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I have no idea why you asked me not to travel to France. My family does - frequently. They have friends in Paris and elsewhere. My close relative, a young recent college grad, had a boyfriend for 2 years who is French, and his parents loved her...
A close family member majored in French in college...
I am speaking from my own experience, which I will not rescind because I would then be lying.
If you think everyone has a negative ulterior motive, you do no one a favor to visit there.
They were probably laughing at her when her treatment at the restaurant was extremely gracious is unfounded; and expresses quite a bit of negativity to the local people.
If you think everyone has a negative ulterior motive, you do no one a favor to visit there.
They were probably laughing at her when her treatment at the restaurant was extremely gracious is unfounded.
You are confusing me with another poster! I never had anything to say about someone eating in a restaurant.
If you think everyone has a negative ulterior motive, you do no one a favor to visit there.
They were probably laughing at her when her treatment at the restaurant was extremely gracious is unfounded; and expresses quite a bit of negativity to the local people.
I thought that the lady (I now read the post), the American, was awful.
I did not say that "everyone has a negative ulterior motive", an attitude you chose to attribute to me. But I do believe in national character. I have far more experience with this and with Europeans in general and do not wish to post them or I will be too personal. I can tell you, however, that you do not realize what I have personally experienced.
The French have developed a reputation for a reason, just as the Irish are well known for their open hospitality.
We had a senior citizen from Brittany as our house guest, one of his few visits to America, father of our French lady friend. He was a gentleman and very appreciative. I do not stereotype.
Three of my siblings studied and lived in Europe and one (I am one of several siblings) spends much time in Belgium, Wales and Germany. My family is very much tied to Europe via friends for over 50 years.. One sibling studied as an undergrad at the Sorbonne, another did a year in Karlsruhe, another in-law studied piano under a Fulbright in Cologne..One niece has been in Spain for the past 2 years as a teacher...Another sibling studied and then lived and worked in Paris for 7 years...We speak fluent German, Chinese, fluent French and Spanish, some Italian...most of the languages mentioned are fluent..
i dont mean to upset anyone but being from the the cut off and sheltered country known as the united states, the only thing we know of the rest of the world is what the media tells us and the extremely limited travel abroad we get thanks to my 12 day vacation.. any way i always wanted to visit paris but i am always hearing of how americans are immediately bashed for steeping into your country. don't know how accurate these stereotypes are but i do know that when many americans leave the US they try the "we're canadian" stunt.. any info and tips on how to be considerate of your culture would be appreciated. thanks
I had a roommate from the French Swiss Alps for 2 years. He was disgusting, so snobby and he was on a scholarship to a famous university Ph.D. program with American money! I disliked him intensely. Very rude, very insulting, impossible.
A close family member spent 7 years living and working in France. Found that she was not well included by French people and most of her friends were from other countries.
I have another friend born and raised in France who is very nice but also behaves a bit superior which I find SO tiresome.
I think that you should be yourself, a nice person, and understand that it is up the French to work on their manners with you. If you are not rude, they have no right to be that way to you. I would not kiss their rear ends.
(And I have never been wanting to dislike the French, but found that some were not so nice to me. That's all!)
By the way, I am not "cut off and sheltered". Most of my family has lived and worked in Europe and elsewhere. And we have had visitors from other nations all over the world, staying with us. Not all Americans are narrow - by no means.
I agree the French seem stuck up. I'm not sure it is but they certainly come across that way and I'm not sure why.
To me it always seems that it's just the opposite. It's the Americans who hate the French. I was quite embarrassed by the comments of the cable news-casters like O'Reilly and another Fox guy who were just gross with their insults. As to being poor fighters how about the Maquis and the French Resistance which history says was the greatest resistance movement in the history of the Western world? And what about the French Foreign Legion? Yes it is made up of mainly foreign soldiers but the cadre are all French. They have a pretty impressive record.
Having never lived in France my French is not the greatest but I have always been complimented on my effort to speak it.
That Fox news guy even mentioned changing the name of French's Mustard. I guess he didn't know that French in an English surname and to a French one. No wonder I hate cable TV.
i dont mean to upset anyone but being from the the cut off and sheltered country known as the united states, the only thing we know of the rest of the world is what the media tells us and the extremely limited travel abroad we get thanks to my 12 day vacation.. any way i always wanted to visit paris but i am always hearing of how americans are immediately bashed for steeping into your country. don't know how accurate these stereotypes are but i do know that when many americans leave the US they try the "we're canadian" stunt.. any info and tips on how to be considerate of your culture would be appreciated. thanks
In my experience, the French love anyone who speaks French.
Why do you continue to post in the Europe and World sections if you obviously have no interest whatsoever in other countries? You seem to be proud of your ignorance.
To me it always seems that it's just the opposite. It's the Americans who hate the French. I was quite embarrassed by the comments of the cable news-casters like O'Reilly and another Fox guy who were just gross with their insults. As to being poor fighters how about the Maquis and the French Resistance which history says was the greatest resistance movement in the history of the Western world? And what about the French Foreign Legion? Yes it is made up of mainly foreign soldiers but the cadre are all French. They have a pretty impressive record.
Having never lived in France my French is not the greatest but I have always been complimented on my effort to speak it.
That Fox news guy even mentioned changing the name of French's Mustard. I guess he didn't know that French in an English surname and to a French one. No wonder I hate cable TV.
I certainly don't hate the French. That would be ridiculous. Why hate a people or nation? But I do feel that there is a tendency in French culture to be superior and rude to outsiders - and I don't mean that is true of all French people, but I do feel it is a tendency. The people you speak about above are fools anyway. We all should know that by now.
(The French may have had a great Resistance movement but they also tried to cover up, after the war (WW II), the degree of collaboration with the Nazis by so many French - more than was at first realized.)
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