Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Meet true Parisians!


Did you ever come to Paris and complained that it was difficult to meet - or even simply talk - to locals (ie Parisians?). Well, yes, it's true. Some even call us the rudest nation... but it's just that we are brought up with the idea that "you should not talk to strangers" and that "nobody is interested in your stories, keep them for yourself...". Nothing to urge us to communicate with the rest of the world... There is a solution though! It's called Franglish and it takes place regularly in Paris (and in Nice). Principle: 7 minutes of exchanges in French then English, so that you get to learn the language on top of meeting nice people. I witnessed last night, and it sounded really fun. Try it out next time you're in Paris, they have several sessions, not all in the dark, like last night at the Lizard Lounge!

27 comments:

  1. What a great idea! Quel bon idee! Merci, Eric. This on my list for the next time I'm in Paris (I only hope that the next time is soon!)

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  2. I will turn it into the Comedy Store as I can keep them laughing at my French. And my accent, Merci boCOU, yes, Cou, they way an American pronounces it!

    my French friend said the French know what I am trying to say, so no one is really getting offended. Mr PHX just keeps it at Merci bien.

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  3. I would have the Parisians laughing, too, Phx2cdg. On our
    1st visit to Paris we had dinner at Bofinger and the gentlemen seated next to us invited us to share a bottle of wine. When asked if I spoke French I said that I only spoke high school French and spoke that poorly. I was challenged to spend the next half hour speaking only in French. How that poor man kept his patience while I slaughtered the beautiful French language I'll never know.

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  4. I went to Paris for the first time last summer. I talked too several parisiens, with no difficults, both in french and english. I think they are polite, sympathetic. I have good memories of them.

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  5. I love this idea! It is very difficult to get to know people in a different country. I remember once when In Paris for a weekend, a gentleman sitting in a cafe who had to share his table with who was very rude. He was reading a newspaper that was sprawled out on the entire table that we were sharing with him. He wouldn't move his newspaper over so that we could eat our food. Keeping his eyes glued to his paper, he was determined to ignore us. Hence, eating on a table where we had barely enough room for our plates let alone our silverware.

    I know this sounds terrible but one of the people I was with got tired of the way he was acting and every time he started to take a sip of his coffee he would move the table just enough that he would drip his coffee onto the table. Ever heard the saying "Two wrongs don't make a right?" LOL

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  6. I have found Parisiens to be quite charming and fairly easy to start a conversation with. The best story I have is a Parisien woman and I striking up a conversation outside a boutique that was supposed to be open, but wasn't yet. I told her I was looking for something specific for my mother, and that I was pretty certain I'd find it in that boutique. She not only phoned the owner (her number was on the door) but she told me to wait for her while she checked something. She came back about 20 minutes later with a business card from a store she had visited a few days prior. She thought they may have what I was looking for and walked the several blocks from where we were to get the card/address for me. How wonderful was that!
    By the way, there's a great group that meets on Tuesdays (or at least did when I was there). It's called Tempo Time. French for one full hour, English for another. Games, drinks, etc. Very fun. :)

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  7. Even as an American who firmly believes in talking to everyone and usually tells them my life story within five minutes, I've never had a problem making friends avec les français—one special case in point: you (although I guess I can include le nouveau citoyen Michael now too!). Still, this sounds like a brilliant (and géniale) idea. So, did you meet any interesting people?

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  8. That sounds like a LOT of fun! I would love it. Nice edgy cool colored photo today as well...I like it.

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  9. "you should not talk to strangers" and that "nobody is interested in your stories, keep them for yourself...". Wow!! How many times did I hear that when I was growing UP?? LOL!! As a New Englander growing up in Boston [with French Ancestry] we also had this one drummed into our heads.."Good Fences Make Good Neighbors!!"...a New England maxim often attributed to Robert Frost. ;)

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  10. Tonton, it's from Frost's poem "Mending Wall." A lovely work.
    http://writing.upenn.edu/~afilreis/88/frost-mending.html

    I met two rude French people in Paris. I can't count how many nice people I met. I believe we have at least two rude people in Pasadena, but they are not among the four French people who live on my block!

    This looks like a lot of fun, Eric. I wish I could talk mes voisins into something similar, but their English is so much better than my French I'd probably have to pay them.

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  11. I didn't even see you! I must have been engrossed in French conversation!! I met some very interesting people and found my French to be, at least, comprehensible! It was exhausting! :)

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  12. Great shot, I really like the colours. And the concept is great as well.
    One og my mottos are : 'A stranger is a friend you just haven't met yet'. I know it's a terrible cliché, but it's how I feel :-D

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  13. I love it Bettina even if you say it's cliché. I also love how many people have had good experiences in France.

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  14. Je ne sais pas about Franglish, but je suis an expert in Franglais.

    Re the rude French. I am sure the fact that 65% of those surveyed were British/Irish had no influence on the result. LOL

    Although to our credit, I noticed that in the same survey we voted ourselves the world's worst travellers. We expect everyone to understand English, and if they don't we carry on speaking English regardless, only slower and louder! How rude is that?

    Let's be honest, there are rude people everywhere, it's simply that the rest of the world is jealous because French are so much better at it than we are.

    PHX,with my Scottish accent, I have to be careful with the merci beaucoooo as well. :-)

    The other essential information about the Lizard Lounge is that the happy hour (hours?) lasts until 10.00pm.
    Something I may be able to take advantage of tomorrow evening - as we shall be leaving for PARIS in the morning!

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  15. I'm from the Southern U.S., so I guess I will be doomed when I visit Paris next year. We talk to everyone where I was raised. I just returned from 2 weeks on Hawaii, met people from around the world and the local Hawaiians are very friendly too. In Italy last year it was other tourists we met, but also from all over the world...but not Italians. :) They must be private, too. A French teacher where I live told me not to bother trying to speak French in Paris, that it irritates them because of our mistakes. Seems odd to me, I appreciate anyone trying to learn a new language.

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  16. Drummond: "there are rude people everywhere, it's simply that the rest of the world is jealous because French are so much better at it than we are." hahahaha!

    Celeste, I think you should be yourself. Maybe Eric or Michael has some advice on this? I had one French waiter refuse to speak to me because (I think) I asked a question incorrectly in French. And a woman at the Louvre was rude to my friend because my friend didn't speak French at all! My remedy was to approach the woman and demand service, in French, and I got it. She was nice to me, too. So go figure.

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  17. Celeste, how can I put this nicely...hmmmm...oh yes, I found it. Your French teacher doesn't have a clue! The French appreciate anybody trying and I'd even guess that Petrea's experience was related to an ignorant person or somebody who probably is in the wrong job (helping tourists!) vs something ingrained in society.

    I had the discussion with CDG Lynn and Planejane today that it can be as simple as the word or subject is unknown so it's hard to answer (I've learned more English words from my English friends than I ever knew in American) or simply that more people speak English these days so they make an effort.

    Not sure if that helps, or if it applies to everybody everywhere, but it has been my experience at least.

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  18. Oh yes Petrea, the other thing is this... by being aggressive, you probably gained some respect. Bravo to you!

    I can distinctly remember the first time I said two whole sentences, fast and without translating in my head back in 1992. It was when I yelled at a taxi driver in French. I was so proud and he was nice to me after that! :-)

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  19. That's probably it, Michael. My friend was shy and the clerk was rude, and it had little to do with who spoke French and who didn't. The clerk ignored my friend, who was first in line, and continued to assist everyone else--even people who entered the room 20 minutes after we did. I finally got fed up and bustled up to the head of the line. I asked what the problem was and why she couldn't help my friend. She immediately waited on us.

    But this is an interesting question, and perhaps a fine point of how a tourist should behave in Paris--should one be a little aggressive? Is that good? Is that appreciated by the French? I'm not naturally aggressive and never would have acted that way if I hadn't been angry about how my friend was being treated.

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  20. It is an interesting question and a true French person can maybe explain better. I do know that I've had to learn to be a bit more aggressive (isn't it the same in NYC for example?). I think the difference, which also applies to the national past time of debating in France, just because you are aggressive, it doesn't mean you're angry. Something that's hard to reconcile for us I think. You can have a good hearty debate at dinner, but you're more likely to get really mad if you miss the cheese plate!

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  21. Yes, big city life. Things may be different in the small towns.

    I should also mention that one rude clerk did not dampen the effect of the delightful cab driver who shared stories with us, the wonderful people who gave directions, the kind librarian who helped me find what I wanted, the waiters who spoke perfect English and still allowed us to order in French, and the countless other Parisians who, if they didn't embrace us, at least tolerated us with a friendly eye.

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  22. Actually Michael, it's an interesting question.
    Wherever we come from we all obey to cultural codes that we follow without even noticing them. If we did not we would simply be kicked out of our own society!

    For example, when you're French and unhappy, you have to "show" it! Which means you have to yell and make noise, like primates LOL

    Something which is considered poorly in the anglo-saxon culture, where being unable to keep your self-control is a social handicap.

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  23. The absolute biggest hint I can give is to follow Their etiquette rules. You must say hello when you enter and goodbye when you leave, and no, we don't do that at Macy's or to the bus driver. A New York bus driver won't even acknowledge you if you dare to say hello, because I tried it out. But in Paris? They sometimes say bonjour before I can get it out. If someone is being rude to you, you probably weren't following a local custom that you would never think about. And you come across as a rude hick with no manners when you ask for help without saying these salutations..my rules? Say your hellos and goodbyes in French and TRY to say I don't speak French, in French, and you will have them in the palm of your hand.

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  24. Excellent tips, PHX!

    (Perhaps my friend said "hi" instead of "bonjour"!)

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  25. In the Southern U.S., we are also raised to say hello and goodbye when entering small shops. It's considered rude to "not speak". Thanks Michael, I will definitely give my best effort next year when I am there to speak French. When else am I going to have the chance? I grew up in New Orleans so I studied French. Spanish would have been more useful, we have a large Hispanic community in the southern U.S.

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