AP Smiling Parisians show you their city, for free

[JonQ]

PARIS - The city of light has an unfortunate blight: the locals' reputation for rudeness. That's why a group of friendly Parisians have banded together to show complete strangers around their Paris, the one not found in travel books — for free. And forget stereotypes of the francais-only French. The Paris Greeters are happy to speak English, or nine other languages of your choosing.

These local volunteers are not certified tour guides, but regular folks eager to show off delicacies at their favorite boulangerie, or point out a tranquil park perfect for watching autumn shades fill in the famous skyline.

"I've always heard my American friends say things like, 'Paris is wonderful — except for the Parisians,'" says volunteer Christian Ragil. "And I always wanted to do something about it." When he retired, he decided to join the Greeters, which has grown since its inception a year ago into 120 volunteers who have guided 1,100 visitors.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_travel/20081006/ap_tr_ge/travel_trip_paris_greeters;_ylt=Ai5sr1lsWFzhQ4uOvJWiBiaUU80F


Very interesting idea. I wish they had had this when we visited.

Out of curiosity has anyone tried this out (a long shot I know)?

[CatBO]

1. That reputation is not deserved, they are great...

My husband and I went to Paris last year for the first time. (I went once in the 80's.) I speak high school level French.

My husband was expecting to hate Paris, and was completely taken aback by how nice they were. Of all the places we have visited, Parisians have been, by and large, the nicest. When a toddler mowed into my husband in the CDG airport, I overheard his father say to him in French, "Apologize to that man, in English!" The boy sheepishly looked at my husband and said, "I'm sorry".

We have about a dozen stories like this to tell of Parisians being wonderful to us. Sometimes when I stumbled through my lilting French, they would ask me in French if I spoke English. When I said yes, they'd switch straight to English. One gentlemen, after doing that when I asked him for directions to an ATM, laughed, put his arm on my shoulder and said in English, "Let's do it this way. It will save so much time!"

They were so great my husband wanted us to go back not 6 months later. Paris is my favorite city, and I've been to many biggies: Rome, Athens, London, Barcelona, and of course several biggies here in the US.

I love Paris and Parisians. What a great idea this outreach is, and it's so sad they have such a bad rep.

[AllieB]

3. Me too, CatBO. J'adore Paris!

I took my mom there for two weeks in June. I have been a bunch of times, and people are always so nice. I do speak French (intermediate college level, according to my tutor) but sometimes when communicating I would have a big brain fart. They were always very accommodating.

I guess if I lived in the most beautiful city in the world, I'd be pleasant all the time also. :-)

[grace0418]

8. I've been there three times and was treated the same or better as I am in any other big city.

Some people are fabulous, some are less so. I was never a victim of overt rudeness, perhaps some sullen indifference from a store clerk, but that happens EVERYWHERE. And I have more than a few stories of someone treating us with such kindness that we were overwhelmed.

My best friend, otoh, did have some very bad experiences and I have no idea why. She's definitely not an ugly American. She's friendly, polite, learned a bit of French, always says please and thank you. I was shocked when she came back and told me some of the things that happened to her.

[jberryhill]

9. The store clerk "indifference" thing...

I've been told there is a social aspect to engaging clerks in stores there. That simply coming in and saying, "I want X" is considered rude, as opposed to "I was hoping that you could assist me in finding something I need."

[CatBO]

11. Well, not just that, but also...

When you walk into a store it's proper to greet the clerk with a pleasant "Bon jour!" upon entering, and a nice "Au revoir" when you leave. They are very particular about their manners, and I'm guessing the "rude" stories come from people who show up, don't say a word, don't return a greeting of "Bon jour" and expect everyone to speak English.

In contrast I just came back from Greece, where the shopkeepers will ignore you to pieces and even give you a surly look if you greet them with "Kalimera", as if to say, "I know you don't speak Greek you tourist fool." They weren't mean or anything, just not as nice as the French. And the clerks won't speak Greek to anyone in Greece, they start out and stick with English. The most Greek I got from a storekeeper while I was there was a mumbled "parikalo" when I thanked them with an "epharisto".

Every country is different. It's part of what makes travel so much fun.

[grace0418]

16. Oh, absolutely. I always greet the clerk with a smile and a Bon Jour! I do that

in most stores at home as well (not Bon Jour but you get my drift). The indifference I'm speaking about is the standard teenage, I-don't-want-to-be-here-but-I-have-to-pay-for-my-own-cellphone kind of indifference that you find at grocery stores and the like.

[XOKCowboy]

19. I had the same experience in Paris and Cannes..

We worked in Paris for a week then 3 friends and I spent 3 wonderful days on the Riviera before returning home. At every turn, from restaurants to the people we worked with in Paris, we were treated with respect and they went out of their way to accommodate us "ugly Americans". We had many waitpeople and shop keepers ask if they could practice their English on us and we ended up making many friends that way.

It's just another xenophobic stereotype to say that all French people hate us (I heard that from a half dozen people before I went) and once again the propaganda is just that. Propaganda.

[marmar]

2. The Parisian "rudeness" rep is a fallacy....It's no ruder than any big city in the world.

..... Almost all of my interactions with les francaises have been great.....And it's the greatest city in the world!

J'aime Paris. :loveya:

[tuckessee]

5. I can second your statement.

In my three visits to Paris (and elsewhere in France) I was treated with nothing but respect & kindness by the locals.

They often went to special efforts to help even though there was no profit in it for themselves.

The only problems I had were with British sailors & American tourists.

[MurrayDelph]

6. Maybe it's a function of getting what you give

There is a restaurant in Boston that is known for great Prime Rib and rude servers. I went there on business once, and received very polite and efficient service (which surprised my customers when I told them the next day).

On my next trip to Boston, I went back (They really do serve up a good piece of dead cow). At the end of the dinner, this time I asked the server about their reputation. Her answer: "Were you rude to me? (I answered that I hoped not) Then why should I be rude to you?"

[yy4me]

4. The rude French is not true. Throughout the years, my husband

and In were in France several times. We never had any treatment that would be considered rude. I don't know where this myth started but it is not fair. It is a beautiful country with a generous and kind population. We were always polite and tried to speak our limited and sometimes very "high school" French and I know this broke the ice. France has so many wonders, and should not have a bad rep, they do not deserve it.

And tell you what, they do not like ****. Smart people!

I wish they had these tours when we were there last, we would have enjoyed seeing the sights with a local.

[jberryhill]

7. Had a great experience there a few months ago...

Didn't meet a single rude person there, and received a lot of favorable comments on my Obama button.

Ugliest tourist experience I ever witnessed was in Las Vegas. Two tourists from Brazil were talking to each other on Fremont Street while watching a street show, and some woman turned to them and said, "This is America - Speak English." I apologized to both of the Brazilians in broken Portugese on her behalf, and dressed her down on the spot.

Having been to Brazil, and having found people there to be outrageously friendly, I was extremely embarrassed that anyone would treat a foreign tourist to the US that way.

[blueraven95]

10. I think this is a brilliant idea

A casual way of touring without the stress of trying to deal with a major language barrier and getting to see what locals like. I think this would make for much more relaxing international vacations.

I saw that this started in New York - I hope many more cities in the US start programs like this.

[Greyskye]

12. Last time I was in France, I didn't even make it as far as Paris

I'd taken the Chunnel to the French side, and stopped for the night in Calais.

One night, and I was done with France. I ran into every single rude French stereotype you had ever heard of, starting at the Tourist Information booth, continuing at the Hostile Hostel I stayed at, and ending at breakfast.

I went to the Eurorail terminal and found the first train out of France. It ended up taking me to Bruges Belgium, where I had a phenomenal time for the next 4 days.

I spent 8 weeks in Europe that time, traveling all around Europe by myself. I had a better time sick with the Flu in Wales then I did in France. Although I do plan on giving it a second try at some point in the future with my French speaking wife. :)

[CatBO]

15. LOL - we French speaking ladies do take care of our men...

I ordered for my husband all throughout our first trip. I then taught him how to ask for the key to our room at our hotel. He was so proud of his key requesting skills, "Le cle' pour vingt-deux, s'il vous plait?"

I taught him to ask where the bathrooms were "ou sont les toilettes?" and he started trying to branch out on his own. Except for when he pointed out a step to me in the Metro, "ou est step!" I said, "You just said, 'Where is step!' Now he won't stop, he loves saying that. ;)

I think speaking French, even just the slightest, does help. As does being aware of their customs and being sure to greet them with a "bon jour" when you show up helps a lot too. Sorry to hear about your bad experience in Calais. I have never been there.

And my husband got the stomach flu in Provence during our last trip. You should have seen me trying to ask someone for "bananas" at the local farmer's market for him. Apparently I was using the word for belt or something. They laughed at me, but still pointed me in the direction of the bananas. :)

[Greyskye]

24. That's the funny thing

I had a couple years of French in high school. Enough that I can read French (out loud) and do a decent job on the pronunciation. I can puzzle out the meaning of about 30% or so of written French. I used the simple phrases I still knew as much as possible (bon jour, merci, s'il vous plait, numbers, etc.) I had a little European languages translator gadget that I utilized. I tried hard to avoid fitting the 'ugly American' stereotype myself.

But the in-your-face rudeness was simply incredible! Maybe it was because the locals had had their fill of the Brits coming over via the Chunnel and landing in their town. Like I say, I'm willing to give France another shot someday (economy and familial translator willing). But that experience just sucked jagged rocks and raw snails without garlic.

Oh - I think that constantly having people blow cigarette smoke in my face while I was there didn't help my mood much either. :eyes:

[CatBO]

25. Wow, that do suck.

Maybe they just are very grumpy in Calais. ;)

[Marr]

20. Haha- that's too funny.

I think you just got very unlucky.

[asdjrocky]

13. I was all over Europe with a theater group

when I was in my early 20s. We were actually the first American theater group to preform behind the iron curtain. The people that I met in both France and Spain were some of the friendliest people I've ever met.

[ogneopasno]

14. I speak several languages

and the rudest I've ever been treated when speaking another language was in Germany. The French were always delighted when I spoke French. The Germans, not so much.

Like anything, you get rude people everywhere, but when I was in Paris I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary.

[Marr]

21. I don't know any German at all, but

I've heard there's a lot of variety in the language from one region to another. One of my favorite books, Three Men on the Bummel, has this passage where the author goes on about how, to learn proper German, you must learn in Hamburg. But the problem is that no one speaks proper German outside of Hamburg, so you must decide whether you want to speak proper German or converse in German. lol

[Fleshdancer]

17. I didn't encounter any rudeness in Paris

I expect Paris has their fair share of assholes like every other city, but I didn't come across any of them on my trip. This is a great idea though and I hope it helps with the perceptions.

[Marr]

18. Sometimes tourists themselves are being rude without realizing it.

A friend of mine learned some French before we went over there for awhile, and she was confused by the fact that she seemed to be putting people off with it. She was speaking too familiarly was all it was-- she should've been more formal. It's perceived as kind of rude to address strangers-- especially shopkeepers, IMHO-- in an overly familiar way. Here in the states most people would probably consider it endearing. Not there. Just a cultural difference, I guess.

New York is another city that doesn't deserve it's reputation for rudeness. I thought the people there were great. I thought everyone seemed really friendly and helpful. I dunno where this stuff comes from.

[XOKCowboy]

22. I totally agree about NYC

I didn't know what to think when I went there the first time and came away pleasantly surprised. Even the street people were cool. They just talk a little funny. I was surprised in the opposite way about Boston. You talk about rude! It took me a couple of trips there to realize that the Bostonians weren't rude, just "abrupt" (for lack of a better term). Once I learned their customs I learned to love the place.

[JonQ]

23. I agree to an extent

but I also think the "natives" should give a visitor to their country the benefit of the doubt. I've come across people who are from a different country who say or do something that may be considered rude, but I always assume initially that it is merely a cultural or linguistic distinction that has been lost somehow and don't treat them badly because of it. I think it would be wrong for French shop keepers to mistreat a visitor to their country for attempting to learn and speak their language, maybe imperfectly but she gave it a shot. Just as it would be wrong for someone here to act rudely to a french citizen speaking English imperfectly.

Be pleased that someone thinks it worthwhile to visit your country, and try to give them the benefit of the doubt. At least at first, I guess there are people that are just genuinely rude from any country.

[SpookyCat]

26. YES! That's my experience too.

I've been to Paris many times, it is one of my favorite cities in the world. My experience has been that many times it is a sort of clash of cultures, or a general misunderstanding of accepted norms that brings this on.

For example; I don't find the French to be any ruder than any other big city. I find them warm and charming. Arrogant? OH, you bet..but I don't have a problem with that. It doesn't come across to me as rude, it comes across as justifiably proud, like, say, San Franciscans, <cough!>

I've been to a lot of cities and a lot of different cultures, and find that people by and large are people. I personally found Italians almost intolerably rude, but this too is just accepted norms.

***********

Shoot...now I want to go back to Paris right now. It's been too long....