Phoenix

Outcast,  You are obviously a `wind - up merchant `as most of your text is perfectly good English, and  YOU keep pointing out , `don`t pick on my spelling `, if you have a problem with this ,then ask Santa for a dictionary. Please don`t be a spoiler , people have enough problems without having to put up with your `clever` comments . If you live in France , then good luck to you , hope the sun shines all year round , but somehow I doubt it. Regards Jude

What on earth is an ouvrieres ? sorry if this is the wrong spelling , can`t be ars.d to go back to TU`s posting. Jude

It seems that everone assumes that this couple were resident in France , and things had not worked out as planned which is why they were poor , hence the cause of the argument etc. etc, but maybe they were on holiday ? or visiting friends or relatives , we will never know..... We sat next to a couple in the restaurant , on a Brittany Ferry trip back from St. Malo , they spent the entire meal arguing loudly , I felt embarrased for them mostly , after the meal , the woman left the situation and they were both later seen on their own for the rest of the journey. The main gist of the argument seemed to be that they had differing expectations of their holiday , these folk were both well dressed , well spoken and seemed to have plenty of money. I think these things happen to a lot of people from all walks of life, for a large variety of reasons ,I wonder if they are on this forum . Regards, Jude

So what will happen if people in England are bankrupted and they also own a place in France , will there be properties owned by Nationwide , Abbey etc. for sale in France at knockdown prices ? as they try to recoup their losses , and how would the French authorities view all this if it happened ?, do you suppose they would protect the rights of any inheritors ? Just a thought , sounds like a right mess to me. Jude ( with no mortgage this time , thank goodness )

Flybe are starting routes Southampton to Cherbourg and Brest in March if thats any help to you, wish it were Southampton to Lorient , but at least we`re getting closer , so who knows.... Regards, Jude ( also Portsmouth for now )

Every time I visit France in late summer I get eaten alive by mosquitos , then quite by chance I read an article about the benefits of thiamin , one of the effects of this vitamin is , that insects find it repulsive (excreted through the pores ), anyway to cut a long story short , I started to take one a day , a couple of weeks before visiting France , my husband was bitten every night ( by mozzies ! ) but not a single one came near me . Thought this may be of interest to other sufferers. Regards, Jude

The port authority will lose a lot of money when P&O leave Portsmouth , I think they will work very hard to get another operator to replace them , as for BF , the last trip we took on Sunday 19th September , Portsmouth -St. Malo return ( 5day ) cost £140 , and there were about 50 cars on board , so not exactly overflowing , I don`t think they will raise their prices , they may even lower them to fill the ships and get people spending on food and drinks etc. Only time will tell , will keep an eye on the local paper and let you know if there`s any more info. Regards, Jude

Our post box was discovered battered and bruised in the road , by our neighbour , we had made the mistake of leaving it on top of the empty dustbin ! , the neighbour took it to the local `post box ` hospital and had it stitched back together. regards, Jude

Thanks for info Miki , I don`t think Ray travels anywhere on foot , but I may be wrong and no doubt he will correct me if I am ! The only heavy load I will carry is the prospect of having to return to work when I get back , a belly full of good American food and French wine I can cope with , everything else comes in the car. I hope The cafe Cloche is open in September. Regards, Jude

And it isn`t just in France this happens , when we lived in the countryside in Sussex , night time harvesting was quite common , and they were making the best use of contractors ( very expensive ) as mentioned previously. Now living in a city for a year or two , and are woken on a regular basis by drunken yobs aiming footballs at our windows and cars , and chucking bottles and cans at each other and shouting obscene language , you just can`t win but I know which I prefer. Regards, Jude

Husband and I are going to Brittany in September , he will be staying for longer than me, so I will travel back as a foot passenger , this may be a silly question , but where do foot passengers book in , at St. Malo ? Regards, Jude

Well it`s almost an antique in it`s own right isn`t it ? Seriously though , if you like the house , and it looks the part and everything else ie. location convenience etc. are what you are after then nothing changes does it ? As for whatever is under the ceiling , who knows , it`s the same whatever you buy unless everything is exposed , if there are no beams then you may be able to put some in. As for selling the house at a later date , if you bought it , why shouldn`t anyone else ?. Go with your `gut `feelings and enjoy. Regards, Jude

A couple of years ago there were two tremors , epicentre in the Blavet valley north of Lorient , 6.5 on the richter scale !, according to the neighbours , they hadn`t had one for 40 years previously , so perhaps there is a bit of activity at present, the local painter had us in stitches, describing his experiences up a ladder at the time .... say no more , we were also told there is a scientific monitoring unit in Quistinic somewhere , and have been promised a visit next time we are over. Regards, Jude

Hi, I have just been given and accepted a quote to remove all old plaster from front half of facade of house , ( granite underneath ) where the old plaster is crumbling and falling off , the cost is 1.500 euros , the painter has quoted a further 1.500 euros , to pressure wash the entire front of house , apply anti- moss/green etc. then 1 coat of sealant plus two coats of paint , this seems quite reasonable to me , but of course I don`t know the size (area ) of your problem . We are in area (56 )so things might vary a bit. We removed the plaster from the inside walls ourselves and the granite , whilst not wet , always remains moist , although not pointed yet , the house as a whole does not feel damp at all and all the beams and wooden floors are as dry as a bone.S as you say `when is damp not damp`? I would get a few more quotes , and ask your neighbours if they have similar problems. Regards, Jude

Does anyone have any experience with house sitters ? for example are they reliable / trustworthy etc. and also how much does it cost ? It would be nice to visit France sometimes with my husband , but have the problem of cat care and house sitting to deal with , we are in a city so don`t know any neighbours here. Regards, Jude