Dordogne widow looking for nerdy women friends 🤓

Too bad you're only looking for nerdy women friends, 'cause I'm a nerdy American guy (in a permanent relationship) with an advanced degree in Math who loves cooking, has two cats and is about to publish the first complete set of English translations of Brassens.

Hi Robert,
Wow, another American! As it happens I'm in a relationship with an American guy who's a nerd. But I lack women friends. Where in America are you from? I'm from near Boston.

I'm from Berkeley. Moved to Strasbourg in February 2019 and am living with my French girlfriend, who invited me to move in with her. I sold my house, packed most of my stuff in storage and haven't looked back.

I'm going to Paris this Wednesday for lunch at the Ritz (invited by a science-loving acquaintance who wants to pick my brain about something I've had a lot of experience with). Is your boyfriend a programmer, by any chance?

No, my boyfriend is an electrical engineer, although he of course knows several programming languages. I  worked as a programmer for Digital back in the days when they still existed.

I hope I'm not getting too personal, but how did he manage to get a long-term visa? Or did he come over with you way back when? Nowadays, as you probably know, it's very difficult to move permanently to France if you don't have a work- or education visa. In my case, besides American citizernship, I also am an EU citizen (Italian), so there was no hassle for me. Plus, my girlfriend, being a fonctionnaire, knew what I had to do and what forms to fill out to get a titre de sejour and carte vitale.

How fluent are you and your boyfriend in French? Do either of you have a French drivers license? I've been studying for the test and plan to take it this Friday. Even though I'd been driving over 50 years, there are nuances to the French law that I had to learn.

I'm a widow and my husband and I moved to France back in 2003. We first had to get a long stay visa while we were still US residents. They wouldn't grant a visa if we were already living in france.

Arrgghhh this ridiculous website won't let me see your latest post while I'm writing this and I can't remember your other questions. Oh yeah, driver's license. We had New Ha shire drivers licenses and NH has an open exchange policy with France. France offered this to all the US States many years ago and only 6 or 7 took advantage of it. We were living in Massachusetts but we rented an apartment in NH, exchanged our MA licenses for NH ones and then did the swap here.

Let's talk by email, I'm at ***.

Hi Painthacker,

It is a tough time for expats at the moment. I'm British and living in Rhone Alpes for over 10 years now and I share your nerdy outlook on life. The thing about expat life is that friends often come and go and it can be difficult to connect with likeminded people. I work in IT and moved here to take up a new job. It has not been plain sailing, it takes a certain tenacity to stick out the rough times. And certainly the current pandemic has been isolating for us all.

I'd love to chat further so feel free to send me a message.

Jen

Wow I have just read you threads - I am from Silicon Valley and would relish contact with fellow nerds

Hello,

I also consider myself nerdy and have just relocated from the San Francisco Bay Area I've come on my own and am certainly looking for some American/ English-speaking friends.  I'm into history in general, architectural history, sailing and went to culinary school in San Francisco years ago now.  Also, an enthusiastic  gardener and here with my cat and dog.  Think I'm a bit north of most of you, right on the Morbihan/Loire-Atlantique border.