Kitty

What are the road systems like from Bilbao to Bordeaux?  Are there tolls and if so are they expensive? I asked this question in an earlier posting but have had mixed replies - on the one hand, the road is apparently bad and on the other, good.  Who is right?

Furry dice?

I'm with Tresco on this one i.e. it is worth the expense to bring your stuff.  It is SO expensive to replace things in France.  They do not have the same sort of furniture and it is very 'heavy', in weight and in style.  I have been shocked at the price of household things. You end up learning nasty lessons, which you could do without.  For example, I had to buy several beds and the price was ghastly before I even bought the mattresses to go on them.  I got them home, made them up, only to find that the wooden supports under the mattresses were not included and had to paid for seperately.  How could they sell a bed that is not usable? Given my time all over again, I would have paid the price of a removal van.

When we bought our house, it was priced as being 108,000 euros.  We were sitting in the notaire's office and the notaire went through page by page the details of our house.  She said that our house was 100,000 euros and we nodded, thinking 'Cool, we have got it for less!'.  Sadly, 5 minutes and a few pages of contract later, she said that the immo's fees were 8,000 euros.  The penny then dropped that we were in fact paying the fees inclusive in the price.

When I read Owen's posting, I thought that this is one for Sunday Driver.  Sure enough, Sunday, you have come up trumps again.  The help that you gave me in registering my car was invaluable.  You are a star!

You have a point, Anton.  I can change my PIN number at a cashpoint in England and have done so to a memorable number (for me).  I went to see my bank manager at Credit Agricole to change my French PIN and he can't do it.

I get bitten all over as well and so does my young son.  My three young daughters and my husband live in the same 'space' and don't have one bite to show.  So unfair.  Perhaps I just taste so good... My bites are almost all mosquitoes.  In 33, we have lots of ditches full of water, which act as a breeding ground for the little blighters.

Oh dear Katie!  You say 'brush up on your written grammer (sic)'.  It should be grammar! At least you use capital letters.  Am I the only person in the world who doesn't like the use of lower case letters?

Amazing how much cash you must have?  Are you sharing it out amongst friends?  Can I be a friend?! (How much is your house? Just curious...)

I think that it sounds likely a lovely idea.  So what if it is English (and is it and English thing to buy a bench?) - kindness and thoughtfulness extends over borders.

I'll try that next time...

Is there the equivalent of MPS (mail preference service) and TPS (telephone preference service) in France?  In France, I am receiving cold calls and individually addressed junk mail, which I would dearly like to stop.  [In the UK, you can go online to http://www.mpsonline.org.uk/mpsr/ and to http://www.tpsonline.org.uk/tps/ and register so that you don't get unsolicited mail or calls.]

I used to think that it was the height of sadness (or geekiness) to be at home on a Saturday night.  And now, here I am, chatting to complete strangers in my home on a Saturday night.  We should be out clubbing...

He prevents there having to be a deputy leadership election, which would be required under the Labour constitution.

I had these tiles in my French kitchen and because of the fire hazard, removed them.  The decorator said that there was no chance in removing the glue - he has tried in other houses several times.  He sanded the blobs with sandpaper as much as he could with his strained neck and then painted the whole ceiling several times.  Now, you can't see the blobs that much unless you are really being fussy.

Etiquette note: Mummy told me always to say 'sofa' and NEVER 'settee'.

The sofa (chintz, of course) is my drawing room is rather large so others could join us...  

Can't one let oneself go in the drawing room?  Would be fun, what?

Sailing by?

Mummy told me never to say the word 'lounge' (there you are - I've just said).  The word or words to use is/are 'drawing room'.  Splendid - that has made it frightfully clear.  What does one want to talk about in my drawing room?

I've just got to have a boast, being such a modest young thing!  Just now, I did the quiz (thanks for thr fun, russet).  AND I am (currently) second.  Amazing.  Is it beginners' luck? I shall have to put this to the case tomorrow.  Can't wait...

Clearly I don't run a typing pool either, otherwise I would have typed the words 'sheets' correctly.

I was wondering whether there is a correlation between ironing shetts and a well-run chambre d'hote.  As a non-ironer (my four children didn't know what an iron was until they went to the girl scouts), I don't run a B&B.

What are the road systems like from Bilbao to Bordeaux?  Are they tolls and if so are they expensive?

Can anyone tell me if there is a ferry strike next week?  (I may need to be travelling by Brittany Ferries.)