alan h's activity

Questions Asked

My place is between Lakes Orta and Maggiore, and I have used Flybe in the past to fly from Birmingham to Milan Malpensa.Looking for flights in Sept/Oct, I was disappointed at the high costs - so went to the Easyjet site to look at the Luton to Tur

Thu, 08/20/2009 - 04:27

I have often advocated swinging up through Belgium when travelling from UK to Italy, on the grounds of the cheap petrol in Luxembourg and toll free motorways. I did this route again a couple of weeks ago, but found the roadworks on the Dunkirk-Lil

Tue, 07/28/2009 - 09:32

 I thought it might help people not break the law [or get caught breaking it] to some info on speed cameras they might come across in driving down to Italy. [This really applies to people like me who don’t have a sat-nav that tells them all the in

Sat, 07/04/2009 - 11:03

When driving to Italy, [Lake Maggiore area], from Calais, I almost always drive up towards Dunkirk and then head East towards Luxembourg.   The reasons for doing so is simple:-

    Fri, 07/03/2009 - 12:52

    If you are driving down to Italy, this regularly updated AA site gives you the latest info on fuel prices across Europe.  Its useful for deciding where to fill up. Note - in Luxembourg, [where I always fill up - its worth the minor detour from Cal

    Thu, 07/02/2009 - 05:32

    .     I heard this today on Radio 4.  I take it you already know of tough and bough and cough and dough?Others may stumble, but not you,On hiccough, thorough, lough** and through.Well done!

    Sat, 06/20/2009 - 16:58

    .   I'm considering handing over ownership of my Italian Holiday Home to my kids. Does anyone know

    • How easy this is to do, and how costly?
    • Whether this can be done in the UK - or do I have to do it in Italy?
    Fri, 06/19/2009 - 04:54

    Comments posted

    Sun, 10/30/2011 - 08:05

    If you drive down from Calais/Dunkirk, you could drop in at the Le Crueset Factory Shop near St Quentin.  It is at a place called Fresnoy le Grand - about two and a half hours from the Ports Called in there this Summer.  Instead of the usual Factory prices [20% - 30%  lower than UK prices] they had a Sale on - average saving on UK prices was over 50%

    Sun, 10/30/2011 - 07:50

    "Apparently our water has at long last been connected" Really pleased that your water is now up and running, but is it just connected to the meter - or has it been turned on so the pipes in the house are full?  If thats the case, someone will need to drain all the pipes before Winter sets in and they freeze. You Agent should be able to advise what has been 'filled'   Good Luck

    Thu, 10/27/2011 - 13:22

    Only one way to eat them [like most veg] Raw with gravy - fantastic  [better after a frost - it sweetens them up] My Mum would be putting the sprouts on the stove just about now - just to make sure they were cooked for Christmas - if they weren't of a consistency that would pass through a fine sieve, they weren't done!

    Tue, 10/25/2011 - 04:40

    You could post the photos on this forum - then anyone could have a look and comment   Just go to 'Create Content' [at top of page] and follow the instructions for Photo Gallery   Alan

    Thu, 10/20/2011 - 18:09

    If nobody responds - you could try this;- Click on "Map Of User Locations" [bottom right hand corner of page], then you can zoom in on your area and see who has shown their location as near you. Then, click on a 'person' to see their profile, then you can send them a message

    Thu, 10/20/2011 - 09:23

    When I set up a couple of Groups some time ago  [for buying and selling things] it took a few days for the 'approval' to come through and the Groups to go live - so I should wait a bit before complaining too loudly   Alan

    Thu, 10/20/2011 - 05:30

    "If you buy as a second home ...........you will pay ICI, but you will get a reduction on your rubbish collection taxes." How does one get the reduction on the rubbish tax?

    Thu, 10/20/2011 - 05:25

    "Perhaps, learning to live with the rat is not such a bad idea. Make it an official pet"   Most Italians have done this for many years - he's called Silvio

    Tue, 10/04/2011 - 11:42

    When friends visit our place I email them directions.  These consist of the usual road maps - increasing 'scale/detail' as they get nearer the house, plus photos of road junctions they will come  to as they near our place.  The photos have arrows showing which way they go.  This seems to work Indeed, I keep a print out of the email at the house so that if I need anything delivered/serviced, I can give the company the print out  [our place is in a tiny hamlet in the middle of nowhere].  The washing machine service man drove onto our drive waving the instructions and beaming like mad - so they really do work.  It is the pictures that make the difference, so I'd recommend this method to anyone

    Answer to: Buying a scooter
    Mon, 10/03/2011 - 04:38

    I believe that a way around the residency is to pay a resident to buy, tax and insure the scooter, and leave it at your place. Then, as its the scooter that's insured and not a named driver, you and your family/friends could use all the time. [as long as they have an appropriate and valid driving licence from their home country] [I'm sure someone on this forum can confirm/deny this!]   Good Luck