savoirflair

In the past, whilst travelling in Spain and Germany, we have come across digestifs called Underberg and Fernet Branca - both of which are dark brown, taste absolutely foul but are superb for calming a very upset tummy. The secret seems to be that they contain a 'secret' misture of herbs, as well as the alcohol. We cannot find either of these in French supermarkets, and wondered if anyone knows of a French equivalent? Amanda

Many thanks to everyone for their input - much appreciated. Have just found what we were looking for at Chausson - they are called 'double Genoise' apparently. Amanda

Thanks for your reply Eric.  I have googled tuiles de rives and they are not what I am thinking about. To try to describe them better - it's a bit like if a terracotta pipe was split vertically - so you have a tile that is equal in width all the way down, and curved in the middle.  You put them on top of plain walls as a finishing decoration. Amanda

We are trying to locate some terracotta wall capping tiles without success..........all we can find are proper roofing tiles which are not right for the job. What we need are smaller than normal tiles, with parallel sides, not tapered like the roof tiles.  Does anyone (a) know what they are called in French (I would call them pantiles in English) and (b) know where we might locate some? We are in 34 (Herault). Thanks in advance! Amanda

Poor, poor dog.  Is there not something like the equivalent of the RSPCA in France, that you could phone and report this to?  Do hope this can be resolved soon, I can appreciate how you are feeling. Amanda

It's a Renault Megane Scenic, first registered August 2001. Amanda

[quote user="baypond"]If you need to have one issued (depends on age of car) get your certificate of conformity while the car is still in the UK. I waited until the car was in France, and had to bring all the documents back to a Renault garage in the UK. You can get them in France, but in the UK its easier to understand being all in English, plus the fact that you have to provide utility bills etc for where you are resident, and Renault UK didn't charge me![/quote] Thank you for the fast responses, much appreciated.  Baypond, what is the age criteria for having to provide a certificate of conformity? Amanda

Apologies, I am sure this has been covered before, but I can't find any definitive answers - and hope someone can help please. We have a residence secondaire in France and have just bought a UK registered car which we intend to drive out and then leave there for our use whilst visiting. My questions are:  Is it possible to get UK insurance for a French registered car?  (All the French quotes we have had so far seem extortionate, but enquiries to date seem to indicate that UK insurance companies will only insure a UK registered car) So -must the car be re-registered onto French plates?  If so, is there a time limit by which you must do this? Thanks in advance, Amanda

I understand that you can get a so-called insulated plasterboard 50mm thick, but that it is quite a lot more expensive than the basic stuff. Trying to find prices on the internet, without luck - possibly I'm not using the correct words. Does anyone know the approximate costs of both?  What it is called?  Thanks in advance, Amanda

I have a Visa electron card with the Halifax, purely to get no charges when I pay for Ryanair flights.[:)] Up until now has worked fine - no charges - but I see from my Halifax statement that one transaction came up as being with Ryanair IE and was charged in euros - therefore I got whacked 1.50 charge each way![:@] At the time I obviously didn't think about the possible consequences of paying in euros (it normally comes up in £s, even if I am booking from France) so my fault, but it is something to be aware of. Amanda

I've been looking on eBay France to try to find large sheets of tissue wrapping paper, without success - so I think I may be searching the wrong word.  I thought tissue paper was 'papier de soie', but that brings up small sheets, mainly coloured or decorated, obviously for craft/scrap booking purposes. Any suggestion as to a different French word please? Thanks, Amanda

Thanks for the all the advice, will give it a go! Cheers, Amanda

Tinabee - So do you think paying for and printing your postage label before you take it to la Poste actually save any time?  our local la Poste sometimes has queues outside the door, and I was hoping that I might be able to get around this, or at least not add to the time spent by everyone else in the queue, by just handing over the items and getting out quick!  Amanda

Thanks tinabee, that's great.  Can you just tell me what happens when you go to la Poste - i.e. can you just hand everything over and walk away, or do they insist on checking everything?

I sell a lot on eBay UK and hope to sell a few things whilst in France next month. Can anyone tell me, can you print out postage labels via the eBay France site and then just drop your parcels off at la Poste, like you can do with Royal Mail and the Post Office in the UK? I've looked at the eBay France site and can't see anything about it, but then my French is not that good at the moment. Thanks, Amanda

Thanks so much Cathy, I got through OK on the 0800 number you provided and was able to sort my problem!

Need to contact Orange English helpline urgently -  but the original number 0033 155786056 has changed to 0800 364 700 75.  I am currently in France, and can't work out what I would dial from here to use the new 0800 number.   Has anyone any ideas please?  Thanks in advance, Amanda

Thanks for super speedy reply Cathy - v. helpful! Amanda

Can you help please?  I know that there are certain summer weekends when the French take to the roads for their holidays, but which ones are they? Thanks in advance!

Oops, we could be going hungry then - what about restaurants do you think? Amanda

Hi, do you know if the big supermarkets (Carrefour, Auchan etc) likely to be open on May 1?  We're flying out that day and wondered whether we would be able to food shop the day we arrive....... Thanks, Amanda

Does anyone have a recommendation for a landscape gardener in Herault Dept 34? Thanks in advance.

Thank you John, have sent you a PM

Hi, does anyone know if a conservatory built on the side of a house would need planning permission?  Would it perhaps depend upon the size? Thanks in advance!

Does anyone have a swim spa?  (combination of a hot tub and a small pool area that allows you to exercise by swimming against a current). Would be interested to hear if you are pleased with it/any specific problems etc. Thanks in advance!