Temporary Fulltimers Soon (1 Viewer)

Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
Thought I'd post an update.

From next month, having sold our home we'll be living full time in our Hymer Exsis i578 (6.7M). We're staying semi-permanently on a local full-facilities site.

The good news is that I can have our mail redirected there, have advised bank & credit cards of our new address & they weren't bothered. Also changed the tv licence to there! They'd be stuffed without that address, if they only had a reg number.

I have a broken leg that is healing well, but slowly-next appointment is end of October & it could easily be New Year before it is healed-a lot of broken bones-no more detail, it might put you off your tea! I can do just under 1km carrying me crutch so getting better all the time.

I've not changed driving licence or passports to our new 3-6 months temporary address & guess that's OK. Once I'm discharged we'll rent in France until finding our retirement home in France & probably use my son's as our UK address.

I'm experimenting with different sim cards in a Huawei Mobile Wifi to see what works best & will also use an iBoost to see if I can plumb in to the site's wifi in their bar/restaurant. I guess I need to let Comfort Insurance know to be on the safe side. I think it's no different to touring for 3-6 months BUT no apparent UK home other than the campsite could screw that I guess-better safe than sorry so I'll ring 'em.

Sorry to have waffled on but I thought some of this might be useful.

All the best,

Roger
 
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DrRogerRam
Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
Comfort have charged an extra premium for the remainder of the insurance period & also wanted a permanent address. They now have my son's.

Advised me to contact DVLA re log book & driving licence. Surprisingly they are happy to accept the campsite address-I suppose that's where we will be for the next 3-6 months most of the time so logical I guess! What the passport people say is anyone's guess-most likely my son's again. This is all getting quite complicated-just hope I don't forget who I am!!!

Roger
 
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DrRogerRam
Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
We are now full-timing on a site close to where our house was so still with same GP & consultant which was the object of the exercise.

The site is a watersports place & tends to get quite busy at the weekend. It is not CC or C&CC & it shows with some 'mucky pups' using the facilities. The staff are excellent & sort things out every morning.

I was and am getting on pretty well nipping down to the clubhouse for chips or a takeaway & without crutches, doing 1.5-2km a day.

However, on Monday 15th on my walk there was noise & another pin in the frame had broken!!! Luckily after X-ray the consultant said the bones had healed & I could have a weight-bearing plaster applied. 2-3 stone of weight only then further X-ray in 2 weeks to make sure all is well. Just got the scales BUT feel very wary of the 1st steps!!!

We've found a halogen oven an absolute Godsend for our favourite spicy wedges-faster than the Remoska. Had a Snipe Max Pro sat dish fitted yesterday & that's working well so far as, indeed, it should in UK!

All the best & will be so glad when I face the light walking & get over the 2 week 'test' without mishap!

Roger

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DrRogerRam
Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
Walking care-fully is going well.

What has been a pain is mobile wifi, Signed a 3 month contract with Mobi Data-they double your data-so 20 gig for £19 so. Used the lot in about 20 days!

This was due to watching Bargain Hunt & the news via the Huawei mobile router=bad news. Now getting the tv out to avoid using data & think I'll use a giffgaff gigabag next month if we run out.

It's been quite a shock after using broadband freely over a home phone line.

I guess with fulltiming you live & learn...any cheap data suggestions welcome.
We can get free wifi at the clubhouse but too far away for our booster to reach
 
Oct 18, 2014
1,855
1,155
Salisbury
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33,868
MH
Hymer B598 PL
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Since 2013
Hi
How's the Hymer going? We have just got the same model ourselves and only had one night out so far. Going to France, Belgium, Germany soon.
 
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DrRogerRam
Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
We've been fulltiming for almost 7 weeks & the Hymer is fine. Used a bottle of gas by last weekend & the refill cost just under £15 for 6 weeks hot water & blown air heating. We haven't done very much driving-only just over 3000 miles from new but it's an easy drive. Was sold as 'the new lightness' but what I like is it's 'the new narrowness' for us only 2.2m wide so no problem so far with narrow lanes.

Our first big trip will be France house-hunting in January, once my plaster is removed on 4 November & I get a splint 'like roman armour'-the mind boggles!

If there's anything specific you want to know just ask,

Roger

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Oct 18, 2014
1,855
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Salisbury
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Hymer B598 PL
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Since 2013
Hi
Your life sounds very exciting!
We've one 11kg gaslow and a 6kg propane that we had before, all seems efficient so far.
Yes the narrowness is quite amazing after the 2.76m wide Rapido we part exchanged.
We both love the Hymer already!
All the best
 
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DrRogerRam
Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
As an update, we are now at Parc Verger in Haut Vienne, where Bob & Di have been absolute 'Godsends'.

My leg is a lot better, provided I do my physio, & my post-break record is 6.2 km.

We had a good house-hunt in the area & couldn't find anything that 'fitted' us. However, we've just returned from Le Cabri, Duras,http://www.lecabri.eu.com, & had our offer accepted on this Broken Link Removed. Daren't say we've bought it-'many a slip...'.

Hettie Hymer has been good. Had a problem with slow draining sink water-I unscrewed the bottom drain in the shower-& the pipe fell into the black hole beneath!!! Phoned Lee at Edgehill (our brilliant dealer) who said access was via the toilet compartment. Managed to get everything re-connected & used bicarbonate of soda (bicarbonate soute !) & 'Buster' drain cleaner that worked. Then discovered that grey waste was FULL despite the indicator showing 50% full! How could the gurgle of a properly draining sink make me feel so good? :D

We are using toggle-sims (free calls from family to our old UK numbers) & have paid £5 each to have PAYG French numbers that are working well. Have a 3 'At Home' sim in our Huawei Mobile WiFi router BUT soon used 20GB of data at Le Cabri where the free wifi doesn't reach the van.

I am insulin-dependant diabetic. S1 form to get into the French health system disappeared-new one to be sent to Le Cabri. However, I have stacks of insulin & blood-pressure tablets & bought new blood-sugar testing cassettes from Amazon.fr & even cheaper at the local chemists together with some more needles-dead easy even with my pidgin French. Also got my first French haircut. In case you think that's something far more exotic than it was-I mean a haircut at the local chauffeuse. Added to my vocabulary 'Les pattes come Dr Spock, mais pas les oreilles!', that I think means side-burns with a sharp point like Dr. Spock. Frankie will doubtless tell me if I've said something really rude!

Anyway, time for our walk. My lovely border-collie pined (she had progressive kidney-failure) & had to be put down when I was in hospital. We now have a miniature schnauzer pup (6months), Rocco, who loves his walks!

All the best,

Roger
 

laneside

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Aug 14, 2009
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nowhere near long enough
Oi much of the above reads like our scenario and being as it is a small world we are parked about 100 yards from you at Parc Verger ,we are out tonight but I think we should compare notes
 
Oct 18, 2014
1,855
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Salisbury
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Hymer B598 PL
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Since 2013
well done and good luck to you guys.

a part from the plug issue hows the Hymer EXSIS?

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Carol

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Oct 2, 2007
14,044
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North Wales.
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18 years s Motorhome (33years caravans)
What a positive pro active out look you have had through this, good to hear your on the mend now, the farm House looks lovely hope all goes to plan with it, we have not made it to Park Verger yet but it's on our to do list. Say hello to Alan and Lynda for me please, enjoy your evening.
 

DBK

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Jan 9, 2013
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Good luck - that is a lot of house for the money and a hectare of grounds will soon get you fit. No cheating with a ride on mower - a proper push job please! :) Or perhaps a goat - which you can eat later.

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Rob and Val

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Oct 17, 2010
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That's gorgeous. Not too far from Bordeaux airport, so should be ideal if you are thinking of setting up a gite business. Hope it won't be too long before your leg is fully healed. Exciting times ahead!
 
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DrRogerRam
Nov 5, 2011
232
185
Gironde, France
Funster No
18,775
MH
A-Class
Exp
5 years
Thanks everyone for your comments & interest. Regarding my leg the #'s are healed but my left ankle that was in an Ilizarov Frame then a plaster until November 2014 is quite stiff understandably (don't Google the Frame unless you're of a strong disposition!). Hettie Hymer with steps up to the beds is great for my daily step aerobics. Close to Parc Verger is a disused railway line that has become a Route Vert-for walkers & cyclists only so Rocco dog can have mad dashes up & down & my record walk is 6.2km so it's good for me as well. Le Cabri is good for our physio as well since it has a large sloping field next to the site (up for sale if anybody has some spare €s). Not so good for me is the tempting on site restaurant/cafe with French cuisine!

Regarding the Exsis 'SnF' there's nothing to report-warm as toast with a combination of 1.5 kw fan-heater from Curry's & the lpg powered fan blown air heater. LPG or GPL is freely available on the motorways or for us here at HyperU at St. Junien-30 minutes away. The automatic gearbox makes driving so easy. Recently hired a LHD manual Clio to play with-testing my clutch-foot really & that was OK tho' Rocco dog was very curious-noisier the Hettie I think.

House-wise for me a coup de coeur was a house with a pool, sauna, wood & field over the little lane but not for SWMBO. Upstairs was rather steep for me & a wood & a field seemed too much. The place we've gone for has a Honda ride-on in the barn & we're hoping to do a deal for everything that's there & I couldn't eat a goat I knew! Next door here I can get an oven-ready rabbit for €12 but I can't fancy that either. Reminds me of eating in a French restaurant where diners chose the live crab/lobster from a visible tank where they were swimming about-wrapped in cling-film is OK, but live-no-way.

Generally having a great time. Must go have to cook our steak & spicy wedges in the halogen.

All the best,

Roger
 

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