Living in France as an Englishman/Woman - What do you think when it comes to Holidays?

[raindog]

Well, now you've narrowed it down to getting wasted and smashing up café terraces I think perhaps the Brits come out on top, possibly followed by the Germans and then PSG or Marseille supporters.[:)]

Never actually seen it happen myself tho.

[Just Katie]

[quote user="Catalpa"]
But sadly, I'm not joking. We're in smaller communities here so meeting up with the usual faces at village "events" is unavoidable. There are just a few people locally who are total twonks and I know that at some point my knee and their groins are going to collide.


[/quote]

Er out of interest are they French or British (not that it matters of course)[:D]

[Catalpa]

British. [:P] And that's the problem. At a village do - and we have lots of them - there is a tendency for the non-French to be seated together. The organisers allocate table seating that way because they're being thoughtful... well naturally, we will want to sit mostly with our fellow countrymen, won't we? But that means that the people you'd rather be some distance away from (in the next department at least) are frequently a few seats away. Every soddin' time. [6]

So as I said, I don't mind... have no opinion on... people who visit France as tourists.  Just a problem with a few of the "permanents"... [:-))]

[Will]

We have plenty of twonks in Normandy, Catalpa and I aren't far apart geographically (and by the way I am currently dual resident - divided between France and Britain, and visiting other countries too - though I have lived full time in France for several years). Some of the twonks are English, certainly, I suppose we tend to notice them. But there is no shortage of French twonks, and some who are far worse than twonks. Even quite a few Welsh ones...

But looking at that it seems awfully negative, There are even more perfectly reasonable people, and I have never been anywhere where there are no indigenous twonks or a***holes. I've witnessed plenty of badly behaved French, Germans, Dutch, Turks, Norwegians, Italians, Danes, and drink and football have played a part in many of those instances. So it's certainly not just a British thing, however much mock-shock our media might display.

 

 

[Clair]

[quote user="Just Katie"]Anyway,  what about you being half French, do you ever cringe in hearing a Frenchie in Britain or vice versa?[/quote]

I'm fully French and I once came across some French youths on a train journey in England.

They spent the time between Shoreham and Brighton describing the other passengers in very rude terms, all in French of course. When they started describing me, I took the opportunity to give them a piece of my mind, in French of course...

The look on their faces was just something else!! [:D][:D][:-))]

[Ron Avery]

[quote user="Cendrillon"]I hate it when Super-U start their announcements in English but then perhaps some of our clients like that[;-)][/quote]

A friend of mine actually complained to Hyper U about the "we welcome our English visitors to our region and wish etc" announcements, they always seemed timed when the French school people went shopping after classes.  He demanded to know why no similar announcements were made in Dutch or German and why just "our English" friends. The answer was that there believed that were more English tourists than any others and the idea was really to advertise their English products section with bargains like Heinz Baked Beans at 1,24€ a tin and Tetley tea at twice the price it could be found in the normal tea section.

Personally I found the announcements highly amusing as it was recorded by a Chinese bloke with a strong accent, sounded more like Benny Hill doing it.[:D]

I agree with SD, a lot of people round here depend on tourism for their living so the more the merrier, whether they can speak French or not

[Gluestick]

[quote user="Just Katie"]

That is hilarious GS.  It is British humour.  I purposely go for walks through my town on a Saturday morning to hear conversations like this and relay them back to my mates.  Come on look on the lighter side of life.

By the way,  I like the way you admit to having all your papers about the place.  I hope this left nobody standing otherwise you would have been the rude oik!! [Www]  [:D]

[/quote]

I would, of course, always move my papers and stuff, if someone else needed a seat, Katie.

Mid-morning on Saturdays, though, used to be fairly quiet and I found I was able to work away for much of the one hour journey, without inconveniencing others.

Another similar true tale, from a local post office. We live in a strange area: social housing concentrations almost cheek by jowl with houses selling for £1 million and upwards..............

The post office used to have a big fibreglass black lab which was a collecting box for Guidedogs for The Blind.

One day as I was waiting quietly in the queue, I noticed a prototypical local mother of shall we say, the alternative type: over-sized babygrow trousers, bulging around the more than ample gut and copious buttocks, ending halfway up her shins: which were white and scaley. Dirty expensive Reeboks: short, bleached lacquered hair in spikes: oodles of facial piercings and the odd complex tattoo. She had two gorgeous young kids: the girl had wonderfully curling blonde hair and a sweet, sweet little face. The boy was a cherub: blue eyes, blonde hair, but sadly, his parents had already commenced the oikisation process..................

Denim bomber jacket and jeans, Reeboks, both ears pierced and his head shorn in a number two. Sad.

Whilst Mum was busy at the counter- drawing her benefit, of course -  the girl was examing the greetings cards in the corner and the little lad was occupied licking the black lab!

Turning around, Mum shouts: "Chantelle! Leave those F****** cards F****** alone! Sebastien, if you aint F****** stopped kicking that F****** dog, I'm gonner F****** kill yer!"

It was the juxtapositioning of the pretention of Sebastien and Chantelle and the Anglo-Saxon expletives wot did me in, guvner!

[:D]

[Gluestick]

[quote]OK, so you have now been living in France for (?) years - Summer time approaches and you know the Germans are coming over for the vacances -

What do you think?
[/quote]

Oh dear! Time to rebuild the reinforced concrete sunbathing bunker on the beach: and renew the razor wire and claymores!

[:D]

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="Ron Avery"]

[quote user="Cendrillon"]I hate it when Super-U start their announcements in English but then perhaps some of our clients like that[;-)][/quote]

A friend of mine actually complained to Hyper U about the "we welcome our English visitors to our region and wish etc" announcements, they always seemed timed when the French school people went shopping after classes.  He demanded to know why no similar announcements were made in Dutch or German and why just "our English" friends. The answer was that there believed that were more English tourists than any others and the idea was really to advertise their English products section with bargains like Heinz Baked Beans at 1,24€ a tin and Tetley tea at twice the price it could be found in the normal tea section.

Personally I found the announcements highly amusing as it was recorded by a Chinese bloke with a strong accent, sounded more like Benny Hill doing it.[:D]

I agree with SD, a lot of people round here depend on tourism for their living so the more the merrier, whether they can speak French or not

[/quote]

I have nothing against visitors from any other countries it is the Supermarket announcement that I loathe although ours is recorded by someone with a "nice" home counties accent![:D]

 

[blink]As for "Oiks" I don't want to be with them anywhere, home or abroad.

[Chancer]

[quote user="Gluestick"][

IIt was the juxtapositioning of the pretention of Sebastien and Chantelle and the Anglo-Saxon expletives wot did me in, guvner!

[:D]

[/quote]

I always enjoy your humour GS, that was the best so far!

[Gluestick]

Well, they do say truth is stranger (and to me) funnier than fiction, JR!

Many thanks.

 

[bourrut]

Nick 65 ,its obvious your spanish mate does not know mallorca,a part from a very small area in the south ,its not been taken over by the type of tourists you mention.

[Sprogster]

Nick 65,

I notice that this is not the only French Forum you have recently joined and on which you are posting identical questions. Is this a spoof?

[Just Katie]

[quote user="Clair"][quote user="Just Katie"]Anyway,  what about you being half French, do you ever cringe in hearing a Frenchie in Britain or vice versa?[/quote]
I'm fully French and I once came across some French youths on a train journey in England.
They spent the time between Shoreham and Brighton describing the other passengers in very rude terms, all in French of course. When they started describing me, I took the opportunity to give them a piece of my mind, in French of course...
The look on their faces was just something else!! [:D][:D][:-))]
[/quote]

What were they saying about you Clair?  Come on be a sport this time.[:-))]

Hey Gluey, did you ask Chantelle's mum what football team she supported?[:-))]

[Clair]

[quote user="Just Katie"]What were they saying about you Clair?  Come on be a sport this time.[:-))][/quote]

I'll leave that to your imagination (I bet it's more fertile [:P])...

[Gluestick]

[quote user="Just Katie"]

Hey Gluey, did you ask Chantelle's mum what football team she supported?[:-))]

[/quote]

Not brave enough, Katie!

She'd have probably told little Sebastien to "Kick the F****** S*** outer that geezer,!"

[:D]

[Gardian]

[quote user="Gluestick"]I noticed a prototypical local mother of shall we say, the alternative type: over-sized babygrow trousers, bulging around the more than ample gut and copious buttocks, ending halfway up her shins: which were white and scaley. Dirty expensive Reeboks: short, bleached lacquered hair in spikes: oodles of facial piercings and the odd complex tattoo. [/quote]

Sounds luscious: just my kind of Valentine.

[Kitty]

[quote user="Sprogster"]

Nick 65,

I notice that this is not the only French Forum you have recently joined and on which you are posting identical questions. Is this a spoof?

[/quote]

Even if Nick was winding us up, over 40 people have posted on here today - amazing.  It must be a subject that strikes a chord.

[Nick65]

No, this is not a spoof or anything like that - I just thought it would be interesting to see - It's not meant to wind people up, just converse.[I]

I have put the exact same question on Total France as well, but just to see really.

[woolybananasbrother]

Hover, listen and evaluate. If ok, then carry on but if trailer trash then speak French and walk away.

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="Catalpa"]British. [:P] And that's the problem. At a village do - and we have lots of them - there is a tendency for the non-French to be seated together. The organisers allocate table seating that way because they're being thoughtful... well naturally, we will want to sit mostly with our fellow countrymen, won't we? But that means that the people you'd rather be some distance away from (in the next department at least) are frequently a few seats away. Every soddin' time. [6]

So as I said, I don't mind... have no opinion on... people who visit France as tourists.  Just a problem with a few of the "permanents"... [:-))]
[/quote]

Catalpa

My (tried and tested) solution to this problem is to get to know the organisers (or even help with the organisation) and quietly explain that you would prefer to sit with your French friends.[:)]

[Just Katie]

I think I would feel better sitting with the French too.  It would make me feel that I was being pushed on the outside if I were made to sit with all the British Wannabees!!

[Nick65]

I used to love those big weddings in the villages around Montpellier - I remember a massive one at St Guilhem le Desert - The whole town must have come out, plus all the other local villages and we came from Montpellier to see it - I think it must have been one of our friends or families wedding, but this was the first time I met a proper french girl (14 at the time) - Both of us [:)]

I had to escort her all day [:)] And she even let me kiss her at the end of the day - Well it was more like 2am

[Catalpa]

[quote user="Cendrillon"]

My (tried and tested) solution to this problem is to get to know the organisers (or even help with the organisation) and quietly explain that you would prefer to sit with your French friends.[:)]

[/quote]

This is one of those situations where I'd have to go into so much detail explaining the background that people would be skipping my posts... if they weren't already. [:P]

Briefly, but still with too much detail, this isn't an problem in our own village - we sit with friends. But when we go to neighbouring communes, even when we think we're sitting with other people (French and British friends - not all the British here are to be avoided!) we have just found ourselves being seated with the same group of people all the time. And as I've said, a couple of them I'd choose to actively avoid. It occurs to me that they may think we're all great friends (thick skins is probably a requirement of oik-ism [6]) and maybe they even request to be seated with us. [:-))]

I would normally say I shouldn't be getting this out of proportion but a fair bit of verbal Britain-bashing goes on, I have to speak out and contradict the usual sort of rubbish that is spouted about the way the UK is going etc. Therefore I am reluctantly beginning to think that we'll have to avoid one or two of the commune bashes because I will eventually say something that leads to a serious argument especially as my bêtes noirs are usually the worse for wear for drink and I'm not.

 But this wasn't really what Nick's original question was about. [:$]

[Will]

[quote user="Catalpa"]

I would normally say I shouldn't be getting this out of proportion but a fair bit of verbal Britain-bashing goes on, I have to speak out and contradict the usual sort of rubbish that is spouted about the way the UK is going etc. Therefore I am reluctantly beginning to think that we'll have to avoid one or two of the commune bashes because I will eventually say something that leads to a serious argument especially as my bêtes noirs are usually the worse for wear for drink and I'm not.

[/quote]

Oh, Catalpa, a woman after my own heart. That's the main reason I dread any invitations to British 'dos' in France.

Most are fine of course and I have no problem at all with them, either as residents or tourists. It's just a few that I wouldn't like in England so don't see why I am supposed to like them just because we happen to be in France. And they are usually the same people who complain about the stereotypical British yobs etc...