MIT France

From MISTI Wiki

This information is meant to supplement the MIT France Living Guide. Also, check out Current events for events in your area.

Contents 1 Before Coming 1.1 Insurance 1.2 Lodging 1.3 Cell Phones 2 Getting Settled 2.1 Cell phones 2.2 Making Calls 2.3 Dictionary 2.4 Banking 3 Daily Life 3.1 Food shopping 3.2 Getting around 4 Travel 4.1 Getting around 4.2 Where to stay 4.3 Where to go in France 5 Links 6 See also

Before Coming

Insurance

While in France, you're required to have civil liability insurance. Also, check your health insurance coverage to see whether it will still be valid while abroad.

One place to buy insurance from is: Assistance Etudiants

Lodging

If your host institution doesn't provide you with a place to stay, the following links may be of use:

Cite Universitaire

ALJT

Cell Phones

If you think you'll need a cell phone while in France, consider finding an unlocked GSM phone in the states. Phones in Europe work on GSM 900 or 1800, but those in the US use GSM 850 or 1900. More on phones in Getting settled

Getting Settled

Cell phones

The main cell phone providers in France are listed below. If you're staying in France for a short period, your best bet is to buy a SIM chip which you can then put in an unlocked cell phone. While cell phones in the US work at GSM 1900 or 850, cell phones in Europe work on GSM 900 or 1800. If you'll be in France for a longer period, an 'abonnement forfait' is a better option.

The companies are:

• Bouygues Telecom
• Orange: France Telecom
• SFR
• Virgin Mobile

In the summer of 2007, Bouygues' Carte Nomade had the best rates for out of country usage, compared to other providers. Check current rates for better options. As of 06/08, a sim card at orange costs 30E, while a new phone + sim card costs 39E. Many of the cheapest phones are pretty good. Also, for 3 month stay, a recharge costs 25Euros for about 100 minutes, or 450 text messages.

Making Calls

Calling home

If you have an internet connection at home, Skype is highly recommended for talking to people back in the US and elsewhere. Getting a Skype In number before leaving the States can be a good idea because it gives you an actual phone number. This allows people to call you using a real phone and give you voicemail capabilities. This can be cheaper than having family and friends calling a French number.

How to dial a phone

• France Country Code = 33
• From a French phone to another phone, dial the full 10 digit number that you see. The first digit will be 0
• To call France from elsewhere, dial 011(if you're outside Europe) or 001(from within Europe) +33 and the next 9 digits. Drop the initial 0.

Important phone numbers From a landline

• 15 - Ambulance (SAMU)
• 17 - Police
• 18 - Fire (Pompiers)

Dictionary

• For all your English/French, French/English, conjugation, and synonym needs: TV5 MediaDico

Banking

If you have Bank of America in the US, you can withdraw from several banks in Europe using your Bank of America debit card at the current exchange rate with no additional charges.

• BNP Paribas (France)
• Deutsche Bank (Germany, some other countries)
• Barclays (UK)

Don't withdraw from other banks unless it's an emergency; it might cost you 5 euros per transaction. That includes the post office bank.

Daily Life

Food shopping

• Supermarkets
  • ATAC
  • Carrefour - Also carries _a lot_ of other stuff. Known as an hypermarche for a reason
  • Casino
  • ED (Known as a 'discount' grocery store, try here for cheaper groceries.)
  • Franprix
  • Leclerc
  • G20
  • Monoprix - Can also be a hypermarche
  • Tang Freres - For all your Asian foodstuff needs. The surrounding equivalent of Chinatown is good for buying cheap utensils, etc.

• Open air markets: A great way to buy your necessities!
  • To find one in your arrondissement, try here

Getting around

The RATP is the Paris transit authority. Their website is invaluable in finding out the fastest/easiest way of commuting between any 2 points in Ile-de-France. The public transit system consists of the (metro & RER - both of which typically run underground), (bus and Noctilien - the latter being the night bus), Transilien (for longer distances), and trams(for certain parts of Paris).

Tickets

It's most economical to either buy tickets in packs of 10 (carnet) or a Carte Orange in a monthly or weekly denomination. On weekends and holidays, the best bet is a Ticket Jeune, a youth ticket good for a full day of travel. If you're under 26 and in France for 9 months, the Imagine R card is a good idea. Consult the RATP website for all prices.

Travel

Being in France offers an excellent opportunity to see the various sceneries of both France and Europe. Bon voyage!

Getting around

With numerous lines, many of which service the TGV (Trains a Grand Vitesse), train is one of the easiest ways to get around France. One caveat of the TGV is that you must have a reservation for a seat on these trains. Thus, plans need to be made in advance for train travel, even if you have a Eurail pass.

Let the Deutsche Bahn website be your guide for train trips anywhere throughout Europe. It won't allow purchase of tickets not passing through Germany online, but the schedule is great. Cheap flights can also be found on airlines such as RyanAir and EasyJet. However, be aware that some of these carriers (Ryan Air especially) leave from Beauvais, which is not easily accessible from central Paris.

Where to stay

Since most trains run from Paris, for places near Paris it's easy enough to return home at night after day trips. Further away, youth hostels are a good idea. Hostel World is a good place to look for a hostel. Be sure to check the safety of the location you're staying before booking.

Where to go in France

 The UNESCO World Heritage sites are great places to visit.  The complete list for France is found here

The following aren't too far from Paris. They're most easily accessed by car, but train works too

• Cathedral of Chartres

• Northern France (Normandie,...)
  • Mont St. Michel - Train to Rennes, then bus from train station (although from bus terminal)
  • Cliffs of Etretat - Train to Breaute-Beuzeville or Le Havre, then bus from train station
  • Giverny - Monet's residence

• Central France
  • Loire Valley Chateaux - Train stop depends on which chateaux you want to visit, ranges from Tours to Orleans.
    • Chambord - Largest of the Loire valley chateaux, with a double-helix staircase by da Vinci
    • Chenonceau
    • Others: Amboise, Blois (small but many architectural styles), ....

The following are rather far from Paris and require more planning than the previous locations

• Eastern France
  • Mont Blanc & Pic du Midi - The Alps

• Southeastern France
  • Avignon - Home of the former papal residence and famous 'Pont d'Avignon'
  • Pont du Gard - Roman Aqueduct anyone?
  • Cannes, Nice & Monaco - Classic French riviera, heavily visited by the French during August so plan well in advance
  • Aix-en-Provence & Marseille - For a taste of the South

• Southwestern France
  • Bordeaux
  • Caves of Lascaux
  • Dordogne region

Links

• MIT France Living Guide
• MIT France Homepage
• January Scholars in France Homepage - 2005 is particularly helpful, since it's sorted by arrondisement
• Olivier Koch's Guide to Paris
• US Embassy to France
• cellulite

See also

• MIT Germany Wiki
• MIT Italy Wiki
• MIT Spain Wiki