English line

[ajm]

Still not sure which organisation the OP is talking about

[exile]

+1 @ajm

Complete riddle wrapped in some bad humours.

I did however get the Eymet reference.

[Quiksilver]

I live 16 kms from Eymet. When we first moved here I vowed to avoid the place on the principle that I wanted to live in 'the real France' amongst the French. I'm not so snooty now It's a lovely little town with excellent restaurants, cafés and a lively (French) cultural scene. Say what you like about an elevated proportion of Brit residents but the side effects are a vast improvement in customer service and a town that stays (relatively) lively all year round.
Both the Dordogne and the Lot et Garonne are inundated with Brits anyway....why single out Eymet?

[glazedallover]

I'm going to go to Eymet for my holidays. In fact I think I'll make it a two-centre vacation along with Sarlat.

[Doug]

We just visit Eymet for la poste, pharmacy and hairdresser, it being 10k from us.
Many years ago when I complained to her about the very clicky brits she told me that without them the town would be dead.
Almost never shop there as the prices are so much higher than elsewhere.

[Bayleaf]

Still not sure which organisation the OP is talking about

As it was posted in the Health Care in France section, my guess was that it is the English-speaking 'phone line for CPAM/Ameli etc. This was then confirmed in a later comment, and hopefully sorted.

[DominicBest]

I'm going to go to Eymet for my holidays. In fact I think I'll make it a two-centre vacation along with Sarlat.

I'm not sure if you're being serious or sarcastic but if/when you go to Sarlat you will find a unique medieval town with real character. Its market is one of the best I been to anywhere. If you go in the holiday season it will be crowded, with reason, but only a small minority of the visitors will be British. I have visited there often, mainly in the autumn and winter but last summer I ended there on a cycling trip that I was on with some French cousins. We enjoyed the area so much we extended out stay there. I've only passed through Eymet once when I was returning from the Pyrenees last year. I'm not surprised that it's popular because it too is a beautiful town. I didn't stop but perhaps I will next time. For anyone who likes history and bastides in particular it looks to be well worth a visit.

[hughnique]

Yes what a dingbat I am, overlooked the obvious link to what I was talking about, forgive me I transgressed, ajm you knew, or made an educated guess at what the English line referred to, then you must have forgot, early stage Alzheimer's possibly. Bayleaf seems to display remarkable powers of perception, my guess is that she must have been a detective previously, anyway enough waffle, still can't get through, obviously they don't want my 50€

[Blaze]

Looking at photos of Eymet, it does look a beautiful town. The Dordogne towns and villages seem not to have been spoilt by the ever-increasing building of lotissements that goes on in Brittany. If Brit, Dutch and other colonies keep places alive, particularly in winter, then that's surely a good thing. There's nothing more depressing than seeing villages along the coast shuttered up for months of the year. Bakers, cafés and pharmacies are closing because they can no longer make a living in places with a greater proportion of secondaires than primary homes. Inland villages near towns have become dormitories with lotissements mushrooming because people are looking for somewhere cheaper to buy or rent.

[Doug]

Totally agree Blaze, Eymet is a lovely bastide small town along with many others in the S.W.
When I first arrived in France I was amazed at the very old buildings slowly being restored, coming southern England where many towns had been completely rebuilt after the 2nd ww.
That's before I got round to the fact that France was virtually bancrupt for years and couldn't afford to rebuild, turned out in its favour as instead of concrete and glass facades it still has its beautiful buildings.