the hat (herault & aude times) september 2014

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ISSN: 2273-2748

FREE Monthly SEPTEMBER 2014

THE HATTHE HERAULT AND AUDE TIMES

THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE MAGAZINE

The HAT September 2014.indd 1 01/09/2014 04:22:28

The Herault & Aude Times

September. A month that offers a slight drop in temperature, a lessoning of traffic and the au-tumnal promise of strikes, all which give that comforting feeling that life is returning to nor-

mality.

Just as many of our native birds begin to dust down their suitcases ready for their annual trip abroad, a far rarer species arrives at The HAT.

Jerome is the new ‘go to guy’. A man for all seasons and available across all of the Languedoc. We hope

you welcome him as kindly as you welcomed us. What we can tell you is that he is available for weddings, bar

mitzvahs and all HAT enquiries.

In this issue, new columnists Nick Barrett writes about Lucid Dreaming and photographer and World Photo

Adventure founder Wilf James shares his insights and advice on how to take better photographs and how to store and improve those already taken; we have recipes from Caroline Conran’s award winning cookbook ‘Sud de France: The food and cooking of the Languedoc’; a young journalist writes about why September is definitely not her favourite time of the year (sshh have to whisper the word ‘rentrée); and Richard Fowler takes a stroll in the heart of Béziers and meets some of the more interesting local residents.

EDITORIAL THE HAT

SEPTEMBER


3www.theheraultandaudetimes.com

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THE TALA list of what’s popular and what’s being asked in France now..........

Mr Hollande has thrown the dice and got his ‘people’ on board.What? No Bernard Tapie?The Cabinet is as follows:Minister of Foreign Affairs: Laurent Fabius Minister of Ecology: Ségolène Royal Minister of National Education: Najat Vallaud-Belkacem Minister of Justice: Christiane Taubira Minister of Finance and Public Accounts: Michel Sapin Minister of Defence: Jean-Yves Le Drian Minister of Social Affairs, Health, and Women’s Rights: Marisol Touraine Minister of Employment: François Rebsamen Minister of the Interior: Bernard Cazeneuve Minister of Agriculture and Government Spokesman: Stéphane Le Foll Minister of the Economy and Industry: Emmanuel Macron Minister of Housing: Sylvia Pinel Minister of Decentralisation: Marylise Lebranchu Minister of Overseas Territories: George Pau-Langevin Minister of Culture and Communication: Fleur Pellerin Minister of Cities, Youth and Sports: Patrick Kanner

The unfortunate issue is that it is reported that up to 4 people po-litely declined posts to serve on what they see as a sinking ship!

POLITICS

The Classic French TwistThis season a timeless hairstyle, synony-mous with chic and glamour is embodied with the reemergence of the French twist, always accompanying the best and the most elegant evening looks. Thus, what Monique Lhuillier and Altuzarra suggested for their best options were combinations including both classic and modern inter-pretations of the French twist, also adding some touches of effortlessness.

K

IT’S BACK IN FASHION...

MONTPELLIER & TOULOUSE IN ‘TOP HOSPITAL’ POLL.

Le Point has published it’s list of top hospitals in France and Toulouse’s Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (CHU) moved up one place to take the top spot and Montpellier CHU comes in at number 6.

POLICE TO WEAR CAMERAS IN TROUBLESPOTSWHY, DON’T THEY TRUST THEMSELVES?

After a trial period that was so suc-cessful 6 people were arrested (sic) Le Figaro has reported that at great cost some Police will be fitted with body cameras in ‘troublesome ar-eas’. When asked by The HAT a police spokesperson declined to

say if this was to record the police or alleged perpetrators of crime.

WHAT’S HOTSkinny jeans (boys and girls), sailor stripes (think Jean-Paul Gautier) and fruit smooth-ies.

LA POSTE AND THE MISSING DELIVERIES

“Any post this morning?” is a familiar cry but many areas noticed a lack of deliveries throughout the summer months. 6 villages in the Hérault do NOT get monday deliveries and some reports are claiming that deliveries are down by a third. The reason, holiday planning!


4The Herault & Aude Times

The HATThe Herault & AudeTimes - 1 Grand Rue, St Thibery,34630 (11100)Publisher: Gatsby B - Editor : Emma F - Advertising Director: Tom BAdvertising: Vicky M-B Art Editor: Daisy B

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www.theheraultandaudetimes.comPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMERThe Herault & Aude TimesThe Herault & Aude Times is owned and published by L’Herault Art (L.A. Publishing) (51926616300010).The publisher, authors and contributors reserve their rights in regards to copyright of their work. No part of this work covered by the copyright may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means without the written consent of the publisher.No person, organization or party should rely or on any way act upon any part of the contents of this publication whether that information is sourced from the website, magazine or related product without first obtaining the advice of a fully qualified person.This magazine and its related website and products are sold and distributed on the terms and condition that:The publisher, contributors, editors and related parties are not responsible in any way for the actions or results taken by any person, organisation or any party on basis of reading information, stories or contributions in this publication, website or related product. The publisher, contributors and related parties are not engaged in providing legal, financial or professional advice or services. The publisher, contributors, editors and consultants dis-claim any and all liability and responsibility to any person or party, be they a purchaser, reader, advertiser or consumer of this publication or not in re-gards to the consequences and outcomes of anything done or omitted being in reliance whether partly or solely on the contents of this publication and related website and products. The publisher, editors, contributors and related parties shall have no re-sponsibility for any action or omission by any other contributor, consultant, editor or related party. END

ISSN: 2273-2748

WRITERS

The writers and contributors are the stars of this magazine and without them I would have all of my hair and would not be drinking gin at 9am

every day. Having said that, you should know more about them. All their bios can be found at www.theheraultandaudetimes.com. Please read them, they deserve to be recognised for their fantastic contribution and for being patient and generous to me.

IMPORTANT:

This magazine is intended for the use of the individual(s) who picked it up.

This magazine may contain information that is helpful, opinionated and can at times be unsuitable for overly sensitive Persons with no cultural credibility. If you are not sure then may we politely suggest that you pass it onto someone else as to continue reading is not recommended and may constitute an irritating social faux pas. No animals were harmed in the making of this magazine, and believe it or not one single opinion is definitive- period.

t: 0468 90 55 17



September 2014

03 Editorial 06 Letters 08 My Place 09 And Another Thing 12 Wine Times 16 GTBY 20 Lifestyle 22 Music 23 History 25 A French View

27 English for Expat Children 28 - 31 Art 32 Recipes 34 Business 38 In the Garden 40 Subscribe 42 E-male 42 - 46 Classified Ads 47 Sport

CONTENTS02 Editorial

03 The Talk

09 My PlaceYulia Rudakova

22 The Magical Folk of France

13 Nick’s Dream Corner

The Cover Story

We are proud to have the talents of Mr Barry Beckett producing the

wonderful original covers that you currently see. And online now you can purchase these beautiful images and have a piece of the Languedoc in your own home.

Prints and selected Limited Editions available.

Barry Beckett 2013 - 2014All rights reserved

[email protected]

16 Beziers - The city the anglophones avoid...but why?

32 Take Better Pictures

30 Art - Gordon Seward

26 Review - The samsung nX3000 Camera. Retro and sooo cool baby!



Letters

Don’t Miss

SeptemberRESTAURANT Vigneron

OPEN every day for lunch ( except Mon-days) & Saturday evenings

Friday 26th September- Fete des Ven-danges

Serge Casero trio - Orgue- Batterie Sax organisation Culture Jazz

**

Nimes

La Féria des VendangesStaple of the festive nîmoise life, La Féria

des Vendanges transforms the city of Nimes into a friendly and festive gather-

ing , where the watchword is party. For three days , the bull is king.

19 to 21 September 2014Reservations 0 891 701 401

(0,225€ TTC/mn)**

DEMOISELLES de VERREGlass Museum HALLE de VERRE50 Avenue du Nouveau Monde

34270 ClaretTel. 04 67 59 06 39

[email protected] www.halleduverre.fr

Sep open everyday 14h/18hUntil 14 December 2014

Free entry / visit the site for workshops**

Jean LatinneContemporary Art Space of Bedarieux

19 avenue abbé Tarroux 34600 BédarieuxTel. 04 67 95 48 27

[email protected] Wednesday to Friday 9h30-

12h/14h-18H. Saturday-Sunday 15h-18hUntil 06 September

Free entry

Originally from Belgium Jean Latinneis a self-taught artist and former profes-sor of History and Literature at Brus-

sels University. The exhibition features Latinne’solder work and a space espe-

cially dedicated to his love for elephants where paintings, sculptures and ceramic

will be shown.**

Welcome to the letters pageDo you have something to say? About the magazine? About life? Do you have a question or even a complaint? Send your letters to [email protected]

Anyone else?I have read recently in the press in the UK, France and the USA that France is a country in terminal decline.And in this magazine there are plusses and minuses but it points to an over inflated beaurocracy and a country in trouble. But I would like to ask what people really think? I am a retiree who has come to this wonderful country and do avoid many of the difficulties that many expe-rience but I believe France should be allowed to fail. Not intentionally but all of the strong European econo-mies have crashed and fell before rising again in recent times. Look at Germany, look at the United Kingdom and now Spain. Italy and France are in de-cline and not merely as a re-sult of electing their current leaders but because of bad management over decades and a changing world.When France hits rock bot-tom it should not be bailed out but will do as other countries have done and rise from the ashes a leaner and more coherent country.The French mentality is not as closed as many believe, it is just ponderous and no one in power can change that.Robert K. Carcassonne

La PosteI read with interest your ar-ticle on La Banque Postale and the commentary in the business section.I too have had the same thing happen when my wife paid in cheques to our local post office.After 14 days we phoned our agent who told me to contact the clients (we run a B&B) and ask them to re-issue the cheques. No ex-planation, they just told my wife that they didn’t have the cheques and there was nothing they could do.We complained and went to a solicitor; after 11 weeks of registered letters to this day we have never had the mon-ey credited.In most cases an under-standing clientele re-paid their bills but two couples from overseas who stayed for a combined period of 16 nights just didn’t bother. Please continue with your campaign, it is not right.Withheld, Aude

In the GardenLove this column. So many good ideas and they thrive here. Thank you.Yvette

Recipes USAI loved your recipes last month. Go USA. All this French and Persian food is

great but Jed Thompson, you are the man.Bringing brisket to the French, I’m with you.Dave B Nimes

Ah Dave B,Such fun. And reading your email I longed for a 32oz steak and a few beers and jellied donuts and pastrami on rye and weighing in at 300lbs! Cool man!

Mental Health IIHello, the feature by T King in your June issue was won-derful. To see a magazine here talk openly about this issue and to see it written so delicately was inspirational to myself and my wife. We have a son in the ‘system’ here and although we have nothing but gratitude to the individuals involved, the sys-tem is flawed. Thank you so much. Ian

The JacksonsLast issue you had an inter-view with the Jacksons which was amazing. My family and I went and it was fantastic. Yes, they are not in the first flush of youth but dancing, singing and all round enter-tainment....they’ve still got it. Jen, Beziers

The JacksonsYour interview with The



FOU D’AnglaisNOW IN MONTPELLIERall your favourite foods from homefrozen sausages and baconscones and tea, delicious homemade cakesbaked potatoes, pies and sandwiches10, Rue Anatole France 34000 Montpellier04 67 29 60 49 Tuesday to Saturday 10-6

Letters

Welcome to the letters pageDo you have something to say? About the magazine? About life? Do you have a question or even a complaint? Send your letters to [email protected]

Jacksons in the last issue was a huge disappointment to me. I had hoped for some insights into life in this most talented and strange family and it read more like a press release.Comments?Nick R. Exeter UK

Hi Nick. In truth many of the questions we asked were not answered. And yes, they were much more personal but what do you expect? One of the most famous families on the planet may not be that keen to answer questions about groupies and relatives after what they’ve been through. I thank them for what they did do and will you tell us all about your ex-girl-friend and that issue you had with a hamster?

DietsVery funny and yet very sad!Jan, by text

HistoryJust wanted to say thank you to Sue Hicks and to wish her the best. My favourite page in the magazine.George H, Lodeve

History 2The history page will be missed. It was well written, interesting and gave my family a dinner conversation. Thankyou.Withheld

History 3I see that your History through street names writer Sue Hicks is leaving. I enjoyed this page very much and hope it is re-placed by somone else.Freda

And there were more. A won-derful column and person who deserves all the plaudits.

DistributionWhat happened to the maga-zine last month. I haven’t had a copy since the July issue.Jim P, Arles

Hi Jim, there wasn’t one. That’s why it says July / August on the cover.

OutragedI am writing to complain about the good to be young article in which it appears that sex is the subject. Is this appropriate for this magazine? I don’t read this in the Riviera Reporter or Connexion. Are you dumbing down?Withheld

GTBYYour article ‘Is it really only sex that makes guys clean and tidy?’ was bloody fantastic. I put it on my 17 yer old sons bed and asked him for a week if he had read it only to be told he’d do it later.When his girlfriend came to visit it miraculously turned up in the living room and I showed it to his girlfriend and we went and saw that his bedroom was at last tidy. We laughed.

Ah yes, we thought we’d go tabloid journalism to please those of you out there who seem to so enjoy it......

This is my last letters page as it gets handed over to some-one with less manners than myself.It has been an honour to know that I have improved all of your lives and you have seen how manners and calm are such a good thing to work with. Now off with you all. Ciao!

Send us a letter or a mail or a text.Your chance to have your say.

The HAT Letters Page



My Place My PlaceThe People that make up the Languedoc

Yulia RudakovaRussian tutor, tour manager and Languedoc B&B owner

Where did you grow up?I was born in the USSR! Today, that sounds almost exotic since the USSR no longer ex-ists…it’s a kind of political “Atlantis”. But, well, people here still refer to us as « the soviets ». I was born and grew up in a Rus-

sian southern region, Kuban, between the Caucasus mountains and eastern Black Sea coast. It is the only region in Russia where wine is produced. The Russian people used to say that this region was « not so Rus-sian » because of its very hot climate and blend of Caucasian and Ukrainian Cossack culture.Can you tell us about your family?Mum was a librarian who filled me with classical Russian and European literature from my very early childhood. And my dad was a polytechnic high school professor... who used to play guitar and made his own wine. So he gave me a taste for both of his passions... What are you most important memories from your childhood?Well my soviet childhood was not « so

special », contrary to how many Western people may imagine. I used to spend my summer holidays on the Black Sea coast with my parents at my dad’s high school re-sort camp. I also loved the parties my par-ents had at home with all of their friends

– there were always lots of people at each birthday around the table over-flowing with different tasty meals my mum had prepared over the previous 3 days... there was singing, laughing, having a good time. I wish I could make the same thing today here...What were your dreams back then?I was fond of classical music and clas-sical English and French literature. My dreams were filled with travelling in Europe – London, Paris, Vienna...You were educated in Russia, what led you to come to France?All those things I mentioned before and my passion for French culture and language.What was your first job?I started working when I was 17, giving private lessons in foreign languages … after my own University classes. This way I could earn money to pay for my air ticket to France in 1994. You are fluent in Russian, French and English, does learning languages come naturally to you or do you have a per-sonal technique for learning?Thank you! My English is not as fluent as I wish it could be as I’ve never lived

in any English speaking countries.I learned my first words in English when I was five and since that time it has always been a game for me to learn languages. I love it! I like to listen to people speaking in their mother tongue... It’s like music. Pho-netics are a fantastic art form!What led you to travelling with theatre/dance/music companies?At the end of my French university course I used to translate. One day I was given a contract to translate texts for a new web-site dedicated to the memory of a Great Russian conductor; through this I met his last agent and the whole production com-pany who invited me to work with them on tours and during their international conductor competitions. It was a fantastic job suggestion for me! I was always fond of

theatre and classical music.Can you describe your role in this job?I’m a tour manager. - « The-crazy-person-running-around-the-backstage-and-being-in-several-places-at-the-same-time ».Basically, I’m in charge of the overview of the tour when it is sur le terrain. First of all – I take care of the artists. I deal with both the local staff and foreign workers and art-ists; translating technical information as the show is set up, but also conducting media interviews, photo shoots, pre-show talks with the public, negotiations between the tour director and the company manager. And all kinds of day to day requirements for the tour, such as checking transfer sched-ules, organising the hotels who will often be hosting up to 100 person orchestras, etc.You have worked with some extraordi-nary theatre and dance companies, do you have any particular stories about your time with them?My very first tour, 11 years ago was, was with the Seiji Ozawa and Saito Kinen Or-chestra in Paris and my next one will be with the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra of Moscow at the Laroque d’Anthéron Inter-national Piano Festival. I have also worked at great theatres such as the Théâtre des Champs Elysées and the Auditorium de Louvre. The most extraordinary experience was to work at the Pragues Estates Theatre, the venue where Mozart created his Don Giovanni. I also had a crazy and exiting time at the Folle Journée de Nantes where I had to prepare with stage workers the set up of a philharmonic orchestra in 5 minutes!Of course, there are also all sorts of « ad-ventures » with artists who are often very absent-minded, because their whole being is dedicated to their art. And that’s some-thing I understand very well and respect. But, I’ve never been spoken to in a bad manner, never had to deal with any extrav-agant behaviour... I think classical artists are very different from the cinema or pop and rock music star crowd. They are more humble and distinguished. So, I admire them, but also, as I know that they like to be considered as ‘ordinary’ when they are not performing; I respect their private lives which includes not speaking about things that may have happened backstage.Do you have a favourite company and why?Surprisingly my favourite company was also the most « difficult » one, The St Petersburg Eifman Ballet Theatre. When the whole theatre structure is on tour – with dancers, stage workers, scenery, costumes, make up – it’s a huge and an amazing challenge! It is absolutely exiting!



If you could work with any company, which one would it be?I’ve worked with different orchestras, bal-lets and choirs, but never with an opera. I wish I could go on a tour with an opera, because it is my favorite kind of show. It is so complete! For you, where is home?My home is where I feel good living... I used to say that my soul belongs to Russia for-ever, but my heart is in France.What are the most evocative/important elements of Russian culture for you? I think I need some 20 pages... at least !)The crucial element of my native culture which is so dear to me lies at the crossroad between eastern and western heritage, cul-ture, lifestyle and temperament, which can be very hard and conflicting at times, but also very rich and surprising...You have lived in Languedoc for the last few years, what led you coming here?Love! I met Eric, my partner, when I lived in Bordeaux and very soon we decided I should join him here, in the « vrai sud »... last December. We’re very happy to be liv-ing here together!What is the most ideal working environ-ment for you? A few years ago I was fond of travelling for my work. But today, I feel more like staying in the same place, being « based » somewhere. It definitely doesn’t mean working in an office or, - worse -, in an « open space » platform. I have tried all of those work environments, being an of-fice assistant, as well as working in French administration, and today I can tell you – I hate it! I think that working at home is the most suitable way for me personally, but

still not the easiest one, because I’m a very undisciplined person.You have recently opened a B&B, what in-spired you to do this?Indeed, I decided to quit the classical “world of working” and I love our house. I like cooking and welcoming guests as my mother used to do when I was a child... But my friends are all far away, the kids are get-ting older and the house is large and mostly empty, so we decided that it could be a business!When you are not teaching or running your B&B how do you like to relax?Walking in the countryside around the river banks, admiring medieval heritage and monuments, practicing yoga outside with my partner, dancing and cooking with my step-daughter...If you could invite 6 people (dead or alive) to dinner, who would they be and why?Mozart, who is much more than just a fa-vourite composer – a universe of cosmic perfection and an Aquarius (!), Hans Chris-tian Andersen – the Poet, Lars von Trier (I still like his craziness and provocative intel-ligence … and his sadness towards today’s poor world), Anton Tchekhov – my favourite Russian doctor (and also another Aquari-us!), Vladimir Nabokov - the Mozart of lit-erature (it would be funny to see those two guys at the same table !), probably Anna of Kiev, the queen of France (we would have a few things to talk about) and François Vil-lon ...there must be at least one French guy, quand-même! And as well as my partner Eric, I would also invite my two best friends from Moscow, Aleksey and Daniil.

**

THE FRENCH AND STRIKES

It is with a usual weariness that I read that French air traffic contollers are probably going to strike in Septem-

ber.For those of you that visit or commute to family, friends or business this really is not a shock but in this case I do have a little sympathy. Over 75% of the union members were in favour of striking as we go to press and the unions have flexed their mus-cles again to bring a national brand to its knees. “The threat to our jobs is just too big,” were the words of the President of the SNPL union Jean-Louis Barber. ALWAYS ON STRIKE‘The French are always on strike’ is an oft heard conversation but is it true? Well yes they are and no they’re not. This is an anglophone magazine. For the British the French alaways strike; for the Germans they always strike; for the Canadins they hardly strike; for the Americans rarely. Up until 2010 France regularly lost over 120 days for every 1000 employ-ees per year. It is a little higher now. Compared to Germany in the same period: 4 days per 1000, the UK: 9 days. France is the top of the leaugue in Europe but someway behind Canada, yes Canada and South Africa, so is this stereotype of the French striking correct? Sarkozy claimed to have broken the unions by demanding that skeleton services had to run whenever a strike took place. But look again. The French reputation for strikes is more about the street protests; the need to publicly let the government know how people feel. It allows media coverge to focus on chil-dren, families, workers....the people protesting, and is not always about money but rights, whereas other countries usually strike when financial negotiations break down. And the breaker for this militnt union dominant stereotype? In the UK, Germany and Italy around 30% of the workforce are in unions, in France it is nearer just 8.5%.



This one unit class 73 ‘Rhone Alpes’ Diesel railcar forms the Intercité Aubrac Express from Béziers in the South of France as far as Clermont Ferrand.

Albeit in the real world it is small for a TER, it is in effect one of the TET (trains d’equilibre du territoire) financed by the government as a result of an agreement with SNCF.

If it were to be called a TER then it would be the responsibility of the region(s) and in this case Auvergne, Midi Pyrenees and Languedoc- Roussillon and they would have to finance it. Now it has shrunk to a size almost small enough to squeeze through Alice’s keyhole.

More to the point, it is as a direct result of reducing costs which equals reducing the number of trains = less availability and journey times, even though stretches of the line in question have been re-laid in recent months.

What SNCF cannot grasp is that a reduced offer = reduced income= reducing costs even further until you arrive at almost zero income and the service is closed.

I think we all know that SNCF talks with a forked tongue as not wanting any competition but quietly taking shares in private rail companies in other countries such as Italy.

If any reader can find and photograph a smaller intercité, mail the writer and he will buy him a pint in the bar in his village of Magalas where this famous Intercité does not stop en-route for Clermont Fer-rand but does stop at Magalas on the way back to Béziers.

Perhaps the only compensation for us the SNCF society readers is that it brings units from various regions Rhone Alpes, Auvergne and even the Pas de Calais

Chris Elliott is the author of the Lost Railway Lines of l’Hérault [email protected]

**

Train Journeys - The Aubrac Express

Is this the shortest Intercité express in Europe, surely it cannot get any smaller?

A moment if you please....

Blackie was brought in as his owners

moved house and did not want to take him with them. A story that is all too com-mon. Quite often in these scenarios the owners try to blame the dog, but Blackie has come with good references. He is

house-trained, good with children (not with cats) and obedient. He has wiry fur and a little beard and resem-bles a jack terrier. He is very friendly and nice to walk and could make a perfect pet for someone who does not have much time to spend educating a dog.If you can help or would like to assist please contact:

SPA Carcassonne

dogrescuecarcassonne.co.uk

SPA CARCASSONNE



CarringtonMEDIA MOVES

While the people at the HAT were taking a well earned break, there were events taking place in the media world which could change the media

landscape forever. I’m not sure if News Corps’ media interests extend to region-al France, although there have been rumours; certainly one of the world’s largest media organizations has had dealings in France with Vivendi International, Canal +, SFR and others. And nothing is too small for Rupert Murdoch’s acquisitive tendencies to manifest themselves. I remember once visiting the newsroom of a county week-ly in the English West Country and being surprised to find a cardboard cutout of a kangaroo strung up at the end of a light cord. Mr Murdoch had just bought the Berrows Group and the locals weren’t happy. Murdoch has come a long way since then. He has just made a bid for Time Warner. Time Warner have rejected the bid but there is little doubt that negotiations are still in play and if successful will make News Corporation the biggest media organization on the planet. But Murdoch started in a small way.Although his father, Sir Keith Murdoch, had left his son some important newspaper titles, none were very profitable and it was up to Sir Keith’s son Rupert to prove that he could turn a loss maker into a commercial winner with efficient manage-ment and a strong editorial line. I was working for the Murdoch organization shortly after Ru-pert launched Australia’s first national newspaper The Austra-lian. I was not working for The Australian but for a small provincial television station just outside Sydney. Murdoch bought this station because he saw it as a stepping stone into the lucrative Sydney market. A Murdoch man from Sydney was made general manager and my news operation was given some much needed help. It was at the time of the Kennedy assassination. There were no satellite links to Australia. The first pictures to come out of Dallas were wire photos from the news agencies. The Murdoch appointed general manager arranged for the Murdoch newspa-per in Sydney to send all its best wire photos to our newsroom.

That Sunday we went to air with an hour long current affairs show making use of more than 100 wire photos. None of the Sydney television stations had access to the same material. We had a scoop, a veritable scoop. That Monday the general man-ager called me to his office. He congratulated me on the show but cautioned me not to make too much of a fuss. The Murdoch newspaper did not have television rights to the wire photos and we were in breach of copyright. For people in Languedoc Roussillon this may seem a bit re-mote. But the media world is shrinking and what happens in one part of the globe is bound to affect the other. It is a matter of making wise and informed choices to protect your freedoms.

It’s not just Murdoch (above) whose companies appear to be embroiled in continuing scandal. When Arnaud Lagardère, one of France’s media oligarchs and buddy of Nico Sarkozy, released a video of himself with his half-his-age, ridiculously taller, bikini model

partner Jade Foret announcing true love, it caused such shock waves in French high society that it was asked if he was fit to run his organisation. The public on the other hand found it as amusing as Tom Cruise jumping up and down on Oprah’s sofa, making it the viral video of the year.

Industry: MediaFounded: 1992

Image courtesy of grazie.fr

The Media heads that make their own headlines



Wine Times

Rosemary George

This is the season of rosés, the perfect wine for sipping by the pool and to ac-company a leisurely lunch or a picnic in

summer sunshine. Rosé is a remarkably ver-satile wine, and should not be seen as a com-promise for when you are not sure whether to have red or white. It can go surprisingly well with quite substantial dishes. Barbecued lamb with rosé is a surprisingly delicious combina-tion. And then there are the more obvious summer salads and fish dishes, while lighter rosés make a lovely aperitif. Most winegrowers will tell you that rosé is remarkably difficult to make. The first thing to get right is the colour; too dark and it looks like a light red wine, nor should it be totally anae-mic. There is current trend for very pale rosés led by the Côtes de Provence, which is the larg-est appellation of rosé. So a rosé should look pretty in the glass enticing you to take a sip, or two. Nor should rosé be a sideline of red wine; the parameters for making red and rosé are quite different. It is not enough to run off any excess juice and make a rosé. The grapes for rosé need to be picked at a significantly lower degree of ripeness so that the wine has a fresher acidity. Most of the appellations of the Languedoc are much better known for their red wine, but most vignerons make a rosé as well. And the good wine growers will pay as much attention to their rosé as to their red wines. So here are a few suggestions: They are all from the 2013 vintage, as it is generally best to drink the youngest rosé available. Domaine des Trinités, Faugères – 6.50€Simon Coulshaw wants his rosé to be tight and taut, and as mineral as possible. And he succeeds. It is a pretty delicate colour, with some fresh strawberry fruit, with good acidity, and some stony mineral notes on the finish. I’d drink this as an aperitif or with a summer salad. I love the red Corbières of Domaine de la Bar-onne and was delighted to discover their rosé at the Vinisud wine fair this year. Paul Lignières

explained that he wants his rosé to be as low in alcohol as possible, so he picks a week earlier than for his red wines, to give an alcohol level of just 10⁰. The result is a wine that is crisp and fresh, and almost crunchy, or croquant. He also makes a Grenache Gris, which is pretty pale co-lour, with more weight on the palate and even a touch of tannin. This is more of a food rosé. The Château de l’Engarran is one of the lead-ing estates of St. Georges d’Orques but Diane Losfelt also makes a delicate rosé, from vine-yards of Cinsaut and Grenache, which are des-tined for rosé alone. The juice is run off after a short maceration on the skins and the wine is delicate and rounded with a fresh finish. 8.80€ a bottle or splash out 20.50€ for a mag-num, for there is nothing like a magnum to get a party going with a swing. Mas Soleilla has a reputation for serious red la Clape, but in 2013 Peter Wildbolz had a new estate manager who likes making rosé, and so Peter allowed him a free hand and the resulting wine is delicate and fresh and lightly rounded. 12.00€ Montpeyroux is yet another area for which you think red first. Jo Lynch and Andre Suquet at Villa Dondona make Esquisse, a pure Cinsaut and therefore Pays de l’Hérault rather than an appellation. It has a delicate fresh nose, with some herbal fruit on the palate, with good acidity and a rounded finish. Jo is an artist and designs all her own labels, so the bottle looks as enticing as the glass. The Pic St. Loup is generally considered to be one of the best areas of the Languedoc for red wine, but there again the rosés can be remark-ably successful. Try Dame Jeanne (10.00€) from the Bergerie du Capucin, which is a deli-cate pale colour and on the palate fresh and elegant, making a very versatile rosé, for picnic or pool. . Rosemary George M.W.www.tastelanguedoc.blogpsot.com

Rosemary George was lured into the wine trade by a glass of the Wine Society’s champagne at a job interview and subsequently became one of the first women to become a Master of Wine, back in 1979.She has been a freelance wine writer since 1981 and is the author of eleven books. Both her first and last books were both about Chablis. Others include The Wines of New Zealand, two books on Tuscany, the most recent being Treading Grapes; Walking through the Vineyards of Tuscany, as well as The Wines of the South of France which cov-ers the vineyards between from Banyuls and Bellet, from the Spanish to the Italian border, and also Corsica.

She also contributes to various magazines such as Decanter,India Sommelier, www.zesterdai-ly.com and writes a blog on the Languedoc: wwwtastelanguedoc.blogspot.com

Rosés for the Summer



Nick Barrett is the author of books; ‘Spirit Guided Lu-cid Dreaming‘ and‘Dreamscape se-ries one‘. Nick is also the website author forAlwayzLucid.com

Welcome to the first ever ‘Nick’s Dream Corner’, whereby month-ly I will bring to you great infor-

mation regarding the power of dreams and how they can really benefit your day-to-day lives. Let me first begin by introducing myself to you, the reader. My name is Nick Barrett and although I am British by origin, I live currently in Bordeaux with my partner Mar-ion and my one-year-old boy named Sacha. I have been researching the incredibly vast world of dreams for over five years now and have discovered some incredible things along this, not so ‘norm’, journey. As well as being an author of four titles, I also host many dream workshops and retreats in the UK and the rest of Europe. Through the coming months, together, we will slowly peel off the outer shell of the dreaming-self and bring our attention more and more as to how we may use dreams to benefit our lives. Ask yourself now, how do you currently view your dreams? Are they something which rarely occurs? Or, do you perhaps record a dream journal next to your bed ev-ery night and inscribe eccentric tales from another life? For some of us, including myself, I treat the dream world as another ‘type’ of life. This intern gives me a total of two simulta-neous lives that I’m currently living. As op-posed to the one life we generally adhere too on a daily basis. For this I am truly grateful, as I now have extended my own life by at least 30%, on a average life expectancy of about 70-90 years!

How is this even possible? Well, we sleep about 25-35 years of en-tire lives. That’s a long time to not notice and do anything with this time construc-tively, don’t you agree? Today, I will gladly share with you an an-cient way in dreaming. Throughout history, and recorded, an-cient doctrines including the bible, speak of dreams as another doorway into a different type of world, whereby the dreamer under-

goes some task or mission, which then leads to ex-treme spiritual transformation. The Dream yo-gis of Tibet, for

example; passed down from generation to generation their secret teachings in how to implement certain techniques; exercises and meditational practices to consciously control their dreams and move beyond the physical world as we know it! Yes, that’s right, you heard me right! There is, in fact various methods in learning how to dream with conscious awareness. The secret teachings from the ancients have left a trail, and thankfully this information is now available in the West. Back in the early 1900’s, a Dutch psychia-trist and writer, Frederik van Eeden, coined this phenomena of the mind, ‘Lucid Dream-ing’. The word ‘Lucid’ is defined as ‘clear’. Therefore, there is crystal clear awareness within this dream state. The complete definition of Lucid Dream-ing, is knowing that you are in a dream, having a dream, therefore you are now completely in the driver’s seat of the dream and can now control it which ever way you feel is necessary, as opposed to the dream controlling you. Since this time, there have been many conducive scientific studies on the effects of the brain whilst lucid dreaming, whilst trained dreaming participants carried out a series of tests within the dream state itself. A substantial amount of evidence can be found all over the internet, that this phe-nomena is not just sudo-science, imaginary or something mystically esoteric, but rather a skill which can be developed within the mind of the dreamer, no matter what age or background he or she is. Lucid Dreamers, including myself, feel a great sense of freedom once the light bulb moment is clicked on within the dream. Although the body is fast asleep, the mind is awake and a conscious awareness is born that one is in a dream and is presently having this altered state of consciousness. We can now there-fore control it to a certain degree and bring about great change within our daily lives. For example;Imagine for a moment that you are in a nightmare and running away from a scary looking three-eyed monster! Naturally, you run as fast as you can, quicker than you’ve ever sprinted. Your heart is racing and you truly believe that this monster is chasing you! It is very real and very terrifying! Then suddenly, in an instant, a very

deep awareness overcomes you, and you begin to slow your sprint to almost a halt. You now fully know that you are presently in a dream and smile at yourself of this re-alization! You fully stop and turn your body to face this monster. The monster has now fully stopped chas-ing you and is standing there looking at you three feet away breathing heavily. You now ask, with full Lucidity, “What do you repre-sent monster?” The monster now morphs into a small puppy, all cute and cuddly which is very familiar to you… You begin to weep and realise now that the fear stemmed from missing your favor-ite family dog all those years ago and you wished you didn’t have to put him down. You caress and love the puppy and feel like a huge weight has been lifted form you. You now, can move on from this deep routed guilt that has been hidden away for many years and you can forgive yourself. The nightmare that once repeated itself to you over and over again has now ceased to exist. Lucid Dreaming has helped countless peo-ple across the globe in overcoming their nightmares. This is just one of infinite ways in directly, self-healing yourself emotion-ally with the incredible tool known as Lucid Dreaming. In the coming months, I will shed more light in regards to the phenomena of dreams and how to control them. This will assist you in creating a better outlook on life and will break the boundaries of the 3D world that we all live in today.

To experience Lucid Dreaming with like-minded people, please visit: www.alway-zlucid.com/event/lucid-dreaming-yoga-retreat/



Translation by Alison THE FRENCH VIEW _TRANSLATED BY ALISON REID

FN - YOU’VE GOT NOTHING!Yes, the Front Nati onal received

one quarter of French votes in the European electi ons. Yes, the politi -

cal scene in France will experience con-siderable fallout, seeing as the FN can no longer be considered the outsider it used to be. But this evidence should not overshadow another point, which is no less important. Aside from the fact that it remains to be seen whether or not Mme Le Pen could gain as many votes in a na-ti onal electi on – an electi on which, how-ever wrongly, will be considered by many as being more important – the truth of the matt er is that more than two thirds of voters did not come from the extreme Right, do not favour leaving the euro and do not wish to ‘block everything’ in the European Union in the hope that the or-ganisati on might collapse. Aft ershock there may be, but it re-mains limited in France thanks to this balance of forces, and the same is to be said throughout Europe. Even if we were to assume that nati onalists, europhopes and crypto-fascists all fell into the same single category (which they do not), this category would sti ll only make up a fi ft h of the seats in the European parliament. Of course, they will be given a voice and will be able to strengthen their cases with the resources made available to parti es in Strasbourg. This is by no means insignifi -cant. But, however many of them there may be, these ministers will not be able to ‘block everything’, or even infl uence the European developments which will emerge from the compromises made be-tween parti es more favourable of unity within Europe.

The only member state in which the Eu-ropean electi on results will have any real immediate consequences is Great Britain, the reason being that there, it is not just supporters of the extreme Right who are rejecti ng Europe. Britain only joined the European Union (named the European Community, at the ti me) so as to avoid be-ing excluded from the com-mon market, and since join-ing, the country has done nothing but hinder the prog-ress of politi cal union, today preferring to step out of the community rather than to remain in an organisati on it sees as moving, however slowly, towards a federal ho-rizon. This would certainly cre-ate a shock. The false but absolute belief in the dura-bility of the European Union would be undermined. But with Britain no longer there stepping on the brakes, po-liti cal unity within the Eu-ropean Union could soon take some decisive steps… that is, before Great Britain comes back knocking on Europe’s door again, having realised aft er ten or fi ft een years that it has no real prospects with-out integrati on in the conti nent it forms part of (island or not). So aft ershock there may be, but its in-tensity is only really so great because it is beginning to highlight the extent to which the fall of the Soviet Union has rocked the politi cal chessboard of Europe. The Right-wing is no longer united by its fear of communism. The Left -wing is no longer characterised by its rejecti on of capital-ism. With some excepti ons, the market

economy is now generally accepted, and the diff erences between Left and Right are thus no longer as great as they were. Even at the heart of these two forces, the diff erences are now based on degrees of divergence regarding regulati ons and the

distributi on of capital, acknowledgement of environmental concerns, changes in laws based on moral developments, and the pooling of nati onal sovereignty. But these are not small diff erences. On the contrary, they represent fundamen-tal dissimilariti es which sketch out the dot ted lines of new politi cal boundaries, sti ll in the process of development. Par-ti es dati ng back to the 19th century along with those which appeared during the last decades are all undergoing a chemi-cal change, and the fact is that it is this

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development which has enabled coaliti on governments from all leanings to exist in 13 of the 28 EU member states, which has made it possible that Right-wing and Left -wing parti es might govern Spain together, and which has meant that today in France,

there is a lot more common ground between the socialist party in power, the centrists and a big part of the UMP, than there is between the Socialists and the Front de Gauche (far Left ) or the Front Nati onal and the Right-wing as seen by Alain Juppé. In other words, in a Europe where the progression of reacti onary, nati onalist or extreme Right-wing parti es is based on appearing more like the centre parti es from the Left or the Right or the Greens in order to gain more popularity, as has already happened in the European Parliament and in many capi-tals, the politi cal spectrum is proving itself untrustworthy. For these parti es to truly gain power – and perhaps we are not far from it – all they re-

ally need to do is to come to a compromise regarding the necessity of accompanying the stabilisati on of public funds for policies of regrowth with investments in the indus-tries of the future. Whether we like it or not, this is the view aft er the batt le.

**

Writt en by Bernard Guett a

www.liberati on.fr/chroniques/2014/05/27/le-pay-sage-apres-la-bataille_1028233

The Elephant BlancIf you have a sudden, overwhelming pang for freshly cooked Thai food, The El-

ephant Blanc, a mobile Thai restaurant is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 18h-22h in Montady.Great, very reasonably priced food from an impressive extensive menu off ering dishes from traditi onal Pad Thai to duck/chicken/or pork Phat Muang, all prepared fresh on site. We also noti ced lots of opti ons for vegetarians. Orders can be tele-phoned in advance. Locati on: parking lot of the tennis court at Montady. Opening hours are from 6pm to 10pm Tuesday through Sunday. Tel: 06 51 71 00 23 (Eng/Fr spoken)Defi nitely not a white elephant!

France’s taste for horsemeat dates back to 18th century when revolu-ti onaries seized the fallen aristoc-

racy’s horses to sati sfy their hunger. The demand for horsemeat conti nued for two centuries unti l gradually becoming less popular due to a a more “squeamish” younger generati on.

The French now consume less than 300 grams (0.66 lbs) per person per year, a fi ft h of what they ate 30 years ago and less than 1 percent of the total meat they consume.

Neigh Way

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BeziersWhy do anglophones avoid this vibrant city and its Arabic influences?

Dick Fowler writes..

For a long time I’ve been intrigued by that vast area of Béziers which ex-tends from Place Jean Jaurès down

to the railway station , the river Orb , and up to the Cathedral . For me it’s a black box, full of people from the Mediterranean edges - yes , Arabs . You know, the area where the mayor says more than 60% live

off social security; well, here it’s probably a whole lot more. I have walked miles along ancient alleys up to the Eglise St Jacques and am amazed by what a legacy of old buildings are to be found; an Englishman’s dream, buy up a wreck and bring it back to life. Plenty of scope here. A bit daunted by the desire to dig into the people who live here I managed to

persuade Arnaud Gaulthier from the Midi Libre siège in Béziers to hold my hand and take me in! Did he speak Arabic , who did he know ? Well we walked from the siège across the bottom of Les Allées and straight into the nearest Khebab restaurant and in no time I arranged to meet a guy later who would answer questions. On to another restau-rant where a guy who at first was



reluctant to talk soon opened up. He says the Feria never comes as far as him. The mayor forbade parking and he wasn’t get-ti ng the trade he wanted. Heartened by the fi rst contacts, Arnaud left me at this point and I was on my own. I no longer felt uncomfortable and wan-dered on into the Salon Marocain. A souk in Beziers ! Thé Vert de Chine , Thé Vert Gunpowder de Chine, Broken Orange Thé de Pékin, Orange Flower drink , bags of pis-tachios, cacahuètes, chestnuts, arachides en coques, semantes d’orgue, couscous , poivre noir moulu (1/2kg for €8.90 :white pepper €2.50/kg ) canelle , Anies pimento, Indian Curry, Eastern Teapots, Pasta ma-chines, endless spices, Aladdin’s slippers... a host of vegetables and much, much more at prices below what you would expect in the safe environment of your local super-market with the customary sterile ambi-ance. Overwhelming. Next was the ‘Mediterranean Travel Agent / Money Transfer/ mobile phone/internet connecti on/ all goods Emporium! €1 search fee for your fl ight and €10 for a reservati on’ shop. Probably the main man in Béziers to facilitate your Haj. The polite owner, a Mo-roccan, has been here ten years . With ti me to kill and hungry for lunch before my arranged meeti ng I decided on the Star of the East for lunch. With a smile I asked for a beer, which was returned and I sett led for a can of orange. Khebabs were off but something I understood to be simi-lar was off ered and I sett led on that. A fairly long wait on the table out in the street was enlightened by the neighbouring company of four men who seemed to have all the ti me in the world to drink a rather small cup of tea. It worried me how the restaurant owner could possibly cover his overheads with customers who spent a lot of ti me, but no money. Mobile phones were constantly used for, I assumed, important business, in who knows what. Perhaps enough to buy another small cup of tea. The plate was full, lots of salad and I’m afraid I don’t know what else. It was won-derful, and I ate all the bread as well. When

the ti me came to leave I became anxious. With only one ten euro note in my bag, I was bound to be forced to dash off to the nearest machine to convert card to cash. I handed the note over to the smiling wait-er, fearing the worst. Another smile, while he searched for a couple of euros change! Wow!

Ten years ago we were told it was possible to get a menu for nine or ten euros, but we never did fi nd one, well that was eatable. And here it was! Back at the Khebab Restaurant, the owner and two others sat down at a table on Les Allées to answer my questi ons. The fi rst be-ing, where do all these people come from? All Arabs, they do come from all over , but many come from the car factories and in-dustries around Paris. The Béziers climate suits them and there is no incenti ve to go back home. Many from overseas have been able to join them, even legally. 20% come

from the old colony of Algeria. They come here to reti re. The children are forced to move away since the quanti ty of traditi onal work in the Languedoc vineyards has van-ished. They grumbled that Spaniards come and work here for ridiculous wages. The French employers discriminate against Arab work-ers. An employer will pass a well-qualifi ed Arab for less qualifi ed people of his ‘own kind’. One said he had been to Manches-ter and said there was far less discrimina-ti on there. Unemployment is seriously bad here and there really is not a lot of hope for the future. The methods of taking on em-ployees here discourage employers from doing so because of the contracts they are forced into accepti ng by the current laws. There are just not the opportuniti es for an unskilled worker to get a start and graft his way into being a loyal employee. The much vaunted history of syndicats makes condi-ti ons bett er for employees has become mo-nopolisti c, favouring those in employment too much. They voiced the quanti ty of paperwork and discriminati on against Arabs who want to form their own businesses. That and the extremely high social security payments, with which, from my own experience, I can sympathise greatly. In ti mes of uneven cash fl ows the demands for social security pay-ments are not fl exible or understanding. The Arabs are well known for their busi-ness ability and France is missing a trick here by not harnessing it to the greater benefi t. Quite a strong indicator of the Eu-rozone’s present predicament. There was a strong feeling that old France is afraid of the new France full of these people who want their part in it. The new France is multi -racial and it’s up to all to embrace the future and make more pos-sible together. But at the moment the restaurateur said “MARHABA; HAY, HAY”. Which means: “Hi ! We’re not changing anything!” ( Bienvenue ! On ne va changer rien ! Was his translati on.)

image Left:by: Demeesterimage above by: Vpe

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Back to School – Oh no!So the glorious summer has gone and school has crept back up on us. Because my father is French my parents decided that they would rather live in a country where the sun shines over their heads, as opposed to rain. Sadly, due to their weather preferences I had to leave the charming English countryside, and start life in the sunny Languedoc, the location of my grandparents.

Luckily, after arduous French lessons lan-guage was not a problem. But after being here for several years now, I must say at the end of the long holidays going back to school is not what I most look for-ward to in a year. Not that it’s bad, but it’s not necessarily that good either. At

least the school I’m at has quite a good repu-tation in our area, despite it always seeming so chaotic. For instance, I get the impression that some of my teachers, whilst being good at their subjects, are not always that good when it comes to communicating or controlling the class. This results in loads

of children cursing them or simply not caring and it can be really hard to concen-trate above all the talking in class. I very rarely meet people who take school seriously; most of the girls in my class last year skipped school whenever it suited them or slept during lessons. This turned out not to matter that much because we missed so many classes last year from teachers not turning up, especially our French teacher who was absent for what seemed like half of the year and we never had a substitute, so all we could do was to hang around waiting for the next class, sometimes up to two hours. We’re not al-lowed stay in the classroom if the teacher isn’t there and have to go into a separate room where a surveillant watches us; we’re not allowed to make a sound, so we have to sit there for ages, which is ok if you happen to have a good book with you. Some of my classes were quite challeng-

ing last term, usually the ones where the teacher was still enthusiastic about their subject (there are definitely some teach-ers who seem to have lost their mojos). The main thing I have noticed about edu-cation in France is that you definitely get the impression that hardly anyone, my friends or teachers, seem that happy about being there; maybe that’s why there are never any pictures or posters on the walls anywhere, and you certainly don’t see anyone’s work in the corridors, just scuffed paint. For me, I don’ like the fact that classes consist of taking notes which we copy (if you can read your teacher’s handwriting) off the board, we rarely discuss anything or have the chance to write our own thoughts down.

I shall be going into 3ème this year, which is the last year of collège. This means I’ll be sitting the brevet at the end of May 2015. The brevet is a test taken at the end of collège based on all the lessons of the past 4 years; if you pass you can go on to Lycée for your last three years of educa-tion. I don’t know much more about it be-cause I haven’t been told, I suppose that’s because it’s been the same system for so long that everyone just knows what to ex-pect from their parents or family, but it’s still very daunting. Especially, considering we missed so many French, history and sport classes last year.

All in all, although for the most part I don’t mind school. I do look forward to seeing my friends but cringe at the thought of having to go through all the chaos, very heavy school bags and hanging around all over again. Oh well, c’est la vie!

By Hetty D.

YBG T

mom

s.pop



How does the new French govern-ment differ from the old? The an-swer is contained in a single name:

Emmanuel Macron, the new minister of the economy. Macron is a familiar type to anyone who follows French politics: the brilliant student who, by the age of 36, has succeeded in more careers than the average mortal will experience in a life-time. He is a graduate of the Lycée Henri IV, of course, of the Ecole Normale Supéri-eure, of course, and of the Ecole Nationale d’Administration, of course. Before the ENA he served as Paul Ricoeur’s assistant on the strength of a series of brilliant (of course) dissertations on the general inter-est, Hegel, and Machiavelli (of course), and after the ENA (from which he gradu-ated no. 5 in his class, of course) he joined the most prestigious of the French corps d’élite, the Inspection des Finances (of course). But because he “values his in-dependence,” he left public service for a few years to join the Banque Rothschild (of course). He is said to exercise a strong seductive power on elder statesmen, and it was one of them, Jean-Pierre Jouyet, Jospin’s Mr. Europe before becoming Sarkozy’s Mr. Europe and now secretary-general of the Elysée, who persuaded (of course) the young meteor to take a 90% salary cut to join Hollande’s staff. For that strategic decision he now reaps the reward of a ministerial portfolio, replacing the mercurial Arnaud Montebourg. So what does this portend for French economic policy? The conventional wis-dom is that it consummates the victory of the “social liberal” wing of the Socialist Party: free-market economics combined with whatever (little) can be salvaged of the welfare state. Of Hollande it has been said frequently in the last 24 hours that il assume son choix néolibéral, as if that tells us anything. In fact, Macron in his former job worked closely with the ousted Mon-tebourg, particularly on implementing the

recommendations of the Attali and Gallois reports to increase competitiveness. But for the most part it was small-bore incre-mentalism: reducing the fees charged by huissiers and notaires and chauffeurs de taxi may be long overdue in France but is hardly the stuff of a Thatcherian overhaul of the economy, nor is it the thin end of the German Ordoliberal wedge or the mainmise of the Banque Rothschild. Soy-ons sérieux. Montebourg spoke loudly and carried a small stick. Macron speaks softly and will carry a small stick. The heavy lift-ing remains, and will no doubt be avoided as long as Hollande is president. There is no doubt that the French econ-omy is much in need of structural reform. The problem is that structural reform re-quires political finesse as well as a strong will, and Macron, for all his bourgeois dis-creet charm, embodies the congenital de-fect of post-Mitterrand socialism in France. Mitterrand surrounded himself with bright énarques who could get things done el-egantly and efficiently. At some point, however, the énarquesceased to be con-tent with being mere exécutants and de-veloped a taste for political legitimacy, en-couraged to do so by le Florentin himself. Jospin and Hollande are perfect examples. They were able to win office but without developing the political instincts, the flair, the networks below the elite level that are necessary to facilitate action and com-municate les doléances du peuple back to the palace. They became les intendantsof the Fifth Republic, a caste of royal officials utterly divorced from the society they purport to govern. One after another, we have seen brilliant young men (and some women), of whom Macron is the latest, rise to power, greeted by journalistic trum-pets such as the Libération article I cited above. And with each new appointment, le pouvoir grows more out of touch and less capable of responding to the groans from below. The rise of the Front National is only one sign of the resulting malaise.

Does the ouster of Montebourg represent a real change of economic policy? Surely not. Macron would no doubt like to see a softening of the German heart as dearly as Montebourg did, but if he ever alludes to his feelings on the matter, it will be with an ironic smile and sotto voce. Montebourg was at bottom no more of a politician than Macron: he was a lawyer, playing on the emotions of the jury and courtroom with his elaborate effets de manche and a not always well-calculated mise en scène. Montebourg’s error was to think that An-gela Merkel might be moved by his stage-craft. But he was no Racine and no Sarah Bernhardt, and in any case Merkel doesn’t speak French. Macron’s error will be to think that Merkel and her counselors will respond to his very French-style elitist bril-lance maligne. In fact, Merkel will continue to attend to German interests, and the best Macron, Sapin, Valls, and Hollande will be able to do will be to demonstrate that the German economy, too, is being sandbagged by German policy. It will be a slog. One other comment on yesterday’s change of government. In my Twitter feed yesterday a rather ugly note popped up from Laurent Wauquiez, another bright normalien of the Macron type who is one of the fair hopes of the Right and who seems lately to be pursuing his ambitions by playing to the Hard Right contingent in the UMP. Wauquiez’s tweet read: “@ChTaubira maintenue, l’ultra pro-gender @najatvb à l’Education. Un gouvernement entre tragi-comédie et provocation contre les familles.” The reference to justice min-ister Taubira, who was “symbolically” re-tained by Hollande despite her overt sup-port for Montebourg, is Wauquiez’s bid to curry favor with the racists in his party who applauded the photos of Taubira with an ape and the child who tried to hand her a bunch of bananas, while the reference to Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, now elevated to minister of education (replacing fron-deurBenoît Hamon) attempts to capitalize on the extremist fear-mongering about the Socialists’ alleged (but non-existent) promotion of “gender studies” in French elementary schools, which Wauquiez pretends to construe as a “provocation against families.” He knows better but ap-parently has decided that, despite being a normalien, his best shot at power is to pre-tend to be a yahoo ignoramus in the Sarah Palin mold. (h/t Arun Kapil) In recent months I have been tempted to believe that French politics could sink no lower, but life is full of surprises.Art Goldhammer artgoldhammer.logspot.fr

THE NEW FRENCH GOVERNMENT – A JEREMAID

Left: Emmanuel Macron



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HT Life StyleLerab Ling Buddhist Centre

in partnership with

Maggie’s ColumnPERSONAL COACH & HYPNOTHERAPIST

Goal SearchingHere’s a bit of summer fun. Be careful! You may be giving yourself away without even knowing it!! What you may not be aware of is that our eyes are a clue to what we’re thinking. We move our eyes to the part of the brain that we’re needing to engage in response to questions we are asked.

Ask yourself the following questions and note where your eyes move as you reach for the answer (pictures below are as if you’re looking at someone else or in the mirror). Then try asking a friend or part-ner some questions and notice where their eyes move. Have some fun! Where will you go on holiday next year? What would your room look like if you painted it green?Up and to the right - Visual constructed

This is because you’re being asked about something you don’t know so you are con-structing an answer What was the colour of your first car? Which of your friends has the longest hair?Up and left - Visual rememberedThis response is to something you know so

can remember What would your phone sound like if it was ringing under water?What would it sound like if you played two pieces of music at the same time?Across and right - Auditory constructedThis is something you haven’t heard before so you construct the sound in your mind What was that sound of the school bell when you were at school?Which is louder, your door bell or your telephone?Across and left – Auditory rememberedYou’ve heard the sound before so you will remember what it sounds like Think about a favourite pet, your partner, parents?What does it feel like to walk barefoot on the beach?Down and right – KinaestheticYou get right into the feeling or emotion of the issue What are your thoughts about a certain

article?What do you continually tell yourself?Down and left – Audio digitalThis position is for people who tend to pro-cess in their heads rather than emotionally and spend time thinking rather than feel-ing So if you’re asking someone if they were out the night before and their eyes shoot up and to their right – you know that they’re constructing an answer and not remembering what actually happened. So you could question whether or not they’re being truthful! Or if someone is telling you that they’re not upset about a situa-tion and that everything is fine, but their eyes go down and right to access their emotions, you know that they are actually more upset than they are admitting.

Now this is not fool proof. Some peo-ple react in totally different ways and left handed people may even swap the posi-tions. But it’s fun to play with - so just be-come more aware of your eye movements – because they may be saying a lot more about you than you think!! Maggie is a personal coach and hypno-therapist: If you wish to contact her per-sonally to discuss any issues, please email: [email protected]

Soyez réali-ste, demandez l’impossible

The French have their own distinc-tive slogans that express their atti-tude toward life and their sense of

possibility. There’s “Under the cobble-stones, the beach” (Sous les pavés, la plage); “It is forbidden to forbid” (Il est

interdit d’interdire); “The alarm clock rings, first humiliation of the day” (Le réveil sonne: première humiliation de la journée); “Be realistic, demand the impossible” (Soyez réaliste, demandez l’impossible), coined by students dur-ing the 1968 uprising; “Boredom is a counter-revolutionary act” (L’ennui est contre-révolutionnaire) , “Take your de-sires for reality”; “God, I suspect you of being a left wing intellectual” (Dieu, je vous soupçonne d’être un intellectuel de gauche)… Oh, and “Never work” (Ne travaillez jamais)!

LIFE



www.lerabling.org

HT Life StyleLerab Ling Buddhist Centre

in partnership with

Matthew, can you tell us where Touch for Health® Kinesiology comes from and how it originated? Touch for Health® Kinesiology (TFH)has its roots in the work of Detroit chiropractor, George Goodheart. Dr Goodheart began using muscle testing to evaluate muscle strength or injury in relation to postural imbalances, but soon found that muscles dramatically improve function in response to a variety of touch reflexes, including acu-puncture points and meridians. Goodheart developed a system called Applied Kinesiol-ogy, which he shared with physicians who are licensed to diagnose - medical doctors, chiropractors, osteopaths, dentists, psychi-atrists etc. My father, John Thie, D.C., one of the early promoters of Goodheart’s work and the founding chairman of Goodheart’s Interna-tional College of Applied Kinesiology (ICAK) had the vision of sharing this information with the wider populationso they could learn to help themselves. TFH was designed to empower every person to become active in the creation, maintenance and restoring of their own health and well being, and to allow families to enhance their self-care. Today,TFH is probably the most widely used system of “Energy Kinesiology”or “Special-ized Kinesiology” in the world. Millions of people have experienced and benefited from TFH. TFH has also proven to be a use-ful holistic approach for many professionals who integrate the techniques in their health care practice, and is widely recognized and respected as a fundamental training in the emerging field of Energy Kinesiology and Energy Psychology. TFH is a synthesis of ancient knowledge of the Chinese acupuncture meridians and modern techniques derived from chiro-

practic, naturopathy, osteopathy, and even person-centered counseling. This includes manual muscle testing, acupressure and a several other types of touch reflexes, me-ridian tracing, nutrition and a variety of mind-body techniques for balancing the subtle energies while focusing on meaning-ful, personal goals. In TFH we use muscle testing as a method of biofeedback to iden-tify imbalances in the body’s energy sys-tem. Using a holistic approachwe rebalance the body’s energies and activate the body’s intrinsic healing process so that the body can better heal itself, creating that sense of effortless effort, and being in the flow of life.For me TFH represents a “tried and true” method of improving peoples LIVES. It is such a joy to use because of the immedi-ately observable changes in muscle re-sponse, posture, emotional state, mental clarity and motivation. We CAN do simple things to take care of and enhance our own life and vitality, whether as a simple help for aches and pains or lethargy, or as a life-transforming process. What can TFH be used for? Between 70% and 90% of the everyday aches, pains, discomfort and distress of every day life does not have any medical diagnosis or treatment. TFH puts power back into the hands of every family, and ad-ditional holistic tools in the “utility belt” of all kinds of practitioners. It is meant more as a program for ongoing development of health, vitality and wellness to help prevent disease by maintaining high level of health. Where there is injury or disease, it can be a powerful adjunct and support to profes-sional care and the body’s natural healing capacity. Many chiropractors, massage therapists,

acupuncturists, psychologists, and even medical doctors integrate TFH into their treatment protocols as a holistic support to their particular specialty. In cases where there is no medical diagnosis or treatment, no discernable disease or cause for discom-fort, TFH is often a very effective alternative to simply taking “pain pills” or assuming, “it’s all in my head”. It also offers the pos-sibility of greater comfort and functionning with less medical treatment or medication.Who can learn and/or practice it? TFH Kinesiologycan be can be easily learned by anyone for their self-care and development of wellness, without any prior knowledge. In my workshops I usually have a mix of lay people and professionals. If you would like to immerse yourself in TFH, at-tending a workshop is a good opportunity and you find details of workshops available on www.ikc-info.org.Useful info:To find TFH Instructors and practitioners please visit:www.ikc-info.org (Official TFH website)www.tfh.fr (French TFH website)www.ffks.fr (Fédération Française de Ki-nésiologies Spécialisées)www.formation-mediterranee.fr (Accred-ited training center in Montpellier - Le Crès)

Touch for Health® KinesiologyMatthew Thie interviewed by Alexandra Thevenet



‘Family Trees’ Richard Pullen on Music

The Music Page - In partnership with:

25JULY - THE JACKSONS, CARCASSONNE15 OCTOBER, KYLIE MINOGUE - 17 JULY, LANA DL REY - 30 JULY, JAMES BLUNT - 20 JULY, FRANZ FERDINAND -

THE HAT HAS TICKETS - WATCH THIS SPACE TO WIN!

Well Italy came and went with nothing musical to report except some infuriating ditties from the kids club usu-ally involving the singing repeatedly of the word for the

local speciality “mozzarella “ ! The summer has been somewhat Bristolian in feel starting with Massive Attack in Carcassonne and ending with Portishead in Paris so I’m going to rec-ognise that city’s contribution and take a trip ( hop) down memory lane for those of you old enough to remember the nineties... Massive Attack are probably the best known group from Bristol and have just amazingly entered their 26th year together - they are a nucleus of Robert Del Naja and Grant Marshall with certain famous and not so famous collaborators ( Robert is also a painter starting off around the same time as anoth-er luminary from the city the reclusive Banksy) In Carcassonne they were joined on vocals by Martina Topley-Bird, Debbie Miller and the sublime Horace Andy. Martina took the honours on “Tear-drop “and first came to peopleʼs attention on Bris-tol boy Trickyʼs first album Maxinquaye (this album helped define the “Bristol Sound” and also featured Alison Goldfrapp) but I am a big fan of Blowback where Tricky col-laborated with most of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Cyndi Lauper and Alannis Morrisette and others- good family tree album this! Horace Andy is originally a Kingston, Jamaica Studio One star but began collaborating with Massive Attack in 1990 most notably on Angel which was possibly the highlight in Carcassonne - there was an unplanned light show courtesy of the weather which treated us to magnificent lightning flashes underlining the anger of the political statements flashing up on the screens behind the group. Other famous collaborators throughout the years have been

Tracey Thorne , from Everything But The Girl on possibly their most famous track “Protection” , Liz Fraser from the Cocteau Twins and Neneh Cherry with her husband Cameron McVey If you go back to the making of their first album Blue Lines in

1991, there was a young trainee tape operator working there called Geoff Barrow and in between various takes the band al-lowed Geoff to get his own ideas on tape and then Geoff , with Beth Gibbons and later Adrian Uttley , went on to become Portis-head ( named after the suburb of Bristol where Geoff grew up ). In 1994 they produced their first album Dummy which , because of its re-issue this month on sexy 180 gram vinyl to celebrate its

20th anniversary , becomes my album of the month at the time Rolling Stone mag-azine described it as “Goth-ic Hip Hop” and Melody Maker said it was music for a film not yet made. Order the album at www.portis-head.co.uk Chitra and I have VIP tick-ets to see them at “Rock en Seine “in Paris on Saturday 23rd of August, so a review will follow next month.

Thank you Bristol ……..

Beth Gibbons -Portishead[http://flickr.com/photos/goulao/2368910458/ flickr

Massive AttackImage courtesy of Jezhotwells



The Magical Folk of France

The Bluebird and other stories...France has a rich history of oral tradition and folklore, the

elements of which became the in-spiration for many well known fairy tales, celebrated now more as liter-ary works than for their oral vari-ants, and encapsulated for all time by 17/18th century writers Charles Perrault (author of Cinderella, Puss in Boots, Little Red Riding Hood) and Marie Catherine d’Aulnoy (authoress of The Bluebird, Goldilocks, The Yel-low dwarf). In the late 1600s, the French Salons were filled with fairy tale writing, primarily by women writers. The telling of fairytales started almost as a conversational game and provided a means for women, unable to hold office, to prove their intellectual abilities. The fairy stories were often used as a vehicle through which to rail against moral issues, but as well as reinforcing social norms they were also used to subvert them.One of the most prolific and influential of these women is Marie-Catherine D’Aulnoy (d.1705) who published four volumes of fairy tales. She was a brilliant, witty count-ess, and brought into her tales, entitled Con-tes de Fees, the graces of the court. She adhered less strictly to tradition than her male contemporary, author Charles Per-rault, whose own literary fairy tales had won him almost instant success, notably ‘Puss in Boots’ which idealized the rise of an adven-turous cat through the ranks of courtly soci-ety; the story sends the message to young men that nobility is a reward for good man-

ners and blind duty to the king. On the contrary, Marie-Catherine handled

her material freely, making addi-tions, amplifications, and moral reflections to the original tale, which she also used as a vehicle through which to spew venom at what she portrayed as a dark, suffocating social system under Louis XIV, the self-proclaimed Sun King. Her weaving together of incidents is artistic and her style graceful and not unpleasing. It is marked by ornamentation, sump-tuousness and French sentimen-tality. It shows a lack of naivete resulting from the palace setting given to her tales, making them adapted only to children of high rank. Often her tale is founded on a beautiful tradition. The Blue-Bird, one of the finest of her tales, was found in the poems of Marie de France, in the thirteenth century, whilst three others were borrowed

from Straparola. Charles Perrault (d.1703), whose stories taken from the oral tradition and entreat-ed to a certain amount of the author’s own imaginative embellishment,were published in his Histoires ou Contes du temps passé (better known amongst na-tive English speakers as ‘Mother Goose Tales’) and remain among the most popular tales today – although in the past decades children have been served up somewhat sanitized versions of Per-rault’s original work. In Little Red Riding Hood, for example, there is no intrepid huntsman placed artfully in the story to save the poor little girl. Rather, Little Red simply strips naked, gets in bed, and then dies, eaten up by the big bad wolf, with no miraculous relief (in another version, she eats her own grandmother first, her flesh cooked up and her blood poured into a wine glass by our wolfish friend). Instead, Perrault gives us a little rhyming verse reminding us that not all wolves are wild beasts — some se-

duce with gentleness, sneak into our beds, and get us there. The sexual undertones are not lost on us — after all, the contemporary French idiom for a girl having lost her virgin-ity was elle avoit vû le loup!

The origin of the word “fairy,” as given by Thomas Keightley in his Fairy Mythology, and later in the Appendix of his Tales and Popular Fictions, is the Latin fatum, “to en-chant.” The word was derived directly from the French form of the root. The various forms of the root were:-- Latin . . . . fatum, “to enchant.”

French . . . . fee, feerie, “illusion.” Italian . . . . fata.

Provencal . . . . fada. In old French romance, fee was a “woman skilled in magic.” “All those women were called Fays who had to do with enchantment and charms and knew the power and vir-tue of words, of stones, and of herbs, by which they were



CHARITABLE, ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND AND ECONOMICAL? WHY NOT BUY YOUR CLOTHES, BOOKS (AND OTHER THINGS) FROM US?

Lots of people know about CSF Languedoc’s existence, and The Herault and Aude Times has kindly

shared information about us and our work before. In order to support people living in the Herault, Gard and Lozere who are affected by cancer, we do a number of things to raise the funds to help us oper-ate. One of these is a monthly pre-loved clothes, books and games sale. Are bad memories of badly-organised and slightly smelly charity shops kicking in? Stop there and think again! Hannah Waters runs the monthly event from her home in Puissalicon and has a keen eye for what will sell. “I am always looking for more donations. We only sell things that are in good condition and it can be hard to do that and keep the turnover of stock. Everything that hasn’t

sold after three months is identified and if it doesn’t sell in its fourth month, we take it off sale.” During the recent sale in July, the space was bustling with people all scanning the well-ordered rails and stalls (organised by size and type of clothing, with books organised by author). Hannah knew her stock so well that she was able to guide individuals to items she felt would work for them – with lots of pleased customers. Clothes were being donated during the sale and Hannah spotted anything that was new/unworn/barely worn and flagged it up to likely buyers straight away. It felt like one short step away from having a personal shopper. Nicole Hammond of Ladies in Languedoc was clear, “It’s so good, and I can’t believe it’s so cheap!” This was born out when the writer of this article scanned the rails and found a skirt from Karen Millen that fitted perfectly, was in pristine condition and was only 3 euros. The fact that re-use is one of the cornerstones of the envi-ronmental movement only adds to the attraction. Extra to the usual donated products, The Delicious Sisters were selling some lovely homemade products at the July sale. Their banana and curry chutney (and other flavours – too many to mention) received rave reviews from tastings, as did pickles, cake, marmalade and other items – all sold with a percentage donation to CSF Languedoc. Hannah makes every effort to try and make the experience more than a quick shop. It is a genuinely sociable experience, with people commenting on each other’s finds, catching up with old acquaintances and meeting new ones. As well as supporting our work with

individuals, the money raised supports our monthly (excl July, August and December)

Drop in Days. In the last 18 months, these sales have raised 2000 euros towards our work. With wider support, they can raise more. We would love to see numbers of dona-tors and buyers increase, so if you have some lovely things you don’t wear, read or use anymore, or are thinking it would be nice to see what’s on offer, please look out for our sales, which are: Monthly – 1st Monday (none this Octo-ber) 2pm-4pm96 Ave de Béziers, 34480 PuissaliconTel: 09 81 22 68 19 for information or directions Every item you donate or purchase will support our work.

For more information about CSF Langued-oc, please see our website: csf-languedoc.comFor any queries about receiving support from or volunteering with CSF Languedoc, please email us on: [email protected]

SUPPORTING LOCAL CHARITIES

jjmccullough.com



SUPPORTING LOCAL CHARITIESCANCER SUPPORT FRANCE CYCLING FROM CHERBOURG TO THE MED!!

Do you like a challenge? This is what Hazel Turner and Geoff Hunt are taking on when they cycle from Cher-bourg to St Cyprien! They will be starting their 1,400km

journey on Sunday 7th September and plan (all being well!) to reach their destination on Thursday 25th September. Their ar-rival will coincide with Cancer Support France Awareness Week. Both Hazel and Geoff lost their partners to cancer and will be doing the ride in memory of Jeff (1955-2009) and Anna (1953-2012), and in support of the many people, whatever their nationality, affected by cancer in some way. Their thoughts are particularly with Linda Shepherd, the founder of Cancer Support France, who has just been diagnosed with a recurrence of cancer after 12 years in remission. They will also be raising money for “CSF- Sud de France” and

“La Ligue Contre le Cancer”, any monies raised to be shared equally between the two. If you would like to make a donation you can donate as follows:- • On line through www.cancersupportfrance.org using Paypal. 1. Log on to the website, 2. Under Affiliated Associations, select Sud de France, 3. At the bottom of the Sud de France page you will find a “Do-nate” button

Or, by cheque payable to “CSF – Sud de France” or “La Ligue contre le Cancer” and posted to Judith Bourne, Treasurer, Chemin de Fuche, 11300, Magrie Bonne Chance Hazel and Geoff!! You can follow Hazel and Geoff’s progress on http://cherbourgtothemed.blogspot.fr

Cancer Support France offers emotional, linguistic and practical support to cancer patients and their families through our team of trained volunteers.

See our local website for further information:

www.csf-suddefrance.webs.com

Local helpline: 04 68 69 01 37

**

3 500 KM OF MOUNTAIN BIKING TERRAIN IN HÉRAULT

Hérault is today the number one department in France for mountain biking (VTT). The improvements of biking trails over the last three years parallel a huge increase in enthusi-

asm for the sport. For amateurs and seasoned professionals alike there is an amazing choice of terrains here. Atlanta, 1992: Mountain biking become an Olympic sport. Born in 1970 in the USA, the huge, grooved wheels of the bikes meant that the most rugged ground could be explored. And in Hérault…staying within the confines of marked paths, it’s also secure. There are so many options: le Réseau vert® which stretches from east to west; The Traversée Larzac-Méditerranée running from north to south; and the 10 VTT areas designated by the Fédération de cyclisme (FFC). That’s 3,100km in total, to which a further 50km of the green way (voie verte) can be added.



The Geek we call ‘E-Male’

Samsung SmartNX3000 Camera

I’m sexy and I know it!

Have a look at the months or year just past and remem-ber the good, the great and

maybe even the not so good ti mes. Anybody got any pictures? On a mobile phone? Well that’s all good and great, I use a Windows Nokia phone with a bett er camera than most of you and a Sam-sung S4 which is really, really good and vibrant but you know someti mes I want the chunky feel of power in my hands, so I called some people and I got my hands on the Samsung SmartNX3000 camera. And even bet-ter I got it in cool retro brown!

And boy was it worth it.

The Samsung NX3000 with 16-50mm lens is the entry-level camera in Sam-sung’s mirrorless lineup, but it is no slouch in image quality. A 20mp im-age sensor captures images with the same resoluti on as higher level cam-eras. For those who like modernity with a retro feel this is the dream; and for those who want a litt le extra it has a

fl ash shoe for an external fl ash. And if you have cool kids, the rear display fl ips to allow the dreaded ‘selfi e’ in 3 variants and the screen it-self, although I’ve seen bett er is easy to see in bright ‘light of the langued-oc’ mode. Wifi mode is, as you would expect from Samsung, excellent and in col-laborati on with the Samsung Smart Camera App (available free on An-droid and iOS) you can send all your photos and videos straight to your phone wirelessly. You can also share images Home Monitor+, which allows you to use the NX3000 as a home se-curity camera and Auto Backup to copy photos and videos to a PC. For you geeks, you can use the cam-era from your phone (in auto mode only) and believe me with a litt le imaginati on this is such fun eh mom!! Downsides to this camera are few and far between for this level and in truth it punches above its weight. In my view this is a great camera if you want a litt le more than just your phone. I’m just going to call Samsung and see if I can keep it.

Pros - Compact. Excellent image qual-ity. Lens change facility. Raw sup-port. Wifi

Cons - No RAW Transfer via wifi . Plas-ti c build. Litt le bit slow on focus for the overly zealous.431.90€ FNAC349.90€ Darty

HANDS ON

The Geek we call ‘E-Male’

Samsung SmartNX3000 Camera



European Brain Drain

From 2003 until now, 276,124 EU citizens have applied to go to another member state to work on a perma-nent basis with their profession. The countries experi-

encing the most brain drain have been Poland (33,207 pro-fessionals), Germany (29,670), Romania (26,496), Greece (22,260), and the UK (21,519). At the same time, the UK has been the country with the most brain gain as well: 76,956 professionals moved there after obtaining their qualifica-tion in another EU country, followed by Germany (38,343), Belgium (22,835), Cyprus (22,834) and Austria (19,625). In France 9,985 French professionals moved to another EU country after obtaining their qualifications.

The most mobile brains within the EU since 2003:1. Secondary school teacher 54,0402. Doctor of medicine 47,9983. Nurse 39,7734. Physiotherapist 12,5295. Dental practitioner 8,907

Source: www.alpbach.org

The colours on the map indicate whether a country lost or gained more professionals since 2003. Green means that more brains moved there than left (brain gain); red means more brains left this country than moving there (brain drain).

DID YOU KNOW- France produces some of the world’s most famous liqueurs, including

Grand Marnier, Cointreau, Triple Sec, Mandarine Napoleon, Cognac, Armagnac, Crème de Cassis, Pastis and Chartreuse.



Learning FrenchYou don’t need to go to classes if you don’t want to

Now that the glorious August sun has set on the height of summer, September is unavoidably the month to join the throngs of the willing (and not

so willing) to garner the over rested brain cells and get back to learning. The well known Foires des Associations, held on various dates throughout September across France, offer a breadth of learning opportunities and ac-tivities to get involved with. But for those of you who like to develop your learning in the privacy of your own home, below is a list of free on-line resources for im-proving your French and understanding of France: Le Monde (proficient to advanced): Leading French daily newspaper: www.lemonde.fr/Videos from the lemonde.fr site: www.lemonde.fr/rss/videos.xml

Telezapping: a review of the day’s newspapers in France. www.lemonde.fr/podcast-ele-zapping.xml

Internet actuel (intermediate to advanced): Acces-sible articles for French learners: www.vanin-methodes.be/cms_master/arcades/de-

fault.asp?webpageid=1773

Revue2Presse: A daily update of all the front covers of magazines and newspapers in France, organised in different categories and with links to each publication’s website: www.revue2presse.fr

Le Petit Journal (advanced): Daily 15 minute humorous take on the day’s news: www.canalplus.fr/c-divertissement/

pid3351-c-le-petit-journal.html

TF1, le journal de 20h (intermedi-ate to advanced):35 minute daily prime-time news bulletin from one of France’s leading broadcasters:

www.tf1.fr/jt-20h/

TV5 monde (all levels): The “langue française” sec-

tion of TV5 monde, es-pecially designed for

French learners. Learn French while

watching short TV shows on

current affairs and com-plete inter-active ex-ercises:

www.tv5.org/TV5Site/enseigner-apprendre-francais/ac-cueil_apprendre.php; Discovering French regions: http://cabouge.tv5monde.com/france/alsace/

Le JT de Canal+ (all levels): This news bulletin is quite short and clear – it’s a good one for the lower levels of proficien-cy:www.canalplus.fr/c-infos-documentaires/pid2800-c-le-jt-de-canal.html

France Inter - Radio (proficient/advanced): Radio France Inter has a great selection of recorded interviews and dis-cussions of both news-related and cultural topics. You can listen to them online here: www.franceinter.fr/player

Le Journal de la philosophie (advanced):Get your daily 5-minute fix of what’s going on in the world of French phi-losophy: www.franceculture.fr/emission-le-journal-de-la-philoso-phie

Philosophie magazine (proficient to advanced):Print and online magazine covering all aspects of philosophical in-quiry. Premium subscription service offered, but lots of free content on the site: www.philomag.com/ ;Good videos sec-tion: www.philomag.com/les-videos;online philosophical games: www.philomag.com/jeux

Télérama (proficient to advanced):Telerama has reviews of films and shows on in France. It is an interesting read to get up to date on what is on in France, as is a good guide of what to look for if you are interested in French film: www.telerama.fr

Polar FLE (Intermediate to advanced): Learn French gram-mar by following a French “detective” trying to solve a crime. polarfle.com

Cavilam en ligne (intermediate to advanced): A wealth of online resources, including French song lyrics, French short videos: cavilamenligne.com

Radio France Internationale (Intermediate and advanced):The “langue française” section of Radio France Internationale, especially designed for French learners. Learn French while listening to short radio shows on cur-rent affairs: www.rfi.fr/lffr/statiques/accueil_apprendre.asp; www.rfi.fr/lffr/dynamiques/liste_fait_du_jour_archive.aspx; www.rfi.fr/lffr/pages/001/accueil_exercice_ecoute.asp

Canal académie (Intermediate and advanced): “L’espace apprendre” section of Radio France Internationale, es-pecially designed for French learners. Learn French while listening to thematic radio shows (Art, Economy, Medecine,Sociology…): www.canalacademie.com/apprendre/



WHAT’S ON IN SEPTEMBERFÊTE DES ASSOCIATIONSMONTAGNACFrom 9h to 12h30 at the Maison de Associations 6 Sep, 2014

POLYPHONIC SONG FESTIVAL IN UPPER VALLEYFestival of traditional songs. QUILLAN 6 to 14 September, 2014

24th RONDE DES VENDANGESCarcassonne11.25km walking tour, from age

16, including 3 stages of 3.7km. Leaves 20h, Sqaure André Che-nier, Carcassonne 6 Sep, 2014

WEEK-END BELLE ÉPOQUE AT THE JARDIN DE SAINT ADRIENSERVIANPrice : 10€ Route de Pézenas34290 SERVIAN 14h-18h30Telephone : 33 (0)4 67 39 24 [email protected] September to 7 September, 2014

EXHIBITION “IN SITU” HERITAGE AND CONTEMPO-RARY ART

Summer Event supported by the association Le Passe Muraille to establish a dialogue between the historic architecture and contem-porary art. NARBONNE - Abbaye de Font-froide Until 21 September, 2014

TOURNOI DE JOUTES LANGUED-OCIENNESPALAVAS-LES-FLOTSEvent of the Season!Start: 15h Free 7 Sept 2014

HUMORISTIC DRAWING FESTIVALThe atmosphere is always happy in the village of Brugairolles (next to Limoux). BRUGAIROLLES - Salle des FêtesFree admission7 September, 2014

THE MIDDLE AGES IN SCENEIn the heart of the medieval city of Carcassonne, the festival “Middle Ages in Scene” invites you to an unforgettable experi-enceCARCASSONNE - Medieval townUntil 31 October 2014

ONION FESTIVAL, CITOU, PAYS CATHARE

C I -

Free admission07 September, 2014

ANDO RAZES 2014The Rando-Razès is a family sport-ing event based around cross country and open air sport.ESCUEILLENS-ET-SAINT-JUST-DE-BEL 13 to 14 Sept 2014

FREE, GUIDED VISITS TO THE ARBORETUM DE LUNELLUNELFREE OF CHARGE10h-18h Chemin du Gazon, 34400 LUNELTelephone : 33 (0)4 67 71 01 37Mail : [email protected] : www.ot-paysdelunel.fr13 to 14 September, 2014

GOURMET POTATOES FESTIVAL - PAYS DE SAULTAll day activities on the theme of the Potato: various animations, demonstrations and also on-site dining. BELVI Free admission 14 Sept, 2014

FÊTE DU VINPINET 14 September, 2014

Market and Discovery Day10h to 18h at the lac de la Pène, l’Association “Le village des Pro-ducteurs de l’Aude, Pays CathareESCUEILLENS-ET-SAINT-JUST-DE-BEL Free admission14th September, 2014

FETE DES VENDANGES ROQUEBRUNGrillade and refreshments, musi-cal entertainment, 19h30Hameau de Ceps34460 ROQUEBRUNescolansdeceps.blogspot.fr/20 September, 2014

NARBONNE ORGAN FESTIVAL 2014 17h, Saint-Just Cathedral. Featuring Christopher HAIN-SWORTH (organ) & Laurence FRAISSE (flute). Free entrance.

NARBONNE - Cathédrale Saint Just et Saint Pas-teur20 September, 2014

FÊTE MÉDIEVALEOLARGUES20 to 21 Septem-ber, 2014

African Dance WorkshopCazilhac, Montpel-lier

With Aminata Touré, Guinéenne dancer14h -17h at la Maison Pour Tous Georges Sand, MontpellierRegistration recommended34190 CAZILHACMobile : 33 (0)6 15 12 88 94Mail : [email protected] September, 2014

Brame du CerfWho would not hope, whilst strolling in the forest, to spot a deer, or simply to have the plea-sure of hearing one? The Cen-tre Cebenna is offering you the chance to come and listen to the “brame du cerf” at dusk, accom-panied by a forest warden. A talk will take place after the walk in the Forest of Monts d’Orb.CENTRE CEBENNA, Avenue du Champ des horts, 34390 OLAR-GUESRDV 17h30; Price: 11€Telephone: 33 (0)4 67 97 88 00; website: www.cebenna.org26 September,2014

Sculpture TrailMayronnes (Mayronnes is a ham-let in the Corbieres hills, near Lagrasse. It hosts a stunning free sculpture trail 5km (two hours 30 minutes) long.) Free admission.Until 26 September, 2014

A Glass of Wine on the CanalQUAI ELIE AMOUROUX34310 CAPESTANG 18hTéléphone : 33 (0)4 67 37 85 29www.tourismecanaldumidi.frFree - 26 September, 2014

EXHIBITION ANNA HAUSER PEL-LERIN -CASTELNAU-DE-GUERSFree admission; open from Mon-day to Friday, 8h-12h and 13h30-18h 32 Avenue de Castelnau29 Sep to 19 December, 2014ORCHIDS AT FONTFROIDEFor the 8th year running this “orchid événement” takes place over an extended weekend; pres-tigious producers eager to share their passion for orchidsNARBONNE - Abbaye de Font-froide3 October to 5 October, 2014

TRADITIONAL ROWING “COUPE DE FRANCE”14th edition of the Coupe de France of traditional rowing. Sev-eral rounds expected and hun-dreds of rowers…GRUISSAN - Port de PlaisanceFree admission4 October to 05 October 2014

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A R T



As a British artist working for many years in the south of France: GORDON SEWARD is a firm believer in the beauty of pure pigments. Still life; Everyday intimate

scenes; Urban compositions; Classic themes revisited; Gor-don Seward’s oil paintings are composed with bold brush strokes and dazzling colours, and are as instinctive as they are endlessly creative. Into the oil paint often applied di-rectly from the tube, he adds unexpected elements - plas-tics, porcelain or sequins etc. - that play with the light and surprise the eye. Far from being decorative elements they are the result of his ongoing courageous searching for an art where painting can still be spectacular and deeply emotional without being superficial or vulgar. Within the freedom of his work there is a smile for the world and the grace and audacity of one confident in his art. Admired and recognised by collectors and galleries throughout France and internationally, the artwork of Gordon SEWARD, im-mediately draws into the joy of serious contemporary oil painting. “I start each painting as if I had been blind and have just recov-ered my vision. There are no preliminary drawings or decisions, I just burst onto the canvas. My painting is instinctive though I am a meditative person. The joy of painting is to extract primal beauty; And when I have it in my hand, I lay it out as boldly and brightly as I can.A successful painting has an overwhelming sense of abandon and creative courage, exactly as in a poem or a piece of music, an echo of that place beyond our limited imaginations. “My work has changed a lot over the years, even everyday. Its not having a style that is important, that will take care of it-

self with time and work. Most important is to create real emo-tion everyday, using line and colour and the adrenaline they inspire. “I use oil paint as to me it represents the relay between generations of painters and more importantly it suits me! I paint my life having taken out the dividing line between paint-ing and living. I am not a painter who says - OK dear, I’m off to the studio, back at 6.30.I paint, cook, paint, wash up, paint, watch a film, chat, paint; no difference. Art is a state of mind, I never leave it (like love I think). “I take a lot of photos in sepia, always with paintings in mind. Things that happen, friends, compositions that seem interesting born of the day to day. My wife is central, I paint her a lot. More and more I am approaching new themes, ones that seem treacherous or unsuited to my style; However, a sense of ridicule is an artist’s best guide. Cave art fixed the fact that painting is a part of man. Art and war. In 20, 200 or 2000 years time, will people find some positive vibration and a little of their own humanity in my work? I only hope so.”

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Gordon Seward

From top clockwise - Baigneuse (The Bather) - Diptych. oil and mixed elements on canvas 170 x 88cm- Honfleur - oil and mixed elements on canvas 65 x 50cm- La Brasserie - oil and mixed elements on canvas 65 x 54cm- La Malienne - oil and mixed elements on canvas 100 x 150cm



We have instant photographs!

Most of us now have a smartphone or a compact digital camera that allows us to snap away and see the results instantly; in fact we have so many photographs we

might not know what to do with them. But do you remember the days of 35mm photography? It was not so long ago but the advances in technology over a relatively short space of time have changed completely how we see, take and store our images. In this article I am going to focus on the smartphone. If you are like me you may have a few boxes filled with those photo envelopes with your photographs and negatives still in place, pulled out from time to time to have a look and a laugh, and fond memories, or perhaps you were more organised and have sorted your favorites into albums, but you still had to take your film to get it processed and depending where your local photo processing shop was, and your wait could be from a week to a day. And then the whole process was turned on its head with one-hour processing – wow, how good was that!! Don’t forget Edwin Land and the Polaroid camera, but still you had to wait for up to a minute before the image magically appeared before your eyes, but it was fantastic nonetheless, and all of these processes came at a cost. So being careful of how many photographs were taken and perhaps a little more care in the composition gave a better quality of photograph. I now have on my person a small slim electronic gizmo that allows me to make a phone call, with GPS find a location, play games and lots more, plus it takes fantastic photographs. The cameras built into today’s smartphones will allow me to take standard images, close-ups (macro), panorama and lots more and instantly see the results. However, the same rules for taking photographs apply. I need to compose the photograph. I need to check and see what the light is like – and usually I need to move closer to my subject. Wait for the right light. If you are shooting landscapes then the best times are an hour after sunrise and an hour before sunset, usually referred to as the golden hours. The sun is lower in the sky then and it is possible to get some truly great results. Composition, what you see with your eye, is different to what may appear on your phone screen. Move closer, find something of

interest in the foreground of the frame that will give perspective to your shot, experiment with the best angle. If you’re photographing people, friends, family, then the same guidelines apply about getting closer. In a group photo you may want to include some of the background, but be careful not to lose the group. Taking portraits can be fun finding the right light inside or out and framing the subject as you want them, and don’t forget our animal friends! They can be difficult to get a good por-trait because unlike our human subjects you can’t tell them how to pose, although watch out for the unexpected! Always take more than one shot, lots more – this applies to all the subjects you photograph. You can then select the best and delete the rest. Remember, you have no processing costs!! What comes first is, you need to learn how to operate this great piece of equipment and check what apps are available that will help you in the creation of taking better photographs. I use a Sam-sung Galaxy S111 and the ProCapture 2 Camera app. No matter what smartphone you have there will there will be an enhanced camera app to help you get the best from your camera phone. There is normally a small cost for the better apps, but it is well worth it.

HOW TO TAKE BETTER PICTURESTEXT & IMAGES: WILF JAMES

Panorama: Peyriac de Mer, Aude.

Close-up: Wild Flowers. Most apps have a Macro setting that allows you to get in close amongst the flowers.



Wilf JamesOver the past three decades, photographer and World Photo Adventure founder Wilf James has gathered a wealth of experience by doing what he does best: taking photographs. Wilf calls home the beautiful Mediterranean village of Peyriac-de-Mer surrounded by the Étang de Bages et Sigean.Web: www.worldphotoadventure.com

Family: Great Granddad. My father wanted to send a photograph to his great grandson who was born in Brazil. The time of day was around midday with very bright sunlight. Moving into the carport produced lovely ambient lighting and a colourful photo.

Animal Friends: Kiper, The miniature Pony. A nice portrait then he shook his head, I clicked the shutter and a much more interesting photo was the result.

Artistic: Experiment with light and com-position. Gare St Charles. Marseille.



Caroline Conran

Caroline Conran is a well-known food writer, former Chairman of the Guild of Food Writers and Trustee of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery.

Aft er leaving Cambridge Art School she worked for House and Garden and subsequently worked as Home Editor on Queen Magazine for several years, editi ng the food columns. In 1963 she married Terence Conran, and she brought up his fi ve children, her stepsons Jasper Conran the fashion designer and Sebasti an Conran the designer and her children Tom, owner of Tom’s Restaurant, The Cow gastro pub, Crazy Homie’s Mexi-can restaurant and Lucky 7 American Diner, Sophie Conran the designer and cookery writer and Ned Conran, painter and co-founder and owner of El Camion, Mexican Restaurant with his wife Sage Conran . She has had a house in France since 1973, moving from the Lot to Provence and subsequently to her mill in the Languedoc; she divides her ti me between France and the UK. She helped to found Habitat in 1964, setti ng up the kitchen department and working as its buyer alongside Terence Conran. She went on to pioneer the Food and Wine secti ons of the Sunday Times Magazine, the fi rst of any newspaper to off er this secti on, now one of the main components of all the colour supplements, acti ng as Food Editor for the Sunday Times for 13 years. She was also food editor of Nova magazine. At the Sunday Times she started, with Michael Bateman, the very successful Real Bread Campaign and introduced, amongst

other things, the Sunday Times series on Self-Suffi ciency, telling people how to make their own smokehouse, ginger beer, bread, cheese, yoghurt and muesli. She introduced to the UK, and the US, the cooking of the three star French chefs – inspirati on to Marco Pierre White and many other Briti sh chefs. She became friends with Michel Guérard, translati ng and editi ng his Cuisine Gourmande and later the work of the Troisgros Frères, Alain Chapel, Roger Vergé, Jacques Maximin and others. She is the author of the well-known and scarce Poor Cook, writt en with Susan Campbell. She is also the author of the highly acclaimed Conran Cook-book, done in collaborati on with Terence Conran and, in the latest editi on, with Simon Hopkinson, which has sold well over 1,000,000 copies (fi rst published 1980 by Mitchell Beazley and last republished in 1997 by Conran Octopus). It has been trans-lated into numerous languages and her readers include Fidel Castro who has a copy of the Spanish editi on, which, before his ill-health, he shared with his late friend Gabriel Marquez.Under the Sun, published by Pavilion in 1993, was her fi rst book on the Food of Southern France; this was followed by Sud de France, the Food and Cooking of Languedoc, published by Pros-pect Books, which last year won The Andre Simon Award for Best Cookbook and also the Fortnum & Mason Award for Best Cookbook.

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Anchovy and Tomato Salad(Anchoiade bouzigaude)Le Marin Restaurant in the fishing village of Bouz-igues, on the edge of the shining Bassin de Thau and in full view of the oyster fisheries, serves this simple dish. It is traditional to serve this salad without vin-egar, but you can add it if you think it needed.

2 large, firm tomatoes; 2 green peppers, preferably the long type, grilled or roasted, skinned and sliced; 12 anchovy fillets; 3-4 spring onions, cut lengthways into four; 6 hard-boiled eggs, halved; 2 tbsp black olives, preferably stoned; 4 tbsp olive oil; salt crystalsRoughly slice the tomatoes and arrange on a nice earthenware dish. Arrange the peppers on top, season lightly and then add the anchovies. Scatter on the spring onions, and lastly place the halved eggs and black olives on top. Dribble olive oil copiously over everything and sprinkle with a few salt crystals. It looks like summer itself (Serves 6).

Recipe Times

Chicken with Green and Black Olives(Poulet aux deux olives)The sumptuous colours – the colours of the Pays catalan – red, gold, green and black, and the sweetness of the red peppers against the sharp saltiness of the olives, give a great lift to this dish. It appears to be complicated, with a long list of ingredients, but most are simple things that we tend to have at hand. The peppers I prefer are the long, thinner-skinned ones as they are more delicate, but the thick, square peppers are also good for making a mellow and harmonious dish.1x2kg free-range chicken cut in 8 pieces or 4 chicken thighs and 4 drumsticks; 4 tbsp olive oil; ½ tsp paprika or sweet pimenton; ¼ tsp cayenne pepper or hot pimenton; 3 onions, finely chopped; 4 cloves garlic, peeled and halved; 200ml dry white wine; 2 tsp tomato purée; 2 bay leaves; 1 tsp dried thyme; 3 red peppers or 6 long red peppers, roasted, skinned and deseeded; 150g stoned black olives; 150g stoned green olives; salt, pepperHeat the olive oil in a wide, shallow casserole. Season the pieces of chicken with pepper and salt and fry, in batches, on both sides over a moderate heat, until they are a deep golden brown. Remove the pieces to a dish and season with paprika and cayenne.Soften the onions and garlic in the same oil, adding more if needed. Stir from time to time. When they are soft and melting, after 15-20 minutes, add the white wine, tomato purée and herbs. Return the chicken, cover the pan and cook for 10 minutes, turning the chicken once or twice. Add a little water or stock if necessary.Cut the peppers into strips and add them with the olives to the casserole, pushing them down into the juices. Taste for seasoning and cook for a further 10 minutes. Serve with pain de champagne and a green salad. (Serves 4-6)

Long Pimentos with Goat’s Cheese(Poivrons farçis)This excellent first course was cooked for us in Saint-Chinian by my singer daughter-in-law Gertrude and, like her, it is both el-egant and practical. The weather was hot and heavy, as it can be in mid-August, with occasional flashes and rumbles from the clouds hanging over the mountains, and we wanted something simple and light. She made it with the long, mild, thin-fleshed peppers that are grown throughout the Pays Cata-lan, called piments doux or piments du pays. They are also called Romano peppers.6-8 long red or green pimentos; 200g feta or other brined goat’s or sheep’s cheese, cut in small cubes; 3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thinly; small bunch of fresh basil leaves only, torn into small pieces; 3 tbsp olive oil; salt, pepper.Heat the oven to 200°C. Wash the pimentos and slit them all the way along one side. Don’t cut off the stalk end. Working carefully with your fingers, scoop out the seeds and as much of the white pith as possible. Place them, cut side up, in a roasting tin or gratin dish. Sprinkle a little olive oil into each pepper. Divide the pieces of cheese between them, pushing them into through the slit and put the shreds of garlic on top. Put the leaves of basil on top of this and sprinkle again with oil. Season well with pepper but very little or no salt, as the cheese is salty. Put the dish in the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes until the cheese has melted and the peppers are tender. Serve hot or cold. (Serves 4).



Daphne Foulkes

I don’t have any statistics, but it seems to me that more properties are being sold in France - at least this seems to be the

case in the Aude and the Herault. Many of the properties are being purchased by Brit-ish people, who are taking advantage of the strength of Sterling against the Euro, but they are also planning to become resident here. I know this because my telephone has been particularly busy for this time of the year, as I am being contacted by many of these people for advice. As well as seeking advice on how to restructure financial as-sets for French tax-efficiency, French inheri-tance planning is also high on the agenda. Rather worryingly, I am finding that many clients think that potential French inheri-tance issues are going to disappear when the EU Succession Rules come into effect in August 2015. Whilst it is true that people will be able to choose the succession rules of their country of nationality, what is being misunderstood is the fact that this will not change the inheritance tax rules that apply. The most common scenario that we come across is one that involves there being chil-dren from a previous marriage. Unless the couple buy the property ‘en tontine’ or the children enter into a family pact with their natural parent, the surviving step-parent will not have full control over the property. The EU Succession Rules could change that, for example, if the couple elect for the suc-cession rules of their country of nationality to apply and that country does not have any concept of children being ‘protected heirs’. A perfect solution? Well yes for protecting the surviving step-parent, but if the step-parent wishes to leave the property to the

step-children, then there will still be a 60% inheritance tax bill., so not quite the perfect solution. Like all aspects of financial planning, every case will have to be looked at on its own merits and what seems clear is that there will be some cases where the ‘French way’ may still be best – see my own personal situation below, which demonstrates that tried and tested solutions already exist for dealing with property, plus assurance vie will continue to be an effective tool for suc-cession planning for financial assets. You can find out more about this by reading my article on ‘Inheritance Planning in France’ on this magazine’s website or by contacting me directly for a copy. As a British citizen who is in a French civil partnership (PACS) with someone who has dual US and British citizenship, as well as him having two daughters and two grand-children living outside of the EU, we will not be rushing ahead to request that UK succession rules apply to our estates. No – we will definitely continue to depend upon our French family pact and assurance vie because in that way, we know that when the time comes, the survivor will be fully protected and the potential inheritance tax bills of our heirs have been mitigated. Now is also a good time to mention that we are taking bookings for our client seminars, which will be taking place across France – “Le Tour de Finance - Bringing Ex-perts to Expats” during the Autumn. Our industry experts will be presenting updates and outlooks on a broad range of subjects, including:

Financial Markets Assurance Vie Pensions/QROPS Structured Investments French Tax issues Currency Exchange

The date for the local seminar is Friday, 10th October 2014 at the Domaine Gayda, 11300 Brugairolles. This is always a very popular event and so early booking is rec-ommended. But if you are reading this further afield, you may be interested in attending one of our other events, for example, St Endréol in the Var on 8th October and full details of all venues can be found on our website at www.spectrum-ifa.com/seminars/ Places for our seminars are limited and must be reserved, in advance. So if you would like to attend one of the events or you would anyway like to have a confiden-tial discussion about any aspect of financial planning, please contact me, as soon as possible, either by e-mail at [email protected] or by telephone on 04 68 20 30 17. The above outline is provided for information pur-poses only and does not constitute advice or a rec-ommendation from The Spectrum IFA Group to take any particular action on the subject of investment of financial assets or on the mitigation of taxes.

The Spectrum IFA Group advisers do not charge any fees directly to clients for their time or for advice given, as can be seen from our Client Charter here

SIRET 522 658 194 00017Numéro d’immatriculation ORIAS 10 056 800

EU SUCCESSION RULES – the perfect solution?

See ya!!



Quiet now, don’t mention the GermansI’m going to say something here that frankly I know deep down I don’t mean....... I feel a bit sorry for Franny Hollande. No, really, in a conversation that I had recently I found myself nodding agreeably but having a twinge of pity for the man with no experi-ence suddenly thrust into the headlights of running one of Europe’s largest economies. And why you ask impatient-ly? Because a conversation that was about the difficul-ties of the German economy and the not so secret drive of Germany to mould the route out of recession turned quickly into a statement that Germany could do what they wanted because France were told to do it all first to see if it worked. With Hollande having a mu-sical chairs game to get the nasty people from his govern-ment he now has to watch over his shoulder. Many believe the biggest ca-sualty, Arnaud Montebourg, was better in the cabinet than out. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer eh? But did he really criticise Germany? And complain that our Angela was bad for Eu-rope, well Italy and France?Oh la la Mr Montebourg. You want Monsieur Hollande to stand up to Angela Merkel? He tried that. Hollande came to power ar-guing against Germany’s fiscal austerity.......’spend your way

out,’ he shouted, ‘Germany is wrong’. He even tried to get Italy and Spain on board and that worked out well right?

But the problem is that this reshuffle is because of the crisis right?

Well no. Being outspoken about your government’s di-rection is one thing, but to indicate that your esteemed leader is a bit of a wet fish who can’t stand up to a girl (even if that girl is the highly skilled and intelligent Angela Merkel) is not acceptable to some Frenchmen. So I am sorry for Franny. He got into power going up against the heavyweights. He tried and as unemploy-ment rises and the economy stagnates and his popular-ity plummets he looks across the table and sees Germany hanging in there doing a hell of a lot better than France.

Merkel is leading, Hollande is floundering.

He tried you know, he really did. But in a littlewhile there wi-ll be the drum roll of people who sound remarkably like Arnaud Montebourg and you can’t keep asking your cabinet to resign so that you can put your frie-nds in placecan you? *

Business Interviews, rhetoric and opinion. Michael D’Artag writes, interviews or comments on topics that impact you.

Let’s talk SAILING.....

Ahoy there Captain! Ok, I’ll admit – I am no sailor. However, here in

the Herault and Aude there are many opportunities for yachting enthusiasts and professionals, after all we have the waters of the Med and the Canal du Midi on our doorstep! The team, here at Currencies Direct France, are really excited to announce the arrival of our brand new HORI-ZONS product, which is aimed exclusively at the yachting in-dustry. The Horizons brand has been developed after many months of research by Cossette Cutrara, who is a Business De-velopment Executive based in our French office in Nice. For so many people involved in the yachting industry the need to be able to move money from country to country is paramount – and often time sensitive. For example if you are off on a 6 month trip you need to be able to ensure all those home based commitments, such as mortgage payments, regular bills etc are covered. That is why we have developed Horizons, to provide that valuable service, and it is not just aimed at the crew mem-bers but all the other subsidiary

industries that all play a part in making sure a trip goes well – such as yacht maintenance, brokerage, crew recruitment and training etc.. So if you, or anyone you know, is involved in the Yachting in-dustry in anyway then please do get in contact to find out a little bit more about how Currencies Direct can make sure your in-ternational money transfers are plain sailing and that life is a breeze (I write my own material you know!). For more information on Ho-rizons feel free to contact myself on 04 68 20 41 35 or email at [email protected] or you can contact Cossette di-rectly. Cosette’s number is 04 22 32 62 41 and her email is [email protected]

As always , if you have any questions about any of the products and services we of-fer – or would like to get a free, no obligation rate quote for your next international money transfer then please do get in contact.

And on a final note, CONGRATULATIONS to Kim Mousseron, who is our lucky winner of an iPad in our recent competition. Kim will be re-ceiving her prize very soon. Many thanks to all the others who entered…

Fiona

Due to legal circumstances the article on MR BT cannot be published at this time.

BANKING - Part 2La PosteHow interesting that you read the piece on La Banque Postale with not as much shock as I had hoped or expected. As of the 18th of August I have re-ceived 11 letters outlining the same issue which I have passed on to the relevant person and as of writing I have received a solitary email telling me that this isn’t good and it will be dealt with. And that’s that.....nothing else. A dos-

sier has been sent and we’ll see what happens next.

Banque de FranceDid you know that the Banque de France can suspend your accounts without any notice or justification? Apparently so... I mean it isn’t in their remit or even European law but if you are a terrorist, or should I say if they de-cide you a terrorist, hey, there you go. Banking in France - use your mattress!



In The Garden with Gill Pound

We normally are waiting for Septem-ber to bring us some much needed

rains but, at the time of writing, we have had an unusually wet July and a fairly wet start to August. Nonetheless, for the vast majority of shrubs and perennials the au-tumn is the best time to plant – there is warmth and moisture in the soil and the plant starts to develop roots before the cold of winter and in mild winters may keep growing during the winter thus producing a more established plant – better able to withstand dry winds and heat next sum-mer. In general the autumn planting sea-son can start once we have had September rain and can extend until early December. Remember that when planting it is a good idea to dig a hole twice as deep and twice as wide as the pot, take this soil out and mix some of it with terreau de plantation or compost (organic material) and clean sand or gravel, use this mixture to give your plant a better start in life! Before planting fill the planting hole with water and allow it to drain away several times, this will ensue that there is moisture at depth for the roots to seek out. Whenev-er possible plant small plants rather than large specimens, they are less susceptible

to wind rock, will establish faster and long term will result in healthier plants. If you haven’t yet done so now is the time to buy spring flowering bulbs from garden centres (jardineries) or by mail order, there are many online sources. I have found that anemones (De Caen hybrids and Anemone blanda), native Gladiolus communis and Scilla peruviana (which is a Med native de-spite the name) do well. Botanical or spe-cies tulips such as Tulipa greigii, kaufmani-ana, saxatilis & fosteriana are particularly successful here as well as other Med na-tives such as grape hyacinths and Star of Bethlehem. When buying bulbs make sure that what’s in the packet are firm, healthy looking bulbs with no signs of pre-mature sprouting. During September think also about the following tasks: *continue to deadhead perennials to pro-long the autumn show of flower *take cuttings of tender perennials such as geraniums (Pelargoniums strictly speak-ing) *prune late summer flowering shrubs af-ter flowering *trim evergreen hedges *clip back lavenders after flowering – use

hand shears and clip back to just above the old flowering stem, don’t cut back into old wood as the plant may not reshoot. Many Mediterranean native plants flow-er earlier in the year but there are many species of Origanum that flower through the summer into September. The popular cooking herb, oregano, is Origanum vul-gare but many species are very ornamen-tal. For example; Origanum dictamnus has woolly, silvery leaves with pink flowers & purple bracts, another good ornamental is Origanum Kent Beauty with beautiful, large pink bracts around mauve flowers. There are many forms of Origanum lae-vigatum which are most attractive too; Herrenhausen is a deep purple form and Nymphenbug is a lovely compact cultivar. And, for fans of Middle Eastern cooking, don’t forget the white flowered Origanum syriacum which is the main constituent of the zatar spice mix. And, if you want more convincing to try some oreganos, remem-ber that they are all extremely attractive to bees and butterflies.

At La Petite Pépinière this autumn we are offering our popular two day gardening course:

SEPTEMBER

Nature NotesGolferThe weather in the Languedoc is ideal for a species that is living across the globe but during the months up to and including Sep-tember you can see almost all varieties in the Languedoc. The golfer is curious creature with a plum-age that can vary from flip-flops to the the most garish of multi coloured and non matching colours seen in the wild. The calls vary from the polite ‘fore’ to the almost violent calls and destruction of their appendages they call ‘clubs’. The common call of ‘fore’ is believed by those that study the breed to be a warning call: ‘forewarned’ that male chauvanists in garish outfits are nearby. A risk to the species is that the males to-tally out number the females by an over-whelming rate and this can be seen in the rituals that take place on a ‘green’ which appears to be an arena chosen by golfers to preen and showcase their desirability to

the female or their strength to the other males. A common ritual here is for the male to stand straight, walk around a pole staring at it and then bend down to look at the pole a number of times whilst muttering to them-selves. Biologists have surmised that this is a ter-ritory marking and intimidzation style and appears to work as, after leaving, many of the males can be seen going into trees to ‘mark’ their area after the show. One of the most remarkable features of the golfer is their inability to count. I once witnessed a group of golfers (collective name ‘goofers’) in a circle continually look-ing back from where they had been and arguing about the number of ‘shots’ taken. On any golf course in the world if you watch this will happen. The golfers however are a sociable breed. They will congregate regularly in the same place and do not tire of repeating their trek around the same land (course).

It should be noted that if you approach a golfer one time and they are wary but po-lite that may not be the case the next time you see them, especially if you see them hitting their projectiles into water. The feeding of golfers on a course is frowned upon. Their habits are quite sim-ple. Most male groups will retire to drink beer and talk about their prowess whilst the weakest in the group is harangued and mocked relentlessly. On occasion it is a dif-ferent male every week. In mixed groups it is common for the male to ingratiate himself with the female by of-fering food and wine. Rarely approach this couple as there is quite a good chance the correct female is at home tidying and clean-ing while the male dresses up and partakes of the ritual. And finally, if one of the males states he is a ‘bit of a tiger’, lock up your daughters and look out for strange cars at supermarkets

A golfers widow 2014



In The Garden with Gill Pound

An Introduction to Gardening in Summer Dry Climates: Tuesday 14th (11am – 1, 2 – 5pm) and Wednesday 15th October 2014 (10am – 12.30, 1.30 – 4pm) 2011 A two day course which is aimed at those relatively new to gardening in the Langued-oc climate, our intention is to provide in-formation and promote discussion in a re-laxed and informal atmosphere which will help those interested in creating interest-ing, easy to maintain and colourful orna-mental gardens in our summer dry climate. We will consider the nature of the local

climate, the physical problems associated with gardening here (heat, drought, cold, wind, soil) and how to cope with them; recognising plants which are suited to this climate; buying plants; planting techniques and maintenance. We shall also look at design basics and planting schemes, suc-cession – planting for year round interest and plants for particular situations. Appro-priate resources and useful French/English vocabulary will also be included as well as a guided tour of the garden here to illus-trate points made. There will be plenty of opportunity for discussion of issues raised

by course participants. The timing of the course is designed to help anyone who wishes to come from further afield and would like to stay locally on Tuesday night, if you would like recom-mendations for accommodation do ask. Course fee: 90 euros, including teas & coffees. Please bring a packed lunch.CONTACT - For further information contact Gill Pound at La Petite Pépinière de Caunes, 21, Avenue de la Montagne Noire, (route de Citou) 11160, Caunes-Minervois. Tel: 04 68 78 43 81, email [email protected]

Origanum rotundifolia Kent Beauty Origanum dictamnus

Enough said!!Image courtesy of: trolllollol

IT REALLY IS THE PLACE TO BE FOR THE SUNSHINETotal Annual Sunshine Days of SunHrs Strong Weak2119 Carcassonne 89 1122002 Lyon 81 1282858 Marseille 1 70 602668 Montpellier 148 742724 Nice 147 642465 Perpignan 120 792839 Toulon 166 62



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English for Expat Children - - An indispensable guide

ENGLISH FOR EXPAT CHILDREN with Laura Smith

My aim is to provide you with materials that will not only stand alone, but perhaps give your own English support ideas a frame-work and inspire you to develop your own. My general focus is largely to apply learning to real-life situations and needs, but ev-ery once in a while a ‘sit-down with a piece of paper’ moment presents itself. The key to this kind of activity is to keep it fun and challenging, perhaps tackling the exercises orally together first will make them feel less like ‘work’.

PLURALS : Regular or Irregular?Complete the spelling table below. As with so many aspects of grammar, sometimes there just aren’t any rules and irregularities need to be learnt through repeated exposure. (A ‘regular’ plural is one that only needs an ‘s’ on the end of the singular spelling.)

SINGULAR PLURALBaby ThievesMouse WomenBox ToysFish Teeth PotatoesChild Knife Cup Word Families : Which is the odd one out?

The following groups of four words each have one odd one out. Try to think of the verb that will fit with three out of the four. Some are more difficult than others, but there are clues at the bottom if you are really stuck.For example: apple, cucumber, rice and magazines. Magazines are the odd one out because you can’t eat them. You can eat apples, cucumber and rice. Incidentally, verbs are quite often made up of two words in Eng-lish; these are called ‘phrasal verbs’. They are made from a verb paired with a preposition like... ‘get up’, ‘fall over’, ‘look into’. The preposition after the verb changes the meaning quite distinctly. One of the odd ones out below is a phrasal verb.

TROUSERS SKIRT HANGERS SHOES

TEETH HAIR DOG FINGERS

SIGNPOST GAMES BOOK MAP

BENCH BUS COUNCIL SCHOOL

PHOTOS DINNER FRIENDS TIME

CLUES IF YOU ARE FEELING STUCK...THIS LIST OF VERBS INCLUDES THE FIVE ANSWERS: BRUSH, LOOK AT, TAKE, FOLLOW, SIT ON, WEAR, MAKE, READ, HAVE.

**



Agence Guy Estate Agency English/French owned 25 years of experience

www.pezenas-immobilier.com [email protected]

tel 0467 98 37 77 mob 0622 34 30 56

“Quality Assured”

Summer star Buys

With the pound at the strongest it’s been against the euro in the last few years and relati vely stable

property prices, now is one of the best ti mes to buy a property in the Languedoc. Indeed, we are seeing a defi nite rise in ac-ti vity in the market as savvy foreign buy-er are taking advantage of these factors, plus the generally cheaper mortgage rates throughout Europe , to snap up a bargain here. Whilst there is sti ll some reluctance to accept that the ‘good old days’ for sellers are well and truly over, some sellers have woken up to the fact that buying conditi ons are the most favourable they have been in years and therefore, are pricing their properti es realisti cally to take advantage of these conditi ons to secure a quick sale.We have highlighted 3 properti es currently on our books which we think are parti cu-

larly good value for money at the moment. The fi rst is a 2 bedroom stone house in a lovely canal side village popular with our in-ternati onal clients, about 20 minutes from Narbonne. The property benefi ts from a south east facing roof terrace of around 8m2 with great views over the Canal du Midi and countryside beyond. Priced at 76,000€, you will be hard pressed to fi nd a ready to move into 2 bedroom property with outside space in a popular locati on, at a bett er price. The second property is a beauti ful ‘Mai-son Vigneronne’ in the heart of a lively winemaking village between Narbonne and Beziers. With almost 200m2 of habitable space, this house has 3 bedrooms, 2 open plan living rooms, a garage and a secluded courtyard garden with summer kitchen. Bought 3 years ago by its current owner, the property has been lovingly and pains-takingly restored, with new electrics and plumbing throughout. At 265,000€, we predict this property is not desti ned to stay

on our books for long. Our third property defi nitely has the ‘wow’ factor in abundance. This superb towered period property dati ng from 1860 is set in a private gated park of 4600m2. It has 800m2 of habitable space comprising 9/10 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, 2 kitchens and a huge arti st studio, with a stunning 15m x 5m pool, internal courtyard and out-building. Renovated and decorated in an inimitable style with no expense spared, it is hard to believe that this property comes under the million euro mark at 950,000€. This return to realisti c pricing may be the long awaited catalyst to regenerate a mar-ket that been in the doldrums for the past 5 years!

Richard & Chitra - Pullen Real Estate +33 (0)4 68 48 84 03 +33 (0)6 76 64 10 10/ (0)6 87 72 17 [email protected] www.pullenfrance.com

From top clockwise - 2 bedroom stone house 76,000€ - 3 bedroom beauti ful ‘Maison Vigneronne’ 265,000€ - 9/10 bedrooms period property dati ng from 1860 set in a private gated park of 4600m2. 950,000€

PROPERTY

More Properties with English Speaking Agents online www.theheraultandaudetimes/property



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ASSOCIATIONS

The Tuesday ClubA lively group of English speaking people from all na-tionalities meet to hear talks, exchange ideas and [email protected]

**

Anglophone Group Languedoc Roussillon (AGLR)Adults & childrens’ activities including bridge, golf, French conversation, cooking, excursions in convivial atmospherewww.anglophone-group-langued-oc-roussillon.com/ [email protected]

**

We meet at Maison pour Tous, Florensac, second Thursday of each month, at 1430h (except July & Aug).Info: 0467 77 19 06www.wicmediterranee.org.

**

Roofi ng and Building Ser-vicesRoofs replaced or repaired: Leaks, Insulation, Velux, Guttering, New beams, Structural, Terraces. Building maintenance and repairs.References. Professional – Reliable [email protected] Karl : 06 04 45 63 57 Paul : 06 34 95 19 71www.roofi ngbuildingservices.com

READER RECOMMENDED DYSON RENOVATIONS, Qualifi ed British Builder Full house renovations. Tiling, Kitchens, Bathrooms, Decorating. Qualifi ed electricians, Professional and Reliable. Tel 06 27 55 04 79 [email protected]

www.dysonpropertyrenovations.com

European Property Services*Supply and fi t windows and doors and conservatories.* Supply and fi t shutters in all materials* Supply and fi t kitchens* Repair windows and doors Contact Paul Roberts t: 0467 62 30 65m: 0627 59 22 08email: [email protected]

**For All Your Property Care NeedsComplete pool care inc. winter shutdown, gardening inc strimming, changeovers, general painting interior and exterior, varnishing, oiling shutters etc.Siret registered est 10 yearsTel: 04 67 24 83 72. M: 06 87 64 97 29www.property34fr.com

**

LANGUEDOC PROPERTY SERVICE.COMHelp in Hérault with property repairs & garden maintenance, pools, decoration, keyholding & changeovers. Established. Bilingual. 06 31 74 45 88

**

PROPERTY SERVICES/Perfect Property ManagementProfessional, reliable company for all of your property needs. Changeovers, pool maintenance and repairs, project management. Siret registered.Contact Trudi: 0499570589 [email protected]

**

HANDYMAN/ SKILLED CARPENTER WITH VANRemovals. All types of repairs. Flatpack assembly. Furniture/ storage solutions built. Tiling, painting, electrics. Rubbish/Gar-den clearance/maintenance. No job too small. Col O’Neill 06 48 86 98 66. Photos www.meubles-creatifs.fr

**

Gray Solutions Bilingual building and renovation project management, with excellent tried and tested teams covering all trades. Bernie Gray 06 49 21 55 71 www.gray-solutions.co.uk

**

French PLUMBER Plumbing - Heating- Gast: 0467 00 11 19 p:0689 02 31 62Denis Huyart 34630

**

SERVICES Cleaning Services:Holiday homes(including mobile homes) reliable effi cient couple offer cleaning, change over service for your rental properties.Serignan area.Steve Martin Tel:0780367536

**

SERVICESCommercial Cleaning Machine for hire.Cleans soft furnishings, rugs, mattresses, sunbed cushions, car interiors, etc.Contact Trudi: 0499570589 [email protected]

**French PLUMBER Plumbing - Heating- Gast: 0467 00 11 19 p:0689 02 31 62Denis Huyart 34630

**Electrician(N.I.C.E.I.C. Registered in UK 1986-2008)Rewires or extra lights/sockets. Siret registeredTel: Terry Smith 0467 95 82 05Email: [email protected]

**DECOR

Decorate your home with a Scandinavian style and sophistication.

Scandinavian furniture, tableware and decor.23 rue des Chevaliers de st JeanYou will fi nd us behind the Post Offi ce in Pezenaswww.troissoeurs.com Port. 0634509015 Dom. 0963211140

WIC, Women’s International Club is an international group of ladies, for all nationalities, who meet to

share experiences, knowledge and to have some fun.

Meetings are conducted in both French and English and

commence at 14.30 on the first Thursday of each month at

Salle de l’Abbatiale, Saint Chinian

For further information please contact [email protected] www.wic-lr.com

Classifi ed Adverts

Door Restore Is your Front Door showing its age?Try Door Restore. Special-ists in the restoration and

repair ofall wooden exterior and

interior doors and shutters. On-site repairs or

workshop restoration Contact us for a site visit

Free quotationTel: 0671 52 61 93

m: [email protected]



PROPERTY SERVICES/GARDENING SERVICESRoquebrun Property Management Personalised services for holiday

homes and seasonal rentals. Full or ‘pay as you go’ service.

Homes available to rent for 1- 15 people.

Call Sue on 0652752445.wwwroquebrunproperty.com

**

Dick Fowler ConstructionLiner Pools, Solid Pools All house renovation and construc-tion work Email; [email protected] Port: 0670 91 12 17 Check out www.houzz.com/decklevel-pool-designs and then call me!

**RT MULTISERVICESNo job too small - Painting, decorating, land clearence, key-holding. Translations. Collections, deliveries, removals. Regular van trips to/from UK. Reliable, local, bi-lingual.Chris 06 84 29 34 34 e-mail [email protected]

**FOR SALE

Romahome “mini” Camper. Ideal for 2 people. LHD, 2005, 144000 km, air-conditioned, sink, fridge, gas burners and grill, heating, etc14,750€t:04 67 96 12 03m:06 61 48 40 [email protected]

**House contents for saleFurniture, kitchen equipment, plates, glasses etc. bedding, garden pots. Roujan area. Telephone from September 04 67 25 30 78

Food Safety /Health and Safety coursesConsultant/Trainer holding Food Safety course and Health and Safety course from June. Date to be confirmed. If interested telephone for details. Examina-tion in English or French. CIEH accredited London. Contact: 0467234460 after 18h

**WELL-BEINGREADERS RECOMMEND

Bespoke massage, Mobile serviceGroup bookings taken. Thai massages, Reflexology, Neck and face massage, Reiki, Oil massage.Susannah 0652 75 24 45 / 0467 24 31 42Based in Ceps / Cazedarnes

**Stress Management

& Kinesiology TFH®

Three in One Concepts®Perinatal Kinesiology®

Bilingual French / EnglishBased in Juvignac (34)

For more information or to book an appointment,Please contact Alexandra Thevenet on: 0695 183 969 / [email protected]

Nathalie EstheticFabulous, affordable, beauty treatments - Nathalie Esthetic4, Place du Marché St ThibéryTue-Sat, Mon & evenings by appt.Tel : Nathalie on 06 47 40 10 45

**Centre d’Ostéopathie et d’Intégration Structurelle (®Rolfing)Recently opened in LodèveAnnette Beckettqualified osteopath since 1992cranial osteopathy for adults, children, [email protected] P. Beckett Certified Rolfer, Rolf Institute 1993 Structural Integration, Postural Improvement,Osteopathics. [email protected] 30 64 88 40

**

SeminarAn exceptional seminar will be in held by Matthew Thie in Le Crès (34)- in English with full consecutive translation in French - from September 20th to 23rd. Cost: 480€ For info contact Bernadette Naud on [email protected].

TRANSLATION SERVICES

READERS RECOMMENDIndependent Anglophone translator.All texts considered. Working languages: French, Spanish, English - Contact Alison: [email protected]

**CLASSESNizas LanguesFrench language lessons & Translation Service. (34320)Qualified teacher & native speaker with over 25 yrs. experience of teaching French in the UK – GCSE & AS/A Level.Hours to suit you 8.00 am – 8.00 pm.Price from 15€/hr 0ne to One.Tailor made programmes – 10 lessons 100€. Small groups on request. 04 34 53 18 36 [email protected] www.nizaslangues.com

**Russian LanguageLearn Russion language from a native speakerYuliam: 0646 674 841Hérault 34

**MOBILE HOMES FOR SALE.Prices starting from 1500€ upto 6000€. Wide range in stock.Transport and installation available on request. Telephone: 0609 54 06 62.

Painter DecoratorPlasterer

Partition wallsLaminate flooring

Honest and reliable 06 23 33 30 22Gary Jackson

**

Master builder 30 years experience in France

General building, roofing, roof terrace, facades, kitchens, bathrooms.Raymond Kelly, Kelly Projets company04 67 77 64 20www.kelly-projets.com

*

WONDERFUL GARDENS, MINIMAL UPKEEP.

Garden Creation and Mainte-nance.

Watering Systems,Landscaping, Building and Paving.

Hedges, Beds,Dry Lawns and Waterfeatures.

Mathieu Goudou, Le JardinierPrompt, reliable & perfect

EnglishTel 06 23 46 35 42

Specialist in Midi Gardens and Courtyards

**Courses / LessonsPiano Teacher WantedI am looking for someone to teach me to play the piano freestyle. I can already read sheet music. Lessons at my home or yours. Prices please [email protected] 67 37 05 55

**French LessonsFrench lessons, one to one or small groups in the heart of Pézenas with a French native teacherHélèna (00 33) 0650772414

**

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BUSINESS FOR SALEProperty Management / Multi Service Due to retirement after 20 years For details contact [email protected] or call on 06 73 75 14 50

**POSITIONS OFFERED /Fully qualified mechanic (speaks a little French) Relocating to Saint Marcel /Narbonne area. 30 yrs experience Subaru Kia Peugeot and Aston MartinHistoric racing cars.Seeking contacts with garages in 30 - 40 mins driving of [email protected]

PROPERTY FOR SALE

Riverside,Grau d’Agde/Agde house currently in 2 appts.4/5 beds, very light, spacious living room,dining room,kitchen, terrace all overlooking Hérault studio and summer kitchen in large tropical garden, pool. Beach 5 mins. Pot.rental income Jul/Aug 20k. Con:0467375310 438,000€[email protected]

**

Sweet home for sale in the heart of the village40 square meters30 minutes from Vias airport,30 minutes from the beach,45000 EurosGenevieve: 0608 62 81 24 0467 26 44 09

**

PROPERTY FOR SALEHouse, Orb Valley, south of Bedarieux.Sunsets across panoramic views of the Orb Valley and the Espinouse mountains, two hectares, 10 metre pool, 3 double bedrooms.€420,000information: www. palagret.co.uk [email protected]

**

House for Sale. Bédarieux. Currently laid out as a four bedroom, family town house with a glorious terrace garden; fully rewired with completely new plumbing fitted, full central heating installed in a quarter earmarked for substantial mod-ernisation and redevelopment.Free municipal car parks are adjacent and the centre of town containing a variety of shops / weekly market is a two minute walk. Numerous supermarkets and garages are handily placed. I am reluctantly looking for a much smaller house to reflect my changed situation. €270kContact:[email protected]

**PROPERTY - RentalClose to Pézenas 2 Bedroom House to Rent / BuyGarage, Terrace, (Stairs)2 s/c studio flats attached.Seperate entrance.10 minutes by car from Pézenas.All amenitied v close. €650pcmor €161,000Enq: 0644 80 24 32

**HOUSE SEARCHSwedish HousehunterKarin KlooYour help finding your French home in [email protected]

**

B & BMaison De L’Orb, BéziersBeautiful five bedroom bed and breakfast overlooking Pont Vieux and river. Private garden, bathing pool, fantastic breakfast. Book: www.maisondelorb.com [email protected]

**CLOTHING

Stylisshh Contessa A place for beautiful, sexy, elegant clothing.sexy, elegant [email protected]: 0953201623

**CHURCHESThe Church of England at St. Pargoire, Holy Communion 2nd Sunday each month at 1030 am. Everyone welcome. Details [email protected]

**International Chapel of MontpellierWorship Services in EnglishChildren’s Bible Class providedServices held every Sunday at 11:00amWebsite: www.internationalchapel.eu

**HIRE

Hire a 2cv Convertable for the day or longer.A wonderful slice of French Culture. More info at:www.cornelia-rentaduck.com

**WANTEDDuck billed platypus pictures for unusual event.Please send photos by email to [email protected] quoting Nigel n the sunbject line.

LARGE TRADITIONAL HOUSE FOR SALE200m2 beautifully renovated house between Pézenas and Clerment l’Hérault.Four bedrooms, two bathrooms;self-contained top floor master bedroom with terrace + separate entrance. Is gîte if income required. Dining room, large modern kitchen, 65m2 living room, remise/workshop, land-scaped garden with terrace.t: 04 67 44 37 73 for more details / to view

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Exceptional property in Carcassonne. Centrally located 250 sq. m. townhouse, 10 rooms, 60 sq. m. walled garden (not overlooked); 100 m. from Court of Justice, 250 m. from train station, 20 min. walk from Medieval Citadel. 4 floors + attic. Gas central heating. Ideally situated for B&B rooms or offices for independent professionals. Requires renovating.Price: € 270 000tel : +33 4 68 74 03 22 +33 674 522 471FOOD AND WINEChillis and Spice.Discover the Chipotle chilli from Mexico, a wonderful dried, smoky Jalapeno. We sell them as they come and also use them to make sauces, chutneys, relishes and rubs, perfect for the BBQ. We also have a good selection of Indian spices. www.chillisandspice.com

**Cakes by Ann - since 1980Rich fruit cakes for your celebrations.Hand made to orderHelen REMNANT06 89 61 06 [email protected]

**



Markets

AUDECarcassonne - every morning (except Sunday) in Les Halles; Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday morning, Place CarnotNarbonne - every morning in Les Halles inc. Sunday; Thursday morning opposite the hospital, clothes and diverse until 16h by the canal; Saturday morning, Organic market, place ForumLézignan-Corbières - Wednesday mornings (centre); Grand Foire every fi rst Wednesday in the month until 16hCastelnaudary - Monday morning (Place Verdun-Cours de la Répub-lique)Bram - Wednesday morningEspéraza - Thursday and Sunday morningGruissan - Monday, Wed & Saturday morningLimoux - Friday morningOlonzac -Tuesday morningPort La Nouvelle - Saturday (place de l’église) and Wednesday morningSigean - Tuesday and Friday morningQuillan - Wednesday and Saturday morn-ingTrèbes - Sunday morningSaint Pierre la mer - Every morning

In every village and every town the Hérault and Aude has a chance for you to visit and explore the magnifi cent produce and wares that it offers. Below is a

selection, please visit www.theheraulttimes.com for a complete listing

HÉRAULT

AGDE – Thursday morning. Covered market every morning, except MondayBEZIERS - Friday morning: Flower market in the Allèes Paul RiquetSaturday morning: veg-etables in the Allèes Paul Riquet; organic produce by Les Halles/ Sunday morning:large general marketCESSENON-SUR-ORB Tuesday morning Produce /Saturday morning: various LODEVE – Saturday morningMEZE – Thursday and Sunday morn-ing MONS-LA-TRIVALLE Thursday morning MONTPELLIER –Historic centre, Monday to Thursday 7h to 13h30, Fri-day and Saturday from 7h to 1800h (full list of Montpel-lier markets on HTPEZENASSaturday morningSAINT-CHINIAN – Thursday and SundaySETE – Monday morning: regional produce/Wednesday morning: various/Thurs-day morning: organic and regional produce/Friday morning: regional produce.

FOR SALESatellites FOR SALETRIAX TD 110CM SAT DISHES 120 EUROTHER DISHES IN STOCK 110CM / 120CM PRICES ON REQUESTDELIVERY AVAILABLE Ash-ley 0609 54 06 62 or 0499 41 61 [email protected]

**COUNSELLING SERVICE

UK qualifi ed, experienced counsellor.Helping resolve your crises or long term issuesDepression/Stress/Relationship issues/Addiction/Bereavement/Trauma/Anxiety/Anger/Abuse/Isolation/Eating Disorders/IllnessIndividuals, Couples, AdolescentsFace2face, telephone, skypeShona Luck04 67 90 70 [email protected] dentiality and BACP ethics assured

**BOOKS English Bookshop - PézenasPlease call in for a chat plus your favourite English foods. Delightful & unusual gifts for family, friends and you! A wide selection of English books. Rue St Jean

**English Books and Cards avail-able at The English Bookstall: These markets; Monday - Bedarieux, Tuesday - Marseillan Ville, Wednesday - Clermont l’Hérault, Sat- Lodève. Kerith 0467 96 68 87

**Le Bookshop - Librairie Anglophone / café 8 rue du Bras de Fer - Montpellier T/F: 04 67 66 22 90 [email protected] www.lebookshop.com

**English Books at the Bourse, Pézenas.First Sunday of every month from 10 to 12. The Café de la Bourse is next to the Hotel Mo-liere in Pézenas. All books are 1 Euro or less. Excellent coffee and company. Want to book a table? Call Carole on 0467905910

Shenanigan’s Irish owned and run, family pub and restaurant. Come and join us for the best prices in the Languedoc. All rugby, Gaelic and Hurling shown live. Guinness & BulmersHome cooked food, prepared daily.Plate of the day 10e with a glass of wine. Taxi available. Open all year.Vias centre – 0430 17 83 87.

**

Restaurant L’Amandine 3 Place du 14 juillet, 34450, ViasIn the historic centre of Vias village, traditional, family restaurant, serving fresh local produce & quality winesOpen daily for lunch & dinnerEnglish Spoken Tel: 04.67.30.29.78.

**

La Charnière Bar RestaurantA newly opened bar / Restaurant in Beziers Aiming to combine the serving of top class food with a special rugby ambiance.Place Jean Jaurés, Beziers t: 0467 36 83 10

**

EMERGENCY NUMBERSPolice - 17

Fire - Pompiers - 18

Medical - SAMU - 15

Sea Rescue (Land) - 112Sea Rescue (Sea) - CH 16SOS Europe - 112Child Abuse - 119

EDF (Electricity)English Line 0556 17 40 70



HAT Sport by Stuart Turpie

CRICKET - MIDI CC

The great thing about sport is that it is unpredictable.Who would have guessed

that Spain would be thrashed 5-1 by Holland and then Germany beat hosts Brazil 7-1 in the World Cup.To make matters worse the HAT expert got it completely wrong in the Tour de France! The ding dong battle be-tween Chris Froome and Alberto Contador did not happen. Froome crashed out early with a broken wrist and the Spaniard later cracked a tibia. We hoped that Mark Caven-dish would add to his tally of stage wins. He crashed out on the first stage! We tipped Pe-ter Kennaugh to cause a few surprises and Frenchman Demarre to do well.Peter was not selected to ride and Demarre was not in the hunt. Thank goodness Sagan won the green jersey! As we know Nibali dominated the race and despite the local media trum-peting the French riders they were a long 9 minutes adrift. The Pro D2 rugby XV league looks to be really exciting. There are 4 Languedoc sides in the race with a glut of derbies. After 103 years in the elite USAP Perpignan must be favourites to bounce back up. It would be a disaster for the City if they did not. Per-

pignan is a rugby mad place at both codes. Racing Narbonne reached the play offs last term. Can they do better? Will Rocky Elsom and his men do it? Béziers were OK at home last season. American prop Shawnee Pit-tman is an interesting signing. Australian scrum half Josh Valentine could make an. Impact. USC Carcassonne just stayed up last time. The club expects to do bet-ter. The derbies should have a big say in the fortunes of the sides. It is a tough division with a number of famous clubs like Albi, Biarritz, Dax and Pau. Good luck to all the XVs. Footballs Ligue 1 is much more predict-able. Money talks. Bastia have a budget of only 22 million and a clutch of clubs are rela-tively poorly off. Montpellier with 40 million are willing to sell players before the season has started. There are two big clubs. The Olympiques of Marseille and Lyon, known as L’OM and L’OL. Each can muster funding of about 120 million, way ahead of other teams. They both should finish in the top places. Astonishingly there are two teams amongst the super rich. Monaco have 300 million and Paris SG an incredible 490 mil-

lion. Not many will bet against PSG for the title! Monaco have struggled a bit in early

games but once they get roll-ing they should be second. The other clubs are playing for survival. Let’s hope that we are as wrong as we were for the Tour de France. Good luck to all the small budget teams.

TAMBOURIN Hérault

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU FIND AN INJURED BIRD OR ANIMAL?

The Centre de Sauvegarde de la Faune Sauvage in Villeveyrac, takes in and

cares for injured wild animals and birds, before releasing them back into the wild If you find an injured bird or mammal, cover it with a sheet

or towel in order to catch it and place it in a cardboard box lined with newspaper or towels. Pierce the top of the box to ensure that there is enough air for the animal/bird. Do not feed or give it liquid and bring it to the Centre of Sau-vegarde de la Faune Sauvage as soon as possible. When it arrives, once registered, the animal will be admitted and treated. Once it has recovered, it will be released back into the wild.

Opening hours :Summer: Mon to Sat, 9 h-18 h 30 and Sunday, 9 h-17 hWinter: Mon to Sat, 9 h-18 h 30 and Sunday, 9 h-16 h

Tel : Tel: 06 29 81 66 31 or 09 67 18 76 24

CRSFS/LPO Hérault15 rue des Cigales,route de Loupian,34560 [email protected]



20%OFFBRITISH PAINTNOW INLANGUEDOC - ROUSSILLON

Licensed DistributorsCrown - Sandtex - Macpherson

Market Place - St Chinian - Languedoc Roussillonwww.mididecor.com - 04 67 24 21 72


the hat (herault & aude times) september 2014

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