Aude Flyer

Well hopefully you will receive this before the 2 events for this evening are irrelevant, I had finally managed to prepare the Flyer in another programme (Publisher) but couldn’t send it as it had grown beyond all reasonable proportions; I have so quickly put this together I hope it makes sense and is useful. Maybe see you at Tand C tomorrow (Saturday)

Bonjour

So, i's that time again. 19th Toques et Clocher, Limoux in the Aragou section of the Petit Ville (the other side of the river) and predominantly between the ponts vieux et neuf (the two road bridges)

Always a welcome event as it heralds the arrival of the outdoor life. and it gets bigger and better each year.

The Church bell tower renovated with some of the proceeds of the 2007 event is the Notre dame de l'Assomption, it was closed from 1986 to 92 and saved from demolition. Named after the miracle performing Saint ,Notre Dame du Rosaire houses a wooden statue of its namesake. Reputed miracles included interruption of a flood, rain in time of drought and the ending of the black plague. Also to be found there is a painting of Limoux from 1631 with an anonymous Jesus in the background, or so they say.

On Friday night there is a concert at the Piano museum, (see below) along with a dance show a bal musette and son et lumiere and maybe even a bar on the bank of the river??????

 

Saturday, busses commence from Limoux at 9am and Couiza at 10am

Live music from 10 am until the end (excluding 2 to 4pm)

11am Inauguration service of the Church by Montseigneur Planet the bishop of Carcassonne and Narbonne

2pm procession of banners of the 40 bell towers and the 19 elected villages (starting from the riverbank)

2.30 Opening ceremony

4 to 7pm kids entertainment

8 to 11.30pm A water and light show, every 30 minutes

This years attendance expectations seem to be between 30 and 50.000 people and there seems to be a much larger selection of street food to be consumed. Go on make a day of it (and get your self a non drinking driver)

 5 Euro for a glass and 4 tastings, 10 euro a jug

Sunday is the Auction of more than 100 barrels of white and 10 barrels of red and in the evening a Gala dinner featuring the artistry of 3 Michelin star chef Juan Mari Arzak from San Sebastian. I have no idea how you apply to attend this dinner, but I am sure you should think of it in the same way as getting Wimbledon tickets.

Have a jolly Fete and don't drink too much, remember it's a Celebration of Chardonnays .  This is a really well organised and growing event and the region produces some fantastic wines at reasonable prices, however I wonder if the powers that be at Sieur D'Arques realise what impact this event has on a worldwide basis, bugger all!

I feel it should be the flagship promotional tool for its products. And its Not, it along with the Limoux Carnaval should be being used to fill the underused accommodation and empty the wine warehouses which I must be believe are conversely overused, isn't the magic word Marketing?

Wake up smell the Merlot!

Since the last flyer I cant tell you how many lotteries I have won and how many nice people from Africa have chosen me to receive untold wealth and for all of the lucky opportunities all I have  to do is share a few personal details, I wonder if those people sending those mails  out have the amount of good  fortune as  I do, surely they must realise I wont have time to reply to their mail as I am still counting the proceeds from my last windfalls.

Advertising rates are now available on Audeflyer.com  Next flyers will be sent on March 27th and April 10th.  Please forward any submissions by email 3 days before these dates. along with a cheque payable to S Hedges (if a payable add)  to arrive no later than the Monday before the flyer is to be  sent out.  All photos must be jpeg and all text unless a finished ad should be plain  text  Please mention you heard it from the flyer if responding to an ad. etc  Thanks for the donations already received (in lieu of a subscription fee) still plenty of time for the rest of you, you wouldn't want me to go Geldof on you? Its simple just click here Donate to Flyer don't worry you don't even need a Paypal account,just a credit card, its just so simple. Just send your money  You can also donate by cheque payable to S Hedges, as some of you have indicated your concerns about internet fraud, no problem cheques are fine, I wont be embarrassed, whatever you send will be an accolade and a boost for the work already put in, to what is hopefully and educating and informative missive. Steve

 Events

 Blues in Routier, Easter Sunday, March 23rd 7pm, a motley collection of musicians

Domaine Des Etoiles Routier email for further details as numbers will be strictly limited.

 

Plant swap Domaine Des Etoiles Routier April 12 at 2pm please email to confirm attendance

Has anyone planted too many seedlings or have plants that you are splitting or half a packet of seeds you may never use,

well if you all come over on Saturday 12th April then everyone can try to swap with each other.

 

Special price Chuck Berry tickets. Ok I have them!

email me if you want special Aude Flyer reduced price tickets for Chuck Berry

Theatre de la Mer in Sete 17th July 21.30.Even if you already mailed me so that I can be sure that you want to purchase tickets.

 

Special Price 40 EUro normally 53 Eurp (check on Fnac website)

Chuck Berry was born in 1926. He plays normally for an hour, I would imagine there will be an opening act. Get a bus together and experience this Goliath of Rock n Roll heritage

 I was at this venue in 2007 and its quite spectacular, yes that is the Mediterranean behind the stage. Should be a good night

 

Email me via this link Chuck Berry

 Technology

BBC iPlayer well last time I asked if anyone new a way around the block, because of computer location not being in the UK

I got various replies from one who said they had no problem after inserting there old Uk postcode. Another suggested  http://www.daveproxy.co.uk/ 

to log in thru but the cunning BBC saw straight through that.

Then there was the suggestion of http://www.hide-ip-soft.com/ a free download to try programme which allowed me to download for a 3 day trial and then said I had 60 minutes

 access today and as I clicked though it advised I had used all my available time, whoopee so no solution yet, any more ideas?

And off course I wouldn't be suggesting anyone contravenes copyright regulations.  And Jeremy Clarkson doesn't promote speeding

Radio 4 in the car, in case you didn't know by tuning to 198 Longwave you can get it, signal varies with weather and power lines.

Quaero to rival Google, somehow I think not, its Latin for “I Seek” and has had a 99m euros of French state aid approved by the EU’s competition watchdog.

 Put together by a  European consortium lets hope the internal rivalries are a little less than in the Airbus corporation

Some interesting sites

A cross between tetris and sudoku, be prepared to be addicted http://www.koozac.com/

 Buddy Mapping allows you to create customized Google Maps that other people can add themselves to.

Your visitors can create markers on the map showing where they live. They can leave comments and even attach pictures. Think of it as the coolest guestbook ever.

Hello again from Spectrum.

Those of you with enough perseverance, or not enough to do, may have got far enough through the last edition of the Flyer to recognise my name.  I am Rob Hesketh, your local resident financial adviser, and Steve has asked me to host a regular question and answer slot covering any aspect of financial life in France.  I was pleased to receive a number of calls after the first article, and I was able to sit down and talk to Ben from the Corbieres (not his real name; I never reveal my sources) about his pension arrangements.

Ben is what the French charmingly refer to as pre-retired.  Having worked in the UK for many years, he and his wife decided to move to the Aude in 2003.  During his time in the UK he built up a personal pension, designed to pay out when he reached the fine age of 60.  That milestone arrived this week, and a few days earlier he received a letter from his insurance company, supposedly explaining his options.  Ben asked me to look at the letter and explain a few of the terms to him, and then to advise him whether being a resident of France would have any influence on his decision.  The author of the letter could certainly benefit from a short course in plain English, so I'd like to run through some of the issues with you in case any more Flyers are approaching the same stage.

For most of us the really interesting part of a maturing pension policy is the possibility of taking 25% of the fund tax free.  Did you realise that this feature does not exist in French pension legislation?  Don't panic, - yet.  This is traditionally referred to as a "grey area" in expat financial affairs, and I am glad to tell you that there are many UK nationals living in France who have had no problem from the French tax authorities regarding these payments.  It is however likely that this may change in the relatively near future.  There is a Double Taxation Treaty between the UK and France which is designed to protect us from being taxed twice on the same income.  This sounds better than it really is, because under the strict terms of the treaty, tax paid in one jurisdiction may be offset against tax due in the other. So, theoretically, the French could tax this income, and we would have no UK tax to offset against it.  The French interpretation of this is not consistent, but most French tax offices ignore these payments.  Please do not assume that this will always be the case.  The treaty is old and needs updating.  It was re-drafted and signed in 2004, but has never been ratified, or adopted.  There is even now talk of scrapping the new version altogether and starting again, but a likely outcome of either of these two possibilities is that our 25% pension fund withdrawals will be taxable in France at some point in future.  This may be very important if you are considering delaying a pension which you may soon be entitled to.

Another thing to watch out for is the Open Market Option.  This actually means that you do not have to take the annuity from your own insurance company.  You are free to shop around and sign up with a company that may be offering you a better annuity rate, which means more money in your pocket each month.  This sounds good, but beware.  Your accumulated pension rights with your insurance company many contain an element, small or large, of money which has a Guaranteed Annuity Rate. This is certain to be higher than the annuity rates currently on offer.  If you exercise the open market option you will lose your guaranteed annuity rate.  It may well be in your insurance company's interest to encourage you to do this.  You will also lose your guaranteed annuity rate if you opt for anything other than a flat level annuity, so you need to think long and hard about your pension choices.  It may be better for you to sacrifice the guaranteed rate and take an escalating pension if you have a high expectation of a long retirement.

Ben's insurance company may be an exception to the rule.  I do think that many large organisations do now adopt a plain English policy when they write to their clients.  I do recommend however that you bear in mind that they are unlikely to take account of the fact that you are no longer UK resident  You may not even be UK domiciled, a topic which we might address in the future.  If you have any questions on this, or any other subject, please don't hesitate to contact me, Rob Hesketh:

By phone on 0468 247758 or mobile 0631 787647

Or by mail at rob.hesketh@spectrum-ifa.com

You can find out more about Spectrum on www.spectrum-ifa.com

And the obligatory small print:  Any advice and recommendation contained in this article is based on The Spectrum IFA Group's understanding of current legislation and may be subject to change. 

No liability can be accepted for any change of interpretation or practice relating to any tax or legislative measure or the introduction of any new measures that may affect this advice and recommendations.

 The Garden

The Ariege department has put an un seasonal ban on the practice of clearing ditches by setting fire to the grass because the land is so dry there is a chance that the controlled burning could get out of hand and generally after the exceptionally dry winter reserves of water are at about 75% of what could reasonably be expected. So if you have a garden and a conscience there is no better time to consider planting drought tolerant plants.

Bright geraniums (geranium des jardins) and Mediterranean herbs (Rosemary (romarin), Basil (basilica), Sage (sauge), Thyme, (tyme)  Marjoram and (origan) Lavender (lavendre) are always a good bet, very evocative of the area and easy to grow when not battling against northern cold and prolonged damp. More surprisingly some plants that we traditionally think of as traditional English Cottage Garden flowers do well in the dry conditions, the old fashioned fragrant Pinks (oeillet mignardise), bright and entertaining Snapdragons (gueule-de-loup), Red Hot Pokers (tritome) thrive and to enhance the beauty of summer evenings by the pool there is nothing better than the scent of the Evening Primrose (noth're)  Some British wild flowers are built to withstand the dry conditions in meadows and woodland; Honeysuckle (chèvrefeuille) will grow very quickly in Spring and drop some leaves after it has flowered to conserve water. Cornflowers are great but do fade a bit if they are in full sun and the Cranesbill (Erodium) loves a partially shaded position along side Anemone (anemone).

For an architectural accent the dark green glossy arching leaves and tall flower spikes of Acanthus (acanthi) are stunning. A patch of Oriental Poppies (pivot) can't fail to catch the eye and an Agapanthus (agapanthe) is a traditional terracotta pot on the terrace is just a joy.

For the dry stony edges of a path or in the crevices of a garden wall succulents come into their own look out for Sedum (orpin) and House Leeks (joubarbe) and the vivid pink flowers of the carpet forming Lampranthus which conveniently keeps the same name in French.

Green things

Go Green with Grey Water

We are so used to having access to an abundance of water that we usually do not think about how much water we use and get into wasteful habits. The first step to conserving water is to be aware of how much water you use. The average person uses 180 liters of water per day on the following activities:

- Flushing the toilet.........................................................  68 litres per day
- Bathing & hygiene.........................................................  54 litres per day
- Laundry ..........................................................................  27 litres per day
- Kitchen...........................................................................  27 litres per day
- Housekeeping.................................................................. 4 litres per day  

so check your water meter and see exactly how much water you consume in a week. Try the old house brick in the toilet cistern trick to reduce the amount of water consumed at each flush, and turn off the tap instead of leaving it running when you brush your teeth and you will see an instant reduction in the amount of water you consume. Take your water conservation campaign a step further by recycling water which has been used for bathing and washing up (grey water) and re used it (for free!) in the garden simply by placing a bucket by kitchen and bathroom sinks and collecting water that would otherwise go down the drain.

The watering of lawns and gardens can at least double normal household water use during the hot, dry summer months in the Aude. At standard household water pressures, a garden hose will discharge up to 25 litres of water per minute. To apply an inch of water to 1,000 square feet of lawn or garden requires about 2500 litres of water. 1 inch of water soaks the ground to a depth of 8 inches according to the well known and respected garden guru Alan Titchmarsh. Set a kitchen timer when watering your lawn or garden with a hose so that you can calculate how much water you have used. Remember that inadequate watering encourages shallow root growth and increases the risk of your plants dying. Before watering use a screwdriver as a soil probe to test soil moisture. If it goes in easily, don't water and remember to weed your lawn and garden regularly. Weeds compete with other plants for nutrients, light, and water

Saving water is largely common sense, always water your garden during the coolest part of the day to minimize evaporation, mornings for preference then delicate plants aren't left sitting in cold water overnight. Don't water on windy days (easier said than done in the Aude!) Check your sprinkler system frequently and adjust sprinklers so only your garden is watered and not your house or street. Apply water only as rapidly as the soil can absorb the water

Proper lawn watering can save thousands of litres of water annually. It sounds obvious but only water your lawn when needed. You can tell this by simply walking across your lawn, if you leave footprints, it's time to water. Adjust your lawn mower to a higher setting, longer grass will reduce the loss of water by evaporation and mow your lawn as infrequently as possible because mowing puts your lawn under additional stress, causing it to require more water. Avoid planting turf in areas that are hard to water such as steep inclines and reduce the amount of grass in your garden by planting shrubs and ground cover or landscaping with rock chippings or decking. If you are stuck with a steeply sloping lawn and prefer not to convert the area to a shrubbery use a soaker hose to prevent wasteful runoff and aerate your lawn by punching holes in your lawn with a garden fork about six inches apart so water will reach the roots rather than run off the surface. This technique is good for flat lawns as well. If your grass is brown, it's not dead, it's just dormant. Dormant grass only needs to be watered every three weeks. When the rain begins, usually in August with a spectacular thunder storm, your grass will turn green again it's just a bit nerve racking.

Use mulch around shrubs and garden plants to reduce evaporation from the soil surface and cut down on weed growth. Horse manure is best if you can get it and a layer of organic mulch can save hundreds of litres of water a year. Use of drought tolerant vegetation in outdoor landscaping if you are planning a new garden but for established gardens whenever you add or replace a flower or shrub, choose a low water use plant and save over 2000 litres water each year. Start a compost heap, using compost when you plant adds water-holding organic matter to the soil and always plant during the spring or autumn when the watering requirements are lower.

If your home or holiday home has an automatic watering system remember to adjust the watering schedule to the season. Water your summer lawn every third day and your winter lawn every fifth day. Install a drip irrigation system around your trees and shrubs to water more efficiently. To get the most from your watering time, group your plants according to their water needs. Watering roots is very effective, be careful not to over water. Water deeply but less frequently to create healthier and stronger plants. More plants die from over-watering than from under-watering. Remember to check your sprinkler system valves periodically for leaks and keep the heads in good order so that the water is delivered to the right place. Collect and use rain water for watering your garden. Use porous materials for walkways and patios to keep water in your garden and prevent wasteful runoff. Direct downspouts or gutters toward shrubs or trees. If you have an evaporative air conditioner, direct the water drain to a flower bed, tree, or your lawn. If water becomes scarce and there is a hose pipe ban prune back heavy foliage. Reducing leaf area reduces water needs. Remember that while fertilizers promote plant growth, they also increase water consumption. Apply the minimum amount of fertilizer needed.

If you have a swimming pool in your garden now is the time to check your pool for leaks if you have an automatic refilling system. On a dry day use a grease pencil to mark the water level of your pool at the skimmer. Check the mark 24 hours later. At this time of year your pool should lose no more than 1/4 inch each day. Remember to use the cover to prevent evaporation. It's also a good time to check outdoor taps, pipes, and hoses for leaks. Fixing a dripping tap can save over 500 litres a week.

Just by making small changes in your water consumption habits you will be able to reduce your expenditure on water, have a beautiful and green garden and you will feel really good about yourself so find a torch and go and read the water meter!

 

Travel

Flybe is restarting its Birmingham - Toulouse flight from 24 May - 25 October.

This is an excellent cheap flight finder. Link below. It's from the Martins Money Expert site.

It's very efficient and is still working even after Ryanair update.

You just put in your departure airport and destination with dates.

Then put in amount you want to pay eg £15 and it searches for all available flights at that price.

It includes Ryanair from Carcassonne.

http://flightchecker.moneysavingexpert.com/

Keep sending it what you find and share with others

 

Trocathlon @ Decathlon Carcassonne Grown out of your rowing machine? Dumbbells too heavy? Well get along to Decathlon if that's where you bought usable items, between March 14 and 21 and they will resell for you. And between the 15 and 22nd of March you can buy other peoples Decathlon products they are disposing of. Good time to change your skiing gear?
Help wanted.  Bed and breakfast in Carcassonne.  Parking free. Room cleaning from 10.30 to 12.30 hours four days per week.  Will train.   Non-smoker preferred.  Flexible hours and start date to suit. Johanna 04 68 25 33 40
	For sale Dethleffs 'A' class Camper on Fiat Ducato 2 L.Chassis LHD, full German Spec including Central heating, Awning,Bike rack,full size fridge, C.T. ok and French Gas check etc. Full French registration. 14.950Euro  Ashley Churnside 04 68 69 21 59
On Quillan Wednesday market between 10 and noon, weather permitting I set up a book exchange for those who wish to exchange books written in English. In the three years I have been doing this, the stall is surprisingly popular and acquires new customers every week. The stall has become a bit of a meeting place where people come to chat and exchange information. Due to the generosity of these people I have a large selection of books which I rotate. There is no charge at all and I run the stall on a very relaxed basis. If you have nothing to exchange, you can borrow books and return them later. Quillan market is worth a visit. The food and flowers can be found in the picturesque Place de la Republique by the Aude (open until noon) and the rest is in Place Raoul de Volontat and spreads along Boulevard Jean Bourrel (open in the afternoon too). I set up my stall for the two hours only on Boulevard Jean Bourrel not too far past the church towards Pont Suzanne. I look forward to meeting new customers and welcome any surplus books you may have.  Susan Midgley
	Drummer Wanted, gigs too no doubt!   Hi Steve, Harley Bob here I’m looking for a drummer I have a great kit set up here, I play guitar blues /rock /country banjo and slide guitar, anybody interested and ready to gig please contact Bob on 046871 46 33 or 0670 41 12 73 cheers mate

 

What's on

SOIREES MUSICALES DE PALAJA

DIMANCHE 20 AVRIL  17 heures Dans ce programme original, Ana Maria Bell (violon) et Paul Staicu (piano) enchaînent avec maestria mélodies populaires, pièces de virtuosité et répertoire. Programme : donas, horas , balladestraditionnelles roumaines,et Dimitrescu, Porumbescu, Dinicu, Enesco, Bartok ,sans oublier les créations et improvisations des deuxremarquables interprètes

GOSSIP + THE KILLS 15TH MARCH LE BIKINI RAMONVILLE TOULOUSE

LOS VAN VAN 21ST MARCH HAVANA TOULOUSE

HOLIDAY ON ICE 28 TO 30TH MARCH TOULOUSE ZENITH

YOUSSOU NADOUR & SUPER ETOILES DE DAKAR 4TH MARCH BIKINI TOULOUSE

KATIE MELUA 1ST APRIL MONTPELLIER ZENITH

MANU KATCHE 4TH APRIL THEATRE JEAN ALARY CARCASSONNE

GAROROCK 4TO 6TH APRIL MARMANDE

MARK KNOPFLER 7TH APRIL TOULOUSE ZENITH

CHRISTOPHE MAE 8TH APRIL TOULOUSE ZENITH

CARCASSONNE JAZZ WEEK 8TO 11TH APRIL (YES I KNOW ITS 4 DAYS BUT SO IS THE SPANISH WEEK IN THE SUMMER)

YAEL NAIM 8TH APRIL BIKINI TOULOUSE

THE HIVES 12TH APRIL BIKINI TOULOUSE

NIGHTWISH 12TH APRIL TOULOUSE ZENITH

KT TUNSTALL 25TH APRIL BIKINI TOULOUSE

SICK OF IT ALL 4TH MAY BIKINI TOULOUSE

GREGORY ISAACS 6TH MAY HAVANA TOULOUSE

THE FLESHTONES 15TH MAY BIKINI TOULOUSE

HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS TOUR 2008  28th MAY PALAIS DES SPORTS TOULOUSE

HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS TOUR 2008 29TH MAY PATINOIRE L'ARCHIPEL CASTRES

ROGERTHAT 30TH MAY ROCKADELIC CARCASSONNE

POLICE  3RD JUNE MARSEILLE STADE VELODROME

ANOUSHKA SHANKAR 5TH JUNE HALLE AUX GRAINS TOULOUSE

LENNY KRAVITZ 9TH JULY ARENES DE NIMES

REM 9TH JULY THEATRE DE VERDURE NICE

MIKA 12TH JULY ARENES DE NIMES

CHUCK BERRY 17TH JULY THEATRE DE LA MER SETE

VANESSA PARADIS 22ND JULY ARENES DE NIMES

ALICIA KEYS 26TH JULY ARINES DE NIMES

CELTIC LEGENDS III 22ND NOVEMBER PARC DES EXPOSITIONS NARBONNE

 

Yes, I know loto is finishing, the sun is out and its full on Vide Grenier season I won’t bore you (or me) with typing them all up, instead try this link which should list most in the Aude, as more people seem to be using it to list their events videgrenier.org

 And on a lighter note

I dialled a number and got the following recording:

"I am not available right now, but thank you for caring enough to call. I am making some changes in my life.

Please leave a message after the beep. If I do not return your call, you are one of the changes."

Aspire to inspire before you expire.

My wife and I had words, but I didn't get to use mine.

Frustration is trying to find your glasses without your glasses.

Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting.

The irony of life is that, by the time you're old enough to know your way around, you're not going anywhere.

God made man before woman so as to give him time to think of an answer for her first question.

Advertising rates are now available on Audeflyer.com  Next flyers will be sent on March 27th and April 10th.  Please forward any submissions by email 3 days before these dates. along with a cheque payable to S Hedges (if a payable add)  to arrive no later than the Monday before the flyer is to be  sent out  All photos must be jpeg and all text unless a finished ad should be plain  text  Please mention you heard it from the flyer if responding to an ad. etc  Thanks for the donations already received (in lieu of a subscription fee) still plenty of time for the rest of you, you wouldn't want me to go Geldof on you? Its simple just click here Donate to Flyer don't worry you don't even need a Paypal account,just a credit card, its just so simple. Just send your money  You can also donate by cheque payable to S Hedges, as some of you have indicated your concerns about internet fraud, no problem cheques are fine, I wont be embarrassed, whatever you send will be an accolade and a boost for the work already put in, to what is hopefully and educating and informative missive. Steve

Steve Hedges

2 Chemin Des Moulins

11240 Routier, France