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From: monique@ucla-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.travel
Subject: Re: paris, france
Message-ID: <7938@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Date: Mon, 9-Dec-85 18:57:00 EST
Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.7938
Posted: Mon Dec  9 18:57:00 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 18-Dec-85 06:38:44 EST
References: <874@ihlpa.UUCP> <551@rti-sel.UUCP>
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Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department
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> > Next July i will be traveling to paaris france.
> > Can anyone tell me what type of clothes to take
> > (or not take), and anything else i may pack to
> > make my stay (11 days) easier?
> > Any other comments or helps would appreciated too.
> > Also, i don't speak french, are menus, etc. in
> > english, or should i pick up a french/english
> > book and start trying to stagger through some
> > phrase book?
> > I was at a club med in cancuun last year, and a lot
> > of the employees were french, and if you didn't speak
> > french (fluently) they wouldn't give you the time of day.
> > Should i also expect this in paris (if not more so?).
> > 
> > ann christian
> > ihlpa!tramp
> 
> 
> Francophile that I am, I'll stand up for the French.  I spent two weeks in
> Paris last May and had an absolutely marvelous time.  I speak restaurant
> French impeccably (I know what most dishes are, how they are prepared, etc.)
> while my every day French allows me to check into hotels, ask directions, deal
> with shopping, etc.  It certainly won't support a philosophical discussion!
> 
> I found English spoken in many places--all hotels I stayed in, many
> restaurants, many shops (especially the big ones).  However, I found that my
> attempts at communicating in French were appreciated.
> 
> You must remember that Paris in May will be filled with tourists from around
> the world--not just American tourists.  I think this is one reason the French
> get testy with tourists.  I was in a restaurant in Paris where the waiter was
> horribly rude to some French tourisits but not to us--maybe he was just in a
> bad mood.  
> 
> I'll be glad to send you names and addresses of wonderful inexpensive to
> moderately expensive hotels and restaurants.  I'll also provide you lists of
> what is not to be missed that you might if no one tells you to go.  Let me
> know.
> 
> 			Estelle Mabry

I have been in restaurants in the US where many waiters were rude.
I have been in public buses where the drivers were rude. I have just been
walking on the beach where I met Americans who were very rude. I have
not found a French restaurant in the States where everyone spoke French.
In fact, no one in the US will try to understand if I speak French.

I also have found rude waiters in France, in Italy, in England.

Do you ever get angry? Waiters or anyone else do too. In France, most waiters
are not paid; they live strictly on their tips.

I am French and I live in the US. I see the same types of people in both
countries: the nice ones and the sour ones.

American travelers, you only see yourselves as the tourist in a foreign
country; pretend you are a tourist in the US!!!!! No one speaks many languages.

Let me tell you, when I first came to this country, my French accent when I spoke English  scared ignorant
Americans and their reaction was nastiness.
When I go to a country of which I do not speak the language, I always learn
a few words before going and I carry a dictionary. It helps every one.
Weatherwise: it may be warm in May, it may be cold. So carry a coat and a
raincoat.

Je vous souhaite de ne rencontrer que de gentils Francais. Il y en a beaucoup,
croyez-moi, qui aiment bien les Americains.