r33z3
Is it possible that some companies pay good for experienced software developers in Lebanon? And what's the pay good rate? anything above 3K or that's hard to attain?
Please everyone share your experience.. to let the people who are new in this field know how they should plan for a successful career and not let the companies abuse their skills for not enough money.
battikh
hmmm, i know friends who used to work at element^n, they had like 2 years experience and used to earn around 2000$.
Xsever
I live in Canada now, and I am studying Electrical and Computer Engineering. I am planning on going back when I am done. Bear in mind what you may make more gross money here, but when you factor in tax and the cost of living, things are not that great. Add on top of that the lack of "Lebanese Life" here.
I hope you get what you want, but 1700 for 3 years experience is very good.
BashLogic
I can not bare it when people think that you can earn more abroad, that is crap.
if you earn 2000-3000$/month in lebanon, you are earning more than others abroad with more experience!
I for example pay over 55% tax, when i compare myself to someone nagging about the mere 2000$/month,
all i can say is that person lacks a lot of reality, because that 2000$ is cash in your hand! abroad you might earn more but then you pay tax and you have a high cost of living. all that put together and to cut the story short, you are earning well and abroad you wont be earning or saving anymore unless you are a real guru at something and work 24/7. there are lots of coders out there, but only a few are gurus and only those few are the ones who get that dream wage!
battikh
^^ some countries abroad are tax free...
Xsever
I totally agree with you BashLogic and I can confirm this through experience. "Abroad" is mis-represented maybe because some people think that Lebanon is not that great and it makes them feel better that another country is reachable.
battikh
dude, it depends on "abroad"
in dubai, no taxes.
and costs of life are similar to lebanon if you want to live with the same standards. yes, rent can be much more, but that's if you want to live alone, in the nice places, with a pool, a gym and a garden in your building. how much would such an apartment cost in beirut? and don't forget that people in lebanon with 2000$ salaries usually still live with their parents. if you take this same person abroad and make him live in the same standards as in lebanon, sharing his apartment, livingin more popular areas of dubai, ... he would save much more. if you make him buy a peugeot 206 instead of a merecedes, he would also save much more. it's a way of life you CHOSE to have, these extra spending are not necessary, you chose to have them.
so if you want to compare someone abprad and someone in lebanon, you have to compare them on the same standards.
you can't say that someone who is buying a mercedes c63 AMG makes less money than someine in lebanon who buys a peugeot 206 just because he puts less money on the side.
and i'm talking here about gulf vs lebanon. i know that it's very different with europe and usa. but just to let you know that "abroad" doesnt mean high taxes. no taxes here, 0% and costs of living are almost the same. rent of houses with similar standards in lebanon would be same if not more, cars are much cheaper, clothes are same, food is same (and cheaper for some imported things), fuel is MUCH MUCH MUCH cheaper, phone is also MUCH cheaper, and electricity is also MUCH cheaper.
in lebanon if you want to buy your own car, live in beirut in a nice apartment and nice environment, pay your own telephone bills, electricity bills, fuel, .... without the help of anyone, 2000$ would never be enough.
and for europe, it's true that you pay taxes, but in teh comparison, you also have to take into consideration that in exchange of your taxes you get social security, healthcare, a secure job, if you have children, a good free education, ...
taxes are not just a ripoff, you pay for the extra services you get. if you dont make use of all these services because you're still don't have children, have a job, still not retired, ... doesn't mean that there's no use to it and that you're giving it away for nothing back.
in lebanon we pay taxes, and tva, and they want to make tva even higher, and what do we get in exchange? crappy public schools, no healthcare, no social security, no secuity men aseiso, no shaykhoukha, pretty much nothing... we're basically just paying for the salaries of ministers, ex ministers, deputies and ex deputies and the families of dead ministers and dead deputies and costs of an army we never used
rolf
Yeah if you compare, please consider that the taxes that you pay outside Lebanon don't go to /dev/null. There is a better standard of living, do I need to get into details?
You might also get better working experience outside the country, and opportunities to work on bigger/more complex projects and use newer technologies, experience better management, etc.
In the end, it depends about your priorities I guess. People cant consider the million differences between these 2 situations, thats why they put priorities.
As for salaries, programming salaries, following my limited experience, usually start around $1000, which is pretty good for Lebanon, considering that civil engineers, graphic designers and other profession which are as challenging start with (slightly?) lower pay, and are less lax about qualifications.
teodorgeorgiev
BashLogic wroteI can not bare it when people think that you can earn more abroad, that is crap.
if you earn 2000-3000$/month in lebanon, you are earning more than others abroad with more experience!
I for example pay over 55% tax, when i compare myself to someone nagging about the mere 2000$/month,
all i can say is that person lacks a lot of reality, because that 2000$ is cash in your hand! abroad you might earn more but then you pay tax and you have a high cost of living. all that put together and to cut the story short, you are earning well and abroad you wont be earning or saving anymore unless you are a real guru at something and work 24/7. there are lots of coders out there, but only a few are gurus and only those few are the ones who get that dream wage!
With all my respect, but I will say that all you have written above is complete bullshit.
The "higher living costs in the EVIL WEST" is a bullshit sold by the Lebanese politics to keep the sheeps inside ;)
Indeed life in Europe (with some small exceptions) and USA is cheaper than Lebanon.
BashLogic
With all my respect, but I will say that all you have written above is complete bullshit.
## things are often a matter of opinion but then again there are aspects and persepctives to note other than direct money, cash, profit and benefits.
The "higher living costs in the EVIL WEST" is a bullshit sold by the Lebanese politics to keep the sheeps inside ;)
## hmm.. the bullshit must be very effective noting that there are less than 4m people living in the country and over 20m living abroad!
Indeed life in Europe (with some small exceptions) and USA is cheaper than Lebanon.
## that is a matter of cummulative issues, if you are living in a developed country, let it be for example, the UK, france, germany, belgium, sweden, norway, etc. you have to note that there are three types of democracies, each offering less and less in return. with the ongoing global economical turmoil, you are receiving less and less in return for what you pay as taxes. those countries that used to compensate with all the glamour that other forsee is fading away. in some places you have to wait up to 2 months to get a free doctors apointment and yet you still have to pay a sum of about 40e attendance fee. because of the strict regulation in the pharmaseutical industry, the monopoly at hand yelds profit for the private corporate share holders when a pack of panadol costs 3-4x more than lebanon! nowadays to ensure that you get a decent medical care, you have to insure yourself in the private sector, hence an extra expense along side the tax you pay just to get basic treatment.
in the nordics for example you pay 1.5% as church tax. if you are a christian, you have to pay that tax. in return, it does not entitle you to anything! if you marry, you still have to pay a fee to the church for a wedding, a larger fee for a funeral and a fee to have your first communion. practically what you are paying is not returning to you!
in the nordics there are numerous other taxes to pay for example an anual tv tax of 200e, or 500e for a car. if you have savings in the bank above 20k, you would have to pay taxes on your wealth! due to such issues, many nordic citizens register themslves as residence of the baltic states to evade such a taxation level.
in eastern european countries, russia, asia and 3rd world countries, you have a so called basic social security that practically ensures you nothing! you have to have a "wasta" to get something out of it or know how to scam to get benefits.
as for cost of living, well once again it differs by region that you can not generalize that life in europe is cheaper. that is why many economists create lists of the most expensive countries and others use the mac-index to point out the difference of living costs. for example in the nordics, 1kg of tomato during the winter costs you over 7e/kg! pasta bolognese ingredients cost over 30e!
its a totally different thing if you are getting a return for your tax but this is not the case, for example in my case, it has been researched that for every tax bill that i pay, i am supporting 2.5, sick/old/young/imigrant. now if i get sick, i dont even get a ratio of 1 in return. hence the tax that im paying is not returning as direct equivilent benefit cause im paying for the living of others. that is a difference of at least 1.6 that goes to others welfare than mine! and with the ongoing economical changes, when i come of ages, i will not have those benefits anymore!
in addition, to note that you would have to live in dire circumstances, you wont necessarily have friends, you cant spend money cause of costs, traveling to lebanon and sending money to lebanon is not cheap. your family is not arround you, and you can not eat as healthy food as in lebanon. these factors only speak out the fact that abroad even if you get that extra lets say 500e a month, it will not be earned with a pleasant and a comfortable life.
sure if you go abroad just to earn money, live in a dog house and eat can food you can save lots, but he same would apply to lebanon with less hastle and miserry.
there are countries with exceptions, for example UAE just as battikh pointed, but how good are the job contracts? how pleasant is life? can you remain there? please dont leave out the factors. as i stated in my first reply, "to cut the story short", well now i extended it due to the "public request" ;)
teodorgeorgiev
BashLogic, I am sure someone of your family is a politician ;)
Anyway, I won't argue on this. Just a question - how much time you have spent living abroad, from your words I notice that you possess vast experience on the topic...
BashLogic
teodorgeorgiev wroteBashLogic, I am sure someone of your family is a politician ;)
Anyway, I won't argue on this. Just a question - how much time you have spent living abroad, from your words I notice that you possess vast experience on the topic...
before the age of 18, i used to travel for leisure, education and merrit in different corners of the world.
after the age of 18, i have mostly resided in the nordics and in addition lived in belgium, the states and australia.
in short, 2/3 of my life has been spent in none native countries.
and no, i am not aware that there are politicians in the family.
and talking about salaries and jobs, i am interested in finding sharepoint .net developers (professionals with experience and a portfolio for reference). job would be a tthe begining project based and after a trial period a full time with a salary somewhere between 2-3000$/month. the requirements are:
- profesiency
- delivery on time
- good communication
- reliability
- accountability
- rational thinking
- readiness
those who are intersted can contact me.
note, the above are the minimum criterias, anything less would be disregarded.
I have several sources willing to outsource thru me to lebanon, hence open an office there for developers to earn a decent income, have a decent life close to their families and work with cutting edge technologies.
battikh
BashLogic wrotebecause of the strict regulation in the pharmaseutical industry, the monopoly at hand yelds profit for the private corporate share holders when a pack of panadol costs 3-4x more than lebanon!
believe me, you don't want to know why medicine is sometimes cheaper in lebanon. in most cases, it's good that it's cheaper, but if something crappy ever happens we'll all be blaming people for not taking more precautions before importing medicine...
BashLogic wrotethere are countries with exceptions, for example UAE just as battikh pointed, but how good are the job contracts?
just to keep the story short. i work in a "local" company and i have an IBM contrart. it's a standard contract for most IBM employees over the world. that's for contract-wise...
and if you work for multinational companies, it just keeps getting better.
and even the local laws protect you from many things.
for my case for example, and i'm not in a super duper hardcore multinational company, i can't get fired without a 2 month notice (like everywhere else i guess), they're not allowed to force me to make me work outside working hours (sunday to thursday, 8am till 5pm), i get housing allowance, car allowance (price of the car + insurance + fuel + highway tolls), full healthcare, ticket to lebanon during high season for me and wife and kids if i have any, healthcare for wife and kids too, if i have kids, they pay 75% of the scholarship, i get a percentage of the revenue of the company if we achieve targets, ...
and my company is one of the companies that have the lowest salaries among the competition...
i have friends who work in similar companies in lebanon, they get nothing from all that. and from an experience point of view, the hands on i get here, i would never even dream of getting it in lebanon. the projects we get here are far better than the ones they get in lebanon, from a size point of view, technologies used, complexity, ...
BashLogic wrotehow pleasant is life? can you remain there? please dont leave out the factors.
actually it IS pleasant if you have your entourage there. and there are so many lebanese here that it's very easy. wherever you go, you will be happy were your friends/family are. even if you live in heaven but have no friends, you wont be happy. and if you're in hell but with family and friends, it will be the best place to live.
if you get bored and miss your mom's food, you simply can get her a ticket to uae, or go yourself for the weekend. tickets to lebanon can be as cheap as 100$ raw7a raj3a... that's what you pay for 1 night in gemayzeh...
teodorgeorgiev
BashLogic, since you used to live in the States... how expensiver is life in that place compared to Lebanon?
Let me give you some hints:
1. Gasoline is slightly cheaper than in Lebanon - well this can be compensate with higher taxes for car insurance and such.
2. Food is also slightly cheaper than in Lebanon
3. Communications (Internet, cable TV, telephone) --> apprx 10 times cheaper than in Lebanon. Should I notice that
the local operators charge equally for landline and mobile calls???????????????????
4. renting a place to live (if it is not in a huge city like N.Y. , L.A. , Chicago, S.F. and so on) for some $500 you can get a decent place to live, a really decent one.
5. Services (haircut, taxies, repairs) - well, they are a little bit more expensiver than in Lebanon. Btw, the public transportation
system in Europe and USA is a really well developed one so you barely need to use a taxi there...
6. Health services - yes, quite costly. Specially dental care (used it once)
7. Consumer electronics, cars - cheaper than in Lebanon
8. Clothes - how to say... depends on the place, won't comment here...
9. Cheaper bank credits - apprx 4-6% anually.
In general, life there is cheaper than in Lebanon. Not to mention that one saves a lot of time due to the cheap phone calls, cheap Internet (all bills can be paid via Internet), well organised transportation system, fair laws that are created to protect
the citizens.
And a price for a good network/telecom engineer (not a guru) is apprx $55 - 65$K anually. A guru one, or a damn good
developer (C# / .NET , Java, Python) or an Oracle DBA goes for not less than $80K.
Stop bullshitting, dude! I suspect that it is hard for you to realize, but with your actions you might screw someone's life, if
that someone is reading the forum and misses his chance to live in a normal country due to your statement!
BashLogic
teodorgeorgiev wroteBashLogic, since you used to live in the States... how expensiver is life in that place compared to Lebanon?
## there are differences, but in general you have to note that prices in lebanon have soared beyond rationality.
in the states there are lots of things that are cheapper, but at the end of the day between this and that you spend just about as much! for example, you dont have lots of sidewalks and road cross to cross the road and walk down to the shop, often you need a car because of such things.
Let me give you some hints:
1. Gasoline is slightly cheaper than in Lebanon - well this can be compensate with higher taxes for car insurance and such.
## gas in the states has always been cheaper and politically kept cheap to let the economy run, why do you think there has been all this fued in the middle east? when the gas price went up by 10% people were having heart attacks. it was not untill recently that people have come to their senses that instead of driving 6litter engine suvs, they could drive a 1.6l vw/golf! look what the oil crisis achieved back in the 70s and then get back to this subject. the us goverment would do anything to keep the gas cheap in that country, even cheaper than the median in the rest of the world.
2. Food is also slightly cheaper than in Lebanon
## food prices varry by state and city, that is a generalization. what was funny during my stay there was that the stake meal at the restaurants were cheaper than to buy the stuff and do it yourself, why so? they depend profits from drinks! and how much does a waitress earn there? 5$/hour the rest comes from tips, why do you think that in most states you have to give a 20% tip on the bill? note its a have to not an option! at that point meals could cost as much, but yes some food was cheaper and some was not. the reason for that is the mass consumer market. in lebanon you have the option of growing some stuff in your backyard at a decent cost!
3. Communications (Internet, cable TV, telephone) --> apprx 10 times cheaper than in Lebanon. Should I notice that the local operators charge equally for landline and mobile calls???????????????????
## yes that stuff is cheaper, but for every small addon you want you pay extra, in lebanon you keep forgetting its the land of ripoffs and not a land of policies, but then again if you spend your life sitting in front a tv or by the phone, please be my guest and move to the states. in lebanon you have the option socialize and enjoy other recreational social events instead of sitting on the phone or four eyeing a tv screen.
4. renting a place to live (if it is not in a huge city like N.Y. , L.A. , Chicago, S.F. and so on) for some $500 you can get a decent place to live, a really decent one.
## 500$/month? who are you bullshiting? 500$/month living close to a commuter stop, close to a service center with shops and public services and where you could strive without a car? year right, double that figure.
most decent good paying jobs are in the big cities and their suburbs, it was crazy watching colleagies drive for up to 2hrs one way to come to work and then back! 4hrs a day gone to traffic and distance just to live in a place where the rent and houses are cheaper. where is the bullshit there?
5. Services (haircut, taxies, repairs) - well, they are a little bit more expensiver than in Lebanon. Btw, the public transportation system in Europe and USA is a really well developed one so you barely need to use a taxi there...
## depends where you are in europe, yes public services work better than in lebanon, but yet have a toll. for example in one case, if i used the public transportation to get from home to work, one way took 1hr 20min while as with a car it took 15min, so lots do the maths.. by car 30mins a day in comparison to 2.5hrs a day which is cheaper for me, to have 2hrs more of personal time per day or pay car tax and gas and use the car loosing 30min a day? hmmm where is the bullshit there, taste a bit of the reality cake it right relief that stress of yours that you didnt know about..
6. Health services - yes, quite costly. Specially dental care (used it once)
## anything medical is always costly a colleague of mine got sick and had company insurance, hence should have had a better medical care. he got some bug bites and went to see the doc, it took him 8hrs of waiting before his turn came arround.. the more you pay of your nice big income the more you can secure a better healthcare regardless of whether it is public or private
7. Consumer electronics, cars - cheaper than in Lebanon
## that stuff can be cheaper, no question there, that is partly to blame lebanese mentality
8. Clothes - how to say... depends on the place, won't comment here...
## you can pay a lot or then again you can find outlets and if lucky get some cheap stuff, the same applies in lebanon...
9. Cheaper bank credits - apprx 4-6% anually.
## depends what you are reffering to bank credits. there is the bank credit and then the branch marginal. on a big loan, the 4% can turn to a 7%. when i was in the states i was horrified to see how people were taking all those loans in their different forms. even the most stupid intellect could have forseen the economical crissis that they are in. what spooked my during my visit to lebanon was to see that people were eager on taking microloans with same characteristics as in the states, in other words, wait for a couple of years and you will notice the toll in the lebanese economy
In general, life there is cheaper than in Lebanon. Not to mention that one saves a lot of time due to the cheap phone calls, cheap Internet (all bills can be paid via Internet), well organised transportation system, fair laws that are created to protect the citizens.
## regulations protect, life can be successfull abroad, im not debating that otherwise why the hell would i state the fact that there are 20mil abroad and 4mil in the country? the issue is that often people have this holywood perception that im going to strike it rich live like a king and then return to lebanon to show off. now that is bullshit! how often do you see lebanese abroad working in gas stations or cleaning toilets only to return to lebanon as big timers showing off etc. now that is hypocracy to the extreme.
And a price for a good network/telecom engineer (not a guru) is apprx $55 - 65$K anually.
## i would lower that figure a bit but partially true, but do the maths on the fact that you have to pay all those insurance bills, save for retirement, cover gas costs etc. at the end, are you really gaining? you can almost half that salary. what you are getting as a benefit is simpler life with less regulatory headaches. but then again in a country like the US, isnt it a bit weird that you can not say merry xmass to your friends on xmass and have to say happy holidays to be politically correct? to what extent can a typical lebanese abou abed be continously politically correct before having a breakdown?
A guru one, or a damn good developer (C# / .NET , Java, Python) or an Oracle DBA goes for not less than $80K.
## this is true, but the job demmands are demmanding as well so do the maths, how much do you earn per work hour and how much your remaining private/personal time is of value per hour (the less personall time the greater alue)
Stop bullshitting, dude! I suspect that it is hard for you to realize, but with your actions you might screw someone's life, if that someone is reading the forum and misses his chance to live in a normal country due to your statement!
## I very much doubt that my statements are pure bullshits, if you have struck gold, that doesnt mean that it would necessarily work for everyone, after all the amount of gold in the world is limited! have you given that a thought? and since abroad you can earn more and the works, why are you and your friends in lebanon?
## i will not feel any pitty or guilt for someone who would read this one thread and comments and build conclusions of what life is better solely based on this thread. if someone has done so, then that person has yet a lot to learn of doing their homework properly. have you dont yours?
nuclearcat
Bashlogic, it is really difficult to read your answer.
Just use
TG
You
TG2
You2
As it supposed to be done.
BashLogic
hello nuc, glad to see you arround ;)
Xsever
Your family is not arround you, and you can not eat as healthy food as in lebanon. these factors only speak out the fact that abroad even if you get that extra lets say 500e a month, it will not be earned with a pleasant and a comfortable life.
sure if you go abroad just to earn money, live in a dog house and eat can food you can save lots, but the same would apply to lebanon with less hastle and miserry.
I fully support you BashLogic on this. I speak of experience and money cannot buy everything.
@battikh
My bad about "abroad". To be more precise, I was talking about the US and Canada.
I have been living in Canada for 3 years now, and the cost of living is by no way cheaper than Lebanon. Food is soooo much more expensive for example(man2oustein la7em b3ajin w 2 sprites for 10$). All the tech-related consumer products are cheaper, but the cost of living in general is totally not. I pay 200$ a month to ensure two cars, and if God forbid I get into an accident, the fee will go up. So you're screwed both ways! For sure they will cover you, but have fun paying after that. The way it works here is that people live to work. The government have managed to make work so critical that people forget the "life" aspect.
As BachLogic said, if you only care about money, and are willing to live away from you people, family, friends, then sure come and work here. On top of that, add the moral and social bankruptcy compared to Lebanon. We are by now way perfect, but we still indispensable values that make us who we are.
Money can't buy everything. Before I came here, I used to think Canada is perfect. Now, and after some time, I appreciate Lebanon more and more with all its corruption. I most certainly hope that it gets better, but it's been in a worse situation and our parents survived raising us. L2essa bl ekhir sarit ane3a!
nuclearcat
Simple thing that sucks in Lebanon:
1)Law not same for everybody. If someone "big" hit ur car while being drunk, case will be handled totally different than in USA/Canada. One of our support guys is in trouble... drunk asshole hit him in the back, his car is piece of waste now, and police seems trying to accuse poor guy that it was his mistake.
2)Customs in Leb sucks. You cannot import anything hitech by urself properly. And Lebanon sucks in case of hitech. No sample kits for example for AVR development. Here is PIC microcontrollers is WOW, bleeding edge technology! But still customs better than exUSSR countries :-D
3)Water, electricity - SUCKS BIG TIME. You will have to pay randomly for additional truck of water, to replace busted by crappy electricity and water appliances.
4)Sanitary sucks. I am seeing lakes of shit floating from sewing systems recently. This means diseases. I got recently one. No sanitary control done on food in supermarket. This morons adding for "weight" water in meat, freezing it... making money. But issue - they add non-clean water. I notice that meat on ramadan was heavily infected by salmonella bacteria.
5)Most important. This country just very unfriendly for "starting" geek. No hi-tech gadgets, no development tools as i mentioned, no education, no books.
If you can handle such questions - then Leb is fine.
P.S. Social things is not for geeks. Geeks usually don't like clubbing :-D
teodorgeorgiev
Xsever wroteYour family is not arround you, and you can not eat as healthy food as in lebanon. these factors only speak out the fact that abroad even if you get that extra lets say 500e a month, it will not be earned with a pleasant and a comfortable life.
sure if you go abroad just to earn money, live in a dog house and eat can food you can save lots, but the same would apply to lebanon with less hastle and miserry.
I fully support you BashLogic on this. I speak of experience and money cannot buy everything.
@battikh
My bad about "abroad". To be more precise, I was talking about the US and Canada.
I have been living in Canada for 3 years now, and the cost of living is by no way cheaper than Lebanon. Food is soooo much more expensive for example(man2oustein la7em b3ajin w 2 sprites for 10$). All the tech-related consumer products are cheaper, but the cost of living in general is totally not. I pay 200$ a month to ensure two cars, and if God forbid I get into an accident, the fee will go up. So you're screwed both ways! For sure they will cover you, but have fun paying after that. The way it works here is that people live to work. The government have managed to make work so critical that people forget the "life" aspect.
As BachLogic said, if you only care about money, and are willing to live away from you people, family, friends, then sure come and work here. On top of that, add the moral and social bankruptcy compared to Lebanon. We are by now way perfect, but we still indispensable values that make us who we are.
Money can't buy everything. Before I came here, I used to think Canada is perfect. Now, and after some time, I appreciate Lebanon more and more with all its corruption. I most certainly hope that it gets better, but it's been in a worse situation and our parents survived raising us. L2essa bl ekhir sarit ane3a!
Xserver, here is a tip for you:
Forget your Lebanese driving skills whilst abroad, follow the driving rules and road signs (which are really clear and easily understood) and chances are that you will never go into any car accident. One small thing you missed to note - the insurance companies will have you pay more if the accident was caused by YOUR FAULT. This is a common practice (at least in the EU)
and that is one of the ways to force correct behavior on the road. I personally pay $180 per year for my car (model 2004), which is pretty cheap because for all these 5 years I have never caused a single accident. Others (crazy drivers) pay like $400.
It is really an urban legend that people in the EU / USA work more ;)
Even the opposite. Why are you telling "black" to the white wall??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
In Lebanon it is often a rule that people work after office hours and often - against their own will and without any compensation.
Working at Saturday is a rule in Lebanon whilst in EU it is NOT.
Why don't you compare the length of the office week in EU and in Lebanon? In France I think it is less than 40 hours.
Government institutions are much friendly to people than the ones in Lebanon. In Lebanon the government employees act like
they are doing you a fucking big favor. Everything related to the government is slowly and costly and includes bribes -
car registration papers, work papers, visas.... EVERYTHING.
Life in general is slightly cheaper, much better organised and less stressed in Europe,North America and Australia than in Lebanon. Japan and South Korea are a big exception - people there are workacholics by tradition.