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by Doreen Carvajal of the International Herald Tribune Dec 8, 2007 Doreen Carvajal, of the International Herald Tribune, e-mailed me after she had come across an article I wrote on the dropping euro and asked if she could interview me for an article she was writing on 'Expats living off dollars'. I agreed. The following are some Q&As from our communications. Question: You mentioned that you lived in the south of France and then moved north. Did the declining dollar have an impact on your decision to move to a region with a cheaper cost of living? Answer: No, the dollar did not have an impact on our decision to move but it did coincide with our decision and was noteworthy. I was looking for the right school for my daughter. Her option was Art. We were searching for an excellent Cinema, Art History or Art option. The semi-public (not free for the international section students) school she attended last year focused on the Sciences. The public (free for all students) school she is at now has an excellent Art History program. Our goal was to find the best, free (if possible) art school since we had decided to move her into a school with a strong Art option. I wasn't concerned about the cost of living when looking for the school. I was concerned about the education. That being said, we heard France had excellent public schools and we decided to find one. We found four public schools that met our specific needs [strong art option, strong international section, rigorous academics, strong BAC scores (100% pass rate preferred), safe], in four different regions. I would have moved to any town, in France, if it had the right school. That being said, I did look for cheaper housing when we arrived in anticipation of the dollar falling even further. My housing is now 30 euro cheaper per month. It could have been substantially less (perhaps $200-300 euro less per month) if I had been willing to live on the outskirts of town. The price we pay to live smack dab in the middle of one of the most beautiful surroundings any town in the world has to offer is well worth it. In all honestly, it was cheaper to live in the south of France than it is to live here. Perhaps because I knew where to find the neighborhood discount store and we had a super cheap, very large marche with a fabulous selection of clothing and household goods. The marche here is rather limited and we've yet to find a good discount store for the basics like replacement reading glasses and headphones. Question: Have you had to economize in other ways in your daily life to deal with the dollar decline? If so, how? Answer: Not too much. We live below our means so we've had a cushion. Losing some of that cushion affects our luxury items, like travel, eating out and clothes shopping. We are frugal by nature so we are always pleased when we find a new way of saving money. That being said, we are very aware of the declining dollar and quite aware that $1000 is only worth $683.20 purchasing power in France at today's rate of exchange. Some things we purchase from the States and have shipped to us. Periodically this is a necessity because we need a certain book for my daughter's school or something like that. Sometimes it's to our economic advantage - like the boots my daughter just purchased with her own money from her own online business. She had a choice. She could buy them in dollars or pounds. Thankfully, she has a sound understanding of the exchange rate between the two countries. Questions: What are you hearing from your expat friends abroad. Are they in a similar situation and what kind of advice do people share. Answer: I haven't really heard much from other expats on this subject. Most of the people I speak with are French. Question: Do you or your friends ever think about bailing out of Europe and returning home because of the declining dollar? And in your mind have you set a barrier mark; if the dollar hits 1.60, for example, would you consider moving back to the US. Answer: I can only speak for our family. We have no intentions of moving from France until my daughter has finished high school at which point she plans on returning to the States to attend University. We traveled to Edinburgh twice since last Feb, for a total of 15 days. We've encountered the dynamics of the dollar vs the pound. Not a far cry from where the dollar vs the euro dynamics are headed. If not prepared it could be a painful experience. That being said, if I was unable or unwilling to increase my income I would probably have a hard time supporting myself if the dollar was worth less than about .30. I'm not sure, but I might consider moving at that point, but probably to Fiji or Tahiti rather than back to the States. I don't think I'm done experiencing foreign lands, yet. Thanks! | 
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