Eos

Talking with a friend of his about a similar problem with a dog, my father recommended putting a bit of lead behind the left ear, assuring his friend that the barking would stop immediately. It was only as he got towards the end of the sentence asking how it should be inserted that his friend copped on... And to reassure all, no dog was ever hurt by my father or his friend, both confirmed animal lovers, but they do still giggle a bit over this one!

While laudable Ian, being child encumbered (!) I'm afraid it's not a luxury to which I can aspire! We would have a 6km hike/cycle to the nearest bus stop, 10 to the nearest trains, supermarkets & banks etc and 15 to school. This might all work well on an outward journey but we live at the top of a very steep hill which is just about walkable if you're not carrying, or pushing, anything! As an alternative though, I love where I live so my stress levels are good, commuting traffic is generally going in the opposite direction to that which I use so I don't need an excess of diesel for sitting in traffic, astute shopping means that I'm in the supermarkets etc much less often than my town dwelling friends who generally use 4X4s for runs of less than 1km, my house is heated with sustainable fuels & I recycle obsessively so I like to think I'm doing a little in the right direction.

Thank you all for replies, despite the fact that it seems I didn't know how to spell France in my post title!! What seems most likely now is that she will fly Istanbul / Amsterdam direct, spend a few days there with my SIL and then fly down to Montpellier. Either that or I don't let her out of my sight at all!

My 14 year old daughter plans on travelling from Ireland with her friend's family to their Turkish home near Bodrum in June and then joining us in France. They are kindly organising that first part of the trip for her and I have to get her to Marseille / Montpellier / Toulouse from Turkey. Having checked online and been quoted in excess of E2,500 for Bodrum / Marseille, I'm wondering if anyone has any recommendations or experience of a better or cheaper route. Maybe she would be better to go back to Ireland and fly to France from there? She will be travelling alone between Turkey and France. Any advice would be most welcome.

Well, I guess you've all gone to beddie byes now but I'm awake & buzzing. The 1,000 posts honour will not be mine for quite some time I think, (congrats Cathy!) but like you, I was talking to my OH & he's arriving to Montpellier on Thursday morning, for the day that's in it! Yay!

In my experience they seem only to want to weigh bags that look as if they might be over weight hence I bring the lightest bag I have so that I can pack it to capacity if need be but it's relatively small & I never get asked.

Dan, I have oil powered UFH which is very successful. But I also have a wood burner in the family room for those times when we have a power cut, usually on stormy, wet nights like tonight! The point being that if you have systems that depend on power, as oil & pellets do, then you are probably going to need an independent heat source too for added comfort.

Our winter cover is fixed in place very securely against winter winds. There are metal reinforced eyelets at close intervals through which "bungy" ties go. These in turn are hooked into the circular ends of metal spikes, drilled about 6-8 inches into the terracing. The cover has a rain drain so that the water drips into the pool rather than gather awkwardly on a tarpaulin.  Best of all though is that my son can run onto the cover to get any stray footballs that find their way onto it! Not to be recommended for trampolining but, for us , a priceless feature.

How very childish of them and how upsetting for you, Frenchie. I'm guessing they are aware of what they're doing. Do you have any idea why?  

Sharon, I hope it works out for you. Apart from the fact that I don't have property in Brittany anyway, I would certainly not consider such a swap. For me there would be too many issues re travel etc but good luck!

An excellent example of "do as I say, not as I do!"

My parents, who live in Ireland, have their pensions electronically transferred into their bank account. I seem to recall, amidst the bumpf that came with letter confirming this for them that over the past five years there has been a drop in cheque writing by a large percentage, something like 35% as debit and credit cards flourish. Not to mention internet transactions. As retail banking needs to streamline and be more cost effective, it seems this is one of the ways forward. I don't use a cheque book at all but, again referencing my parents, they have now got one as it's free for OAPs so there must be a charge there anyway.

Please have the necessary language skills to make certain you understand the risks, of which there are many and the post op regime, which can also be quite involved.  

They'd need to get a move on if they intend including cheques. Aren't they being phased out across Europe?

I my experience, which admittedly was three years ago now, security at Stanstead is an entirely different animal from Ryanair and I had to stuff my outdoor coat into my hand luggage as well as the book I was holding before they would let me through. The lady I ended up sitting beside had two very large hat boxes and a big piece of baggage. I now use any airport other than Stanstead. Happy with Ryanair though.

[quote user="majlen"] [quote user="Catalpa"]Twinks, Katie, Tresco, (Just-call-me) Betty... we could have such fun with this thread... but wait, do I sense the looming presence of a mod...[:-))] [/quote]   I do hope the moderators do not shut this question.  It is perfectly serious and proper.  Whilst some may disagree with our hobby it is legal and harmless.  I am sure if someone asks about train spotting clubs or bridge schools there would be no problem.  We just miss the variety we had in the UK. [/quote] Well, at least someone has something good to say about the UK they left behind... I must say though that good spelling is seen, by me at least, as a good indicator of attention to detail so I think I'll pass, thank you!

[quote user="Frederick"]...mostly Dutch or German ..........languages I do not speak ..or Irish ....and I can just about understand them......[/quote] I'm sure they'd be more than happy to speak more slowly if they realised how they are inconveniencing you. Or maybe it's deliberate...

[quote user="Catalpa"]Apparently not... [:(] http://www.catalpa.com/ .co.uk and .fr don't deliver anything interesting either. Maybe I should change my name...[blink] [/quote] Have another look, Catalpa. I haven't Googled but I believe there was a prison in Australia called, or in a district called, Catalpa. Maybe the spelling was different though.

Glad you enjoyed it JSA. Have you read Labyrinth by the same author? I think Sepulchre had the better story but Labyrinth had more history of the area, accurate or otherwise.

Sky News suggested Soc Gen's offloading of excess shares over the past week or so may have contributed to the decision to cut interest rates in the US. If this is the case then Nick Leeson is only in the halfpenny place compared to this rogue.

[quote user="Jura"] Do either of you have Irish parents/grandparents [/quote] Why this nationality in particular?

Pads, I don't want to say too much in case you're still reading. How's it going?

I'm not rushing to the defence of the Languedoc for a few reasons, not least that I'm not sure it would be a good thing if the area became a mini Something-shire with Pezenas as it's capital. It really depends what you're after and nobody on here can answer for you. If Nice & Cannes are your thing, then the Languedoc probably isn't for you. On the other hand, I've never been to a bull fight, nor do I intend to and the only rugby match I've been to is when Beziers trounced the Sale Sharks a couple of summers ago.

Don't underestimate termites as they can be very problematic in many areas of France.

And they say dog is a man's best friend!!!