yikes!

I've now read the whole thread, so just for info it seems to all work okay using Safari on a MacBook (or perhaps that's because fixing has already been done?). I have the forum open in its own window, so to get rid of the lavender fields I just decrease the window size until only the actual thread is visible. And I turn down the brightness on the Mac, as has already been mentioned, to avoid a migraine. :)

I think I'm sorted but it was a bit of a struggle! I could see my old posts but not log in as me for a few goes. So I panicked and re-registered on the main part of the site and it didn't say 'that email address is already taken'... Hey ho, all okay now I think!

Taking the cat back through the Tunnel's pet check-in, without having gone to the vet for drops and passport stamping, evoked a similar feeling to the first time one drives into the telepeage lane with a new doofer - the irrational fear that it won't work... but it did! :-)

If you are looking for a vet within easy reach of the Tunnel/Calais, I can recommend my one in St-Valery-sur-Somme, just over an hour from tunnel and ports. Though of course it would mean an overnight stay to be outside the 24-hour shortest-time limit for arrival back in the UK. No hardship, imho, plenty of nice places to stay/eat in town including two within a minute's walk of the vet. They are open Mon–Fri 17h-19h (open surgery) and (by appointment) on Sat and the eve of public hols 10:30–noon.

Blimey, well spotted, sharp-eyes Moulin85 - that could easily catch people out! Mind you, supposing one checked a dog in with plenty of leeway for the crossing time, and then there was a problem such as a breakdown in the Tunnel and a long delay... before now it would have been fine because check-in time was key. Would they turn the dog and its owner back if they eventually arrived after the deadline had passed?! I guess the long 'window' means it's best to be on the safe side and leave a wide margin for error. Oh! Then again, how would they know, since (as far as the Tunnel goes) there is no UK checking stage on arrival!

This has only just sunk in for me - no need to take my cat to vet 24-48 hours before travel every time! I'm thrilled to bits. Not only will it be better for her (she's an indoor cat, never gets fleas, ticks or tapeworms anyway), it will save me 45 euros each time, and avoid the panic of hitting the crucial 24-hour 'window' for the vet visit. Wish I'd known on New Year's Eve as I wouldn't have schlepped the 90-min round-trip to the only open vet in order to travel back on 2 Jan... Fantastic news. :-) (Am double-checking with Eurotunnel, nonetheless!)

Thanks folks! :)

My very French and very foodie short story has been published this week by Litro magazine. If anyone would like to read it, the link is: http://www.litro.co.uk/index.php/category/stories-and-poetry/ones-to-watch/

Shame you are bit too far from the beautiful Baie de Somme for it to be added to the list of attractions! Your place looks wonderful, however.

I'll look out for The Help - thanks! I think a lot of people will feel the same as you, RH, and not make it through the early stages... I would not have done, probably, if I hadn't been reading it for Book Group - I suspect certain other members will also have given up. It's a shame, because after the 'tipping point' it becomes such a wonderful story of change and revelation.

I just finished it this morning and my loud sobbing scared the cat. I absolutely loved it. It was a bit of a struggle to get in to, but suddenly on about page 40 I 'got it' and then adored it more with every page. I was reading the translation (for my book group) but feel the translator/publishers did very well to make points about grammar and syntax, amongst other things, relevant to English-speaking readers. Loved it, and will certainly be reading it again.

Great news!

Good news from RSPCA, it seems his owners have been traced. Brits, in the UK, no further info as yet. But sounds like there may be a happy ending!

I trust.

That was a joke, right?

Yeah, right. Hahahahahaha!

Hi Angela! I suggested to the RSPCA that they get in touch with DEFRA for that very reason - I am sure the chip number would link to a Pet Passport and more info, including when and/or whether he arrived legally. It seems they know the cat is called Tommy,and the owners have a British-sounding name, but he's been wandering about Cosgrove for four years now... As I've been typing this, the story of Tommy has just been broadcast on the Chris Evans Radio 2 show!

Yes, sadly not the same cat... hoping that both pairs of cat-and-families get reunited soon.