France - Cost of Living Expensive?

General Discussion
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81

I live in Switzerland, so can’t really comment on price - I shop in France about once a year, but here too, we have to pay a fortune for fresh leeks, that have an abundance of surplus stalky green leaves. I now try to buy leeks “poireaux vinaigrette” which have been topped, ready, and really need no washing of all that soil, especially after a rainfall. There is not much greenery, but they last for ages in fridge.

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82

Here’s the current Top 3 of the Leader Board showing items considered cheaper or better value in France than anywhere else - as voted by SFN users…:wink:

  1. Vet fees

  2. Train / Bus Fares

  3. Whisky

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83

Do we conclude that France is the ideal country for a sans abri with a dog who likes travelling from town to town and needs a tot of whisky to keep warm at night?
OK, having read Véro’s next comment - a highly-educated sans abri.

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84

Higher education. My various daughters’ various prépas and grandes écoles are costing me nothing. I would not have 4, imminently 5, children in higher education in England/Wales, or only with extreme financial difficulty.
I am a single parent and there is no contribution at all from their (English) father.

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Kerching vero! I think you might just have taken the #1 slot!! :-:open_hands:

86

I am not sure about vet fees as I have a close friend in UK who always says that
the fees seem comparable. She works closely with vets as she runs a cattery in
Bath…she also has a cat.
Just for the records …she does not own the cattery.

87

Like everything - it’s all based on personal experience. We have dogs, cats and horses and the combined vets bills for them are massively cheaper than they were in the UK. Just a call out for a horse vet was approaching £80 14 years ago!

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Well lets hope as we have spotted a new comer this morning…another mouth to feed
and another vet bill.

89

I know just how you feel Barbara - do you use Chien / Chat Perdu?

90

My vet gives me the ‘tarif familles nombreuses’, very kind and sensible😊.

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91

Tried all sorts…and sometimes finding owners who do not care or that the owners have
died,

92

I wonder what the price of this fish will be when it gets dished up… ??? :relaxed:

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93

Silure is a bit slimy and tastes of mud, I expect they slung it back in the river.

94

Hi Vero

Agreed. I would not have expected much from catfish… but we have eaten it (once) in a Menu d Jour (approached our plates with caution) … no idea what the chef had done with it… but it was actually very nice.

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95

Definitely better here…I don’t go to vets often and use homeopathy and natural alternatives for minor ailments and flea and tic treatment etc…but one of the first amongst all the other first things on my lists to do was to find out where my nearest vet is in case of accident or emergency and to get their out of hours emergency number…Not long after I arrived here one of my Collies died peacefully in her sleep on the back doorstep looking out across the fields…My local vets handled her cremation and the return of her ashes…despite the language barrier as my language at the time was mostly tears…they were so kind and the eventual bill was in the region of £100 less than UK…

96

It is interesting the number of suggestions that Vets in France are cheap, but I also hear that healthcare can be expensive …

Got me thinking perhaps I shall take myself to the vets for treatment of my next sickness!

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97

Be very careful, you will either get an arm up your arse or your nuts chopped off :fearful::fearful::sob:

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98

In the U.K. I always felt that I would much rather be treated by my homeopathic vet than any nhs doctor…lol…I trust his wisdom experience and integrity implicitly…Here my Collies already have access to 24 hour care whilst I’m still trying to wade my way through a mountain of disconnected red tape and beuarocracy to get my Carte Vitale…x :smiley:

99

Hi Mark,
and alonng those lines - one of my all time favorite cartoons


Have a fun day.

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100

At the risk of starting a furore… I am going to argue with you Simon…:kissing_heart:

I have never found better value for money in UK when dining out. In France we nearly always go MdJour costing anything from 10 euro to 15 euro a head for 4 or 5 courses, wine and coffee included…

When we were in UK last autumn at a small outlet, I paid £17.50 for 2 bacon sandwiches and 2 cups of tea :roll_eyes: …much better was the 3 courses at the local Harvester £14.99 each… but plus wine and plus coffee. :relaxed: not that the food was anything exceptional… but it was ok… :zipper_mouth_face:

So, for me… dining out here… is certainly more fun, better quality and better prices than UK… :hugs: