I never heard of the 'presence test'. What does that entail? Also, listing a wikipedia article doesn't merit evidence to the contrary. Yes, you can go to a train station and find not-so-good food. It'd be just like going to Subway here, not-so-good. Predominately, the french care about their food much more than americans.
I rarely chime in but I have to give warning about moving to Paris. Although I'm a huge francophile, and so is my wife, it can be not quite as easy for some to make a living there.
- To start, your salary isn't going to be what you think. When I moved to Paris in 2011 I made $100,000 in NY. My new job in Paris was 42,000 (euros) a year. So right off the bat you're probably going to be budgeting more. Plus, my wife didn't have the right to work. I believe Macron is changing that, but it doesn't mean it won't go back.
- You'll still have to pay Federal taxes if you're a US citizen. I was able to contact H&R block from Paris and sent them ALL my paystubs in order to prove that I had paid French taxes. It didn't matter, I still had to pay in a small some for federal taxes. You'll be double taxed US/FR.
- There's a 3 month trial period where the company can fire you for any reason and simply state "We don't feel you're a good fit." Sound familiar? This trial period can even be extended for up to 9 months. Once the company feels like actually hiring you, that's when you get your CDI (Contract Duration Indeterminée). Then you pretty much have to do either something illegal or absolutely nothing to get fired. Both of which take time and evidence that the company has to prepare (can take up to a year).
- There's a 3 month period to quit!! In order to balance the CDI, companies have the right to sue you for "lost productivity" if you quit without giving a 3 month notice. Don't think you're safe if you scurry back to the States. I read a blog (not sure how truthful it was), but they found her and sued her from Paris.
- If you are in your trial period it's especially hard to start a bank account, rent an apartment, etc. You're considered too much of a risk.
- If you have an accent you'll be treated like a tourist. I had a visa, carte vital, and bank account, but it takes a long, long, long time to make actual french friends. My wife and I made friends with other immigrants, mostly British, Irish, and other Americans. People say on average it takes 3-5 years to become someones friend (if they're french). Once you've made a french friend, loyalty is expected, and you'll ruin everything by being flaky.
- You have to play the 'game'. What's the 'game'? The art of conversation. So if it's difficult to get a bank account in your trial period, how did I manage to do it? I tried 3 different branches at Paribas and finally found one where the guy was willing to listen. Turns out he had traveled quite a bit himself. So what did I do with my bad attitude of being denied twice before hime? NOTHING! My reply "Oh thank you so much, you're really helping me out." Also, if you don't want a burned baguette, walk through the door of the bakery and say "Bonjour." When you're done, you say "Au revoir." If you don't you've broken protocol, this activity shall be logged, and the baker shall and will use it against you later.
Those are things to watch, here are the benefits of living in france.
- Personally, I love the language.
- Healthcare, healthcare, healthcare. Oh and did I mention healthcare. I have very conservative parents who constantly say "I don't want the government choosing which doctor I go to." This couldn't be further from the truth. I got really sick in france, and you will probably too. The germs are different and your body isn't used to them. I Went to a clinic and just like the good ol' US I thought "This doc doesn't have a clue nor does he care." Then, guess what, I went to another doctor and she was amazing! Got the right meds and got 100% better.
- The food! Most of the time companies give you coupons so you can go get a hot lunch from most restaurants at a discount.
- The infrastructure. Don't like traffic? Neither do the french. The metro is amazing.
- Work life balance. It's actually a law that you're NOT required to answer emails over the weekend. Everyone takes the month of August off (it's a little more nuanced than that, but it's normal).
- People hang out in the park. Didn't know how awesome that would be until I started doing it.
All in all I stayed with my wife in Paris for 1 year. Without her having the right to work it was just too hard to save any money. So we moved back. Given the chance to move back to France, I would in a heartbeat. However, maybe not Paris, maybe more like Montpellier. If anyone has any questions about my experience, feel free to reach out.
I used to use http://goji.io/, but once 1.8 hit and context was part of the request object there was little use for this library. Also, maybe it was just me, but I couldn't do very advance routing with goji. So I switched back to gorilla mux
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