Panda
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Posts posted by Panda
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Hi All
I had a crown here and I was reimbursed 70% of the cost, the cost was 370 euro's ish. So not sure why there is a difference but my dentist was great, straight in did the work and got the reimbusement very soon after, a full 70% of the cost charged. I was very happy as of course I would have had to pay the full cost in the UK and it would have been nearer to 400 pounds at least.
Panda
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Hi
It sounds like the same set up as where we are moving to, each of three close villages have two classes, so my son will go to one village for the next few months and then for September he will move to the neighbouring village. This is quite standard where there are a few villages close by and a good use of facilities IMHO. You might find that the Grand Section maternelle and perhaps CP (first year primaire) are in one school, then you need to change for CE1 etc.
Where are you moving to?
Panda
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Ahh, londoneye, that made me LOL, I can just imagine me doing the same thing but at TU says, why would you? My OH would also not point out the real reason, he would just let me run around.
I hate real windy days here, we are surrounded by trees and for some reason it worries me, I don't really think they would fall on the house but I lie awake when it's blowing a gale at night (which is quite often). We are moving soon and whilst we have more trees where we are going they are much further from the house, thank goodness.
I also shut the shutters, we've had some damaged in high winds, it also gives that feeling of being snug inside whilst the storm rages!
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To even things up, my notaire has film star good looks and a great personality as well as speaking perfect english. My jaw dropped when I saw him and I can never just drop some papers off, I need to make sure I am 'presentable' He is defo the best looking french man I have come across!
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I think if it were me who had gone back to the UK, sadly I would be too busy trying to pay the mortgage and working all hours again, just to keep a roof over my head, back to some stranger dropping and picking up my son and someone else entertaining him all summer, no thanks.
Whilst it's quiet in the winter here reading the post about 10 hour days and calls from the
It works for us, we will not stay in France long term though (estimate another 3/4 years), but we, like others who've posted would prefer to move on, not back and will chose another country to spend a few years in.
I feel for those for whom financial reasons mean they have to return to the UK, going back after any length of time, particularly if they haven't been working for a few years would be very hard, not to mention getting back on the property ladder, the thought fills me with dread.
For those for whom France doesn't work on a social level, my sister once said 'yes I visted France but it was closed!' She was always the party animal and still goes out every Friday and Sat night, same pubs, same faces, years on, it was never for me we are very different, France would kill her!
Vive la difference!
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In danger of going off topic but in line with the sentiment in the article sited by WJT, has anyone else noticed that programmes on the TV such as 'master chef' are starting to be full of what anyone would consider to be highly trained professionals looking for a way out of their hard fought for career. The last show I watched had 2 lawyers and a scientist with a phd, why do they want to give up years of training to become a chef which they could have achieved in a fraction of the time?
We seem to live in an age where everyone is unhappy with their lot and wants to change, I must say that when I first started work everyone eyed the top job with envy and worked hard to get promotion, if I think about it now I don't know anyone who has that kind of ambition anymore, the only ambition I come across is to be able to 'drop out'.
Am I imagining this shift in mind set....
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The impression I got is that the issue is the percentage gain and timing of the sale not about what you knew beforehand. Any know the exact law on this?
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Hi All
In my opinion success or failure can depend heavily on your relationship with your OH and your life before the move. I worked very long hours and so saw very little of my son or husband when in the
This change can in itself make things very difficult, your relationship has to be very strong to take this kind of change and I count myself very lucky that, cliché as it is, my husband is a great friend with whom I share the exact same sense of humour. Our ability to laugh everyday at the most stupid things makes life here a joy, if this relationship was not great I would be very lonely as, although I have made some friends here they live a drive away and so we get together only monthly.
It's one reason why I find it hard to understand how couples can have one person working in the
When I was in the UK we lived in Gloucestershire and despite it's image the area does have many people who have never owned a house and have never been abroad, we lived in the countryside, about 8 miles to the nearest supermarket and there was no village pub so our life here isn't so different, the biggest change is that I get to see those who mean the most to me for a greater chunk of time everyday. I also get to see the rest of my family more, they turn up every holiday, can’t shake them off!
Life is not a rehearsal, as they say, so do what you want, stay if it suits go back if it doesn't, you never know how long you've got!
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Hi All
Who can tell me more about the law that says that if you make more than a certain % on a house sale and you have owned the house for less than two years you have to give some money to the previous owner. I learnt of this law as the vendor of the house we are buying has this issue, tell me more someone....
Thanks
Panda
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Thanks for the feedback, I know it's a weird questions but our bill for last year was euro 1350 plus TVA, from what you've said I think I've been done!
We supplied everything copies of invoices etc. we had one 30 minute meeting in Feb and then had to chase in July to find out why the various agencies were stating we had not made a return, the accountant had not submitted one and so had to do so in July.
I have written 4 letters of complaint about the bill but they have not come back to me. When I acutally got hold of the accountant he said that the return had taken 35 hours, now I know the returns are not straight forward but to add 4 numbers together and put them in the right place in a few forms canot have taken that long can it? I have a feeling he has confused us with another client, a friend who is an electrician told me a few days a go that when his wife went into see him a few weeks back he started talking about my situation!
The accountant has now left the practice and the practice won't talk to me about the bill, I am tempted to sit it out, continue to send letters and wait for them to acknowledge my complaint..
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Hi
Can anyone give an average of how much it should cost for a french accountant to prepare a tax return for a micro. I should add I only raise 4 invoices per year to one company so pretty straight forward.
Before anyone says do it yourself, I should have, I didn't and now have a huge bill which I am hoping to argue about.
Sorry if it's a how long is a piece of string type question but I would like to have a rough idea or whether I've been taken for a ride on this one before I start chucking my toys!
Thanks Panda
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Not sure I agree on the 'seen one seen them all' quote from Christine, I've not seen many quite as nicely packaged as these ones!!! Perhaps Christine has had more luck?
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spoilsport
I would love to have held the camera let alone the copyright!!!
Seriously though good point I don't and so will keep the lovely image to myself!
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Hi Cossie
I have never experienced it here in France and our son has been in school for nearly 4 years. I have always found the day trips to be well organised with lots of helpers but I must admit at 5 and 7 they seem a little young for such an undertaking, I don't think my son would want to go at that age and I know I, like you, would be more than a little anxious.
I have 'helped' on the odd day trip and I think that if this kind of trip were offered to my son I would proabably try and get as involved as I could in the organisation if not actually go with them. I always make sure I'm not minding my sons group when I've been on the day trips (don't want to cramp his style) but I just feel happier, perhaps I'm being over protective?
Let us know how the meeting goes.
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darn it I can't post my extract from the 2004 calendar which caused such a stir (or should that be stirring), it's a great shot of one of the team in nearly all of his glory, great lighting, nice use of a rugby ball!
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Hi Will
I will bear that in mind, they were helpful and maybe they were just being nice, (yeah right)
Anywho on the dark equine represented bank, you should worry, I have been trying to transfer money from the UK to my french account. I have done this many times over the last 4 years and so was not expecting trouble but can you believe in modern day UK my branch has had no phone lines for 4 days, now how is that possible you ask. It would seem that BT have cut them off somehow and now nothing works. I had to chuck lots of toys from my pram before they called me via mobile (ooh the wonders of modern science) and now I have the money but it took 4 days and lots of shouting.
They had my letter last week with the instructions (sames as all the other times I've done it) but decided I was not me, now luckily I was sure I was me (god knows what would have happened if I wasn't sure either)
Panda (trying to become Panda, not newtothis but computer says no when I try to edit my details)
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sorry about that, I am a girl, not a girlie girl granted but a girl all the same!
What type of car did my male persona have then?? Not something naff I hope or did I come across as a fat bloke, 50's drives an ex-army jeep, 3 wives, 4 kids, smokes drinks, gambles?
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Glad to see my comments were taken as intended. I work in that way myself Languedocgal2 so was just joking, I know you all have full and interesting lives really!!
This was an interesting thread and I like the idea of a thread on age, I could not guess from postings at all, would be fun to try though,
Twinkle, early 40's , Kylie-esque
Rumzigal, 30's, likes rugby (and players), a mans girl with lots of male friends
tee hee this is fun..... anyone else want to have a go...
Panda (a girl in her 40's)
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Is it a rite of passage to this forum to be told you know nothing by TeamedUp, if so I guess I'm in!!
I will now go and write 100 times,
I must not listen to the Mairie and DDE for my town and then pass their apparently incorrect knowledge on to others
I must not listen to the Mairie and DDE for my town and then pass their apparently incorrect knowledge on to others
I must not listen to the Mairie and DDE for my town and then pass their apparently incorrect knowledge on to others
All joking aside, apologies I clearly fell into that trap of assuming someone in authority in France was telling me how it is for the whole of France not just in their little piece where they are king and what they say goes!
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I am new to this forum and can't believe how often some of you post!! Do any of you have jobs, not to mention, dare I say, lives
RumziGal, I thought I had just read, (I am doing a whole search on you all right now), that says you work in the UK whilst hubs and child are at home, what do you do that allows all this time on the forums? Are there any other jobs going, must be a doddle your job!!
This forum is a hoot, full of some very pent up emotions, perhaps a new area where you could get some therapy might work!
It's actually nice to see some real 'talking' taking place, not just when's the market at X on,
I'll be back..
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Hi Rif and Raf!
Some advice on buying your lake, we have just done exactly the same thing and had a 'clause suspensive' entered into the compromis (the compromis being an initial contract which commits the buyer and seller), our clause stated that we must obtain 'full' planning for a house of x size on the land around the lake or we could pull out, we found an architect and had plans drawn up to meet our spec and submitted them to the mairie.
I am happy to report that two months to the day of applying for the permit de constuire, planning permission, it arrived, all approved, what a releif, we will now complete the sale in 1 months time. Our lake is not fishing business size only a couple of acres or so but the principles are the same.
We are going to live in a mobile home during the build and it it NOT a legal requirement to ask the mairie about this (as you can see if you search this has been discussed before on the forum), merely a polite and advisable thing to do. Our maire has not appplied any time restriction.
Regards and good luck
Weird Hidden Faults when buying a house!
in Finding/Owning French Property
Posted
We finally got our hands on our new house today and have found that the toilet is not connected at all to anything, there is no pipe into the floor let alone into the fosse, which had been inspected but failed ot point out this 'disconnect'. We did laugh as our son had used the loo on our last visit and so we asked him, 'did you flush' to which he said no of course not there wasn't any water! Nice! For us it's not an issue, we are not going to live in the house until the renovations are complete but I can imagine that if this were not the case we would not be laughing now.
In the UK we once bought a house and the previous owners had stuck all the coat hooks behind the bedroom doors up with double sided sticky tape and as soon as you hung something on them they fell off the door, now why would anyone do that? The previous owners were both teachers, very odd!
So come on, what have you found?
Panda