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| languedoc Member Since: 13 May 2016 Location: Edinburgh Posts: 283   
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Not only will they have changed what form is required, the price for admin changes from between application and handing over of cheque meaning posted back to you to resend with a random extra 7 cents.
And the regions bar rules are different. Here every 4th drink is free, an hour east its every third. Nobody thinks twice about a 9am glass of white wine but not red. |
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9th Aug 2016 10:11pm |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5804  
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Every fourth drink is free? I'm moving to the Pyrenees. Nothing's free here, far from it, and certainly not beer....
 Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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10th Aug 2016 7:26am |
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| languedoc Member Since: 13 May 2016 Location: Edinburgh Posts: 283
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Even with Innis and Gunn
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10th Aug 2016 11:48am |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5804
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Lucky boy. We're actually seeing a few craft ales here, which is nice, including a great one made locally to St Gervais. But a good selection of Pales and IPAs from the likes of Brew Dog and Brooklyn, plus the usual suspects of Fullers, Youngs, Charles Wells and many, many more. Whoever chooses them at our local Super U has good taste.
 Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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10th Aug 2016 2:05pm |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5804
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BTW BM, I cannot recommend my town, Saint Gervais Les Bains, enough if you want to come Alpward. Indeed would recommend it above any other town in the Haute Savoie and for any number of reasons. If you want to know more, let me know.... Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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10th Aug 2016 2:07pm |
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| languedoc Member Since: 13 May 2016 Location: Edinburgh Posts: 283
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Although the slightly passive aggressive road worker gang decided to teach my wife not to park where they wanted to be. French at their best
 Click image to enlarge |
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10th Aug 2016 2:41pm |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5804
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Oafs. But I must say, you've got the wrong car for chancy parking. Had it been a battered, ten year old French model she might have got away with it. But a Merc? Nothing a chippy 'ouvrier' likes more than to cock a snook at someone wealthier/more successful/cooler/more handsomerer* than them. A national disease that they cannot abide any kind of success, let alone those who (in their opinion) flaunt it....
* Delete as appropriate. Monsieur Le Grenadier I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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10th Aug 2016 2:58pm |
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| Birdy Member Since: 07 Oct 2011 Location: CĂ´te d'Azur Posts: 864 
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Not only the bureaucracy in France, it extends to anywhere with the “Napoleonic” system.
Example 1. When I bought my gaff in France, rather than travel to St Tropez for every signature, I completed a form for my lawyer to sign everything on my behalf. Living in Luxembourg at the time, I had to get a Luxembourgish lawyer to witness my signature. Fair enough, but he had to send the form to a judge to have his signature confirmed. My comment was: “And who has to confirm his signature, the Grand Duc?”. As this oh-so-important piece of paper was being sent from one country to another, I had to take it to a special customs office to buy a 1 Luxembourgish Franc stamp (the exchange rate was about 45 to the Ł at the time, these stamps were only printed for this specific purpose, probably the same since Napoleon's time). I was allocated a number, given a ticket, and told to come back in two days. Two days later I went back, with my ticket, my document was still in the same place on the clerk's desk, she calmly picked it up and scrawled her signature over the 1F stamp. Could've done it there and then two days ago, but oh no… Example2. Many official documents are only valid if issued within the last three months, originals don't count, have to obtain an up to date copy. I married wife number two in Luxembourg, after declaring our histories, me being married and divorced. However, although I was able to obtain a copy of the divorce records, a new marriage certificate was impossible to obtain (the Registry Office had burned down or some such nonsense). So I went to the Mayor who was to perform the ceremony and said: “I wish to amend my application, I was never married” “How can you say that?” “Well, if you won't recognise this original UK marriage certificate from 1967, I was obviously never legally married”. He had to laugh himself at the stupidity, told me to get a translation done by an authorised Court Translator and he'd accept that as an original marriage certificate. Even though it was just a civil ceremony in the Town Hall (unlike the UK, priests aren't authorised to legalise marriages, there's the “legal” one, and a separate church ceremony) the Mayor provided enough bottles of champagne for us to forget the effort of getting all the papers together. As Huttopia says, ya GOTTA love the place! Peter |
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10th Aug 2016 8:34pm |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5804
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Mmmm, sounds like my Uni days in Lille. I was meant to be in Paris with my fiery French girlfriend (obligatory as a French language and European politics student), but my Uni professor had a fight with theirs, so my place was cancelled. Nearest Uni that did a similar course, Lille. Anyway, bored stiff of French teaching methods, I soon stopped going to my European Politics lectures and instead did the English Language Film and Cinema module and (thanks to a professor who was an Olympian) Fencing. Needless to say that with the wing modules, a lot of time spent drinking quality Belgian brews with Erasmus students (mainly Irish, German, Scandies etc) and spending every weekend in Paris, I failed to complete my degree. Had an absolute blast though.....  Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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11th Aug 2016 6:40am |
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| Huttopia Member Since: 23 Feb 2016 Location: West Midlands Posts: 1972 
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Blimey, I did European politics, french and history simply because of a year in France. Obviously the degree was utterly useless on its own so law followed soon after. French teaching methods were shocking - here is the question, here is the answer and there will be no new thinking allowed. Film was my extra too. One poor student tried to question something and was roasted for 15 minutes in front of the whole group without right of reply. Lazy teaching. Bayrou was the education minister so they were on strike every week. In combination with the train / bus strikes the gym, golf course and bar were preferable. In fact I met Mrs H in the bar (La Bibliotheque) I was working and she was drinking...... happy days.
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11th Aug 2016 8:50am |
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| Grenadier Member Since: 23 Jul 2014 Location: The foot of Mont Blanc... Posts: 5804
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You are absolutely right. I remember vividly the first lecture I went to. 300+ people in a huge auditorium. The Prof rambled on, ininterrupted, for over an hour, with all the French students writing down everything he said verbatim. Including his (not very funny) jokes. I was not a little stunned by the entire lack of interation and as you say, 'thinking'.
But that's as nothing compared to a chat I had with one of the French students after the lecture when I asked if they wanted to join us (Erasmus students) for a couple of beers. He said no and when I asked why, he said becasue he had to spend the evening re-writing all the notes in legible writing in his main note book. The whole lecture, re-written, again verbatim. As for study groups or tutorials, they were just more of the same but on a smaller scale, albeit still 30 people. "I am the professor, I am god, I know everything so I shall drone on for an hour and you will absorb everything I say like a sponge. What I say is gospel, do not question it."  Monsieur Le Grenadier
I've not been everywhere, but it's on my list..... 2011 Puma 110DC - Corris Grey |
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11th Aug 2016 9:25am |
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