So now we have chalked up six months in France, it is time
to reflect.
There have been more highs than lows, more
anticipated pleasures confirmed than unpleasant surprises.
Winter greeted our arrival. From mid February we had to
put up with cold because we simply couldn’t afford to run inefficient electric
radiators. The insert helped, thanks to Mr Rigo’s firewood at 40 euros a stere.
We have enjoyed great meals and lovely wine. The trip to the
Prayssas truffle market with Hedley and Carolynn stands out, as does the amazing
truffle degustation lunch in the Prayssas salle des fetes.
We have visited numerous towns and villages. Their age and beauty never fail to impress.
A road trip to San Sebastian was great and a sojourn in Vienna
was delightful.
We have enjoyed family visits from Ireland and the UK.
We have appreciated the welcome and patience of the French
people.
On the other side of the ledger, these things have been a
bit stressful.
The wait for my Carte de Sejours
The reckless speeding of some drivers on narrow
country roads
The incompetence of our first bank
The high cost of electricity
Though happy in Castelmoron sur Lot, we continue our search for a permanent place. We will be assiduous in
this task til we find the one property that ticks all the boxes.
I look forward to
summer barbeques, cold beer and conviviality.
Vive la France.
Glad to know there were more ups than downs in your first six months in France. That may be a good omen for things to come.
ReplyDeleteAs I understand it, drivers in France are extremeky slow as compared to those in Italy, but, of course, this is no help!
Keep my fingers crossed for you to find the home of your dreams!
Once again, Blogger shows 03:57 for the time I posted the above post, when in fact it was 12:57 p.m. on June 2nd. What fuseau horaire does your computer is on?
DeleteP.S. I should have said that right now I am in Paris, France, in the same time zone as you are.
DeleteThank you chm.
DeleteBTW, I don't know anything about fuseau horaire. I'm afraid.
Well, fuseau horaire is French for time zone. As I said before, we are now, you and me, in the same time zone, but our computers are not. When I arrived in France, a month ago, I changed my computer’s time zone from Washington, DC, to Paris (which would be the same as Castelmoron’s).
DeleteWhenever I post a comment on a blog, from wherever, the posting time is always that of the recipient computer.
That is to say that when I post a comment on your blog here in Paris, the posting time should be the same as the actual time I did it. But there is a discrepancy that should not be there if your computer were set to the Cahors or Toulouse time zone, for instance. Since there is no AM or PM after the time the posting was done, I have no idea if your computer is west or east of me. Could be Iceland or Borneo!
If our computer is a Mac, you can check the time zone in Date and Time in the System Preferences. If you have a PC, I don’t have the slightest idea where you can find the Date and Time function.
I’m posting this at 7:24 am Paris time (and Castelmoron’s).
After some research, I found out that the only place where it was 22:23 on June 2nd when I posted last, was in the Los Angeles time zone. So, you’re gifted with ubiquity, since you are at the same time in Southern France and in California! Did you ever change the Date and Time on your computer depending on your actual location?
DeleteP.S. Another thing I just noticed is that I am posting on June 3rd and on your computer it shows June 2nd. That is confirmation your computer is not set for the Castelmoron’s time zone, but is still on the factory settings?
DeleteWell that's really bizarre. I've checked my PC's settings for time and zone. It is set to exactly the right time here in France, so I really have no idea why there is this discrepancy.
ReplyDeleteMaybe your computer was manufactured in California or Mexico and it is home sick!
DeleteMaybe your computer was manufactured in California or Mexico and it is home sick!
DeleteTony, you need to set the time zone in your blog settings. On the dashboard where you compose your posts, click on Settings on the lefthand side of the screen, and then click Language and Formatting. Your blogger installation is, or at least was when you and CHM had this discussion, to Google's California time zone.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ken for this explanation. Obviously, I had no idea that the time zome zone should be set in Blogger!
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