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Everything you always wanted to know about France |
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France Voila Newsletter #39 September 6 2000 This week 1. Our Websites2. Make Your Own Website 3. Grape Picking in 2001 4. Don't leave luggage in your car 5. Rail Travel 6. Winter rentals in France 7. Insurance 8. Gallaghers "Tip of the Week" 9. The Nizas Project === 1. Our Websites We started by renting our own apartments in this rambling medieval "villa" here in Nizas two years ago. To advertise these I first made a simple website at.. After we had added a few friends and neighbours houses I got carried away and added a new site at.. These grand names sounded too big for our humble offerings so I tried to make a more interesting general site at.. and kept the local property advertising at.. I got carried away again and added... I am now making Internet sites for other people in the travel business and I am beginning to use the site at... For a lot more than just the rentals of a few private homes in our village. So if you want a Guided Tour of Israel, a Nile Cruise or an African Safari. If you would like to discover the hidden parts of Paris where tourists rarely tread, to discover the real Provence or escape to an "Oasis of Tranquillity". Have another look at... I am working on a new series of sites for Canal Tours, Visits to the Cathar castles plus painting and photography vacations. I am always keen to learn what you would like to see and do, so please write to me at.. === Useless Fact The world record for rocking in a rocking chair is 440 straight hours? ===2. Make Your Own Website I came across this site which shows you how to make your own website, the big difference is that it is made by a 13 year old and is one of the best and clearest sites I have seen.The site is " Lissa Explains it All ", Not only is it clear and straightforward, but she has made the site in both English and in French. In her own words... = "Want to make a Web page? You've come to the right place. My name is Lissa and I'm 13 years old. I live in Florida, and I am in 9th grade. I love to make Web pages and graphics (I make all of my graphics myself), and have even made some commercial Web sites!! I started this page when I was 11 because I had a lot of kids ask me questions about how to make their own Web page," = I am really impressed !!! Lissa says it is for kids, but I learn a lot from her site, I wonder if she has stock options? === 3.Grape Picking in 2001 Last week I said the pay for grape picking was 60c an hour, I ran out of fingers, it is $6 an hour, plus 3 liters of wine a day. The problem is you don't usually get the wine, they pay you the fixed sum of 25c instead. The vendange (grape harvest) has started here. We got a strange bonus of sacks full of figs when, to get down the road, one of the huge vendanger machines had to cut off the branches from the row of fig trees behind our home. Carole is making pots of fig jam so if you come next year, guess what's for breakfast. I joked last week about a "Dude Vineyard" vacation, so many people have asked about it that I will try to organise something. However, in reality this will be hard to do as no one knows until the last minute (about a week before) what grapes will be picked and when, so flights and accommodation may be tricky. Last Saturday I helped a neighbor and picked some olives, this is a very pleasant product to harvest, you don't bend down so much and there is more shade. Eight of us picked over a ton of olives and not a single olive had that red stuff in the middle. === 4. Don't leave luggage in your car. I had two letters this week about leaving luggage and valuables in your car here. I am not saying that France is full of thieves, it is a safe and charming country, but tourism attracts thieves and I do advise everyone to be careful. = Tony, You say never to leave any belongings in the trunk of your car, but when we're driving from one location to another and come to a village or town we would like to explore, what can we do - we certainly don't plan to walk around with our luggage. Naturally, we will make sure never to leave anything in sight. We hope we won't have any problems. Thanks for your input. Emily =Hello Emily Naturally you wish to explore and discover a new town. In September there is much less of a problem as the tourist rush is over and life returns to normal, but there is a risk. I include an e-mail I received last month from a reader of our newsletter. It warns not to leave anything on display in the car, but there are similar stories about all luggage being taken from the trunk. I suggest when you are parking, never leave your papers in the car at all, lock everything in the trunk and use a chain or motorcycle padlock to make all the cases an unmovable "lump". Also pick your parking spot, if possible in a busy street and not in a back street or large parking lot. I am sure you will have a great vacation and no problems, as I am also sure you will take care and be alert. Best Wishes - Tony = Be careful! our family of 6 was travelling in Provence during July and pulled off the road for lunch in a sleepy little village (Orgon). Our car was maybe 100 feet away. We were sitting outside with the car in plain sight. After lunch (Fabulous) we went to the car and found the drivers window broken and our laptop computer gone and our daughters purse. Laptop had all of our photos from the digital camera for a month, passports and plane tickets. The purse had a Pentax camera 120 c.d.'s and a discman. We had become lax and looking back we see warning signs. People too hospitable. We were first told they had only sandwiches,,, the a lovely 3 course meal and cheese and fruit. Overly friendly patrons, a tractor (very loud) and the shopkeeper directly across the street saw nor heard anything. Our own fault for not taking proper precautions but one tends too feel too comfortable and relaxed. === 5. Rail Travel One of the best ways to travel in France is by rail. SNCF is the state owned (and subsidised) railway . It is fast, comfortable and not expensive. There are a number of formulas for getting special prices or discounts. It helps if you under 25, retired, a student, have children under 12 (or all 4 if possible). If you are visiting France you can get the Eurailpass. There are details on our site at http://goto-france.com/links/ferry.html If you are a citizen of a European country you ought to look into an Interrail pass. Similar to a Eurailpass, but intended for Europeans and available to those older than 27 Interrail passes operates with the train services of several European countries. === 6. Winter Rentals in France We have a large number of inquiries from people wishing to stay in the south of France for the winter months. Last winter we had two families from Norway here escaping from the snow and long nights. We have also had Australian families escaping from the hot summers there, so there seems to be something to please everyone. The winters here in the Midi are mild and the days can be hot and sunny. Nights are usually cool and can be chilly. Here is a letter I had this week and my reply which may answer some questions. = Tony, What should we expect to pay for a "gite" and what will the weather be like for a couple staying several months this winter and is it practical to travel by train to explore? = HelloMany Gite type rentals are not suitable for winter lets, even in the south of France heating is necessary between November and March, out of about 75 properties we rent here only 10 or 12 we would consider suitable for letting and in the middle of France or the North most properties would be miserable as they are mostly summer vacation homes. The next consideration is to be near a station if you are discovering France by train (an excellent and economical way to travel here). Most gite properties are in villages and a car is necessary to get to a station. We have a few properties which could be suitable. The monthly rentals, are from 4000FF - 6000FF this would not include electricity in the winter months. Most heating is by electricity here and would add about 800FF to the cost per month. The weather depends where you are staying, I personally have an aversion to the Area East of Nimes, Provence etc, in the winter. The Mistral wind can be exhausting, it blows frequently from September through to March. I hope this gives some idea - Tony === 7. Insurance I believe your vacation and all travel should be as relaxed and as stress-free as possible. No matter how good the plans and how much time you allow, things can go wrong. It is a wise precaution to make sure you have full insurance protection for as many contingencies as possible. Not only medical and health, but lost luggage, lost deposits, cancelled bookings, Missed flights, missed connections and anything which can spoil a trip or cost money like extra hotel bills, replacing lost clothing etc. You can get full cover for about 3% of the cost of the trip. There are details on our site at... http://goto-france.com/insurance/ === 8. Gallaghers "Tip of the Week" = To find some of the best bargains and more adventurous places, check out the CIA's list of places not to travel to, and then pick one. This can save a lot of money and make your trip more exciting. Obviously don't chose a war-zone and read the information carefully. Common sense and a sense of adventure can make for a very special vacation = Mary Gallagher is a journalist and TV presenter, you can see her up-beat and off-beat site at ... === 9. The Nizas Project Not a lot of progress in the website at... ...this week. I have loaded a larger number of photographs of the village fete, the vendange, the bullfight and other activities, but I have not had time to make all the links and write up the information. I hope to add Carole's recipe for fig jam, but I intend to taste it first. === Please let me know if you would like any specific information and do get your friends to subscribe. Best wishes Tony |