WOW, thanks a lot Amanda for your message !!!
And congratulations you're french is very good !!! ;)
I am really pleased to read what you've written, because it makes a few days or week, that we hear negative feedbacks about France from the US ( just have a look on youtube (I know it's not a good reference but...) for examples and some comments made about french people, or about the olympic torch when it was in Paris and you will understant what I mean) I can assure you that some americans are really violent and rudes against french people on this website (youtube). I supposed it was certainly a minority but I was somewhat deceived by what I've could read on the internet.
What you've written about being in France for an american is really really interesting, since I agree with all what you've written, when visiting a foreign country the best thing to do is to "make the effort to adapt to the new culture", and the french in general are really attached to their culture that they do want to dissappear, or to look like the american culture with a french touch. They just really like their way of living and they don't like another country to come and impose its own standards. So, when you're in France, if you just try to open your mind to another way of living , of being maybe, you'll just won't have any problems at all, on the contrary, people will really be pleased to see that you're interested in the french culture and they will really take care of you, and be pleased to help you discovering France and its traditions.
I've never been to the US, but if one day I had the opportunity to go there I would really be happy to try to adapt to the american way of life just to try to see how your way of living is or not differnet from the french one. Behaving that way (adapting to one culture) is the best way to open one's mind to something new and different and to learn a lot about the culture of the foreign country you're visiting.
So,Amanda, I totally agree with all what you've written in your message, since I exactly think the same thing , and behaving in the way you described is true when visiting France, but I really think it's true when visiting any other nation on the world.
Another think that is really true since I experienced it a month ago, concerning some americans in France I just want to precise first that I know that I am about to write about a minority of amercian people, since I know some that are just great persons, so I do not at all generalize, since I really love american people and their culture, but as in France there are some persons that are not correct, but it is something universal, if you find a nation where everybody's polite and perfect just tell me, I'd like to visit it right away !)
So I wanted to write that when they are in France some american are just arrogant and rude about french people and culture (it's funny since they usually say that french ARE arrogant :) ) In fact, it sometimes seems that some tourists are just here for Paris, the Eiffel Tower, the museums.... but they really don't care about the people they meet, and they even don't talk to them except if it is a necessity. And at the end of their trip, just before they go back to the US, you ask them what they thing about what they've seen and this kind of stuff, and they just answer "well, the cultural aspects are great and interesting, but the people are really "cold" (Sorry i don't know if it is somehting correct in English to say that some people are cold meaning "distant" and even "arrogant") and unfriendly ". Could you know understand the ambiguity ? They dare not speaking to people, they are not interested in the french people and would even think it is not interesting to take care of them, so facing such people I assure you that even when you love the US and its inhabitants, it is not easy to keep cool and say that some french(a minority) are not right to think that americans are bad people.
And I think that this behaviour of some americans in France is certainly one of the reasons why some people do not feel comfortable when speaking about americans.
I won't write about all what you've written because I would always write "I totally agree" each time ! I am really happy to see an american girl being so much open minded and self-aware of the "differences" between France and the US, that's why when I've read your message I've thought "WOW, that's somebody who's got the same ideas or opinion or "study" about the differences between France and the US, and who just think the same way I would do if I were in a foreign country" !!!!!
So I can add nothing else than " THANKS A LOT AMANDA " !!!!!!!!!!!
A few words in french :
Merci beaucoup Amanda !! ça a été un réel plaisir de lire ton message, car je suis à 100% d'accord avec tout ce que tu as écris. J'avais exactement les même idées que toi concernant ce qui pouvait expliquer que certains américains aient des préjugés contre la France et les français.
J'espère vraiment que tu repasseras sur ce forum pour écrire d'autres messages, car tu sembles être une personne très intéressante et de très cultivée, et ton message est vraiment très très intéressant à lire !
Donc Merci beaucoup. ;)
Well, I hope you'll understand, but I think you will since your french is very good !!! ;)
It was a real real real real pleasure to read your very interesting message, I hope you'll write others !! I am eager to read what you could write about french and France !!
I hope to read you soon !!!
Take care
kind regards from France ;)
Pat
Joined: 2007-04-28
WOW, thanks a lot Amanda for your message !!!
And congratulations you're french is very good !!! ;)
I am really pleased to read what you've written, because it makes a few days or week, that we hear negative feedbacks about France from the US ( just have a look on youtube (I know it's not a good reference but...) for examples and some comments made about french people, or about the olympic torch when it was in Paris and you will understant what I mean) I can assure you that some americans are really violent and rudes against french people on this website (youtube). I supposed it was certainly a minority but I was somewhat deceived by what I've could read on the internet.
What you've written about being in France for an american is really really interesting, since I agree with all what you've written, when visiting a foreign country the best thing to do is to "make the effort to adapt to the new culture", and the french in general are really attached to their culture that they do want to dissappear, or to look like the american culture with a french touch. They just really like their way of living and they don't like another country to come and impose its own standards. So, when you're in France, if you just try to open your mind to another way of living , of being maybe, you'll just won't have any problems at all, on the contrary, people will really be pleased to see that you're interested in the french culture and they will really take care of you, and be pleased to help you discovering France and its traditions.
I've never been to the US, but if one day I had the opportunity to go there I would really be happy to try to adapt to the american way of life just to try to see how your way of living is or not differnet from the french one. Behaving that way (adapting to one culture) is the best way to open one's mind to something new and different and to learn a lot about the culture of the foreign country you're visiting.
So,Amanda, I totally agree with all what you've written in your message, since I exactly think the same thing , and behaving in the way you described is true when visiting France, but I really think it's true when visiting any other nation on the world.
Another think that is really true since I experienced it a month ago, concerning some americans in France I just want to precise first that I know that I am about to write about a minority of amercian people, since I know some that are just great persons, so I do not at all generalize, since I really love american people and their culture, but as in France there are some persons that are not correct, but it is something universal, if you find a nation where everybody's polite and perfect just tell me, I'd like to visit it right away !)
So I wanted to write that when they are in France some american are just arrogant and rude about french people and culture (it's funny since they usually say that french ARE arrogant :) ) In fact, it sometimes seems that some tourists are just here for Paris, the Eiffel Tower, the museums.... but they really don't care about the people they meet, and they even don't talk to them except if it is a necessity. And at the end of their trip, just before they go back to the US, you ask them what they thing about what they've seen and this kind of stuff, and they just answer "well, the cultural aspects are great and interesting, but the people are really "cold" (Sorry i don't know if it is somehting correct in English to say that some people are cold meaning "distant" and even "arrogant") and unfriendly ". Could you know understand the ambiguity ? They dare not speaking to people, they are not interested in the french people and would even think it is not interesting to take care of them, so facing such people I assure you that even when you love the US and its inhabitants, it is not easy to keep cool and say that some french(a minority) are not right to think that americans are bad people.
And I think that this behaviour of some americans in France is certainly one of the reasons why some people do not feel comfortable when speaking about americans.
I won't write about all what you've written because I would always write "I totally agree" each time ! I am really happy to see an american girl being so much open minded and self-aware of the "differences" between France and the US, that's why when I've read your message I've thought "WOW, that's somebody who's got the same ideas or opinion or "study" about the differences between France and the US, and who just think the same way I would do if I were in a foreign country" !!!!!
So I can add nothing else than " THANKS A LOT AMANDA " !!!!!!!!!!!
A few words in french :
Merci beaucoup Amanda !! ça a été un réel plaisir de lire ton message, car je suis à 100% d'accord avec tout ce que tu as écris. J'avais exactement les même idées que toi concernant ce qui pouvait expliquer que certains américains aient des préjugés contre la France et les français.
J'espère vraiment que tu repasseras sur ce forum pour écrire d'autres messages, car tu sembles être une personne très intéressante et de très cultivée, et ton message est vraiment très très intéressant à lire !
Donc Merci beaucoup. ;)
Well, I hope you'll understand, but I think you will since your french is very good !!! ;)
It was a real real real real pleasure to read your very interesting message, I hope you'll write others !! I am eager to read what you could write about french and France !!
I hope to read you soon !!!
Take care
kind regards from France ;)
Pat