Why did you move to France?
I had been living in the US for close to 30 years and wanted to move back to Europe, not England where I am from, but France since I loved everything about the place. My wife, who is American, had always wanted to live in Europe and France sounded good to her so we did some research, narrowed it down to Toulouse, Bordeaux or Lyon, took an exploratory trip; fell head over heels in love with Toulouse and four months later we were here.
How did you do it?
Since I am British, there was no problem for me to move and live in France and my work is done over the internet so it doesn't matter where I live. I work out of our apartment and the only difference, work-wise, is that I end up working many evenings but I have much of the day free so it is a good trade off.
Tips and Tricks
- Absolutely make sure that you have ORIGINAL copies of every piece of paper that has your identity, birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce papers, change of names - EVERYTHING!
- Know that it is going to be very difficult at first to get used to the way things are done here.
- Find a good translation/interpretation service and pay them to help you get things done.
Has living in France lived up to your expectations?
Absolutely - we love it here
What has surprised/disappointed you the most?
The bureaucracy is ridiculous but it is what it is.
Are most of your friends French or other expats?
Mostly French
Do you have anything else to add?
The quality of life in France is superb. The people are very friendly and very forgiving of bad French as long as you try. The café culture of sitting outside having coffee as the world walks by is marvelous and dining out is always superb. When you're here, make a point of exploring!
