Alan Zoff

Yes, "direct" is how I would describe the Dutch character. I get on very well with the Dutch couple in the village. He says he finds his culture much closer to British than to French and was surprised when I pointed out to him that he came across as being much more direct than the average Brit. I do find it a bit odd that he chooses to spend a large part of the year in France but loads his van to the gunwales with Dutch produce - yes, including spuds - before setting off, and when needs must will only shop at Aldi or Lidl, keeping well clear of all French establishments. But he is great company and a marvellous host.

A lot of empty churches, too. A certain irony there.

I can see where you are coming from Q but, if you are talking about French holidaymakers rather than business people seeking international custom, I wonder how many Brits staying in a British B&B would expect to speak a foreign language in their own country.

And also with a nil upfront cost, of course

I like the fact that it's optional in that the fee is only incurred if a toll road is used. Even then, it's peanuts and at least as cheap as the others charge. Particularly as I often travel alone and struggle to reach across to the cashiers or card machines, it has proved to be very useful. Also satisfying to slip in front of cars that have burned past me a few kms earlier but have then been stuck in the peage queue. Good old schadenfreude. So I have simply accepted the transfer and have been thankful for the completely free use over a number of years.

I've stopped answering the phone, which I appreciate is a bit impractical if you have a business to run

Have used both B&B and F1 (several times) well after Reception closed and always succeeded in gaining entry, despite the usual brain fogginess late at night after a long trip. Regarding the "working girls" comment, I suppose it depends on the area but F1 seem meticulous in asking for feedback and I would be surprised if the customer service management ignored any such reports.

Our second Winter in central France was really cold. Boiler played up and system froze leading to burst pipes and 2 split radiators. Not funny.

It depends how much you want to do yourself but if you are happy to place things in the hands of a UK expert, and pay accordingly, I can recommend this chap: [email protected] (0)20 8394 6217 He is a partner in Russell Cooke solicitors and has an excellent reputation in relation to continental will and estate matters.

Doesn't everyone? Camera is weatherproof but I have it on an adjustable plastic arm I have screwed to the dashboard, facing sideways and slightly to the rear. It has 170 degree viewing angle so, combined with the door mirror, I seem to have everything covered. Surprisingly clear colour picture on the monitor, given the low price. It is already proving useful at awkward junctions in the UK - the test comes next week when I hit Paris. It's not the first time the van has been fitted with a camera as it started life as a police surveillance vehicle. The hardware had been removed but I stripped out the wiring and a console when I bought the van.

It was just a dodgy connection on the back of the cigar lighter socket. Nothing wrong with the camera kit which now works a treat. This will have been a completely boring thread for most readers but if anyone is faced with a similar predicament (i.e. driving a RH drive panel van solo on the continent), I can recommend it as a cheap and simple solution. The kit cost £20 on Ebay. And when I stop using the van, I can transfer it to one of the cars to use as it was originally intended. But for now it's boulevard peripherique, here I come.

Thanks again for the comments. Yes, the need (when used for its intended purpose) to power the camera via the reverse light wiring dawned on me after I had posted but too late to withdraw the daft sentence. I was fooled by the wiring diagram which shows both the monitor and the camera connected to cigar lighter plugs. So all should be working now, but unfortunately not. I am pretty sure I have wired it up as indicated but the monitor just flashes a blue screen with no image. I have checked that there is 12V at both the monitor and the camera but only had a few minutes to play this evening so will try again tomorrow. From what I have picked up from Googling, it seems likely that the camera is not sending a signal to the monitor (they are connected with a long RCA type lead)

Thanks for that. I will press ahead now. I think I had in mind the warnings I was given when I used to experiment with hi-fi speaker construction some years ago. Parallel connections could upset the amplifier. But presumably not a concern with what I am doing here.

I have a RH drive LDV van in the UK used by all in the family for runs to the tip, picking up bulky purchases, helping the kids' friends and half of Gloucestershire to move house, etc, etc and at least once a year to cart stuff back and forth between UK and French houses. The van does not have electrically operated mirrors so, given the lack of visibility on the passenger side, particularly at junctions at an angle to the road being joined, I normally make sure I have a passenger with me when driving in France. However, this isn't always possible so I think I have found a use for a reversing camera kit I have had for a while but have never fitted. The plan is to mount both the 7" monitor and the camera on the dashboard, the latter near to the passenger door window, and wiring directly to power rather than via the reversing lights. I will then be able to check the left hand view via the monitor, with the camera "looking" through the passenger door window. As ever, I am unsure about the wiring aspects. The crude diagram in the Chinese leaflet is confusing to me, particularly as none of the leads are labelled. (I suffer with a "blindness" when it comes to diagrams, graphs, etc.) Surprisingly to me, the camera and monitor appear to require independent power sources - I would have expected one to feed the other. The leaflet seems to suggest connecting them to the cigar lighter socket. I normally use that for the satnav but have a splitter to create 2 sockets. I don't really want to have 3 and I wonder if it is a case of splicing the power cables together, observing polarity of course. The kit comes with bare wires for the power leads anyway and it would mean soldering them to suitable plugs for the cigar lighter so splicing and soldering to one plug would seem much easier. I always get confused though about series and parallel connections and thought I should check that splicing wouldn't affect resistance and cause a voltage(?) problem. I would be most grateful if someone could put me straight on that before I cause any damage.

Thanks for the replies, in particular that link AnOther. As indicated, looks like it's the limitations of the French Maestro card and, for a change, not my own limitations with IT.

I can't seem to get PayPal to accept my Credit Agricole Maestro card as a valid card. Not sure if I am doing something wrong or whether PayPal just doesn't like dealing with this bank or card. I am in England at present trying to pay a German Ebay seller the euro price using my euro funds in France. Seemed like it ought to work.... Obviously, I can just use the normal PayPal sterling option but it's not a cheap item so I begrudge using PayPal's exchange rate of 132 euros to the pound. Anyone know a way around this?

I have never understood how people can accept both evolution and whichever religion they have chosen (or more likely has been chosen for them). I have no more idea than the next man or woman if there is some super controlling force - let's call it God - but if an all-powerful God was "good", how come we have had hideous diseases, Adolf H, devastating natural disasters, and Giles Brandreth? I rest my case.

Clarkson would get someone braver to stand in for him as he does with the trickier driving.

Tough on anyone selling up to move back to Blighty, especially if they have been disappointed with the sale price. A not very pleasant double whammy.

Coopers of Stortford will sell you an "Internet & Password log book" for £5.99 with a nice bold title on the front cover to make clear to any villains exactly what it contains.

Did you just shop around individually until you found the right deal for you or have you found a good comparison site for French property insurers?

I couldn't make up my mind whether the Pope in his speech in the Philippines was making a rather sick joke, condoning the recent violence, or both. But given the record of the papacy when it comes to violence against mankind, it's perhaps not so surprising.

Religion has always been about control. Hope that is not too intellectual, pseudo or otherwise, for some.

That was OK, though, Frederick. It was in the rules. Just remind me. Who came up with these rules?

I agree it is moot point Rabbie but as I said, we and the US have intervened when it suited. Of course I don't have proof myself about Saudi involvement with the Paris attacks but the intelligence services appear to have plenty of information about the backing and training for those carrying out the atrocities. Whether it's Al Qaeda with or without Saudi funding, there is an extreme religious power base that is dictating events. Excellent article, Norman.