Foreign Perspectives

Archive for the ‘Relocating’ Category

One thing’s for sure: the weather doesn’t mess around over here – it’s either one extreme or the other.

We’re just through a really major thunder and lightening storm the like of which you just don’t see in Northern Ireland.

All being well normal south of France weather will be resumed tomorrow with the sun and cloudless skies that usually characterise September here.

We’re starting to look around for somewhere to go for our daytrip next week although we’ll need to watch the weather I think ‘cos it’s pouring at the moment.

Anyway, we reckon that anywhere that’s within about two hours drive of here is a runner, subject to there being something to see at that sort of range, of course.

To the south that takes us as far as Barcelona though, as you know, we’ve been there quite a lot and are looking for somewhere different.

The east took us to Avignon which amazed us as we’d thought it would have been four or five hours to get there. There’s quite a lot that way that we’ve not seen of course: Arles is the major place but there’s also Aigues Mort and the Camargue to name but three.

For the north we have Toulouse which we’ve not been to for quite a while and Albi which we’ve not been to at all. Closer than that there are heaps of smaller places under the two hour limit we’ve set ourselves.

We rarely go terribly far to the west so I suspect that there’s quite a lot for us to see that way. Tarbes seems about the limit but that would include Lourdes.

Also in the frame is our next overnight trip for which we’d run to four or perhaps five hours which encompasses a vast tract of France, Spain and even bits of Italy I think. Out as far as Biarittz to the west, Monaco to the east, Valencia to the south and possibly up to the Loire in the north.

Any thoughts as to where would be best?

We’d a very enjoyable evening last night when Colin McAllister who bills himself as a storyteller and traditional singer had a meal with us and treated us to an excellent song about Killinchy where I grew up. He’s got probably one of the best “jobs” (if you could call it that) in that he gets paid to tell stories in a number of different European countries and obviously considers it as a very enjoyable hobby that just happens to pay money.

The Polish family who called in for a meal have put the thought in our heads of going to Poland for our Christmas break. Poland probably isn’t the first country that you’d think of going for Christmas but they seem to have pretty much the same Christmas traditions as we do, unlike the more southerly countries in Europe.

We’ve just received the bill for the health insurance for the coming year…. EUR 10,047!!

Yes, ten thousand euros.

As with all French administrative organisations, the health insurance people take an incredibly optimistic view of the income that a business is receiving when they make their estimates. Start-up business are assumed to make tens of thousands of euros even after all their start-up expenses have been taken into account.

By year three we are apparently supposed to be making around EUR 155,000 before expenses are deducted, hence the somewhat ridiculous figure of EUR 10,000 that they want us to pay at this point.

Why the estimate though? Well, our accountant still hasn’t gotten around to doing the books for 2005 and recently announced that they need more information for 2006 despite assuring us nearly six months ago that they definitely had everything that was required.

Loads of people go on last minute holidays and do it very successfully but some of those people just aren’t organised enough to take a last minute break which becomes particularly obvious when they reach us.

Last minute holidays require you to be even more on the ball than normal as there’s usually not enough time to allow for any problems that you’ve not considered. Now, this usually doesn’t matter on a city break as you can get away with taking just your passport, credit card and plane ticket but if you’re aiming for somewhere outside a city or going for more than a few days you need to put a bit more thought into it.

The first thing you need to be clear on is how you are going to get from the airport to your accommodation. Many of the airports used by discount airlines are tiny and not fully operational when late night flights arrive. If you’ve hired a car, check that the car hire office will actually be open when you arrive and indeed up to about an hour after your flight is due as it can take that long to retrieve your baggage and get through customs & immigration. You might think that this will be OK as they wouldn’t take the booking if they weren’t open. Not so: car hire companies in Perpignan all accept bookings for times up to 11pm yet they are all closed by 6pm!

Check that the accommodation you’ve booked is open when you’re planning on arriving too. The majority of hotels don’t have 24 hour reception and if your arrival time is going to be after they close then you usually won’t get in (very small hotels often operate a grace period after official closing time but don’t bank on that). Tell the hotel what flight you are arriving on as some will check for actual flight arrival times and may allow for delays. Phone the hotel as soon as you know you are going to be delayed: don’t wait until you get off the plane to say that you’re four hours late, particularly if that means you’ll not be arriving ’til after 10pm.

If you’re going to arrive on Saturday or Sunday and plan on using public transport to get around, check that it operates at the weekend. In France, it’s commonplace for there to be no public transport operating on Sundays. If you’re going to use a taxi, try asking the hotel what the price is likely to be to avoid nasty surprises.

If you get off the plane really late and can’t face travelling to the accommodation that you’ve booked, don’t forget that you will almost certainly be charged for it anyway. Any cancellations usually need to be made at least 24 hours in advance to avoid “no show” charges. Even with that, any booking fee you’ve paid is never refunded.

If your flight arrives in France after 8pm, make sure that you have eaten something before you get off the plane because, outside the large cities, you won’t be able to get anything to eat in France.

Don’t forget to pack the really essential things that you will need during your stay. It’s not always easy to buy the likes of contact lens solutions and whatnot if you’re in a strange country. The electricity supply around Europe is the same but the plugs are different so buy an adaptor if you haven’t already got one (they’re usually much cheaper in your departure airport than they are at your destination).

Even if you’re not intending to drive, take your driving license.

Take Mastercard and Visa as not everywhere accepts both. It’s useful to have an American Express card as they can be replaced abroad if lost/stolen whereas Mastercard and Visa usually can’t be, despite what the respective companies will tell you.

Finally, don’t depend on the ATM at the airport working when you arrive, particularly if you’re arriving in a small airport at the weekend. Bring some cash in the local currency (around EUR 100 is enough).