Hi Everyone!
It’s a cloudy day in Antibes and we are taking a break from homework so we decided to write down some more difference and weird things we have noticed about the French since our list is getting pretty long! Here we go:
1. Doors: every American noticed by the second week that the French only go in and out of one door even when there are two! This can get to be very annoying and crowded especially at school when large amounts of students are coming in and out of the building. We also have a hard time knowing if we have to pull or push the doors, the American’s get it wrong every time!
2. Crossing the street: at red lights where there are crosswalks, the French will not cross the street unless the signs says walk even if there is not a car in sight. They would rather wait ten minutes than cross when it say’s don’t walk. They look at us like rebels when we are late and running for the bus and have to quickly run in front of a car when it says don’t walk or j-walk!
3. Typing in word on the computer: in our classes since they are taught in English, when the few French students who are actually taking notes on their computers type their notes in word, every word is underlined meaning it is misspelled since their computers only recognize French words. Every English word is misspelled! The red squiggly lines would drive us nuts!
4. Dogs: they are everywhere! In the food stores, malls, on the buses, banks, post offices, you name it - they are there! While most of them are very cute, their poop is not and we have to be very careful to watch our step when walking!
5. Foose ball: they are obsessed and EXTREMLY good at it! There are foose ball tables at both schools and the French play it at all times of the day. It cost 50 cent euro a game to play. Having a table in our basement I thought I would be pretty good at it but after taking on some French students I realized just how terrible we are!
6. American music: the French love it! The first time we walked into school someone asked if we were at school or a club! They blast American music really loud and sing along even though we know they don’t know what half of the words mean! Their favorites seem to be Jason Mraz and Britney Spears. The girl next to Jen on the train on the way to Pisa last weekend listened to the same two American songs for two hours straight on her phone loud enough for all of us to hear it. Brutal.
7. Roller blades and roller skates: the popular item or kids and adults! Instead of skateboard and bikes, everyone here either roller blades or roller skates, even adults! They also love the razor scooter, it seems as though it just became popular over here! They even roller skate in the grocery store!
8. Listening to music on their phones: no ipods, mp3 players or CD players. The French either play music out loud from their cell phones or plug head phones directly into their cell phones. We still can’t figure this one out!
9. The Man Purse! This one speaks for itself but every man here wears a purse around his neck, usually in the font! Most of them are leather and we have even seen a few top brands including Louis Viton and D&G. I don’t think guys from American would get away with this!
10. Personal space: there is none! When talking to the French, you can practically touch your nose with theirs; they get very close to you and are constantly touching you! Also on the bus when it is very crowded they do not care that they are on top of you, sometimes sitting three to a seat with strangers!
As you can see, it’s an entirely different world over here! We will post a few pictures of these items but there will definitely be more to come! Hope you are all having a wonderful day; we miss you and love you!
Love, Em and Jen
P.S. Jen asked one of the French why they all carry around rulers and she replied “because the school gave them to us for free.” When Jen looked at her paper everything was underlined using the ruler!
** The first and second pictures are two examples of man purses- we will try and get better ones! We were trying to be sneaky when taking the pictures so they came out dark! (Notice how close the two guys are though!) The third picture is of a guy riding a dirt bike on the road. The French ride dirt bikes and mopeds everywhere, even on the sidewalks! Everyone here also wears tight sweatpants which he is wearing! The last picture is of a guy we were sitting across from on the bus. We guess he wanted his jeans to be tight on the botton so he tied a piece of string around them! We didn't really understand why! More pictures to come soon!
It’s a cloudy day in Antibes and we are taking a break from homework so we decided to write down some more difference and weird things we have noticed about the French since our list is getting pretty long! Here we go:
1. Doors: every American noticed by the second week that the French only go in and out of one door even when there are two! This can get to be very annoying and crowded especially at school when large amounts of students are coming in and out of the building. We also have a hard time knowing if we have to pull or push the doors, the American’s get it wrong every time!
2. Crossing the street: at red lights where there are crosswalks, the French will not cross the street unless the signs says walk even if there is not a car in sight. They would rather wait ten minutes than cross when it say’s don’t walk. They look at us like rebels when we are late and running for the bus and have to quickly run in front of a car when it says don’t walk or j-walk!
3. Typing in word on the computer: in our classes since they are taught in English, when the few French students who are actually taking notes on their computers type their notes in word, every word is underlined meaning it is misspelled since their computers only recognize French words. Every English word is misspelled! The red squiggly lines would drive us nuts!
4. Dogs: they are everywhere! In the food stores, malls, on the buses, banks, post offices, you name it - they are there! While most of them are very cute, their poop is not and we have to be very careful to watch our step when walking!
5. Foose ball: they are obsessed and EXTREMLY good at it! There are foose ball tables at both schools and the French play it at all times of the day. It cost 50 cent euro a game to play. Having a table in our basement I thought I would be pretty good at it but after taking on some French students I realized just how terrible we are!
6. American music: the French love it! The first time we walked into school someone asked if we were at school or a club! They blast American music really loud and sing along even though we know they don’t know what half of the words mean! Their favorites seem to be Jason Mraz and Britney Spears. The girl next to Jen on the train on the way to Pisa last weekend listened to the same two American songs for two hours straight on her phone loud enough for all of us to hear it. Brutal.
7. Roller blades and roller skates: the popular item or kids and adults! Instead of skateboard and bikes, everyone here either roller blades or roller skates, even adults! They also love the razor scooter, it seems as though it just became popular over here! They even roller skate in the grocery store!
8. Listening to music on their phones: no ipods, mp3 players or CD players. The French either play music out loud from their cell phones or plug head phones directly into their cell phones. We still can’t figure this one out!
9. The Man Purse! This one speaks for itself but every man here wears a purse around his neck, usually in the font! Most of them are leather and we have even seen a few top brands including Louis Viton and D&G. I don’t think guys from American would get away with this!
10. Personal space: there is none! When talking to the French, you can practically touch your nose with theirs; they get very close to you and are constantly touching you! Also on the bus when it is very crowded they do not care that they are on top of you, sometimes sitting three to a seat with strangers!
As you can see, it’s an entirely different world over here! We will post a few pictures of these items but there will definitely be more to come! Hope you are all having a wonderful day; we miss you and love you!
Love, Em and Jen
P.S. Jen asked one of the French why they all carry around rulers and she replied “because the school gave them to us for free.” When Jen looked at her paper everything was underlined using the ruler!
** The first and second pictures are two examples of man purses- we will try and get better ones! We were trying to be sneaky when taking the pictures so they came out dark! (Notice how close the two guys are though!) The third picture is of a guy riding a dirt bike on the road. The French ride dirt bikes and mopeds everywhere, even on the sidewalks! Everyone here also wears tight sweatpants which he is wearing! The last picture is of a guy we were sitting across from on the bus. We guess he wanted his jeans to be tight on the botton so he tied a piece of string around them! We didn't really understand why! More pictures to come soon!
hahaha you girls CRACK ME UP- you should start getting sponsors on your blog and you could be professionals!
ReplyDeleteI definitely thought that the Vespa was yours and you guys had fully converted! Looks like you are living the life! Thanks for keeping us posted :)
PS- how is your french after being out there.. over six weeks now?
The Man Purse caught my eye. Jacob has been teasing my husband , Henry about his, it seems for years.I thought Jacob was so original, with the name. Yes, my husband uses one. Maybe since he spent his semester abroad in French-speaking Guadelope climbing palm trees in his speedo for coconuts for the tourists. And this was a Mennonite college, no less. Are you noticing any trends that you hope are coming our way? I remember white cowboylike boots on one of my trips. That one never made it across the ocean. Also platform shoes. I got a pair in London. I thought they were so cool. This was 1972 when I could walk safely in that kind of shoe. Then I got bell-bottoms in Austria to go with them. Have you got any good items yet? Maybe ,when your mom and dad come with some extra spending money.
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