Ours in exile: life in the French province

Center Frenay-sur-Sarthe, aerial view. Photographed my husband from a helicopter.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

In 2014, the Russian, Maria Sayelen, married a Frenchman and moved from St. Petersburg to the small town of Frenay-sur-Sarthe in north-west France.

She told the publication about her life in the French province Journal tinkoff.

The population of Freinet-sur-Sarthe is only two thousand people.

Before that, I lived in Petersburg for 16 years: I studied, and then I worked. There, my days were spent in office meetings, trips on the subway and meetings with friends on weekends. When I arrived in France, I could not imagine that the stores could be closed somewhere already at 7 in the evening.

Paris is in 180 km from our house - this is approximately the distance from Tver to Moscow. Some of our neighbors go to Paris to work. To get from us to Paris, you need to get to the city of Le Mans - it's 40 minutes by car - and then take the high-speed train, which takes another 50 minutes.

By car to Paris to go about three hours. During this time, you can get to the English Channel in the north, the Atlantic Ocean in the west or the Loire castles - they are from us in the south.

Freinet-sur-Sarthe is a pretty town that existed during the century-long war between England and France. His center is truly medieval. In the summer, British pensioners and families with children come here. Local camping is popular with the Dutch.

There is one hypermarket, two supermarkets, three bakeries, two butchers and five barbershops in Freinet-sur-Sarthe. There are also two beauty salons, a circus with a circus school, a cinema and an indoor tennis court. For such a small French town, this is even an indecent lot.

Visas and residence permit

My husband and I signed the local French city hall. I came to the country on a regular Schengen visa. According to the rules it is necessary to request a special visa of the bride and enter it. But it is difficult, but the French do not really find fault with this.

After marriage registration, I returned to St. Petersburg and applied for my wife's visa. You need to provide marriage documents and pass an interview for knowledge of the language. The interview is simple: I almost did not know the language and prepared in three weeks. Visa wife is valid for a year. Immigrants in France are offered free language courses at special courses.

Now I live in France on a resident card that has been in effect for 10 years. My residence permit is called "Private and family life." On this residence permit I can work in France. The visa fee to pay for such a document is 216 € ($ 269).

You can apply for French citizenship after four years of marriage if you have been living in the country all this time. If you live in France for less than three years, the request can be made only after five years of marriage. To obtain citizenship, you must pass the exam on language proficiency at the level of B1. You still need to pay tax - 55 € ($ 68).

Banks

In Freinet-sur-Sarthe there are branches of four banks. Bank card (Bank card, or just CB) is the most popular payment method. From payment systems more popular "Visa". Banks usually issue two types of cards: standard “Classic” and higher rank “Premier”. The Premier card has a higher spending and withdrawal limit at an ATM, there are other additional features, but it also has more expensive maintenance.

In a typical bank, a year of servicing a standard card costs about 40 € ($ 50). There are also Internet banks without physical offices, and the cost of servicing them is from 2 € ($ 2,5) per month or even for free. But they have their own limitations: you cannot deposit cash or cash a check, you cannot meet with a bank manager.

There are two options for writing off expenses from the card. Débit immédiat - This means that the write-off for purchases occurs immediately. AND débit différé - this is a deferred write-off, when for all purchases money is usually written off at the beginning of the next month. “Debi-difere” is something like an interest-free loan, but the maintenance of such a card costs 7 — 8% more.

Banks typically limit maximum card usage for security reasons. For standard cards, the threshold is usually around 2500 € ($ 3108) per month.

My husband uses the Classic Visa debit card in the bank. Caisse d'epargne. Maintenance costs € 8,65 ($ 10,75) per month. The price includes Internet banking, insurance against the loss and theft of the card, issue of a checkbook at the request of the client with reference to the card account. Open, close or reissue a card - for free. You can withdraw a maximum of 500 € ($ 622) per day at a bank ATM. Over the past three years, the card was blocked twice, because the husband exceeded the spending limit per month.

A Premier level card in the same bank costs 15 € ($ 19) per month. The limit of expenses on it is € 7500 ($ 9323) per month, there is still additional insurance when purchasing air tickets and booking hotels.

It is more convenient and cheaper for me even to use currency cards of Russian banks in France.

Cash and checks

In France, almost no use of cash - mainly only for payments to bakeries and the market. Coins and small bills up to 50 € will be useful for this. 100 € bills are rare and suspicious. Sellers carefully check them.

For a whole month I didn’t know what to do with the 500 € bill. In the shops, they refused to accept it. We did not risk putting it on the husband’s bank account, because depositing cash in such a quantity could trigger a tax audit. In the hypermarket, once we had exchanged 500 € simply because the cashier knew us, but it was inconvenient to contact us again. I had to carry the bill back to Russia to put it on a Russian bank card.

In France, everyone still uses checkbooks. The book gives the bank. The owner fills in a check by hand: indicates the payee, the amount and the date from which the money is available to him.

The recipient of the check goes with him to his bank and fills in the form there: he indicates his account details, puts the check and leaves it in a special receiver for checks. If everything is filled in correctly, this amount will go to his account.

It looks like a receiver for checks in the bank.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

It happens that a check is not provided with real money, therefore in large cities, shops sometimes refuse to accept checks for payment. But in small towns where the buyer and seller have long been familiar, everyone still uses checks.

An example of a completed check.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Accomodation

The Frenchman's dream is his house with a garden. The goal is to pay for it until retirement.

A two-bedroom house with an area of ​​100 m² in Freinet-sur-Sarthe will cost from 120 000 € ($ 149 200). In absolutely remote villages, houses are cheaper, closer to a large city - more expensive.

Interest rates on loans are now very low - 1,66%, as of October 2017. 80% of real estate buy in the mortgage.

However, 40% of French people live in rented accommodation. A four-bedroom house can be rented for 650 € ($ 808) per month, not counting utility bills.

We live in our own house: my husband 10 years ago bought a house with an area of ​​120 m² in mortgage.

Our house was built in 1984 year. My husband bought it 10 years ago in a mortgage.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Property taxes and insurance

If you live in your own home, you will need to pay local taxes every year or in equal installments: for accommodation (taxe d'habitation) and on possession (taxe foncière). Still be sure to insure the property.

If you are renting a house or an apartment, then you will only have to pay tax on accommodation.

These taxes are local. Their size varies greatly from region to region. It also depends on the size and condition of the house, its location and the level of family income.

The area of ​​our house is 120 m². Last year we paid:

• housing tax - 500 € ($ 622);
• real estate tax - 500 € ($ 622);
• home insurance - 330 € ($ 410).

Total - 1330 € ($ 1653) taxes per year for your own house in the province.

Communal expenses

In France, there is no oil and gas, and there is no central heating either. Modern heating - electric, for hot water there is a heating tank. In older homes, the tank is usually gas. The French believe that the normal temperature at home is 18 ° C, although they also dress very warmly. Even here it is customary to save water in the shower and when washing dishes: very expensive.

Electricity bills are sent every 2 of the month. They are of two parts: a fixed amount of subscription, which depends on the size of the house and the power of the meter, and payment for the energy consumed. You can choose an equal charge per hour at any time of the day or two-phase mode. The two-phase mode counts as follows: at night from 1: 30 to 8: 00 and at noon from 12: 30 to 14: 00 electricity is cheaper by 25% and the rest of the time by 10% is more expensive than the base rate.

We have electric heating and two-phase calculation system. In the winter months, we pay 250 € ($ 311) per month, in summer - 50 € ($ 62) per month. On average, it turns out quite a lot - 160 € ($ 199) per month, although we run washing and dishwashers only at discounted hours. To be compared with something: 160 € - these are three trips to a restaurant or a two-week supply of food for our family.

To still warm up, in the winter the French use a classic fireplace or wood-burning stove. There is also a fireplace stove heated by wood pellets. The operating hours of such a furnace can be programmed, but it consumes electricity, so it will not be possible to save especially.

Water bill comes every six months. The last time we paid 85 € ($ 106) is about 14 € ($ 17) per month. Probably, a family of two French would have a lower bill, but I spend water in my soul like three local residents.

Pellet stoves at Leroy Merlin cost around 2000 €.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Work and salary

The French have been living in a state of protracted crisis and unemployment for more than 10 years. The number of officially unemployed at the end of 2017 - 9,7%. People hold their places and work conscientiously. It is difficult for young people to find work, all places are already occupied. Even in restaurants and bars, most of the waiters are men from 40 years.

In France, a 35-hour work week means seven working hours a day, five days a week. The official minimum monthly salary (SMIC) for a 35-hour work week is €1 ($149,07) after taxes.

According to the INSEE Institute, in 2015, the average salary in France was 2250 € after taxes. At the same time, the median salary is 1797 €. This means that half of the working French people at full employment earn less than 1797 € per month.

The highest wages, of course, in Paris. In second place is Cote d'Azur, Lyon and the Alps. Residents of Freinet-sur-Sarthe receive much less - on average € 1415 ($ 1 386) per month According to official statistics for 2014 year. And with 2014, nothing has changed here.

Many of my friends work in Le Mans and other nearby cities. Most residents travel daily from 30 to 50 km one way to get to work.

I collected estimated monthly after-tax wages in Fresn-sur-Sarthe and the surrounding area. Here is who receives how much:

• experienced hairdresser - 1150 — 1350 € ($ 1430 — 1678);
• an ordinary employee in a small company selling computers and software - 1400 € ($ 1740);
• Chief Accountant at a small company - 2000 € ($ 2486);
• mayor - official salary 1000-1500 € ($1243 - 1865), but you can combine this post with your main job in your profession.

Vacation and travel

Working French laid 5 weeks off. Most spend holidays in France. The sea is near, the climate is good, you can get to the most remote corner of the country in one day by car or train.

Neighbors, friends, and we ourselves rest mainly in the south of France or in Brittany. Another good option is the Atlantic coast.

For exotic, they travel to overseas territories of France: on the island of Martinique in the Caribbean Sea or Reunion in the Indian Ocean. It happens, of course, that the French are still visiting England or Spain: it’s still not far to go.

And France ranks first in Europe in the number of campgrounds.

Beach in the town of Quibron in Brittany. It's three hours by car from Fresnay-sur-Sarthe.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

communication

There are three main mobile operators: Bouygues Telecom, Orange France and SFR. You can find a fare ranging from 5 to 100 € per month. If you sign a contract with the operator for a long time, you can buy a phone with a discount. For example, to buy Iphone-xnumx for 270 € ($ 336), you need to sign an agreement for 2 of the year with the Orange operator (monthly payment from 60 €).

The same "Orange" in our town offers unlimited home Internet from € 20 ($ 25) per month. At home, the Internet is very fast, but the public wifi is worse here.

Traveling in France, I often met with the fact that in hotels, cafes and public spaces with Wi-Fi everything is bad. In restaurants, you must ask for the access code from the waiter or bartender, sometimes it turns out that he is simply not there. In hotels, the Internet often slows down.

Food

Since 2010, French cuisine has been included in the cultural heritage of UNESCO. Indeed, food is sacred to the French, and the 10-minute snack here is not at all approved. There must be slowly and with pleasure. There is a certain order of dishes that should not be disturbed in a decent society or even at home.

They start with an aperitif: vodka with juice, martini, cocktail, white wine with syrup and tiny snacks. Then come the real appetizers: pate, sliced, light salad. Next is the main course: meat or fish with a side dish. It serves a green salad with classic dressing vinaigrette (vegetable oil, vinegar, mustard) and cheese with baguette - in our area comembert. Finally, dessert: yogurt, soft cottage cheese, fruit salad, sweet cake. And in the end (and not together with dessert) - an espresso cup.

My husband follows this ritual even on weekdays, although not always in full. No wonder the French lunch break lasts at least 1,5 hours.

Appetizer in a restaurant: sardine stuffed with marinated vegetables.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Dessert in the restaurant: crumble - crumb of shortcrust pastry, baked with cottage cheese and fruit

Products

In Freinet-sur-Sarthe there is one chain hypermarket and two supermarkets. They work up to 19: 30 from Monday to Saturday. On Sunday, only one supermarket is open until lunch. The rest do not work.

Once a week we buy in the hypermarket. On average, we get 80 € ($ 100) per week for a family of two. Meat and fish are much more expensive here than in Russia. Although we are located not far from the Atlantic Ocean, they say that at first the fish are brought to Paris to the distribution center and only then to us.

Prices are on average:

• milk - 0,82 € ($ 1) per liter;
• stinky Camembert cheese - 6-10 € ($7,5 - 12) per kg;
• chicken fillet - 12-14 € ($15 - 17) per kg;
• salmon fillet - € 25 ($ 31) per kg.

In France, now the fashion for environmental products. Each supermarket must have a separate shelving or even a whole range of “green” goods. On these shelves you can always find rye bread, buckwheat and coarse grinding oatmeal. Buckwheat here called kasha and sell as much for 4,35 € ($ 5,4) per kilogram.

Buckwheat on a shelf with organic products in the shop "Biocop", Le Mans.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

In the center of Freinet-sur-Sarthe there are two butcher shops: one specializes in beef, the second in pork. There we buy snacks for 2 — 3 € and ready meals on average for 5 — 7 € per serving.

The bakeries here are open from 7 in the morning. French baguette bought before breakfast - this is bread for one day for a small family. In the morning it is eaten with butter or jam, for lunch and dinner - with the main meal, cheeses and pate, which are not eaten separately without bread.

The simplest one — the most popular one — is worth the 0,8 € ($ 1) baguette. French croissants are bought mostly on weekends, the price is € 0,9 ($ 1,1) apiece.

On Saturday, from 8 in the morning until noon, a market is open in the central square. You can buy fish, meat and vegetables with higher quality than in the store, but a little more expensive. They also sell eco-friendly bread and local cider.

Market square on Saturday noon.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Fresh local vegetables, 8,5 € for everything.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Restaurants and cafes

In Freinet-sur-Sarthe 3 restaurant, 2 kebab and 1 pizzeria. Once a week comes the pizza shop.

In restaurants, it is profitable to take a set: appetizer + main course + dessert without drinks. This offer costs on average 17-25€ ($21-31) in a traditional restaurant. A carafe of tap water is provided to all visitors free of charge.

In total, going to a restaurant together will cost around 40 — 50 € ($ 50 — 62) with drinks. Weekday business lunches are offered from 12 € ($ 15). Drink kebab - up to 10 € ($ 12).

We often buy pizza for two at the mobile shop for 9 € ($ 11).

Transport

The local families decided to have a small car park at home. Every adult has a car; grown up children also have their own car, and many have their own minibus or trailer.

Cars all, of course, Renault, Peugeot and Citroen, Audi, Mercedes and Toyota are less common. According to INSEE, the average age of a French car is 8,7 years.

In our region, drive mostly diesel. 61,6% - the share of diesel cars from the total number of private cars in France, According to 1 January 2017. Now the price of diesel fuel is around 1,38 € ($ 1,72) per liter.

There is a speed limit in the city - 50 km / h, on the highway - 130 km / h. The French drive neatly and manage to disperse on narrow country roads and on the medieval cobbled streets of the town.

The roads are in good condition, especially highways and intercity highways. Many highways are also paid. But on the city streets regularly put "patches."

Also here is the popular cokaturge (сovoiturage) - this is a joint trip to save money and gasoline. If we are going with five of us to the theater in the neighboring town, then we always sit in one car. Today you carry the whole company, tomorrow someone carries you.

There are many sites where at the price of a bus ticket you can find a car in the right direction, including the well-known service “Blablakar”.

With public transport here, too, everything is good for such a small town. On the Freinet-sur-Sartoux, a free shuttle bus runs a few days a week, it is intended mainly for single elderly people.

Free shuttle bus in Frenay-sur-Sarthe.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

You can get from Frenay-sur-Sarthe to the neighboring large Le Mans by an intercity bus TIS. The ticket costs 2,2 € ($ 2,7), go an hour. You can take half an hour by train - ticket 8 € ($ 10).

It is good to travel in France on high-speed TGV trains. It is fast, comfortable, constantly pass promotions with discounts on tickets. French railways SNCF recently launched site in Russian. From Le Mans to Lyon - and this is almost across the whole country - I arrived in three and a half hours without stopping in a special Ouigo low-cost train. The ticket cost 10 €.

Lowoaster train "Uigo".
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

Medicine

If you are older than 16 for years and legally live in France, then you will definitely have a green electronic social security card. it la carte vitale.

My vital card is a social security card.
Photos from the personal archive of Maria Saelen

The card contains information about the owner, his identification number, health insurance plan, whether there is additional insurance or benefits. With this card, you can return up to 75% of the cost of most medical services and drugs.

Most French still conclude an agreement for additional universal health insurance - CMUC. Information about this insurance is also recorded in the vital card. Additional insurance costs from 15 € ($ 19) per month.

The company, in which my husband works, pays insurance not only to him, but also to me: on 100 € ($ 124) per month per person. This insurance covers almost all medical services on 90 — 100%, including the installation of crowns and the cost of glasses prescribed by an optometrist.

The attending physician for me was chosen by chance: from those who are closer and in a decent medical center. To get an appointment with a specialist, you must first make an appointment with a general practitioner, and he already issues a referral to the next doctor. If I can easily go to the therapist for an appointment in the coming days, then the turn to the oculist or gastroenterologist. If there is no acute pain, it will take more than a month to wait.

How does the refund work

In early December 2016, I signed up for a dentist at the beginning of January. The teeth were fine. Cost of admission - 23 € ($ 29) - I paid in cash. The doctor inserted into my special apparatus my vital card and entered the necessary information. Approximately 5 days into the account tied to the card, received 21,5 €.

Medicines prescribed by a doctor are also included in the insurance system. They will be reimbursed in whole or in part. Once the right medication was not in the pharmacy. On my order he was delivered the next day. Minus one: pharmacies in Frennes-sur-Sarthe and Le Mans do not work on Sundays.

Results

Life in the French province has its pros and cons.

You need to keep track of the pieces of paper and save electricity. Follow written and unwritten rules. Responsible to work. Be polite, smile, always greet your neighbors and maintain good relations with them. Take care of the house, especially the garden and lawn. Do not particularly hope to find close friends: the French do not strive for rapprochement, but they do not impose themselves, and life on the streets stops after 8 hours of the evening.

But the French not only know a lot about good food, but also take their hobbies seriously: theater, music, sports. In Freinet-sur-Sarthe you can find leisure for almost any taste, and you can always give up for a day in Paris or Bordeaux.

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