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Thanks for the reply. The only French card I have is a cash card exclusively for La Poste but I do have a British debit card. Would they accept that?

I'm going on holiday! - finally getting out of the hurly burly of Paris and heading where most of you lucky folks seem to live, out in the country. We are getting the TGV down but want to hire a car when we arrive. However neither me nor the OH has a carte bleue (british or french) and we are both several months shy of 25 which seems to be the age they start trusting you. Does anyone with any experience of these things know whether either of the above would be a problem? We are going to the Pyrenees, if that helps.  

My name is Megan, which regularly gets spelled with a superfluous "e" on the end, along with jokes about Renaults..... They also like to call me Morgan, which I am sure is a boy's name?

Fusac magazine (free in most english speaking bars/shops etc) has listings of available accommodation. Try their website.

Do enlighten those of us only stuck with awful french telly, what is this advert like?

[quote]Hello from Australia! I also saw this program on cable out here recently I thought they didn't seem to make much of a living if you considered the time it took to get up and running. I also wonder...[/quote] Marilyn from Oz, There is no visa requirement for EU members when moving to France and/or buying property. I am not sure how easy it would be to obtain membership through your links with Ireland, but as France is a big fan of paperwork (and the right paperwork at that), obtaining it would probably make life a whole lot easier.

"pour lui donner son cadeau" is the way I would say it. But I guess you could get fancy and use the subjunctive: (pour que je puisse lui donner son cadeau) - which, strictly speaking, should be in the imperfect subjunctive but don't ask me what that is!! (pusse???)

yes that was me who gave the recommendation - glad you like it! Who knows, perhaps we will bump into each other there!

I assume that, despite all our hard work, we all make mistakes with our French. Usually mine are of the mild, inoffensive kind but today I think I may have surpassed myself. Whilst sitting at my desk at work, I was approached by a colleague, asking (or so I thought) for my autograph. Naturally, this came as some surprise as, although a grave oversight, I am not actually famous. For anything. Nonetheless, after what was becoming an embarrassingly long silence, I thought I had better oblige and dutifully scribbled my name on a piece of paper. Much confusion ensued, followed by acute embarrassment when I learned he actually wanted an "ote-agraph" (staple remover). Shall I ever live this down?

It's true that "quand même" for the most part means "at any rate/all the same" etc etc However, in other cases where translating it as such just doesn't make sense, it's easier to think of it as an intensifier, ie just adding emphasis to the statement in which it falls. Therefore "C'est quand même utile" could mean "it really IS useful".    

Why is it la semaine PROCHAINE (ie with "prochaine" following the noun) but la PROCHAINE fois (where it precedes the noun)?

Please be gentle with me - I am a novice twenty something city girl about to take her first foray into the horticultural world and am hoping that someone with slightly greener fingers than me will be able to help. I have decided to grow a sunflower from the balcony of my flat in Paris -though I recognise this is an odd choice as it doesn't receive a vast amount of soleil. Firstly - is this possible, or should I abandon such lofty ideas and stick to cacti? Can a fully grown flower remain in the plant pot or does it absolutely have to be transferred into soil once it reaches a particular stage of maturity? Finally, is now the right time? it's 23 degrees today! Many thanks.  

Join my campaign, Roland to win!

I had a fleeting visit on my way down from a week's trekking in the Pyrenees and I saw far more beauty in the mountains than I did in Lourdes. As previous posters say, unless you are highly religious or are after that light up tableau of the last supper you've always wanted, it's a pretty hideous place. Nice crepes though.

Hi Rob I dont know about actual lessons (ie reading, writing etc) but if its conversation classes you want there are several at very reasonable rates. Half the time is spent speaking in English, the other in French. Do a Google search for Parlor Parler.

I opened my current account at La Poste at the beginning of January and am still waiting for my cash card. I have been in three times to enquire about its whereabouts, only to be told "oh, it's not been ordered". Each time, a note was put on the sytem and I was told it should be there in a week. Yesterday, when I lugged myself back in for my customary weekly frustration, they decided it was because i have less than 500 euros in my account that no card has arrived. Yes, I am venting my spleen and have not answered your question......just, in my experience, it has been far from a smooth operation!

I have seen several informal kickabouts on the Champs de Mars, though don't know how you'd go about getting involved. Otherwise, why not advertise in Fusac (free magazine for english speakers in Paris, available from all irish bars, shakespeare and co, English bookshops etc)...take a look at the website.

You can find a sworn translator by searching on Google (I used Spalter Translations LTD in London) You mail your certificates to them and for a fee they will return them stamped and translated.

I found the whole thing rather a hassle. Most banks wanted me to pay an annual fee for the pleasure and convenience of owning a cash card - it was only at La Poste that the card was free. However, because I am an étrangère, I am not allowed a cheque book and am only allowed to withdraw 200 euros a week.  

I have sent you an email (or so I am led to believe, not sure it worked!) Thanks

And I thought the Brits were prone to a little unnecessary panicking come the winter. A few cms of snow and all the public parks and cemeteries here in Paris are closed, for "safety reasons". I ask you, just where is one meant to go to build a good ole bonhomme de neige?

I think it very much depends on the area and school, just as it does in the UK. I taught English in a collège in Pas-de-Calais which was like a fortress. It was surrounded by locked gates and access could only be gained by an intercom to a porter in a security box. There were no playing fields, which seems to be the norm over here, especially in Paris where I live now, though perhaps in rural areas access to such amenities is better. Violence was also a problem and a young assistant was assaulted in the cantine by some of the teenage boys, other teachers had been threatened by parents unhappy with discipline procedures that had been carried out on their offspring. In short, these are problems that occur EVERYWHERE and you won't escape them by escaping England.

My A Level results (4 A's in various languages) make me look like a genius. Sadly, however, this is not the case. My maths and reasoning skills are appalling, having given up  history at 13 my knowledge of the past is at best sketchy and everything else somewhat rudimentary. I would hardly call myself a rounded person. Had I been forced to the bac I would have failed miserably, been denied a place on a language-based degree course and ended up being a plumber. Voila pourquoi early specialisation is a good thing.

I'm moving to France for eight months and was wondering whether it's possible to simply buy a French sim card for a few euros (no handset) for use in my uk mobile. I've checked the websites of the the major french network providers, and everything seems to involve purchasing the whole caboodle.  

depends how may germans are staying.....