I often tell people I never expected to like London as much as I do. Don’t get me wrong — I would never, ever live there — it’s too expensive, rushed, big, and dense. But for a few days at … Continue reading
En Vacance
I’ve been taking a short vacation away from Paris and though later this week I will be heading to London to witness the referendum, Paris is still on my mind. So here are my thoughts on the strikes. Photo by Morgan Housel … Continue reading
Troubleshooting: Branchless Bank Accounts
Article updated July 2022 for accuracy. Some time ago I was sitting with some friends and the conversation turned to banks and bank fees. Both of my friends shared how much they hated “establishment” banks and described with relish how … Continue reading
Day Trips: Chantilly
I’ve always emphasized that this is a Paris blog first and foremost, but that picture of Paris is incomplete if it doesn’t include the day and weekend trips I take around this beautiful country. I always tell Americans that France … Continue reading
Meet Your Paris Greeters
Every now and then my readers tell me about something interesting that I feel needs to be better known and I’ll often ask them to write about it themselves. Craig Ziegler was actually kind enough to follow through. Enjoy! Before … Continue reading
Why So Serious: French Advertising
More and more American audiences are getting used to something that has happened in French movie theaters for some years now: advertising that has nothing to do with movies, but is cinematic (and often quite serious) in scope. The challenge … Continue reading
The Airbnb Wars Continue in Paris
I wrote some time back rather passionately about forces conspiring to stifle Airbnb and Uber in Paris. The City of Paris recently upped the ante by publishing a website that shows all the properties that are “properly registered” as an Airbnb … Continue reading
Book Club: Paris to the Moon, by Adam Gopnik
My favorite book written about Paris from the expat perspective is the series of essays written for The New Yorker by Adam Gopnik that was later compiled into a book called Paris to the Moon. As the book’s magical title promises, it … Continue reading
You Have to File Taxes as a Fiscal Resident of France
So in France you receive a tax bill for the current year based on what you were assessed the previous year. You then pay that bill in payments so that by the time that year’s taxes are due, you will ostensibly be … Continue reading
OFII for Prof Lib
It was 07h40. “I’m early,” I thought, and decided to stop in for a quick breakfast. It was a patisserie on rue de la roquette, halfway between Bastille and my 08h00 appointment that morning. My thoughts flashed back to my … Continue reading