LisaJ

I thought it was a wonderful book. It might almost be worth reading the notes at the end first, as the circumstances under which it was written, kept safe and finally published give it an extra dimension. Of course by doing that you are in danger of spoiling the story, but the fact that she died before it could be finished makes the direction of the plots in the finished volumes and her plans for the characters in the final, unwritten volumes really fascinating. (Sorry this is a bit of a convoluted sentence, hope you understand what I mean!) regards Lisa

No and when my children had exchange students from France they never put knickers in the wash. One had a huge supply of pin tucked white blouses that I had to iron though... Also, you may be able to get marmite everywhere, but there still aren't any man-sized tissues. Lisa  

We were told 0.6803 at our tax office on Friday. regards Lisa

I remember (about 20 years ago) seeing the floral pinnies labelled as "Fantaisie" on a market stall. I have often wondered about it.... regards Lisa

Could it be that they have retired and are enjoying the opportunity to go out during the week after years of working? regards Lisa

"Have you never noticed how little your retired French neighbours go out? It seems a particularly Brit trait to jump in the car every five minutes to go to the shops to buy the latest thing that you've just decided you can't wait for." But Benjamin, what is this latest thing all these English people are leaping into their cars to go out and buy.... A new line in floral pinnies at the market? More broken toys from the Vide Grenier? I think we should be told... Lisa[:)]

I think the problem is not really food shopping - we tend to do one market and one supermarket  visit a week (pretty much the same as our French neighbours) and we keep a very full larder and freezer to avoid lots of short trips. We find the kilometres happen when you need something specific; the nearest large town (50km) for good DIYstuff, ditto for a really good nursery, same for sewing supplies etc etc. I agree with WJT that it needs very tight planning to get everything you need in one hit and before lunch! regards Lisa

Well of course everybody's situation is different Bob; surely that goes without saying. In England I also did a 60 mile round trip to work, but the point was that then I was working and earning and now, like John, I am retired. All I would still say is that here in Normandy, where John is thinking of looking, most people would say they live further from shops than they did in England and are likely to drive more. That surely has to be true when you compare the area and population density of France with the UK. regards Lisa

Just a few things to add, John. Petrol is cheaper, but you are likely to spend more time in your car driving to shops etc. Food costs are overall about the same (wine cheaper, good meat and fish more expensive), but we don't find the range and quality of some items as good as England. Apart from food, we find shopping a bit frustrating sometimes; in particular we miss good department stores especially John Lewis. However, this means your money goes further because there is not as much to spend it on. We live in Normandy and have insulated our house to a very high standard which means we heat it from one woodburner, plus about 2 hours of central heating in the morning; so this does work out cheaper (Just as well because we have a lot of snow this morning!) We love the countryside and the peace and quiet and are keen gardeners, so the spring, summer and autumn are wonderful. We do find the winters a bit hard sometimes and it is very, very quiet - it sometimes feels as if everyone hibernates! Having said all that we love it here and I think the concensus of opinion is that overall the cost of living is a bit cheaper, plus of course you get far more house and land for your money than in England. regards Lisa

I would bring your bed (or at least the mattress.) I have never found a comfortable mattress in France! regards Lisa

The National Literacy Strategy's "Grammar for Writing" is excellent and covers Key Stage 2. You should be able to track it down via The Standards Site website. ISBN 0 19 312401 7. regards Lisa

Love my ice cream maker (also Magimix) and just use creme fraiche or creme crue; you can always add a bit of extra sugar if you like a sweeter taste. Why do you need a yoghurt maker? We just boil the milk until it is reduced by a third, then cool it until you can keep your finger in and count to ten, add the live yoghurt (new or some of the last batch), cover with cling film and a tea towel and leave it to "yog" for several hours. Near the wood-burning stove works a treat in winter and just out on the worktop in the kitchen is fine in summer. regards Lisa

The number for the English speaking helpline is - 0820 904 212 regards Lisa

We had a Kenwood for years then replaced it with a KitchenAid about 10 years ago. Not much to choose between them, though the build quality of the KitchenAid is better, we think. Very good for large quantities, I still like a hand held mixer for smaller quantities. regards Lisa

You will need to wait until CPAM issue your Carte Vitale number as they can't do anything without that. Ours took a while to come through so we rang the English speaking helpline, they contacted CPAM and it came quite quickly after that. We went to the insurance company where we have house cover and car insurance and it was all sorted without fuss and without a medical questionnaire. We pay 44 euros a month each, but get quite a bit back as husband's BP medication is quite expensive (88 euros the month we paid for before the card arrived.) The main thing is to get down to your local CPAM with all the documentation as soon as you arrive and get it all in motion, but I understand that you are covered from the date on your letter from Newcastle. regards Lisa

Think this is it - Vivaneau campèche, but I don't think you will find it in French waters. Daurade would be a good substitute, they are all sea bream. Red mullet is totally different and utterly delicious, especially with tapenade. regards Lisa

We use Tamar organics who have an excellent range of seeds and are very efficient in delivering to France by post. You can find them here. http://www.tamarorganics.co.uk/ regards Lisa

We did a test drive - nobody even mentioned the country of origin of the licence! We also bought the car without a deposit (no, no I trust you - that's fine.) We came back to England while the salesman registered the car for us and got the controle technique done and we arranged the insurance. We needed proof of residence (electricity bill) for the vehicle licence equivalent. Our insurance here gave us a letter with details of our no-claims bonus, we sent it to the insurance company in France and the insurance was waiting for us when we went back. We collected the car, which had a full service history, paid by a normal cheque and drove off. All very simple, the only difficulty was finding the right car in the first place - we went to look at a lot of car showrooms, with lots of very expensive cars or cars that looked ready for the breakers yard. It seems to be quite hard to find one with an automatic gearbox! regards Lisa

A good robust Cahors for me.... regards Lisa

Probably the best thing to do is to go to the local market, see what seedlings the local growers have got and put them in - and then keep building up that compost.... As far as seeds are concerned think about autumn and winter brassica, winter salad crops (mache etc). It does depend where you are as well... regards Lisa

No wine recipes, but posted earlier about pickled plums and plum ketchup. Both worth trying and the ketchup uses loads! regards Lisa

Don't know about topsoil - in fact I am interested to find out as we have the same problem. I am sure you already know how important it is to start composting as this will be your best source of food / soil for your raised beds. We have 3 bins on the go, one ready, one stewing under a cover and one to put fresh vegetable waste on. We have had an allotment for many years and don't dig at all, just add compost and well rotted manure to the top of the beds. We have also grown potatoes under straw and they come out lovely and clean. regards Lisa

Thanks Jo - will know to look out for the oranges ameres now. We have made our own for 35 years and have a cherished recipe handed down from the previous generation, so we wouldn't really want to start buying ready made now. My daughter-in-law, who is Spanish, calls Sevilles "funny oranges" - they just fall to the ground in Andalucia, so we can make it there, but even in January it can be quite hot and marmalade making feels as if it should be done on a really cold day in a steamy kitchen... regards Lisa

Does anyone know if you can get Seville oranges (in Normandy)? Otherwise it will have to be a quick crossing to Portsmouth or a trip down to see our son in Andalucia to collect them! regards Lisa

We're in Calvados about 15 minutes from Falaise and 10 from Pont d'Ouilly. regards Lisa