Llantony

According yesterday's Telegraph (given to me, I didn't buy it) prices in most rural areas are down about 20%.  The British have stopped buying. Has anyone noticed?

Very true Ian - some people do seem a bit lazy about finding information. By the way, way do your postings have some words highlighted in blue & double underlined?  It's very distracting and they don't seem to be important words! Oops, just realised that on other threads lots of posts have this quirk - strange....

Maggi wrote:    "I may be strange but I don't actually want to be retired"  -  the same Maggi who said to me 'why don't you just sell up and come to France full time?' !  We haven't yet, tho OH is very keen.  Much as I love being in France for holidays and never want to come home, I do worry I could be bored not having a focus.  I don't want to sit around in bars complaining about France and the French - like some I know - and the winter could be very dull. I don't want to spend years renovating a house.  But I do long for the time I don't need to set the alarm 5 days a week.... I didn't contact you this summer Maggi - I thought you'd be too busy with the chambres d'hote. Maz

We tried going round Paris once - it was slower - huge jams - and expensive and we saw the N road was less busy and took that. We can't afford motorail and take the £50 Speedferry to Boulogne, then Abbeville, Rouen, Chartres etc and across to the A20 which is mostly free.

Thanks, yes I know lots of male/female couples aren't married.  My point was, if it's simpler for a couple to be married, it would also be simpler legally/inheritance-wise for same sex couples to have a civil partnership.  But only if that civil partnership was treated in France the same way as marriage. Maz

I was chatting to friends about the (very vague) possibility of them buying a property in France.  I suggested it's simpler if a couple are married and they wondered if their UK civil partnership would be accepted as marriage for the purpose of buying a house and the inheritance laws. Anyone know? 

But that would assume you have Des O'Connor records!

There's one for Quercy on French Vie - sorry don't have the address at the moment - which is nice as more local than the SW France one, but it'srather quiet.  A sleepy area I suppose. Maz

Why is Ryanair unpopular?  Perhaps it started with the publicity around charging disabled people for the use of a wheelchair to get them to the aircraft -  when other airlines don't. Maybe because they are the only airline to charge cabin staff for their training course (and so aren't likely to fail them...) and for their uniforms Because many people complain that when a flight is cancelled there is no information, no compensation, no food or drink, often no staff available at all to help passengers.  Because they overbook and then close the flights at the departure gate,leaving a queue.  Then tell people it's their own fault for being late when they weren't.  Numerous other examples of rudeness of staff.  Because they don't answer letters.  They claim to be the cheapest airline, and may be sometimes, but when I looked for Spring Bank Holiday week as soon as the summer schedule was out, it was £400 for 2 return to France.  So we went  BA as it was cheaper. But this is all other people's experience, as I have yet to try them. I sincerely hope that my trip will be a pleasant one with no problems.

Just looked at Aquitaine website - it's suspended

Well, we've booked for October half term with 1 piece of luggage - so I hope they don't charge us the  September luggage price.  Thanks for the reminder - they've just sent an email saying our flight will be 5 mins earlier - but no mention of reduced baggage allowance;  I wonder if it applies to when you booked or when you fly? I've never travelled Ryanair before and don't want to but it's the only one from our local airport in UK now BMI Baby have decamped. Maz

The trouble is they want your email address - how do we know we won't get spam as a result? I'm getting a bit now tho for a long time my email was spam free - so some site has passed it on.. Shame, I like quizzes  

Don't know about truck drivers (probably on the outskirts for parking), but the Rough Guide recommends the ones around the market place in Bergerac including le Jardin d'Epicure and La Cocotte des Halles. Have a good time...  

Hi, me again. Yes, I am in the UK, as are all the fence posts, handrails and metal panels which the O H thinks we can get in the Berlingo no probs for the 850 mile journey. I know of Farrow & Ball as we used them for the 254 year old building (library) I work in.  Also have a feeling they are mega expensive for cheapasses like us (the fencing panels were half price at Wickes).  Lovely colours tho, I wonder if they'd survive long outside in the southern sun? Maz

Thanks, people, that looks about right.  Just need to find some that will cover exterior black metal and last for ages. Yes, our village is supposed to be a conservation area and when we bought the house the notaire reminded us we shouldn't paid the shutters, for example, red.  (They were and are a rather bright blue)  however I've seen red, purple.....

What is the name of that colour used so much in France on shutters, furniture etc?  I want to call it 'mucky blue' but it's more pale greeny blue.   Eau de nil sound familiar but I can't imagine a river that colour! We need quantities of it to paint new black railings in the garden so need exterior quality.   Maz

We have bought metal fencing panels from Wickes - special offer - to take to France.  They are called decking panels but we'll use them in our steep garden to stop people falling over edges. We need fencing post and handrail to go top and bottom of the metal bits and I don't want to carry 15 of each to France!  Has anyone seen 8cmx8cm fence posts about 1metre high? Also the hand/base rail which is about 7cm wide and has a groove of about 4cm in the centre to put the metal panels in? Sorry it sound more complicated than it is!  Other half reckons you can't get such things in France.  

But do they have mobile phone free carriages?  And if so do people take any notice?  (They don't in the UK)  I seldom travel by train but used to look forward to it as a bit of peace and a chance to read, now it's spoiled by people yelling into their phones all the time. Re talking to people, I love meeting people on trains & planes.  I realised I was getting old when I said to my son 'I met a really interesting man on the train - he worked for Sky Movies' and son said pityingly 'Mother, when did you start talking to strangers on trains?' PS has anyone tried going by train from Toulouse to Barcelona?  I've a feeling you have to book as they get very busy/ Maz  

Hi, I'm not surprised as it's a very popular holiday resort.  Have you tried the local Tourist Information?  Or one of the B & B sites like Alistair Sawley's?   Sorry, I'm at work so haven't got the website address handy. Good luck   Maz

I heard that French vendors can be pretty mean - taking light bulbs and even grotty old toilet seats! So when we bought we had a last look round with the estate agent.  It's really worth doing so at least you know exactly what's been left - welcome or unwelcome. The vendor had asked for a large sum for 'the things in the fireplace' including a heavy cast iron back plate.  He obviously couldn't carry it.  He generously pointed out an old hoover he'd left - no tools and so old we couldn't get bags for it. Maz (82)

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[quote]If you have a desperate need to be on a plane from Nottingham next year to somewhere then book now, get your seat and pay a whacking premium. What you will pay now is what Ryanair want you to pay. ...[/quote] I don't think I want to book now!  BA was no dearer last year (tho had to go from Gatwick). And Ryanair are very rigid about luggage allowance - 15 Kilo compared with 20 for Flybe & 23 for BA. I suspect prices will never get cheap in school holidays.  What I couldn't understand when I checked Ryanair price was the tax etc. was very nearly the same as the seat price.  But when they do cheap flights the tax is much less.  Surely airport and seat tax would not vary? Maz

I thought they were already booking.  As soon as I heard Ryanair will be flying from Nottingham (several weeks ago) I went in to check the prices for Spring Bank Holiday next year - it was already nearly £300 return for 2 of us!  Their deals exclude school holidays so no good for teachers or people with kids at school. Maz

[quote]"Does anyone know what would happen if we couldn't fly due to this? Cheapie (supposedly) airlines usually have a no money back clause in their small print." Firstly let's hope the airport is not cl...[/quote] Hi, thanks, I already checked the Flybe website, it still says 'Flybe passengers travelling on these days to and from Birmingham are currently advised to travel and check-in as normal.' Trouble is we're stuck with school hols and I suspect the next one - Feb half term - will already be booked. They aren't yet booking for May.  We're taking the car at Easter.. Emailing Flybe is a waste of time, I am still waiting for a reply from last week about the damaged case I reported 2 weeks ago.

How do you manage to get a French account with no charges?  When I posted on this, no-one knew of one.  We have a foreigners' account as we live in the UK but visit as often as possible.  We have no debit or credit card and still pay a monthly charge.  I need the account for paying tax and also electricity, water & house insurance (how do you avoid paying these?) so when I in France I use the Nationwide debit card (no transaction charge) to take out euros from the cashpoint in our village then walk into the bank & deposit enough to cover any bills that will arise before our next trip to France.  Then I send a cheque for the bills. I decided against a French credit card as I only need it for those '24 hour petrol stations' when they aren't staffed - they don't accept UK credit cards.  Just need to plan on long journey. Maz