Tesco and Eurotunnel[Copied from another Forum]If you shop at Tesco you'll probably be rewarded with Cash Vouchers. What you may not know is that you can exchange these for 3x their value with Eurotunnel.
alan h's activity
Questions Asked
ITALIAN GENEALOGYI am researching my family tree [all UK based], and belong to a Genealogy Group here in the UK - its part of the U3A [an organisation for 'retired persons who want to do things rather than sit at home all d
Wed, 01/04/2017 - 05:24
Cancelling a Eurotunnel Booking I have had to cancel a return trip on Eurotunnel [Car + 2 + Dog], as I have to go into hospital for an op.The booking was 'non-refundable'.I rang them to cancel and they confirmed it was non-
Thu, 05/26/2016 - 08:00
IMU - Its still around I thought this had disappeared in the new tax system, but my Comune website says the first payment for 2014 is due by 16th June Paid it via my bank today - emailed them the F24
Fri, 06/13/2014 - 08:56
Looks like the days of the easy/cheap trip to italy through Switzerland are numbered. Apparently, the Swiss government has decided to raise the cost of the vignette to 100 Swiss Francs for 2015. They are introducing a two month vignette for 40SF,
Sun, 09/01/2013 - 15:58
Petrol prices in France are now comparable with the UK, except on the French Autoroutes.One option is to fill up at the L'Eclerc superstores with their SP95 E10 petrol [its a petrol with some ethylene in - generally used in France - which is OK fo
Thu, 07/11/2013 - 04:25
For a change this year we drove down to Italy via Besancon [avoiding most tolls by taking some good french non-motorways.]However - Besancon roads are in total chaos as they are digging them up to lay tram routes - this will take about 2 more yea
Wed, 07/10/2013 - 16:44
Can you help?I've just completed making a 'variation' of Limoncello. The only change is that I dispensed with the lemons, I and substituted Sloes that I picked here in the UK at the end of last year.
Sun, 01/20/2013 - 09:10
In today's GuardianRyanair have announced their credit card will now be liable to the same charges as other credit cards - so the end of no charge bookings
Sat, 11/10/2012 - 09:07
Comments posted
"i'm off to try and scratch a living in the less salubrious areas of Birmingham" ......is there a 'more salubrious area' in Brum?
You ask ;- "Any advice?" I think you may well have just about answered it in the penultimate sentence of your posting, where you write;- "Our lawyer is being rather inconclusive on this matter and we don't want to spend hundreds of thousands on a restoration only to discover 10 years down the line that the legal title wasn't as good as it should have been!" If you cannot get a definitive answer [in writing] from your lawyer, I think you have 3 options
Me? - I'd plump for option 2, with the fall back of option 3 [unless you are prepared to accept the possibility of losing the house, and your money, at some time in the future, in which case just go to option 1] Good Luck
twice apparently!
edit - I hate it when I press the wrong button, and post a blank!
"how do you sleep under a roof that bakes to plus 50c in the summer or drops to minus temps in the winter...holiday home??? sounds more like hell" Mine has 4+ inches of concrete ceiling below it - so there is no problem [although, I could lay 6" of polystyrene on it if I lived there all the time - but only as a heating cost reducer]
When I started this thread I had no idea where it would go [if at all]. During its life, my feelings have swung between hope and despair, depending on how it began to mirror the previous Forum in its later life. I recognise the forum isn't perfect [none is], and it is less exciting. Thank goodness it lacks most of the backbiting and vitriol that the other Italymag Forum suffered from. I'd just like to echo what Jinty said - but apply it to everyone - not just some "just let us get on with our non thriving community life." Some of us quite like it here
Re-fixing ridge tiles is a relatively simple process - but be careful of the risk of falling! This video ......... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTkocnWCl3c........gives an idea how to do it yourself. Chat to your neighbours - they may know a local 'handyman' who will do it. My roof is unlined [just tiles and battens], and I have easily replaced broken and missing tiles They are the interlocking tiles - they look a bit like these http://www.cunialcyprus.com/marsigliese.html but are not nailed in position.I replace them from underneath the roof - the tiles just slide in and out easily, with a little lug that catches on the batten that stops them sliding 'down and out'.
"What do you do about your clothes and bedding?" We are pretty lucky - the house is relatively dry and we store the bedding in wardrobes - its cold [but not damp] when we get it out for use.If you are worried about damp you can use something like this............. http://www.caraselledirect.com/_/vacuum_storage_bags_chests/ .................... which will ensure the clothes etc stay dry [and they reduce the space requirement].We get over the cold sheet problem by using hot water bottles for the first night - although you could take over an electric blanket if your a real softie................."Do you suffer a damp bed the first night?"No - I just make sure I don't drink too much
For me the answer isgas - offelectric - offWater - off and pipes drained [open up lowest taps and also flush loo after turning water off]Central heating system - don't drain, but make sure plenty of antifreeze in the system Benefit - no chargesDis-benefit - a cold flat when you arrive [for us it takes 24 hrs to warm it up properly if we do a winter visit]
I totally agree with Capo's comments - a local geometra is an essential - they know the people that matter and how to 'work' the system to your advantage - timescales for approvals by the commune will be less [although still long]. Some people will recommend using and architect - but I'd suggest that unless you are doing something really 'fancy', a geometra is what you want. Ask your neighbours/estate agent/commune for recommendations - then ask to see some of their work [drawings/plans and actual works] before making up your mind which one to use. [and check what he/she will charge you] The geometra will draw up the plans, get the various estimates [haggle when you see them - it works], make the submissions to the commune for approvals, and supervise the works. A good geometra is worth his/her weight in gold.