Quillan

Login to the forum. Ensure you ar in the Lobby and you should see somewhere in the middle of the list of options going left to right one marked USER. Click on this and from the list producted click on the bottom option and you can enter your details here. Certainly mention when you are going to be here in your post and then ask people to check your profile for contact info. Chris Moderator (taken to adding moderator so everyone knows when I have my blue hat on)

I can remember a long time ago somebody posted the same question (I wonder how they got on) and I can remember at that time I could speak no French and I replied by saying so and that it didnt really effect me that much. I still cant speak much French although I have probably improved dramatically since arriving. My attitude then was who cares, you can get by. Well you can when dealing with big stores, there is always somebody around who can speak a little English, but its the rest of life thats the problem. 18 months down the line and having had to deal with the authorities, like the taxman, Chamber of Commerce, CPAM and the rest I now strongly believe, having spent a lot of money on translators to come with me, that you do have to speak French and to a reasonable level. If you dont, not only can it make dealing with these people very difficult but you may end up paying a lot of money to the tax man etc that you didnt really have to. Then theres the social side. There are a very few people in our village that speak English so our social circles were limited from the start (it widens dramatically once you start speaking French). Of course you can mix with the local Brit Pack but then you are somewhat limiting yourself and this is how The English Quarter starts in villages, we now officially have one in Quillan. I see people are recommending the Michael Thomas CDs, I have to say that they are very good value for money (60 for the 8 CD set). Not only has it taught me most of my French (I took German at school) but my wife finds them very good for revision of her O Level school French. I dont want to say dont come if you dont speak French but I would strongly advice you to buy something like the CD course mentioned, try the BBC website as well but do it now and carry on when you get here. Best of Luck Q

Please, please tell me more. Chris

LAST EDITED ON 16-Apr-04 AT 12:41 PM (GMT) I know we aren't in your area but when the bulders were here one of the guys killed one in our garage and said he was taking it hope to cook! Chris

At Bank Populair we got a basic card free which worked in the supermarket and hole in the wall machines. It would not work on toll booths on the autoroute or outside France. The monthly spending limit was also very small. We have upgraded our cards so we can use them anywhere and they have a limit you can set with the bank, rather like a UK credit card. For this we pay 27 a year. I don't know if this is the same with all French banks. Chris I only use the bank, I don't work for them.

nicktrollope (312 posts) 15-Apr-04, 05:31 PM (GMT) 1. "RE: FAO all forum users" Nick, please don't do this, we get your point. I'm sorry, but this is getting ridiculous. I fully appreciate that you want, and need to avoid the risk of libel, but to disallow web addresses in sig files is regulation (unecessary regulation at that), not moderation. Nick Signature deleted

We bought from 'But' and found it to be quite good stuff and the one at Perpignan is very big, don't forget it closes 12 till 2 but then you can go (just the other side of the big roundabout) to Leroy Merlin for your DIY stuff and then Auchan for some English beer and stuff to make curries with AND there's a Chinees section there as well, neither closes for lunch. Obviously I have no connection with any of the above stores. Chris

I know it's not French but how could they do a remake of The Italian Job, I refuse to buy the DVD. You just can't replace Micheal Caine, but not many people know that, especially American movie producers it would seem. As for the Battle of Britain, I didn't know that. They will be doing The Great Escape and Bridge over the River Kwia next. Could be interesting if they got Tom Cruise to play Spike Milligan in Hitler, my part in his downfall (the exact name escapes me but I'm sure you know the book and film I mean) Chris

(Cross posted into Gite Froum) Some time ago I looked around for a package that would control my bookings, produce standard letters and bills in any language and give me statistics on nationalities, favourite rooms etc. I only found a couple and they never really did what I wanted so I wrote one myself which worked OK but it was a bit slow. I have recently found a package that I have tested and have now bought and I have to say its very good. It can be used for Gites, Chambres DHote, campsites, caravans, just about anything really and can be easily tailored to meet all needs and languages. If you are interested then please send me a message via my Forum Inbox and I will tell you more as I dont want to break our advertising rules but I was so impressed I thought I should tell people. Chris

Some time ago I looked around for a package that would control my bookings, produce standard letters and bills in any language and give me statistics on nationalities, favourite rooms etc. I only found a couple and they never really did what I wanted so I wrote one myself which worked OK but it was a bit slow. I have recently found a package that I have tested and have now bought and I have to say its very good. It can be used for Gites, Chambres DHote, campsites, caravans, just about anything really and can be easily tailored to meet all needs and languages. If you are interested then please send me a message via my Forum Inbox and I will tell you more as I dont want to break our advertising rules but I was so impressed I thought I should tell people. Chris

LAST EDITED ON 07-Apr-04 AT 10:39 AM (GMT) If you are Gite owner or Chambres D'Hotes owner and want to reply to this please do so through the orignal posters mailbox either the forum one or their own so as not to invoke our wrath with regards to advertising. Many thanks Chris Blue hat off again now.

Here are some hills my moles made earlier. They have even re-routed the train on one. I don't know what the bridge is all about either, that appeared last night. NOW do you see my problem?

I am well but busy. We have been having a constant stream of guests. I cooked dinner last night for the first time ever so I'm taking them to hospital this morning. All the moles for 10 miles around have now moved into our garden since 'mole bin laden' arrived causing major derailments on the garden railway. I think the rumour about Kevlar mole body armour and hazcem suits has leaked out. I have taken to sharpening the blades on my sit-on mower with the hope of decapitating them but we now have these strange miniature concrete bunkers appearing with little slits in them and tube looking things sticking out. Also most of my dynamite seems to have gone missing from the shed for some strange reason. I tried, as suggest by somebody else, bashing their heads in with a spade but they have helmets! And my arms ache now. I tried sticking the hose down one of the holes and leaving the water pump on all night but they seem to have diving suits. I bought a sonic pole thing from Leroy Merlin but my wife says she can hear them singing along with them (old Petshop Boys numbers I am told). Oh well back to the battle, THEY WILL NOT WIN. Q

Every time I see my doctor for a new 3 months repeat prescription for my vendolin etc. he checks my asthma. Chris

The arts and craft lot seem to attend the markets. You will of course require the mandatory ZZ-Top beard and baggy trousers and dig all that old hippy stuff out of the loft. Peace man Chris

I think you will find that now you have to register and sit a test of some sort (in French unfortunatly), rather like the 16th Edition or whatever it is these days in the UK. It's not rocket science but it is different to the UK (no ring mains on power outlets etc) and they don't use stuff like armoured cable or twin and earth but the cable sizes (1.5 and 2.5) are generally the same as the UK for their respective job. Don't know if this helps much Chris

I was going to put this in the Legal bit but I then remembered I started this thread so I thought it might be better to keep the info all together. We have today completed our final task, sort the Tax. I took a translator with me plus a list of questions carefully crafted to get the best response for the Taxman. Well the guy could not have been more helpful. Firstly he told us there is no longer anything called a Regime Micro Benefices Industriels et Commerciaux with regards to our business (Chambres DHote and Gites), its now called a Micro Fiscal but the rules are somewhat the same except that the limit ONLY for B&Bs (Chambres DHote and Gites) is 27,000 and that you cant add the 49,000 for materials as they know you dont have any because of the nature of your business. We got the 72% taken off but he did include my UK Share Dividend Certificates as UK earnings and gave me the tax back before working out the final tax figure which was ZERO (whoopee). I do have to pay TVG (I think thats what its called) but that is only 208. He even filled the forms in. He gave us another form (printed from his computer) to take to the Chambres of Commerce that shows we dont have to pay Social Charges, we will wait and see on that one although Peter Owen did mention something about this last year but I cant find it now. So I am really happy, I am now perfectly legal all round and its been rather painless. So thanks to all of you who gave me the information below, thanks to my translator and thanks to Miki who I got a lot of common sense from off Forum and hope is making a speedy recovery. To any newcomer if you read this thread you wont go far wrong, it worked for me. Chris

Saw him last week with a 'Bobcat'. Probably April, it snowed in Quillan last April. Many people think the weather is better here but it's not. It generally follows the UK but a couple of deg higher and doesn't normally last as long. If you want the sun go to Spain (general comment, not personal). Thats were my brother in law is and he's out in his shorts and has been all year. Chris

LAST EDITED ON 23-Mar-04 AT 10:59 AM (GMT) If I were you and couldn't speak much French (I don't but you might be fluent, I don't know) I would contact one of the solicitors advertising in LF magazine most of whom are based in the UK. Some of them are also properly qualified in French law. If your notaire speaks fluent English (and you can't speak much French) this would be a bonus and you can talk directly with them. French law and inheritance for children is reasonably simple, all children have rights of inheritance other than that I don't have a clue. Many opions can be found on this site but at the end of the day none of us are experts (to my knowledge) so get proffesional advice before the final contract is signed. To change it after is very expencive. Good luck Chris I may be 'blue' but I am not an authorative on this subject.

I know this subject has been raised before and an satisfactory answer from Admin has never really been given. As part of being a moderator I have asked for guidance on this matter and here is the reply I received. "URLs at the end of postings are fine if they are personal websites. Advertising directly within the main text for products and services is not allowed." Before anyone asks the 'main text' is from the first to the last character typed/entered in any posting. I hope this clears up any questions you may have. For those with businesses that are trying to be helpful (as you often are) when people have a problem please remember you can contact them by either posting to their LF mailbox or, if activated, their personal email address. Just think this would entitle you to legitimate membership of that coveted secret society Message in your inbox. Chris

If you can recommend any cat and/or boarding kennels can you please paste them under this thread. Only recommendations please (no direct advertising by owners), anything else will be deleted. Chris

If you can recommend any cat and/or boarding kennels can you please paste them under this thread. Only recommendations please (no direct advertising by owners), anything else will be deleted. Chris

Do a search as sugested. Whatch out for the French they make us look tame. I go out quite a bit into the mountains but have come a cropper a few times with French 4X4's. There is a French based company that runs holidays and they opperate from up north (in France) and use Toyota's. Talk about fast they must do about 60kph down the tracks in groups of 8 or 10 forcing me and anyone else of the track. I am amazed there has been knowbody killed really particularily walkers coz they don't stop for anyone. If you use the UK rules for green laneing you wont go far wrong. I run 4X4 holidays/excersions leading people with their own or I am happy to take them in my disco but it's more aimed at seeing wildlife than hacking around like a madman. If you are interested in comeing down to 11 and visiting the Pyrenees drop me a line and I will forward you our website details. Q

We were told by our insurance comanpy (MMA) that in France the holiday maker is responsible for their own insurance. We have extra cover to protect us from damage guests might do to our property and to supply extra help if one of us is incapacitated. This cost us an extra 25 per year on our normal house and contents insurance. My broker also told me it is against the law not to tell your broker if you are running a B&B. Q

New question folks, as I understand it, forgive me if I am wrong, there are four types of licences for food and alcohol, and these would be T1, T2, T3 and T4. Could somebody explain their use with regards to B&Bs and possibly how one should go about getting whatever is required. Many thanks in advance. Q