Foxtrot

I talked to my GP about individual vaccinations and the problem according to her is the availbility. You can find them, I believe you can order them but depending on stocks it can take up to 6 months for them to become available. She recommended an 3-in-1 vaccination called Priorix which is gradually replacing the ROR Vax which has different "souches" (don't know the word in English) and is tolerated better by kids. Although I didn't research this any further myself, I felt that I wasn't being forced into vaccinating my child, I have a GP who is always prepared to listen to my "it's not like that in the UK" speeches and when she gives me her opinion, I tend to respect it. Charlotte had the Priorix jab about 3 weeks ago. Katie

Hi, With regard improving your language skills, I suggest you contact the University, there's a French as a Foreign Language centre ([email protected] is the admin officer). For employment opportunities, go to the CROUS (www.crous-nantes.fr) which is on the main campus in Nantes (censive du Tertre) as they have job offers; nothing revolutionary, these are the kind of addresses that your girlfriend would probably know about, being French... Otherwise, perhaps you could get in touch with Nantes Atlantique Welcome (Marielle Lescuyer [[email protected]]) an association which looks after new arrivals in Nantes, if nothing else, you might be able to do some (unpaid) work for the association and a) meet people, b) keep an ear out for job opportunities since it's run by the chamber of commerce. If you're interested in anything else, do send me a mail - I live in Nantes. Good luck. Katie  

You could try putting a (free) ad on http://www.anciennes.net/. We have sold spare parts through this site before. Katie

Hi, We had underfloor heating installed about 4 years ago and are very pleased with the system. It's water in the pipes that are heated to a "basse température" of 27° max. Connected to a mains gas boiler that also does our hot water. You do need to consider what kind of floor surface you will be having - we've got stone and the heat passes through fine, not sure about parquet "flottant". Also, your estimate will include digging down a good few cms to get all the layers fitted in. An outside thermostat is a good idea (as well as an inside one) because it helps during cold spells); floor heating takes about 24 hours or sometimes more to get the house up to temperature when you switch it on for the first time. What would we do differently if we did it again: 1) have under floor heating both downstairs and up (we thought it was going to be hard to regulate bedroom heat so opted for radiators upstairs) and put electric towel heaters in the bathrooms so that your towels are dry all year round. 2) perhaps not have gas (prices keep going up) but rather "géothermie" where you bury pipes in your garden that catch the residual heat from the ground. More economic to run, more expensive to install. Katie

I think you mean that GPs will prescribe physiotherapy but not osteopathy. This is because steopathy is a medicine that isn't fully recognised by the Sécurité Sociale, however this is in the throes of changing. What it means is that you will have to find and pay for an osteopath yourself rather than being referred to one. Up until a couple of years ago, you couldn't find them in the yellow pages but that has changed now. Try pagesjaunes.fr, type in ostéopathe and the area you want and it should come up with: Letellier Bernard 21 av Maréchaux 16000 ANGOULEME  05 45 22 98 80   Pailler Denis 71 av Angoulême 16100 CHATEAUBERNARD fax : 05 45 82 84 07   Pailler Denis Clinique Arc en Ciel 71 av Angoulème-Chateaubernard 16100 Cognac 05 45 82 18 43   Weiss Brigitte 21 r St Augustin 16100 COGNAC  05 45 82 21 94   Alliat Bernard 20 remp Est 16000 Angoulême 05 45 95 74 86   Comte Marc-Ursanne 5 pl Gare 16440 Mouthiers sur Boëme   05 45 67 82 37 Even better would be word of mouth. My osteo here in Nantes trained in the UK because there weren't any courses in France. He recently told me to ask my mutuelle whether they would refund any expenses and sure enough, mutuelle will fund up to 17€ per session up to 5 sessions per family member per year which is about 30% of the costs - great.   Katie

[quote]It just being a tv means that you will have to pay, no matter what you watch or how often. They have recently changed the system and it will be included in our taxe d'habitation bills from now on.[/quote] This isn't stricly true. Once you get to 65 you are exonerated from paying a TV licence although that's not your case. I think you have to wait until 70 if you pay fortune tax... However, it is indeed possible to have your TV "de-tunered" by a professional; this is meant to be free but apparently isn't always the case. However, this person can supply you with a certificate that you can then produce for the licensing authorities to be exonerated from paying a licence. I'd go to a Boulanger or Darty and ask them if they will do it. Katie

Saw a French version of Agatha Christie's "by the pricking of my thumbs" with André Dussolier (the father in Tanguy, super film) and Catherine Frot (she was the brilliant Follecoche in the recent Vipère au Poing). Think it was called "mon petit doigt me l'a dit". Other than that, 36 quai des Orfèvres was the last French film I enjoyed. Katie

[quote]For me it is to save water. I am prudent with water. WHEREAS, I just cannot believe how wasteful every last english guest (family/friends) we have had in this house has not been. It is awful, it dr...[/quote] French water is metred, not much English water is which means perhaps that in France we are more careful. We don't flush at night because of gurgly piping and children's bedrooms and I have to whizz round in the morning checking the loos and flushing. I do have a gripe with our 2 boys (5 and 6) who are not good at flushing - too many other interesting things to do. Coincidently, yesterday evening I added an extra column to their ongoing star chart - they're now going to have crosses for not flushing cos' I'm fed up. On the whole I'd say that even if they're not great at flushing, they do wash their hands after going to the loo even though the one upstairs doesn't have a basin. We make sure they wash hands before lunch and I know that the school asks them to as well (not sure about the loo set up though). Small daughter aged 2 is obsessed with hand washing - loves soap and will do it too often rather than not enough - think the fact the we breathe down siblings' neck until they do the deed has led to a bit of overkill for her. My French husband has extremely good rules of hygiene - he was brought up on a farm and mother used to make father change out of his work overall in the shed and into home clothes before he came into the house; when I met my husband, father was still working on the farm and I never saw him bring a scrap of dirt into the house - before coming in he always washed his hands (and most of his arms) in the outside sink. Have been on a lot of French farms and this wasn't always the case. On the other hand, I went to an English boarding school for most of my young life and grew up with pretty dodgy ideas about when to wash hands and all the rest - the good habits I now have were picked up in France... (OK, so I probably wouldn't eat off the floor in my house, but the loos are clean). Katie

Unless it's near or on your birthday and you can get away with offering (and paying for) an apéritif, I'd keep away from paying for anything on the menu. I'd say that if you are invited to a restaurant by French people in France, let them pay because that's what they have planned. Perhaps ask which menu your hosts are choosing so that you can be on the same footing as them, pretend you know nothing about wine even if you do otherwise you'll be asked to choose it. Sit back and enjoy your meal - the more you appreciate it, the happier your hosts will be. A thank you letter afterwards goes down really well, can't think of what I'd give as a present in the circumstances. Katie

I've been reading this topic with great interest and have concluded that my top 2 hates in France are 1) macedoine de legumes (tinned mixed veg in mayo sometimes wrapped up in a slice of ham) 2) quenelles (think long slimy dumplings sometimes with a fishy flavour) Love duck - order it from a friend in the Landes, my duck comes in about 10 jars - 1 of foie, 2 confits (delish and dreat for unexpected guests), the bits, the carcass, jar of fat for cooking (try roast potatoes) and about 3 pots of graisserons which are nicer than rillettes in my book. Also love boudin antillais, spicy black suasage, kids love boudin blanc and toulouse sausage. These are the kind of things I'd buy from a butcher. Took Matthieu, aged 6, for a doctors appointment late one evening and we went past a "brioche dorée" stand. He didn't want anything sweet but practically begged me for a croque monsieur which was hot and greasy but he loved it. I make mine at home with white or brown English bread from Auchan and add ham, slices of tomato and sometimes an egg, good fill-in meal. My biggest enjoyment about living in France is the fact that being English I don't have to live up to any culinary expectations. Back in the UK, my dad worries about doing Rick Stein's gravadlax just right and my English girlfriends all have fave chefs that they try to live up to. My French friends have to live up to mum or mum-in-law's blanquette de veau. I can do what I want, don't have to make any excuses, and for the added fun, we often serve new world wine which gets French tongues wagging. I think the most important thing about living in an adopted country is not to list the things you don't like, but the things you do... Katie

Our 3 kids all christened in France all call their various godparents parrain and marraine. For each child, we chose one member of the family and one friend which has worked quite well. The presents from godparents were very traditional - a gold médaille and chain for each of them (Saint Christopher for the boys and Virgin Mary for the girl). The celebrations themselves were quite fun; we were allowed to play loud didgeridoo music in the church on boxing day since our 2 kids were the only ones being "done". Other kids did drawings and pinned them up on the altar and lit candles - a bit frightening for the adults. With regard names, only my husband has suffered from a tradition that appears to be dying out... his second and third name are those of his godfather and... godmother (Marie-Chantal!); this puts a bit of a blow on street cred. We've just got over the christening stage and are revving up for communions, première communions and professions de foi - seems like every weekend (plus ascension day) are taken up. Katie

Hi Diana, Can recommend Bailly in Dijon (http://www.assurances-bailly.fr/) who specialise in classic cars and military vehicles. You do need to have a regular modern vehicle insured somewhere else though. At one stage we had a UK registered MG insured through Bailly whose only proviso was that we inform them once it had French plates. We currently have an old Peugeot insured with Bailly for about 110€ per year; the price goes down with the number of cars you insure... Good luck, Katie

And while I'm on the subject (yes I'm a closet tartine fetichist), what about Richard Bohringer in the film DIVA going on about "le zen dans l'art de la tartine" while his aquarium was sliding from side to side... This was probably the first French film that really grabbed me, but perhaps that was bacause I didn't understand anything. Katie

Thought I was well versed in this kind of language and apart from tartine meaning shoes, donner un coup de tartine = kicking, and faire une tartine = being long-winded, I cannot think of anything that even vaguely approaches an "intimate act" for this expression. I am thus intrigued since this word is definitely missing from what I prided myself in thinking was my very extensive vocabulary. Please enlighten me. Katie Docteur ès argot

Lait ribot is sort of yoghurty and is traditionally drunk with crepes in some parts of Brittany. I've got a French friend who can't eat a crepe unless she's got a lait ribot moustache first. I tend to buy industrial quantities of UHT milk, yes about 20 litres a week which my husband and 3 kids all drink and I buy fresh pasteurised milk for me; I think tea tastes awful with UHT but that's just my opinion. My husband was brought up on a farm with cows and he drank powdered re-constituted milk in the 70's because his mother thought it was better for him! I also know that milk is often considered by some French people to be, at worst "poison" and at best "indigeste", the greatest crime being to put it in coffee since you will not be able to digest it. Having said that, drinking large quantities of milk can give calves cirrhosis of the liver, don't know about humans. Katie

I agree with Mistral that GPs are more than capable of looking after a pregnancy; they usually send you off to meet an obstetrician at 7 months. Since you haven't been in France for long, I'd think that you'd have problems finding a gynaecologist who would take on a new patient. If your GP feels that you have a specific problem, s/he will write a letter or phone directly to a specialist to make you an appointment which helps to accelerate the process. Costs linked to your pregnancy are covered by the CPAM or equivalent. Your mutuelle, which as TU pointed out, requires you to wait for 3 months before kicking in, may cover the cost of a fews extras such as a single room (bliss, I can assure you) and, in some cases, hand you over a small lump sum when the baby's born (basically because your pregnancy hasn't cost them a cent. Get your scan appointments sorted out; I had mine in one clinic and had my babies in another, gynaecolologists also do scans but have very full agendas. If you have your eye on a particular clinic or "maison de la naissance", now is the time to book a place for your due date (no joke). I felt slightly superstitious doing this for my first baby but when I eventually gave in to the pressure (girlfriends mostly) and called the "best" clinic in the area, I was laughed at because I'd waited 3 months to call and had to go and give birth somewhere else, which didn't actuallt turn out to be a problem. Good luck, if you feel you want to ask any more questions, please feel free. Katie

Gynaecologists are a vanishing race in France. The numerus clausus in med schools has all but vanished and there are less and less gynaes qualifying. It might be easier if you went to a GP unless you have a specific case history. Katie

I looked into this since people often ask me why I haven't asked for French nationality (because I don't want it...). These links give the official position on the matter http://vosdroits.service-public.fr/particuliers/F334.html ttp://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/etrangers/vivre/nationalite/ an explain what you need to do to obtain French nationality. Katie

Sue, I'm in the situation where I try and keep my own kids interested in English. Here are a couple of links that I've found very useful (I've got 2 boys of 5 and 6...): http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/4_11/literacy.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/wordsandpictures/index.shtml http://www.learningpage.com/ http://www.literacymatters.com/resources.html#year1 Hope they may help. Katie

Their legs fall off as a defense mechanism. The tourteaux crabs you're meant to put them in cold water and bring to the boil (too cruel of you ask me) and spider crabs straight into boiling water... katie

Hi there, I would think that the mairie is the place to contact (I looked up the number for Coulogne and it's: 03 21 36 92 80). One of the people I work with here in France recently made an appointment with the mairie of the village where she was born in order to book a plot, to be sure that she was near her parents who died recently. If the mairie deals with this kind of situation, I'm pretty sure they must have a register of who's already in the cemetery! Good luck. Katie

Hi there, I costed out formula when I weaned my daughter at 7 months. It was actually cheaper for me to buy the brand that the chemist sold (Novalac) than the hypermarket Gallia, Nestlé etc... Our chemist is open till 8.00pm so I reckoned it was just as easy to drop in there, I also got advice thrown in when I needed it. If you have a type of milk in mind, why don't you go along to a French chemist and say that you want something similar. Katie

My husband was in Mayenne yesterday and spied 2 cars with UK plates - one perhaps a Rolls Royce and the other very sporty, high wheels, something that would have done Le Mans in the 40s or 50s. Anyone seen them, what marque are they, or should I just leave husband to agonise and dream on? He happily followed them for about 10 minutes! Katie

The August issue of PLTH has just been delivered. I buy this magazine as an expat Brit living in France and this one was a special issue on France. Has anyone else read it, and if so, what do you think? Are the beautiful French homes featured in it just as financially hair-raising as their English counterparts? Katie

Standard bed sizes are: single 90cm wide by 190cm long double 140 x 190 king 160 x 2000 I think that possibly since the arrival of IKEA in France, some of the standard double beds can also be 200cm long. Here's a link to BUT a furniture shop - I took a ramdom sample but it gives you the dimensions: http://www.but.fr/detail.php?id_ensemble=4455&start_row=0&origine=1 Another point, do you really want to buy your linen in the UK. Just after Christmas in France there are really good value promotions on bedding, you can buy a plain white cotton double fitted sheet for 5 to 10 in most of the hypermarkets... Katie