St. Patrick's Day, 2010
Béarn, France
PLUS:
- Report From Dublin: "It's Not Raining Yet...That Only Starts When The Parade Gets Going!"...
- Gridlock In Panama City As Construction Workers Go En Greve...
- Whatever You Do, Don't Take Your Travel Advice From The U.S. State Department (Or Any Other Government Agency)...
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In Bookstores Tomorrow!
Kathleen Peddicord's new book How To Retire Overseas will hit bookstores in the United States tomorrow, March 18.
Make a note right now to get out tomorrow to your nearest Barnes & Noble or Borders to buy your first-edition copy of this ultimate guide to getting the retirement you deserve!
Meantime, you can order a pre-release copy at a discount here now.
At this writing, Kathleen's
How To Retire Overseas is ranked #2 in Amazon's Retirement Planning section. Help us get to #1!
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Dear Live and Invest Overseas Reader,
"The French are renowned for their paperwork," writes
France Correspondent Lucy Culpepper in this month's issue of the
Overseas Retirement Letter, in subscribers' e-mailboxes today.
"And they seem proud of that fact, so be prepared for lots of forms, duplicates, and what will seem like regular intrusions into your personal life. A large dollop of patience and a soupcon of good humor are required to persevere. Always, but always remember to start every conversation with 'Bonjour, Madame/Monsieur,' even if that is the sum total of your French. It really is worth it. If you don't, you will be treated with less respect. I exaggerate not at all on this point.
"Every town and most villages have a local administrative office, a mayor, plus admin staff known as 'Le Mairie' (pronounced 'merry' and not to be confused with
mari, meaning husband and pronounced 'marry'!). When you first arrive in a new town where you'll be living, go and introduce yourself at the Mairie and find out what's on offer. Even small villages in the Béarn, the feature of this month's
ORL report, have a hall (
salle polyvalente) where you might find sewing classes, yoga, an over-60s gym, quilting, walking groups...
"The Mairie is also the place to go for help with your immediate environment (for example, garbage collection, dirty pavements, tree too high), and, depending on the Mairie, it's also the place to go to get help with paperwork--when buying a house, applying for a French driving license, etc. If you need the services of a cleaner, a gardener, a painter, or a plumber, for example, the Mairie should have a list of people they recommend.
"When we first moved to France, I was told by expats I consulted not to set up direct-debit payment wherever possible. Why? It's very difficult to extricate yourself from these contracts in France. Lots of paperwork and persistence are required and even then you may have to wait a full year before a cancellation is accepted (insurance companies are permitted by law to renew your contract if you do not send them a written notice of cancellation within 20 days of receiving their renewal notice). I pay for almost everything either online with a credit card or by mailing a check.
"Therefore, when you set up a bank account (I provide details on how to do this in my report in this month's
ORL issue), be sure to request a checkbook. Also (and this is very important), never, ever write a check when you do not have funds in the account to cover it. This is taken far more seriously in this country than many other places in the world. In fact, it's illegal. Your account could be closed for up to five years, and you could be reported to the Bank de France, the national banking authority.
"The French use a card called Carte Bleue for shopping. This is a debit card, not a credit card. When you open a bank account, you will be asked if you would like one. I advise you to say yes. Some smaller shops do not accept credit cards at all, and almost all apply a 10-euro minimum to credit-card charges.
"Furthermore, if you run out of gas, the only way to fill your tank if the station is closed is using a Carte Bleue! We were caught out once with this but lucky enough to find a customer in the queue behind us who was happy to pay for our gas with his card in return for our cash."
Kathleen Peddicord
P.S. The Béarn, the birthplace of a great French king, seasonal favorite of royalty of all nations, once named "the center of the sporting world," home to the first-ever Grand Prix and the Wright Brothers' flying school, and the spot Napoleon chose for the country's first national stud farm, is rightly proud of its past but has also embraced the present, with impressive 21st-century architecture, technology parks, sporting facilities, and a trailblazing communications infrastructure.
This quintessentially French town, situated at the bountiful foothills of the majestic Pyrenees, seems to have it all...and, as a result, makes for one of the best places in the world to think about spending your retirement years right now. Complete details in Lucy's new report, featured in this month's issue of the
Overseas Retirement Letter.
Not a subscriber yet?
Become one here now in time to discover the beauty, the history, and the highly affordable appeal of the charmingly French Béarn.
P.P.S. I'm delighted to report that Lucy will be joining us for our Live & Invest in France Conference this summer (July 22-23, 2010) in Paris, to report firsthand of her adventures and experiences settling her family into French country life. Details of the program are being finalized now. Meantime, you can get your name on the pre-registration list to qualify for special discounts and advance notice regarding VIP Attendee benefits.
Register your interest here.
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2010 Guide To World's Top Retirement Havens
Yours Free
I'd like to send you free our new guide to the world's top retirement havens, just for taking a look at my
Overseas Retirement Letter.
The
Overseas Retirement Letter is the most reliable, complete, and useful resource available today for anyone thinking of launching a new life in a new place overseas. Whether you're planning for full-time retirement in a foreign country... interested in soaking up part-time sunshine in some exotic local...or looking to launch a new life overseas that has nothing whatsoever to do with "retirement"...this is the help you need.
When you take advantage of this invitation to subscribe today, I'll send you, with my compliments, our brand-new guide to my picks for the world's top retirement havens for 2010. This edition of this special report introduces you to the six best options for living well for less.
And it's yours free when you act now.
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"Happy St. Patrick's Day!" writes a friend from
Dublin this morning. "It's cold here but not raining yet. That only starts when the parade gets going!"
"What's going on?" young Jackson wanted to know on the phone yesterday afternoon. He called us in the office from the car, on his way with our driver to his after-school basketball practice.
"Have you seen the traffic?" he continued. "Why isn't anyone driving? Everyone is sitting still!"
"The construction workers are
en greve," I explained in a way that Jack, raised in Paris before Panama City, would understand. "Just like in France," I said.
Indeed, central
Panama City was gridlock yesterday afternoon, as construction workers staged protests throughout downtown. After sitting in their cars for an hour and longer waiting to be able to proceed, drivers got out to chat and socialize, some even abandoned their vehicles in parking lots and on roadsides and set off in frustration on foot.
No one seems quite sure what the workers were protesting for or over, and, come quitting time, they disbanded. All's back to business as usual this morning.
"Kathleen, I was looking at some of your recommendations for retirement countries and considering the countries on that list in the context of the State Department's information on crime and safety, specifically to do with
Ecuador. Looking at the State Department data, this does not look like a safe place to go (compared with, say, Uruguay or Argentina).
"I'm speaking of this:
travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1106.html
"What are your thoughts about this?"
-- Helen B., United States
I love this question (which we receive regularly), because the response is straightforward: Ignore the State Department.
I received yesterday, for example, a "Danger In Panama City" alert from the U.S. State Department, warning me to stay off the streets to avoid the "dangerous" construction worker protests being staged throughout downtown.
As I reported above, however, the reality on the ground was nothing like dangerous. Our 10-year-old son went to his basketball practice after school...Lief and I stopped at the grocery store on the way home...
A more useful alert from the State Department might have suggested driving routes around the planned protest areas, as the only real problems caused by the strikes were the traffic jams.
I've had this experience many times over the years. The U.S. State Department or the video being cycled over and over on CNN represent conflict or worse. Yet I happen to be, at that moment, in the very spot the CNN reporter is referencing. And the reality on the ground is nothing like the footage on the television.
Don't take your travel advice from the State Department or any other government agency. Take your travel (and living) advice from someone currently or recently in the place where you're considering spending time yourself.
Often, the times when the State Department, et al., are cautioning travelers to stay away can, in fact, be the best opportunities to visit. You avoid the crowds, and you enjoy better service and prices, because the businesses catering to the tourist trade are hungry and eager to please those intrepid tourists who risk all to make the trip.
