shiraz

Hello Pauline As an ex-Gers occupant I do feel qualified to participate in this particular posting. The bottom line is ..... what are you looking for ? Along with my wife and two children, I moved to the Gers five years ago after many, many months of research and trying to do the right things to make the whole move from blighty as smooth as possible. (We lived in the South East before). We landed in the Gers, near Fleurance and took up occupation in a rented house. The sensation of actually arriving and standing in the garden in the late evening sun with the statutory glass of wine in those early days was indescribable.  We could even hear ourselves breath the calm night air.......... We eventually bought a house and renovated it and then ......... five years later, we are living in department 64 near the Atlantic Ocean, great golf courses, the wonderful towns of Pau and Biarritz, the marvelous Atlantic beaches, cosmopolitan society, Spain a stones-throw away, more dynamic friends and basically ........ a lot more choices, without which we feel our lives would be stifled. I am not criticising the Gers, as it is without doubt a beautiful department and we did in the main, enjoy our experience. If you are seeking peace and solace then in my opinion you are heading in the right direction. If you current home in the UK is near all the facilities that you enjoy along with a friendly, if expensive, pub and despite the often miserable weather, you are looking to replicate the same in the Gers ...... don't !! Obviously it is only my personal opinion, but the Gers is not a regular recipient of generous handouts from Central Government in Paris and I think the infrastructure is poor .... charming but poor. If you are of a "certain age" and looking to spend long hours reading those books that you never finished or possibly trying your hand at watercolours ...... the Gers will welcome you as it has done many before. If you are slightly more motivated and do not wish to be harangued by other ex pats who have nothing better to do than tell you all day what they "used to be" whilst at the same time trying to find out exactly how much you paid for your house in an effort to make themselves feel better .... look elsewhere. Others on this Forum may disagree, but I think you are looking for a variety of opinions..... each to their own !! In essence ... you have to be sure what you want, otherwise it can all turn out to be quite expensive. France ( and the Gers, despite my caustic remarks in the last paragraph) is a truly wonderful place and we fully intend to stay and enjoy all that it offers ... quirkiness and all. It offers something for everyone and to all those forum members living happily in the Gers ..... long may that continue. We have only found the right place for us to live by making a mistake ... maybe that's the only way you will truly find out as well ?? Good luck and I hope my comments have been of some help without in any way wishing to be condescending.

    Hi Shropshire lass ... apologies for the late response ... to busy playing golf !! Yes we have some great courses and reasonably priced... off to Moliets in the morning. We have just heard about Mont de Marsan and will be playing it very soon. Maybe you and your crowd can come and challenge us Bearnais to a match there this summer and we could then bestow honary membership on you all to our society ?

    Thank you to both for the replies. I thought SW France was bereft of golfers for a minute ! If you are ever passing or decide to move down here ( very wise decision  ... I used to live in the Gers near Fleurance and moved down here as a consequence ...  I suppose it doesn't suit everyone) you would be more than welcome to come and join us and have some fun.  Hope you have a great golfing year. www.biarritzgolfingexperience.com

    Come on all you golfers.... male or female ....in the Bearn region of the Pyrenees Atlantique !!  ... We, a few members at Salies de Bearn golf club, are trying to start a golf society to meet once a month, or more if support is good, to have fun and play golf. We have some low handicap players, are very keen and enthusiastic and are certainly not in the "old fart"bracket !! If you live down here you will know that there are a great selection of courses we can choose from, including the very tricky Salies de Bearn club. We offer friendship, good banter and a meal in a great local restaurant afterwards. Does it get any better ? There must be loads of you out there who are not aware of a strong golfing community at Salies. Come and join us and share the experience. www.biarritzgolfingexperience.com

Very keen male golfer looking for anybody out there who plays golf in the Biarritz area and who needs someone to make up a three or fourball or who has a small society which I could join ?

Sorry Folks .... another "Long term rental " post !! ... We ( family of four ) plus charming labrador are looking for a long term rental in the Biarritz area. Three bedrooms preferably, though two will suffice. We are re-locating from the Gers and would like to rent for a couple of years whilst we review our options. We are not looking for a mansion and anywhere withing a 20K radius would be great. We are crossing all fingers and toes as we know this might be more than a little difficult. Having trawled the internet and local immo mags we are not suited as yet. Thank you in advance to anyone who can assist