This French Life

  • Tracking down Trésor Public offices

    Tax FranceMAKING sure you are properly registered for payment of income tax and other taxes such as taxe foncière is usually high up on the list of things to do.

    Many of the Finance Ministry offices, the Trésor Public, will be able to offer a helping hand with the forms, some of the bigger offices even have English-speaking staff available some time during the week.

    A page on the Service Public lets you track down the offices quickly and easily, as well as other services that may prove useful.

    And for those people confident enough to try their hand at the online form provided by the Finance Ministry, which provides an estimate of tax to be paid, check out the Calcul de L’Impot 2007 page.

  • The steps involved when buying a home

    THERE is a very useful guide outlining the legal steps and requirements involved when purchasing a property in France on Susie Holland’s Bonapart Consulting blog.

    It will get you up to speed on the procedure so that you are aware of what stage you are at if buying, as well as outlines the information required of owners selling a property.

    Lead check: This obligation concerns property built before 1948, by the law voted June 9, 1999. The owner must provide a certificate dating less than a year, regarding the risk of having access to lead (through paint, pipes etc.).

    The SRU Law: Solidarité et Renouvellement Urbain (solidarity and urban renewal)

  • Telephone answering service from France Telecom

    FrancetelecomLIKE many telephone companies France Telecom offers you the chance to have an answer phone service set up to take calls when you can’t get to the phone.

    The Messagerie Vocale 3103 is a free service, but you do have to register for it, and you can also make use of other tools built into it such as personalising the answer phone message.

    One thing that you may find useful is the option to change the time it takes for the answering service to kick in, look for régler le nombre de sonneries avant le renvoi vers la messagerie, you can set it to answer after five seconds, or in increments up to 40 seconds.

    Related article: Contacting France Telecom’s English helpline

  • The cartoon characters of France

    French cornerMANY of the world’s most famous cartoon characters sprung from the drawing boards of French artists, with many as popular today as they were when first created.

    Here US college student Samantha Decker, who is training to teach French in high schools, casts an eye over some of her favourites from the world of les bandes dessinées.

    Quotesstart_2 Comic books are much more mainstream in France than they are in the United States. Stateside, it’s considered a hobby. Across the pond, it’s just like picking up a book.

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  • Le Relais de Flavigny

    WHEN visiting a place like Flavigny sur Ozerain it would be unthinkable not to try the gastronomic delights.

    Le Relais de Flavigny offers a warm welcome in this mediaeval village where they serve authentic French cuisine.

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  • Le Domaine de Flavigny – Alésia

    Vignoble de FlavignySET in the heart of the Auxois countryside you will find the vineyard of Le Domaine de Flavigny-Alésia.

    The trellised vineyards on the slopes behind Le Domaine give forth beautiful grapes.

    Here you can taste the wines from Flavigny, one of the oldest vineyards in France; documented well before Charlemagne, in 741.

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  • Flavigny sur Ozerain, a village set in time

    Flavigny sur OzerainAN hour north of Dijon and a short drive from the A6 lays the fortified, Burgundian, hilltop village of Flavigny sur Ozerain.

    If it seems time has stopped in this mediaeval village it makes it a much more charming and desirable to visit. Julius Caesar installed his troops in ‘Flaviniacum’ in 52 BC while he fought the coalition Gaul army, led by Vercingétorix, who had their base at Alésia on the opposite side of the valley perched on Mont Auxois.

    The first constructions date back to the Gallo-Roman period when Flavigny became a place of great importance, the name Flavinus is that of the owner of the ground, a villa with agricultural outlines and artisanal remains date from that period.

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  • The Époisses cheese and recipe

    WHEN farmer Robert Berthaut and his wife realised in 1956 that the Époisses cheeses were becoming extinct the couple were determined to do something about it.

    They decided that the traditional heritage should be revived and set about learning the skills surrounding this specialist cheese

    The Berthaut cheese company is deeply rooted in history founded on time honoured techniques and traditions and is situated on what had at one time been an ancient religious community, with its buildings built to blend in with the old curing room.

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  • The château of Époisses

    Chateau EpoissesIF you are a lover of châteaux and cheese, Époisses in Burgundy is a delight to visit.

    Today the moat has been filled in, and the park a playground for the village children, but these are just some of the chapters in a long and complicated history.

    From a fortress to a semi-circular château, Époisses has changed hands many times. In the 6th century Queen Brunehault, regent of Thierry her grandson, king of Burgundy, oversaw it but the queen had her own ambitions, and not wanting to hand over the throne, kept Thierry away with women of easy virtue and clear of too much food and wine.

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  • Micheal Wright and C’est La Folie

    MichaelwrightREGULAR readers will know that I have often highlighted the adventures of Daily Telegraph columnist Michael Wright and his move to France.

    Well his book C’est La Folie is out now in paperback and he writes about the photoshoot to accompany the recent launch and his thoughts on the success of the book.

    And don’t forget if you want to hear Michael chat about his life in France and why he left the UK you can listen to the audio interview he gave the site.