Endless Vacations

ummm, whats a vacation???

i have been many times in france when i lived overseas and i think have a better life than american and less strees also i have bee here over 22 years and i have said long ago american deserve a longer vacation and a better medical benifit example france and sweeden time to change bon nuit

I can't believe I'm so lucky. I have more than 6 weeks of vacation a year!!! I'm a teacher and the salaries are better now. Want more vacation? Probably think of becoming a teacher.

I am an american living and working in New Zealand and I get 8 weeks of vacation per year and unlimited sick leave. The USA is draconian and is due for a change.

I love America. If you don't want to work, quit. If you want more vacation...start your own business or request that in your next interview or just leave. If it were so bad, why is everyone trying to get here? I think people are just mad cause there are consequences to choices. By the way, the people of france go to the doctor everytime they sneeze...yes, i have been there. Talk about long lines...how about that poor woman who died in L.A. MLK hospital...that is socialized nationalized medicine for you. Calling 9-1-1 from the hospital...???? I made my choices and why should I have to pay for everyone elses?

Living in the EU I was at first shocked by the amount of vacation time folks have. I was used to the endless sacrificing of days off, buying them back to make more money and get ahead. I did that for nearly 20 years of my career. Now I look back at the lost time with family and see how stupid it all was. You need time off in this 24/7 available world of Blackberry's and other "time saving" devices that allow us to be more productive whilst chaining us to our desks and computers in clever ways. Your body needs rest or else it tires of the strain. Do you who think you are indispensable? Just drive past a graveyard and see row upon row of others who also thought themselves indispensable. You are nowhere as important in your work as you think you are so why not smell the coffee and take some time before your kids grow up and are strangers to you? Not one of us is going to leave this world alive so please do make the most of the time you have and don't think poorly of those who do, learn from them.

I'm from California but have lived and worked in Germany for the last 7.5 years- there are pros and cons to both systems, basically Europe is focused on the community while America is focused on the individual. I pay a lot more taxes here, but there are certain reasons I will continue to keep Munich as my home base (even as a person of color) and raise my children here. 1. Minimal crime, 2. Higher Quality of Life 3. Work/Life balance 4. Better healthcare. Yes there are the occaisonal anecdotal stories about socialized medicine mishaps, but I'd wager the ones about families in America going into debt to pay medical bills are higher. I just had a serious heart surgery (at 34) while I was home in the states. My medical bills totaled over 100k, my German insurance paid it without blinking an eye - all of it. No, I'm not going anywhere. The one caveat I'd make is that Europeans like vacation so much is because life is so regulated here. The entreprenurial spirit is not rewarded like it is in America. In America, basically, you are rewarded for intiative and risk taking. In Europe for your dutiful contribution to the group. Since the former is more self-motivated, perhaps there is less need for a 'break for yourself'. Just a theory. In any case, I'm starting to feel like my 6 weeks is too short when there are so many fabulous things in Europe to enjoy.

And Elreagh, we actually get services for the taxes we pay! When you look at healthcare and everything else the EU system is one where folks look out for each other vs. only the fittest survive. The law of the jungle is outlawed. We care for all "stakeholders" vs overinflated 90-day returns for "shareholders." How many billions must one make before they have enough? I worked with a guy who was a multimillionaire, he worked 20-hours a day, slept at his desk, kept a cabinet full of clean clothes in his office so he would not waste a minute !?!?!?!? How ridiculous is that and how much is enough? That is a question it took years for me to answer and I am glad I found that there is always enough.

Work hours should only be no more than 6 1/2 a day for 4 days. As an american, work is overated. We spend more time working, less on family, and few on days off. Some of us work so much we never get to see just what we are working so hard for anyway. I think I am gonna move to France!

PS Adeavens, not everyone is trying to get there. That's what your govt. wants you to think to obscure and cloud the real issues you face. If they can find a lightning rod like immigration or Paris Hilton to keep you fired up you won't worry about healthcare, wars, loss of world standing, torture, dishonesty and the virtual police state you now live in. A few hundred or a few thousand pouring over a long border is not "everyone" in a country of 300,000,000 and a world of 6.5 billion. It's just convenient SPIN. When will that become the focus vs, fear, fear, fear???