To be, or not to be...French that is!
Hello et salut!
Having lived in France for several years now, it still never ceases to amaze me when I meet fellow Brits whom are just as "Eng-er-lish" and Non-French as the day they arrived in France...even though they live here too.
Naturally, there are of course many so-called Expats in France, most of whom have the common courtesy to say 'Bonjour', 'Merci', 'Au revoir' etc. but, there are still a large number of "finger-clickers" who one witnesses not even trying to be polite.
I thought the the British were a polite race, whom founded the term 'Gentleman' and whose traditions and manners were instilled from an early age. Sadly, it is all to common for the English to expect the French to speak the English language in FRANCE. Why??
If a Frenchman turned up at the Red Lion in Manchester and said "Bonsoir, une biere s'il vous plait"*, I don't believe that Monsieur would be supping a nice pint of Boddington's at any point soon. No, Monsieur would be given a stare, a shrug, a "you what fella?" and a few minutes to think about his actions whilst Le Manc trotted off to speak to someone ordering in English.
There is seemingly an increasing desire for the Brits abroad (residents and holiday-makers alike) to just speak English.
Personally, I would rather try and speak the language of the country I am in. Perhaps I am just being idealistic? I am not fluent in French - not by a long way - but I certainly had enough French language in me when crossing the water to be polite.
When the Brits abroad speak of the French as "Rude, obnoxious, self-important and obtuse" they may have a point, or alternatively, I dare say they may have just happened upon a French person who deems that it is important to them to have their language spoken in their country.
"Simple manners cost nothing" my mother used to say, and so do I. That still applies in other countries too.
Should you fancy practicing your Bonjour's, Bonsoir's and Merci's, perhaps you should have a look at www.YourFrenchHoliday.c...
Terry
*Sorry for the missing accents...I've no idea how to make them happen on this computer
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