|
Everything you always wanted to know about France |
|
|
This is newsletter number 96 about life, living in France and our personal experiences over the last 16 years bringing up our family.
The aim of this newsletter is to share experiences about living in France and to give information about living or visiting France. There are over 1,000 articles in our archives at... http://francevoila.com/archives/ Our holiday/vacation rental site is at... RentalsFrance.com and offers holiday villa and gite rentals in most parts of France, established in 1998 we are one of the most prominent and successful villa rentals sites on the Internet - and aim to stay that way. Do browse through our websites and please use the advertising links. Some of this newsletter is about Buying Property, Investing and Living in France. I notice, when I read through the draft before sending out these letters, that my advice sounds often negative - however, that is the response I sincerely believe is relevant to the enquiries which are often based on dreams rather than common sense. There is nothing wrong with dreams - we all need them - but when people ask me if they should make a big financial and emotional commitment to "Come To France" - it would be unfair of me to rave about the sunshine, wine, and happiness which exist if the question is "can I get work" or "should I buy an old property and do it up". We prefer to live in France than any other place we know - we have invested everything we have, even my Mum has come to live with us. And it has been sunny all week (snow in the UK I am told) - gloat - gloat ======= In This newsletter 1. What is the Value of My Plot of Land 2. Don't Buy euro From Your Bank - You can Be a Currency Trader 3. And Another Thing 4. C'est la France 5. A 24/7 Emergency Help Line in Five Languages 6. Don't Bank On It 7. Hunting, A French perspective 8. Comments on Builders and Overcharges ====== 1. What is the Value of My Plot of Land. Tony We have a brilliant piece of land for sale in that famous Dordogne area. What makes it extra special is that it's the last plot in a quiet, tiny hamlet, 15 mins from what I consider the most beautiful town in France, Brantome. Location must count for quite a lot? To read the rest of this article, please go to Value of My Land ======= 2. Don't Buy euro From Your Bank - You can Be a Currency Trader And definitely do not buy any currency from the foreign exchange shops in the high road or through travel agents. With a little care the rate of exchange you can get can be much better, it is safe, secure and simple, takes 10 minutes and can save you a lot. To read the rest of this article, please go to Best Currency Deals ======= 3.And Another Thing Tony. We are regular readers of your newsletters and find the information very helpful. Just thought we would pass on our experiences since we bought our house in the Puy-du-Dome area over two years ago. To read the rest of this article, please go to Interesting Feedback ======= 4. C'est la France Hi Tony We purchased our place at end August last year and are really looking forward to using the property for holidays and eventually retirement. We are as prepared as we can be for the different attitude to work and the laid back approach of France (obviously something which attracts us), but bearing in mind the few incidences we have come across since August can you shed any light on exactly how France operates as a country with a work ethic such as this? To read the rest of this article, please go to C'est la France ======= 5. A 24/7 Emergency Help Line in Five Languages Imagine, you are traveling through a country where you don't speak the language. You have a problem, someone is lost, you are stopped by the police, miss your passport or want to change your room. Even just book a good restaurant or buy a bunch of flowers. You pick up a telepphone - then what? What if you could call someone (like on "Millionaire") who is fluent in the language and tell them your problem and then ask them to help or translate. What if this service, for an unrestricted time call costs less than the price of a couple of cups of coffee. Well, this service exists. I came across this brilliant and valuable sevice at a trade travel exhibition in London this month. The team speak five langages - English, Spanish, French, German and Dutch. To read the rest of this article, please go to European help-Line ===== 6. Don't Bank On It Hi Tony Since arriving in France last month, my biggest problem arises from dealing with the banks, and the extortionate 'frais' they appear to charge when I send them (Euros!) from my UK Euro account, to put into my account in France. To read the rest of this article, please go to Don't Bank On It ======= 7. Hunting, A French perspective Hunting we are told is the sport of Kings and Toffs so surely nothing could reinforce this view more strongly and give more ammunition to the antis than the scenes of hunting with dogs at the Court of Louis XIV of France. To read the rest of this article, please go to Hunting - A French Perspective ======= 8. Comments on Builders and Overcharges Hi Tony, I would like to add my comments on builders and overcharges. In 2002 we bought a small town house in Conques sur Orbiel. We had just about everything re-built. I know we were grossly overcharged for just about everything, but one incident concerning our plumber stands out. I was presented with a devis for some work that required the drill through our outer walls for gas stove vents. I looked at the devis and noticed... To read the rest of this article, please go to Report This Deception ======= |
