Happy holidays...

When is a holiday not a holiday? Well, for a while the answer was... when it is Pentecost Monday in France!

Traditionally a holiday, in 2004 the French government declared this a 'day of solidarity', abolishing the day off in the interests of channelling extra funding for the elderly, following the difficulties of the heatwave the previous year. However, in the face of the inevitable protests, the holiday was later reinstated for public sector workers - but it was left it to private sector businesses to decide if they would work that day or not!

So, then, aside from some people being entitled to a holiday and others not (or perhaps not!), this resulted in the strange situation of companies, and their staff, being unsure as to whether they should be taking the holiday or not... and the general public not knowing which firms would be open, or closed, on the day... chaotic really. Well, it seems that sense has prevailed as it is widely reported today that the Pentecost holiday (also known elsewhere as Whitsun) has been totally restored for all!

Great that we now all know where we stand, with a holiday weekend for all - and especially good for those wishing to celebrate Pentecost Sunday, the 50th day after Easter...

Out of sight...

We reported back in November that the BBC News web site can detect overseas users - and the version of the site they see carries ads (the site is ad-free for UK users by virtue of it being funded by UK licence payers... see It's news to me...).

That is a great service for British expats and other overseas English speakers and the ads are definitely a small price to pay.

Now it seems that the BBC is giving its users access to TV programmes from the previous seven days, which can be viewed on their iPlayer site or downloaded from there. What a fantastic service! We rushed to see what was on offer and found that this site has a similar system for detecting overseas users; on this occasion, however, the service is currently still only available to UK users - a matter of rights agreements it seems. So, nothing available on the site at present for those overseas.

The good news? Apparently they are working on an international version which they will make available as soon as possible - great news for expat Brits wanting to keep in touch with their cultural roots! We will keep you posted...

Absolutely fuming...

There has recently been in France the curious sight of crowds gathered outside the local bars and restaurants. Are the bar workers on strike and picketing their places of work? Has the Campaign for Real Ale reached France? Well, actually it is just the introduction of phase two of the anti-smoking regulations which from the new year have applied to cafés, restaurants, etc.!

So, in the depth of winter we see the hardened smokers having to walk outside for a puff. That seems no great hardship and does mean that everyone can enjoy smoke-free air while enjoying a drink. Of course there has been the expected outcry - particularly from bar owners in rural areas complaining that this will see the end of country bars which tend to be the social centre of smaller isolated communities. Perhaps it is worth bearing in mind, though, that many rural bars also double as the village tabac (tobacconist)!

We have also heard comments that this could affect tourism! Perhaps the classic Gallic image has been one of Gitane-smoking French philosophers in fashionably hazy bars - and perhaps that has been seen as a haven for overseas visitors escaping smoking restrictions at home.

However, my guess is that for every tourist put off by the new atmosphere of café society, there will be two more savouring the lack of ashtrays and smoke. And the biggest surprise of all - apparently the smoking ban is supported by about 70% of the French people! Of course there is no ban on smoking on the open-air terraces or at pavement tables which certainly abound here in the sunny South and in a region that has 300 days of sun, perhaps life will not be so tough for smokers here. I can't really imagine these new regulations impacting much on tourism. What about expats - would such regulations affect your decision to relocate to a particular country, one way or the other?

Anyway, to keep things in proportion, let's hope that the whole PC thing does not go too far - they'll be banning alcohol from bars next... in fact, I couldn't get a drink in the local bar the other evening - but that was because the barman was outside having a smoke...

French health issues...

The availability and cost of healthcare is a serious consideration for all expats and we mentioned changes to the French healthcare system which were to affect mainly those retiring early (see post: Retiring but not so shy...). There seems to be much debate in our area about these changes but that is to be expected with the South of France being a very popular area to retire to. In this context I am please to say that I have stumbled across what seems to be the definitive source on this subject for English speakers - not only do they seem to provide the most up-to-date information (they have front page "breaking news") but they are also active lobbyists for healthcare rights in France. They can be found here... French Health Issues.