Coco
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Posts posted by Coco
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Don't know of any Thai population but there are quite a lot of Vietnamese in this part of the world (Normandy), mainly in the bigger towns. Please excuse my ignorance but are they Buddhist too?
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No. It's not like building regs in the UK where they check everything stage by stage. Once you have your permis you can go ahead and do as you please. We did once have a guy come round just to double check that we weren't extending the footprint of the property. OH invited him in to have a look at the work but he wasn't interested. Just wanted to make sure that we weren't extending the property beyond the bounds that we had a permis for.
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[quote user="Dotty "]
We have Ginger popping round every now and then, I still can't get rid of him.
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We have one of those at the moment. Keeps coming throught the catflap and pinching our poor old boy's food and terrifying the life out of him - to the extent that we'vehad to re-introduce a litter tray after 17 years because he's too frightened to go outside at night. Husband took to being very French the other night and peeing all round the door that holds the catflap. Seems to have worked - the ferrel's probably wondering which B***y great cat left that scent!![:-))]
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It made me feel ill just to look at it. I never used to have a problem with heights but the older I get the worse it gets! I know I'd be on my hands and knees, frozen to the spot if I managed to even get a couple of feet out on to it!!
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When we got our permis from the Maire she also gave us a form to fill out when we had completed the work. This in fact just needed to be signed and dated and sent off I think. We also got the nasty tax bill but you do get to pay it in two instalments. The first instalment is 18 months from the date of the permis and the second is 3 years. You won't get any reminders in advance, just a surcharge if you don;t pay in time - we just forgot ours and got 19 euros whacked on top.
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Am I being stupid? What is the scam? I've had several genuine ones like this, with almost as much information - just not the age. Is the address real?
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Not the same thing at all but last year I ordered two really nice but cheap blouses from the US $19.99 each and I would have paid at least £40 each for them in the UK, not too sure how much here in France. I was then charged another $20 handling fee and postage from the States (still cheaper than the UK shirts) but then I got hammered with 25 euros import duty at this end. Barely any difference in price at all in the end!! [:(]
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BOOM BOOM! [:D]
One of our cats used to keep nibbling the younger one's whiskers. We were told by the breeder that mother cats often do this to stop the younger cats from wondering too far because, as Ali said, they use their whiskers to judge the size of spaces to get through, so no whiskers makes them less likely to be adventurous in the wanderings. Don't know how true that is of course!
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[quote user="Spg"][quote user="Coco"]
BTW, my sympathies with the imo thing - they're all the same - it took us two years to find the right place and we had to get really stroppy with a few immos who just wasted our time with stuff that was totally unsuitable. [/quote]
But you yourself do the very thing you are complaining about Coco!
I do it too and I do not feel I am being pretentious, probably lazy, but just normal.
Sue [Www]
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No Sue I'm not. I have already agreed with TU that if a French word or phrase is quicker, easier or describes something better, then I think it's OK to use it and "imo", when typing, is a lot quicker and easier than "estate agent " but in addition I was quoting the previous user. And I understand what Sweet17 is saying too. I don't have a problem with mixing languages per se, when people genuinely "mix" languages (and it is much more usual to be in the spoken rather than written form) that is fine and something that happens naturally, but too often it is just a very simple and basic noun that is used on this forum when it is almost (but I won't be quite that snobby or condescending as to say) one of the few French words that person knows. So why write "we ate in the salle a manger at Christmas" when it is just as easy and quick to write "the dining room". I don't actually believe that if speaking to someone you would say that. It just doesn't flow right. But I do fully accept that there are instances in colloquial speaking where to mix languages it does. Unfortunately on this forum, 9 out of 10 times it is the simple nouns that I have used as examples that are substituted and it is interesting to see that the people that have argued the point with me are those that make good use of mixing languages. Those that I have seen as "guilty" of prententiousness are those that have either not seen or read this thread or are keeping quiet because they know exactly what they are guilty of. Needless to say, we all have our pet hates. This is just one of mine and it was made in a way to defend the way that everyone JUMPED on poor old Bobh for using the wrong French word and that was my main point in the first place. He used the wrong word, so what? but a lot of pedants had a go at the poor bloke for doing it, whilst a lot of others continue to fulful their pretentions with their franglais. [:P]
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[quote user="Teamedup"]
Coco, what is this all about. Sometimes using a french word is just right, or I can't think of an english word that will do or it just comes out anyway.
Aha, now that's something different - yes there are French words that are unique and there isn't an English equivalent or there is one French word and you need a whole sentence in English to come up with the same meaning. But "I've just redecorated the chambre" or "there was a special offer in the supermarché this week" come on!
Call me picky if you like, but even though we're not in the UK on this board, considering so many people pick up on incorrect use of English grammar or spellings then yes, I do find it pretentious to stick the odd, very basic French word into an English sentence.
And since when don't the french add in the odd english word when they are speaking english, lots do entre eux these days.
I think you might have meant when they are speaking French here. Nevertheless, I would find that just as irritating. I'm not one of those that thinks it's alright for the French to do it but not the English.
Round here in fact, they are oblivious to English words even being english. There's a local bar owner we know (English) who offered free beer to one of her French customers if he really couldn't speak a single word of english. She then proceeded to ask him what he called Saturday and Sunday "le weekend" came the response, "and the area outside my bar, what's that?" "c'est le parking". So, came the reply, you know TWO english words. But oh no, the whole bar was in agreement, weekend and parking are FRENCH words!! [;-)]
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Hey Bob, I know what you meant in your first posting - you were doing your first visit at night; it's obvious - so what's everyone making all the fuss about? Use of a wrong word, even spelt incorrectly or without the right accent is surely not a hanging offence - unless you have nothing better to do with your life than pick holes in others. What I find MUCH, MUCH more annoying is those on this forum that throw a french word into an english sentence, like "we're off to our maison secondaire for the summer" or "we're looking for some new cupboards for the cuisine". Now either speak English or French, but don't ponce about and use the odd French word that you know and do the rest in English, it is just SOOOOOOO pretentious.
Happy house-hunting Bob. Hope you find somewhere really nice, away from all the nit-pickers. [;-)]
BTW, my sympathies with the imo thing - they're all the same - it took us two years to find the right place and we had to get really stroppy with a few immos who just wasted our time with stuff that was totally unsuitable. I threatened them with the bill for our ferry if they did it any more, especially once they had and understood our spec, or if they brought us over to look at houses they were advertising that had long since been sold. It seemed to work - we found the perfect house on the very next trip.
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Well at last something has become clear to me. I have never understood why people have said that our car must be rocket-powered if we can get from the tunnel to our house 20km north of Vire in 3.25-3.5 hours. We have never broken the speed limit to do it but we have also NEVER encountered Rouen - we always go A29 via the Pont de Normandie and have done since 1999. According to mappy it's the quickest route. It just wouldn't occur to us to go via Rouen - why do all you people go that way? We went to Rouen once (1981) long before the Pont de Normandie was built and after driving round the one-way system for 2 hours in the rush hour in the pouring rain vowed never to go there again - and never have!!
When we had tunnel season tickets (or property owner bulk-buys, whatever they were) in the days when we worked in London, we could slip off work at 4pm on a Friday afternoon and be in our local restaurant here in Manche for a 9pm reservation and that includes the hour forward!
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Well for someone who lives IMHO in one of the nicest parts of France I think you're being a little too honest in proclaiming the virtues of your area. Most people like to keep that kind of thing a well kept secret to keep the rest of us out[;-)] But thank you for all the wonderul information.
I know what you mean about the type of holidaymakers that either make you embarrassed to be English or those that really want to visit France. I've been surprised how many of the former we get in our B&B, being in such a backwater I thought we'd only really get the latter. Nevertheless, they all keep the wolf from the door. [:)] My idea of heaven would be to live in your part of the world with perhaps one or two spare rooms that we could do a bit of B&B IF we felt like it, more for the company than anything, rather than, as at the moment, because needs must.
Good news about property prices as far as I'm concerned because I do prefer it a little further north - bit too hot for me to the southern end - but excellent news about dry winters. I don't mind the cold but the rain does make my bones creak! [;-)]
Perhaps we'll see you there one day.
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Thanks, that's worth knowing about the Azé looki-likeli - we hope to be back in Burgundy/Beaujolais before too long so shall test it out. I think I've seen St Veran in the shops - it rings a bell but don't think I've ever tried it. Whereabouts are you in Beaujolais? Location-wise you're the only person on this forum that I have been envious of in the last five years! Although we are currently happy in Normandy we do eventually want to retire somewhere warmer and at the moment it's top of my list (although I appreciate it can also be cold in winter - but at least a drier cold than the incessant rain in Normandy). You're not the only Brits in the village that the lady at Moulin a Vents told us about a couple of years ago are you? [;-)]
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Now I am envious!! Pouilly Fuisse for 3-4 euros a litre!!!! [:-))] We also like the white Macons - Aze and Lugny in particular. We had some St Amour from 2003, which was incredibly powerful. The owners had already had their labels printed up at 13.5% but they said that the wine was actually 14.5% due to the heatwave and I certainly don't disbelieve them! Cotes de Brouilly is another of my favourites, as is Morgon, oh what the hell, all of them!!!!!
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Hi Sweet17
No there's nothing wrong with your tastebuds or your knowledge,personally I haven't found a bordeaux that I like either - apart from when we had a real wine snob for a neighbour in the UK and he wouldn't consider buying anything under £25 and I must say THEY were nice wines but out of my price league I'm afraid. In fact, for the first time ever, we met a Frenchman two nights ago who lives just north of bordeaux and he too admitted to disliking it, which really shocked me - I thought it was an inbuilt French gene! Anyway, he agreed with us that there is too much tannin in the young bordeaux and he preferred the Rhones, burgundies and beaujolais and
The only time I tried cheap bordeaux and liked it was at a French friend's house who has built his "cave" up over many years. He does what most of the people round here do and buys young (cheap) bordeaux to lay down, so although he had only paid a few euros (or probably francs then) for his wine, he had kept it for about ten years before we got to drink it. I'm afraid I just don't have the patience!
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Two of our neighbours (one 38 and the other 75) both think the "lady" is very nice-looking but "a woman running the country? You cannot be serious!"
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I don't dispute what you say at all Clair - but.... two wrongs don't make a right. Surely if you live in a country and pay your taxes in that country (I'm not allowed to pay UK NI and tax because I live in France) you should have the right to try and vote in the person whose policies you agree with?
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[quote user="TreizeVents"]
The more interesting question is why the French don't allow us who pay taxes, who have only one house and one car (both French), one health system, and just plain live here, to vote. In America they had a revolution about that, "No taxation without representation". Not exactly like us, but we should be able to vote. Only Jose Bove would allow that.
[/quote]I had this discussion with my hairdresser last week and I think she now wants to lead a revolution for us Brits. She says I should refuse to pay any more taxes until I get a vote in the Presidential election!
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Hear, hear Dick, or is it here here? Anyway, I did make the initial complaint, then I had to go to England to see a very ill MIL so if I missed the free ad then that's shame but sobeit, all I would like to know is: Did anyone get it? If they did, good luck to them. But why, as you say, is everything so secretive on this forum? Lizzie is right, James suggested 5 free ads and she (thought) responded first. If she didn't then why not just explain that? This is yet again turning into a bit of an issue, through no fault of members but through the secretism, or non-response of the owners! [:@]
BTW Quillan, does that mean you did PM James and you DID get a free ad?
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But none of the first five have been contacted and offered free advertising!
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Well I don't think it would be too difficult to work out as they have the latest additions on the front page. Interestingly, I notice Quillan that you are there - have you jumped the gun and paid, or are moderators getting preferential treatment? I'll tell you this much - it was me that started the debate and I certainly haven't been offered a space - probably won't either for having suggested that they're not offering anything special for the £85, which, as you say Quillan, is fairly near the top of the price-range for advertising. I know it's much more than covered by a single booking for gites but for B&B you want at least two or three bookings to make it even worth considering.
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It's all gone very quiet on the free trial front, perhaps James got his wrists slapped for speaking out of turn? [;-)]
End of building works- declaration?
in House Renovations
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