French Perspective
 

We are in the mid stages of planning a 25 day trip to Europe in September. 15 nights are planned in France. This is our 4th trip to Europe and have been to other areas of France before. Will all the publicity of the French attitude towards a potential war with Iraq and protests, several friends and relatives keep asking if we still plan to go for concern of any harrassment against americans. I keep telling them that from past experience, politics seems to be kept separate from attitudes towards tourists. If you live in France or have recently been there would you agree and still go? Thanks<BR>

If you search through the posts, you will find one called &quot;Hotels in the Latin Quarter&quot;. Its author just returned and has some comments on this subject near the bottom of the thread.<BR><BR>Also, a woman named Nikki just posted a Paris trip report that touches on this subject, too. Should be in the top 200 posts, it received a lot of attention over the weekend.<BR>

<BR>MGB, look at it this way:<BR>Have you changed, as a person, over the last months or years?<BR>The French, as a people, haven't.<BR>So if you got along with them on your four previous trips, you will get along with them again.

I was in Paris last week. I found no evidence of anti-American feelings in anyone I met. Everyone was friendly and charming. When I purchased something at a store in the flea market, the proprietor said something about it being a hard time in America. I said people had told me there might be anti-American feelings in France, and he and his wife seemed very surprised, said there was no such thing. <BR><BR>News reports on the television and radio were full of talk about the war and about protests against the war both in Europe and in the U.S. There was also lots of publicity for anti-French statements made by various U.S. political and media personalities. It seemed to me that the U.S. press reports on anti-American sentiment in France, and the French press reports on anti-French sentiment in the U.S. This is a sad state of affairs.

I am with the others - there should be no problem based on previous experience. Your friends and relatives may be listening to the media a bit too much in terms of Europe bashing by American politicians. The average citizen won't care one iota.

I have just returned from Montpellier in the south of France. No problem (I am a Brit, and they probably hate us more than anyone!). The average person will not cause any harrassment in the same way that you would not immediately strike up a political conversation with a tourist. The most French people that any tourist would come into contact with are service orientated, i.e. hotel receptionists, waiters etc. and they certainly won't give anyone a hard time.<BR>The views of Jacques Chirac are not necessarily those of the common people (just look at Britain where Tony Blair is out on a political limb). Interestingly though, there is a report today of a Mayor from Pontoise near Paris who has banned 150 school children from visiting Britain due to Blair's support of the US.<BR>Also, Blair faces revolt in Parliament today as 160 MP's have stated they will vote against the Government's support of Bush. This is not far off half of the whole Parliament. If another 20 or so joins the rebels tonight, then Blair could be defeated and the British would vote against supporting the US. Blair would then have to resign or go it alone. I personally think that Blair will not be Prime Minister in 6 months time.

Sounds as though Blair must be truly certain that ousting, or at least conveying a very strong threat of ousting, SH by war if necessary is the right thing to do. Would he take such a political risk otherwise?

Rufus..Damn right ousting SH is the right thing to do.As long as he is in power with those weapons,global safety is a question.Let alone the safety of his own people.

mg,<BR>i am going to paris on the 19th of march and don't anticipate any troubles whatsoever. personally i am not too excited about the current situation between the two countries, but what can i do about it? i support gw. do i agree blindly about everything the admin.says and does..no. would i treat a french person differently now than before? certainly not and i wouldn't expect them to treat me differently either. people in my own family have different views on the issue and i still treat them the same. on another note..having just come back from italy and seeing small bits of t.v., cnn was the only us news availible to me, i didn't see 1 single report that put gw/usa in a favorable light. it was disgusting. but i

sorry..bit i understand a little more clearly how the europeans feel anfter seeing a totally on sided anti usa campaign the is being launched by cnn. i am looking forward to my trip, but understand if others wouldn't go. cheers

Thanks for the replies. I suspected it was the media, but it is nice to have first hand responses to support my thoughts. Thanks again, we are really looking forward to the trip.<BR>Regards, Mary Ann

Don't go...change your trip plans to Italy, Spain or the UK...the hell with the French, Germans and Belgians!<BR><BR>US

Comments as useful as a chocolate teapot, US!<BR><BR>Go to France, there will be no problem. You're going for a vacation, not a political rally. And enjoy it!