Lay My Hat

Hi all, finally we are taking a holiday and going on a cruise. Now what we want to find is a place to stay in Marseille on the 16th and 17th October before we depart. We want to stay in the heart of things and dont really want to drive anywhere. We are 4 adults and 2 children, all rental property ow...

We love Kir Violette, my current favourite tipple. We have just opened our bistro, OH is front of house and introducing lots of folk to kir violette.......I think it looks like turpentine! We have had people ask for Suze, got some, didn't know what to do with it, so OH asked the locals, it gets mixe...

In summer duvets get stored away and out come the thin quilts purchased rather cheaply at the french markets for 35 euros including pillow cases, just the right weight in the heat, top sheet for guests, not for us and they wash like a rag..........I loathe putting duvet covers on duvets so enjoy the...

Yes, as we are finishing off our B&B roomes we are staying in each one, Just had a 4 week stint using the kitchenette in the apartment while my kitchen got redone and happy to say it worked better than I thought it would for a wee kitchen. And at the same time it is like a little holiday (only h...

Just this week we were having a nice leisurly lunch at a friends place after a morning of hard work, just finished dessert washed down with good wine when there was a knock on the door. Gite guests 2 hours early. Apologies and giggling all round as they were shown to gite. Previous guests had left b...

This all makes me laugh and I can think of so many stories to tell about our experiances with tradesmen, like the time a local company did our roof, they were working next door and the roofs joined so we got them to give us a devi and they just kept going til ours was finished too, OH went to pay th...

I didn't think about Metro only supplying retailers of food. We applied for a Metro card because we are opening a Bistro. (just happens to be handy for stuff we might want for our chambre d'hotes as well) Sorry if I lead anyone astray. We are looking at buying an armoire freezer and so far have foun...

Personally I prefer a mid- sized towel as too big and they get wet on the floor of the shower. More impotant to me is their ability to dry. Can't stand the thick fluffy towels that repel water, give me a thin sucky one any day. I like to be able to fit plenty in the washing machine at one time too. ...

I buy the sturdy supermarket bags for our guests as a prezzie for them to take home. I make sure they have french writing on them, never the plain ones. They cost me very little and they take up no space in a suitcase when they are brand new, and the guests really appreciate it. Also we like to buy ...

You do have to watch the prices at Metro. We have only just got a card and the temptation to buy up all the lovely stuff is enormous. Although it can be pricey, there is some fab stuff in bulk sizes. I bought a 1kg tub, with screw top lid and handle of fresh garlic, peeled for 4.95, fabulous value I...

Not all houses suit blue shutters. Windows are like eyes and on your gorgeous house if the shutters were painted blue, the house might look like it has too much make- up on, especially with all the lovely greenery on the walls. I can understand the fascination you have for blue shutters but on seein...

My daughters always speak to me in english because they think my french is rubbish! I love it when we are in a mixed crowd and they just swap to which ever is appropriate. mind you I get a kick out of being in mixed company but understanding all I find I have a perfect french accent in my head, it j...

My 5 year old daughter is fluent in 13 year old french courtesy of big sister and friends. When I took her back to NZ last year, no one could get a french word out of her. Not being stupid, she knew there was no point in speaking french to the kiwis as they wouldn't understand. Not too good for mums...

I didn't vote because CLEAN was not one of the options. We have used colour on the walls, interesting furniture(found at vide grenier mostly) things hung on the walls but minimal stuff on the dressing tables etc (they can put their own stuff on those) I am aware of making people feel comfortable wit...

I also have a friend with a nice holiday apartment in London. Just give me a yell if the others are not available and I will get more info

Janice