Black Spots Threaten Cave Drawings

December 8, 2007

BORDEAUX, France (AP) – New clusters of black fungus are spreading over famed cave drawings in southwest France, scientists warned Tuesday.

But the scientists said they have found a bacteria-killing recipe to protect the remarkable Paleolithic paintings.

The new stains are the latest biological threat to the Lascaux cave drawings, which were discovered in 1940 and are considered one of the finest examples of prehistoric art.

Carbon-dating suggests the murals of bulls, felines and other images were created between 15,000 and 17,500 years ago in the caves near Montignac, in the Dordogne region.

In 1963, after green algae and other damage appeared, the caves were closed to the public. Only scientists and a few others are allowed to enter at certain times; a replica of the main Lascaux cavern was built nearby and has become a big tourist draw.

Even those measures have not stopped the appearance of the fungus-related stains.

This July, caretakers noticed new black spots covering some of the drawings. Samples taken from them showed the stains were caused by two fungi, ulocladium and gliomastix, that developed on top of a sublayer of existing bacteria.

Targeted biocides, which are substances that can kill bacteria, were tested on the samples. At a meeting this week, the Lascaux Caves International Scientific Committee approved the use of the localized biocides to treat the affected cave areas.

Once that is done, the caves will be entirely closed for three months, said Michel Clement, the French Culture Ministry’s top architectural and cultural heritage official.

The climate control system, which was installed in 2001 but has produced some moisture-related stains, will also be modified or replaced, the panel announced.

Just what is causing the new bacteria to appear remains unclear.

Some studies reviewed by the scientific panel suggest that global warming may be to blame.

The average natural temperatures inside the caves, measured by the climate control system, rose about 1.6 degrees Fahrenheit since 1981, according to Marc Gauthier, president of the committee.

Written by admin · Filed Under News 

Video show of the Dordogne

December 8, 2007

You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video

The Dordogne is a beautiful region of South West France Between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the magnificent river that runs through it. However, locally it is known as the Périgord. This dates back to the time when the area was inhabited by the Gauls. There were four tribes living here and the name for “four tribes” in the Gaulish language was “Petrocore”, which after a few hundred years became the Périgord and its inhabitants became the Périgordin. To confuse things further there are four Périgords in the Dordogne. The “Périgord Verte” (Green Périgord) with its main town of Nontron, offers a greenery of verdant growth and valleys in a region crossed by a myriad of rivers and streams. The “Périgord Blanc” (White Périgord) situated around the regions capital of Périgueux, is a region of limestone plateaux, wide valleys and rolling meadows. The “Périgord Pourpre” (Purple Périgord) with its capital of Bergerac (the home of Cyrano). This is the wine region, with full bodied reds and sweet white Monbazilacs. The “Périgord Noir” (Black Périgord) surrounding its capital of Sarlat, overlooks the valleys of the Vézère and the Dordogne, where the woods of Oak and Pine give it its name.

We know very little about our ancestors. the Petrocores. Along with other peoples. they took part in the resistance against Rome. Far more spectacular, being concentrated in two or three major sites. are the vestiges of the Gallo-Roman period-the gigantic ruined tower and arenas in Périgueux our capital city (formerly Vesone), fascinating collections, the results of numerous archaeological digs at the Périgord museum. significant villa remains in Montcaret and the Roman tower of La Rigale Castle in Villetoureix. It is highly probable that the first cluzeaux. artificial caves either above or below ground that are found throughout the Dordogne, date back to these times. These subterranean refuges and lookout huts could shelter entire populations. We have confirmation from Julius Caesar that the Gauls took refuge there. They can be found just about anywhere and very few cliffs have had no holes at all made in them.

Since the Guienne province had returned to the Crown under the Plantagenets following the re marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1152. Périgord passed by right under English suze-rainty. In fact, being situated at the limit of the areas of influence of the two monarchies of France and England, it was to oscillate between the two dynasties for a long time. Over three hundred years of incessant struggle until 1453 and the end of the Hundred Years War were to tear apart and, as a consequence, model its physiognomy.

With the end of the Hundred Years War, the Castillon plain on the banks of the Dordogne, during the calmer periods of the late 15th and early 16th centuries, saw a development in urban architecture. The finest Gothic and Renaissance residences were built in Périgueux, Bergerac and Sarlat. In the countryside, the nobility had the majority of our 1200 chateaux, manors and country houses erected. In the second half of the sixteenth century, however, they experienced attacks, pillaging and fires as the Wars of Religion reached a rare degree of violence in Périgord. At the time, Bergerac was one of the most powerful Huguenot stongholds, along with La Rochelle. Following these wars, Périgord, fief of Henry of Navarre. was to return to the Crown for good and suffer henceforth from the sudden political changes of the French nation, from the Revolution to the tragic hours of the Resistance. We also encounter the memory of its most illustrious literary figures: Bertran de Born, Michel de Montaigne. Etienne de La Boetie, Brantôme, Fenelon. Mahle de Biran, Eugene Le Roy and Andre Maurois; its great captains: Talleyrand, Saint-Exupery, Biron… and even Josephine Baker. A number of ruins (La Chapelle-Faucher, I’Herm…) have retained the memory of the tragedies which took place within their walls. Several of our castles and châteaux are open to visitors and some of them such as Bourdeilles and Mareuil, house remarkable collections.

In addition to its castles, chateaux, churches, Bastides and cave fortresses. Périgord has preserved from centuries past, a number of wonderful villages which still have their market hall, dovecotes, Tories (stone huts), church, abbey and castle (s). Saint-Leon-sur-Vezere, Conclat, Saint-Jefm-de-Cole, La Roque-Gageac and many others are real jewels of architecture. As for the old quarters of Périgueux or Bergerac, restored and developed into pedestrian areas, they have regained their former charm. A number of small towns, such as Brantôme, Issigeac. Eymet and Mareuil, have with-stood the often brash changes of modern times. A special mention should be made in this respect to Sarlat and Black Périgord.

Written by admin · Filed Under Dordogne Videos, Tourist Attractions 

The Dordogne River

December 1, 2007

Canoeing on the Dordogne River

You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video

Written by admin · Filed Under Dordogne Videos 

Nicest Dordogne Rentals and Accommodation

December 1, 2007

www.nicestdordognerentals.comdepaulus.com has yet again lauched a new web site, to help property owners advertise their holiday accommodation on the internet.
www.nicestdordognerentals.com is a site dedicated to web site reviews and accommodation reviews. This site is hugely SEO friendly, and having your web site / accommodation on this site would definitely help you climb the search engines. Check the new site at www.nicestdordognerentals.com

There are about 4 million visitors from around the world that visit the Dordogne on a yearly basis. The tourist season in the Dordogne, has rissen from 4 months a year 5 years ago, to 7 months today.

de Paulus explains that people need (a) website(s) today to reach these visitors from around the world. The latest figures published in May of 2007 show the following.

Key facts and figures from 1 March 2007

  • Over 3.1 million tourists
  • Average length of stay (all accommodation): 10 days
  • Representing almost 31 million nights’ accommodation
  • A direct turnover of at least 980 million euros
  • Over 6,000 permanent jobs in tourism (6900 in July & Aug.)
  • Tourism in the Dordogne represents over 31% of the local economy

More facts and figures.

  • 77% booked part of their vacation online. (airline, ferry, rental car etc)
  • 93% of visitors researched the area online before visiting.
  • 71 % of visitors booked accommodation online

5 years ago, these figures would have all been below 28%, and 10 years ago they would have all been below 3%, however, in 3 year time they will ALL be above 90%.

The Internet, the whole world at your finger tips, no borders, no bounderies.

But having a web site means nothing at all, it’s all about marketing your web site, how to get potential customers onto YOUR web site.

de Paulus has more than 30 dedicated Dordogne web sites high on the main search engines Google, Yahoo, Live, ASK etc.. de Paulus explains that all his sites are monitored and tracked, each site uses various and different Meta Tags / Key words / Descriptions, by doing this, he can see what the people actually type into the search engines to find what they are looking for, and then adding them to the other sites.

There is NO WAY anyone can quarentee you a place in the top pages of the search engines without paying for “placed ads” which is based on a payment per click, if I click on your ad, you pay for it, this can be VERY expensive, and very few clicks are genuine.

The only way to get high on the search engines, is to work hard, have a “clean” web site, and the most important, is to have other “clean” web sites” link back to yours.. The more times your site and link is mentioned on other sites, this makes the search “bots” think that your site is populer, and bumps it higher on the rankings..

www.depaulus.com has over 30 sites that do this ALL strongly SEO’d (Search Engine Optimized) for the Dordogne and some for the Aquitaine.
If you would like de Paulus to optimize your web site for the search engines, you can contact him at www.depaulus.com

Read more

Written by admin · Filed Under Accommodation, Dordogne Related Services 

Vocabulary list: Tradesman in France

December 1, 2007

Un artisan (indépendant)
A (self-employed) craftsman

Un charpentier
A carpenter

Un ébéniste
A cabinet maker

Un carreleur
A tiler

Un couvreur de toît de chaume
A thatcher

Un électricien
An electrician

Un menuisier
A joiner

Un maçon
A builder, a bricklayer

Un peintre
A painter

Un plombier
A plumber

Un ramoneur
Chimney sweep

Un serrurier
A locksmith

Un vitrier
A glazier

Un chantier
A building site

Le début, la fin
The beginning, the end

Les délais
Deadline

La fourniture
The supply

Un label
A guarantee of quality

Un litige
A dispute

Le matériel, les matériaux
The equipment

Le personnel
The staff

Un service après vente
After-sales service

Un téléphone portable
A mobile phone

Les travaux
The work

Assurer
To insure

Le bouche à oreille
Word of mouth

Choisir
To choose

Une connaissance
An acquaintance

Demander
To ask

Envisager
To consider, contemplate

Etre en règle
To be in order

Exiger
To demand

Se fier à l’avis de
To trust the opinion of

Joindre quelqu’un
To reach someone

Recommander
To recommend

Une agence immobilière
Estate agency

Les syndicats professionnels
Professional trade unions

La mairie
The town hall

Read more

Written by admin · Filed Under French Vocabulary 

Vocabulary List – Insurance

December 1, 2007

Vocabulaire utile

une assurance automobile
vehicle insurance

une assurance au tiers
third party insurance

une assurance tous risques
fully comprehensive insurance

une assurance habitation
home and contents insurance

une assurance prévoyance santé
insurance for protection/health

une assurance loisirs
insurance for leisure activities

l’assurance vie
life insurance

une assurance responsabilité civile
personal/civil liability insurance

l’assurance scolaire
school insurance

une assurance invalidité vieillesse
disablement (in old age) insurance

une assurance obsèques
an insurance for funeral expenses

une assurance voyage
travel insurance

l’épargne
savings

le crédit
credit

une assistance
assistance service

une police d’assurance contre l’incendie
fire insurance policy

une attestation d’assurance
a proof of insurance

un agent d’assurance
an insurance agent

l’assuré
the policyholder

le patrimoine immobilier
residential property

couvrir
to cover

la franchise
excess

la valeur majorée
increased vehicle value

le vol
theft

bris de glace
glass breakage

défense recours
legal service

l’insolvabilité des tiers
third party insolvency

assistance avec le constat à l’amiable
help with the accident claim form

Read more

Written by admin · Filed Under French Vocabulary 

Odd jobs – Services à la personne

December 1, 2007

If you need work done, such as ironing, gardening, cooking, shopping or even a little light DIY, ring 3211 to obtain a list of local recommended agencies and associations that can do it. There are services aimed at the disabled and elderly, children can be taken to and fetched from school, help with schoolwork and child minding and help with computer and administrative problems. It all depends on what’s available in your area. It’s up to you to contact the associations on the list yourself, and find out how they want to be paid, but many of them use the CESU (cheque emploi service universel) which greatly simplifies the paperwork for all concerned.

Written by admin · Filed Under Useful Info 

Planning Ahead – Retiring To France

December 1, 2007

One of the most unfortunate outcomes of retiring to France for British couples is the unforeseen and often sudden ill health or death of a much-loved partner.

This is devastating enough wherever you are, and can be more so if the correct legal preparations have not been set in place. You cannot see into the future but you can learn from other people’s experiences, and by exercising foresight, a lot of extra anguish and heartache can be saved.

The following case studies are based on real life situations but the names and some of the circumstances have been changed to protect the identities of the people concerned. However, the consequences are fact.

Case Study 1 – Civil Partnerships

Elizabeth and Susan were in a long-term relationship for over thirty years and had entered into a UK civil partnership, a legal relationship giving them similar tax rights and advantages as married couples in the UK. They liked to drive over to France and spend time in their house in the country which had been paid for solely by Elizabeth, but was owned under a clause tontine, a joint tenancy clause that in France allows the property to pass directly into the hands of the survivor on the first death. As they were nearing retirement age, they planned to move to France for a quiet and enjoyable life. Unfortunately, before this happened, Susan died unexpectedly.

The tontine clause meant that French succession law did not apply to the property and that on Susan’s death, the legal ownership passed wholly into Elizabeth’s hands. The tontine clause was necessary to protect the survivor, because France only looks at the legal position, and does not recognise UK civil partnerships, whereas the UK law recognises the French equivalent, the Pacte Civil de Solidarité (PACS). Without the tontine, the property would have passed to Susan’s relatives under French succession law, or, failing that, according to her French will, if she had one.

As France only looks at the legal position and will not consider how the property was paid for, for French succession tax purposes this was a transfer of value, and thus Elizabeth has to pay French succession tax on the share of the property inherited from Susan. Under French law the two had no legal relationship and are ‘strangers’ for tax purposes, and thus Elizabeth faces a 60 per cent succession tax charge on Susan’s share of the property to be paid within six months. It may be possible to pay the tax in installments at a maximum of six monthly intervals, over a period of up to five years, but interest will be due on the tax owed.

Elizabeth is effectively paying tax on a half-share of the house she acquired with her own money, and may have to sell the house to pay the liability. As Susan was not resident in France at the time of her death, only her share of the French property is taxable in France. However, if she had died as a French tax resident, her worldwide estate (with the exception of any UK property) would have passed under French succession law. The tontine clause and civil partnership would have ensured that any real estate would pass to Elizabeth, but the remainder of her assets would pass to her nearest relatives under French succession law, or, failing that, according to her will. French succession tax would have been payable on her worldwide assets, including any UK property.

As Susan’s share of the French property and all of her UK assets have passed under her UK will to Elizabeth, with whom she had a UK civil partnership, no UK inheritance tax is due.

Even if any UK inheritance tax had been due, under the UK/France Double Tax Treaty, any French tax payable can be offset against any UK tax liability arising on the same assets.

Had they actually moved to France, they could have entered into a French PACS, which, whilst not as good for tax purposes as marriage in France, is significantly more tax efficient than being treated as strangers. However, they would have first needed to know that a UK civil partnership isn’t valid in France, and they could have found this out by taking advice.

Case Study 2 – Power of Attorney

Alan and Penny were looking forward to a long and happy retirement in France. Sadly, Alan started to show signs of early Alzheimer’s and when the disease was officially confirmed she managed to procure an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) in the UK. Unfortunately, the EPA is not valid in France and Penny was worried about how she was going to sign documents on Alan’s behalf in France when he could no longer do so.

Alan had periods of lucidity when he clearly understood what was happening but time was running out and neither he nor Penny (now French residents) knew when Alan would no longer be capable of making decisions or indeed, if he would pass away sooner rather than later.

As residents of France, it is still possible for Alan to sign documents or make a will if Penny obtains a doctor’s certificate indicating that he has sufficient mental capacity to understand what he is signing, or more so, if a doctor attends the signing. Those who suffer from Alzheimer’s or other forms of mental incapacity do often have periods when they are in command of their faculties.

Penny can apply for a curatelle or tutelle, whereby she becomes Alan’s curateur or tuteur in relation to French assets and interests under a court order made by a Juge des Tutelles.

In relation to French assets, a notaire will want to see a court document appointing Penny as curateur or tuteur.

If they have not already done so Penny and Alan could enter into a community marriage contract (CMC), under which any assets held under the contract would pass as of right to Penny on Alan’s death, regardless of children’s rights. Such a contract can cover just a French property, or can be extended to cover all assets of the marriage.

Bill Blevins is Managing Director of Blevins Franks International, one of the largest independent financial advisers, which specialises in advising retired expatriates in southern Europe

Written by admin · Filed Under Useful Info 

The France Show 2008

December 1, 2007

The France Show 2008

France comes to London in January next year with The France Show 2008. The event has been launched by Archant Life France, owners of market-leading magazines Living France, FRANCE and French Property News, to bring together all things French under one roof in London’s Olympia.

The show will cover all your favourite aspects of French life including one hall dedicated to the UK’s biggest property exhibition. As well as property, get a flavour of real-life France in the food and wine pavilion with plenty of tastings and demonstrations to get your mouth watering. The travel and tourism arena will help you plan your next trip and the language and culture pavilion will get you fired up to learn more about France, its language and heritage. And, of course, the Living France team will be on hand to hear your stories and answer your questions.

‘This will be the best-ever showcase of all that France has to offer,’ explains Miller Hogg, regional managing director of the show’s organiser, Archant Life France. ‘The France Show 2008 will provide visitors with practical advice about how to make their dreams of France a reality, whether it is living there, learning the language, enjoying the food or simply going on holiday.’

More than 30,000 people are expected to visit the show, making it the UK’s biggest celebration of French property, travel and lifestyle. Entry is free to those who pre-register or tickets can be purchased on the day for £8. Simply visit the website, http://www.thefranceshow.com/ to get your free tickets; you can order up to six and make a saving of £48.

Read more

Written by admin · Filed Under News 

Advertise your Dordogne Accommodation

December 1, 2007

depaulus.com has launched 2 new web sites, advertising holiday accommodation in the Dordogne and Aquitaine region.
www.dordognesnicest.com and www.nicestvacationrentals.com specializes in this region.
www.dordognesnicest.com is for holiday accommodation in the Dordogne, and www.nicestvacationrentals.com is for accommodation in the Aquitaine Region (incl. Dordogne)

Written by admin · Filed Under Dordogne Related Services 

« Previous Page — Next Page »