[Don't move to France...buy some anti snoring headphones instead !]

Weather was not the reason we left the UK. It was not the reason why we chose to live in France, but it is one reason why we would not want to rush back to the UK.

Having lived for many years on the North East coast of England we got tired of 4-6 months of near continuous grey skies.

Here we do of course get grey days, occasionally a grey week, but then glorious blue skies - maybe coupled with very sub-zero temperatures, but that is called winter.

[Shocking lacunae in French law]

ANO wrote

12 in Spain, fake news !

https://www.ageofconsent.net/world/spain

The problem is that this site says that the age of consent for France is 15 and I thought the whole thrust of the discussion was that there is no current age of consent.

I am now thoroughly confused.

[silicone bakeware]

Yes silicone is a better insulator than metal and it will slow down the rate of heat transfer - but only slow down. Since the oven is set at a constant temperature (til you fiddle with the knob) everything will quite quickly reach the oven temperature - just a little bit slower with silicon.

This is the same point as with regards protecting pot plants from frost with bubble pack. A light overnight frost and a warmish day and they will work, but leave the plants out all winter and like as not they will die because the soil in the pot will eventually freeze.

[composters and fruit bush moving]

Watering has been forbidden here since the start of June. In fact things are still so bad that there is currently an arrete for any open flames from any source anywhere in the open countryside in the Ardeche. A lot of concern of a repeat of the 2003 forest fires which saw thousands of hectares destroyed - and some still far from recovered.

[composters and fruit bush moving]

+1 for Gardian's post. You also need water - not too much, but if you have suffered a drought like we have this year, my compost heap is closer to dried hay than anything you would use to plant in or improve the soil.

Grass clippings on their own tend to compact and form a mat, which when wet becomes a soggy mass. You need something in there to allow the air to flow through the heap. If all else fails, chopped up cardboard works well. If the heap is becoming compacted, dig it out and put it back. This aerates everything.

Transplanting fruit bushes - never tried it. It is very easy to take cuttings (aka twigs from this year's growth) from red, white and blackcurrants, and gooseberries. Raspberries should be relatively easy to transplant if you take new shoots. Strawberries - take or buy new runners.

[Help please - flour and cream!]

And a couple more thoughts on products you might try.

Crème Fraiche - a set cream but with a slightly acidic taste so not suitable for every occasion. Probably much more available in the UK than when we left.

Fromage Blanc - like a set yoghurt but again usually a little more acidic, but I would guess that some might be difficult to distinguish from yoghurt in a blind tasting. Nice on its own, with sugar or honey, or jam

Faiselle - posh fromage blanc sold with the fromage in a little milk whey which is drained off before use.

[Help please - flour and cream!]

Welcome Jill

You may well get some contradictory views because different areas seem to stock or not stock various items. So from a view a little south from where you will be:

Flour

Farine - usually plain flour, though you may find farine pour gateaux which has a raising agent. If not then you need to add your own - levure chemique (not to be confused with levure boulangerie which is dried yeast.

Granary and wholemeal - not found it here, but some bio stores are reported to stock flours that may approximate.

You can get Farine multi-cereal which has some whole grains in it. I find bread made with it rather heavy and mix it 50:50 with white bread flour - but it is all down to taste.

Cream

Thick double style cream can be found in a few areas but in the main these seem to be in the Normandy region. I have had no luck whatsoever in sourcing anything like proper double cream.

Crème entiere is available in cartons and pots and is a slightly thick single cream. The best substitute for double cream that we have found is a crème and mascarpone mix from Elle et Vire. This is only available at one hypermarket some distance away from here. I have no idea how it would work in cooking but it does at least whip. Failing that you can get sachets of Chantilly fix - a powder that allows singe cream to be whipped. To my taste the result is a bit sweet.

I think you will be in for a bit of experimentation once you get here, but experimentation can be fun - provided you are prepared for an occasional failure.

Greek yoghurt is available - if E Lecerc does not have it try Lidl.

[What does 'en' in French mean in English ?]

ALBF

Well I cannot speak for most Brits - just this one, and yes speaking and reading French is essential. There are a few other Brits around but they are all second home owners. No Brits here from October to May.

I do agree that you cannot learn a language from a book and at the same time have to tell you that we are both wrong. It is (apparently) possible but maybe rather rare and very specific.

Some years ago when we had to sign the compromis de vente, OH did not trust my ability to translate the document and so asked a friend, whose husband was a friend of an official translator if he could translate a couple of important sections. (My translation proved to be pretty good and certainly good enough.) But in discussing the document with him, he told of a colleague who was an official Russian to German translator. He was self taught. Had no idea of how the individual characters were pronounced. Could not therefore speak single word. But was nevertheless able to translate (to an official and accredited level) written documents.

The strange thing is that if he could apply himself to understand what each hieroglyph sounded like, he would have been able to speak very well since Russian (like many Slavic languages) is phonetic.

[Should a student pay habitation tax?]

But if your tax return inadvertently still continues to include her (with the benefits that brings in your tax return), then she is still linked to you and your home. She will need to fill in an individual tax return and you will need to ensure she is not included in the calculation of yours (IIRC it is called "parts").

[Ferry from Calais to Dover]

Yes it is not new Nick, the problem then was defining constant occupation.

Could you go away for a holiday? Of course you could.

What about if you had a business trip (1)? No problem.

Visiting relatives (2)? Yeh that's OK

OH stays for a time in one property, while I am in the other (say Monday to Friday).

(1) which happened to be within commuting distance from the other property and which you used for such trips.

(2) who live near the other property.

And suddenly both properties are in constant occupation.

I think the problems today would be just as difficult unless you take a simplistic stance - 1 property OK, 2 properties or more where there is no rental income = some form of penalty - tax, community charge or whatever.

[uk news reporting]

What on earth makes you think that this news source is any more reliable than any of the other media outlets? Does it come with a Microsoft trusted site certificate perhaps.

They are all scoundrels - that's the media, not the politicians.

Er no, hang on............................................

[Ferry from Calais to Dover]

Richard51

I would politely ask you to look at the question that BinB posed. No reference to second homes, just a potential collapse in sterling. It was this and this alone that I replied to.

However in partial defence of our right of right wing ovine poster, I might suggest that one partial solution to the UK housing crisis might be to disadvantage the ownership of more than one property, and using both as a personal residence.

Would a right wing party ever go down this route? Unlikely

Would a left wing party ever go down this route? Not impossible but still perhaps unlikely - since many MPs by dint of their profession have to have two residences - but not necessarily own both or either.

[Ferry from Calais to Dover]

Perhaps not BinB.

Shadow Chancellor McDonald openly publicised that Labour had a contingency plan in the event of a run on the pound. Clearly they believe it is a strong enough possibility to warrant having a plan - but full marks for that. Better than the cons and their advance planning for a Brexit vote.

[Olives]

It is certainly the case with sweet chestnuts that the first to fall are worm infested, so I could well believe it would be the case for olives.

[Ferry from Calais to Dover]

Inflation?

Actually your time period does cover the first week of Advent and hence the start of Christmas Markets.

However I suspect the main reason will be the increased cost of oil and therefore bunker fuel.

One year ago Brent was $51/barrel and now it is $62 - so 20% increase.

[What to do with the Catalan leader?]

Sorry when I saw the title, all I could think bout was a Spanish sea shanty

What shall we do with the Catalan leader?

What shall we do with the Catalan leader?

What shall we do with the Catalan leader?

Earl-lie in the morning

Hoo-ray and up she rises

Rohay has some nasty surprises

Puidgemont’s off to the assizes

Earl-lie in the morning

[Toussaint and chrysanths]

Woolly wrote:

The potted chrysanths are very forced and may not survive if planted out, though I am not sure why. Any ideas anyone?

So you take a plant that has been kept under glass in a cosy environment with controlled intense lighting to stimulate flowering. It probably has not been given massive amounts of fertiliser nor been planted in a rich soil, since these encourage growth rather than flowering.

The you take it out of its nice warmish pot and plunge it into a cold hole in the garden. If it is lucky you will have given it a little fertiliser, but probably you have either given it none or far too much. You probably gave it a really good drink of nice cold (just above freezing) water drawn from your water tub.

It is then subjected to grey days and long dark nights instead of that bright controlled lighting. Within a day or two it will enjoy its first ever frost. If you gave it lots of fertiliser this will have started to stimulate new growth and those micro shoots will now be frozen and will die.

And you wonder why they don't always thrive.

PS the same is true of those pots of herbs from the supermarket.

You can keep them alive but they will need cosseting.

[Toussaint and chrysanths]

The reason they frequently do not survive is that they are a half hardy perennial. They dislike cold and wet and those left in the pots they were bought in will quickly get cold roots.

Planting in the garden may be an answer but if you suffer the extreme cold that we do or prolonged periods of winter wet as you might near the coast, the best method is to lift plants in the winter and store them in the dry and a cold but frost free area.

[Smile online bank is offline!]

Unfortunately it is the same old, same old from the British Barstewards Assoc..

Just as an example

Barclays: You can hold an international account if you deposit and maintain a minimum £25k in the account. This account is not a UK account. It is based off shore and therefore does not necessarily provide the protect you would expect for a UK account.

[How much do you believe analysts of polls?]

What this clearly demonstrates is an inability of most of the population, MPs, Journalists and posters on this board amongst many, to understand statistics and indeed simple English statements.

"Voters for remain tended to be better educated" does not mean:

Anyone who voted leave is a thicky

Everyone who voted stay is clever

Either of them are right.

As chancer so succinctly put it, it matters not a jot now.

We are saddled with the result for good or bad and the only comment we can perhaps make is the David Cameron must rate as one of the most politically inept leaders of the decade and maybe the century - although there are a couple of Iberian leaders currently vying for that position.

[Le beurre et l'argent du beurre..... Presque]

Have heard about the dearth of butter - especially Bretagne butter - and yet out Super U in deepest Ardeche has boxes of the stuff.

I agree that farmers have to be properly paid (and recently have not been for milk and milk products), but I am beginning to think this may have more to do with the distribution groups than the farmers themselves - which if true will mean they miss out again.

[Forigners in France..]

Totally agree about language and hence the disappointment that mine is not better. The trouble is that quite a number of our friends want to improve their English when they speak to us and persuading them that it is more important that we get a semi fluent command of French is impossible.

[Forigners in France..]

Good luck John, super post.

After 4 years total immersion in France - preceded by 2 years working in France - I still feel that my German is better. It shouldn't be but it is.

And worse, we can both struggle for English word s from time to time having either the French and or the German word readily to hand!

[Health professionals questioning]

NormanH write:

All of the students assumed incorrectly that her partner was of the opposite sex

How did that affect the medical care she was given?

Just as a for instance, if (as an MS sufferer) it was deemed that she might need some physical assistance in say getting out of bed, it might well be deemed (not necessarily correctly) that a man would have the strength to lift her, whereas a woman would be less likely (but not necessarily) to be able to do so. Knowing that the partner was female could well lead to an additional line of questioning to establish the levels of need.

[The Quizzes: Where in France should I live? And How French are you?]

Apparently I too should be in the Dordogne, but then as others have said the opportunity to give your real answer to the questions is severely restricted.