french slobs?
 

OK, I have heard about the embarrassing way Americans act and dress in France. Yet, I notice that in everything I read about Provence there is a picture of locals playing petanque. And these guys invariably look like complete slobs. White sneakers - blue jeans - no shirt - they commit all the fashion sins of which Americans are accused. Yet they are supposed to be typical Frenchmen.

True, I know they are involved in a sporting activity, but they are doing it right in the main square of a town. So what gives?

Also, I notice that in some of my favorite French movies, the characters are definitely not following any dress code. For instance, Gerard Depardieu, Patrick Dewaere and Miou-Miou in "Going Places," or Brigitte Bardot in "And God Created Woman." Of course they are supposed to be rebellious characters, but they still seem pretty French.

I don't want to leave my white sneakers at home!

So don't. Wear what you want. No one's going to stop you.

There are all kinds of people in every country of the world. Not every French person is fashionable by any means.

Wear your white sneakers by all means, if you don't mind, no one else will either, except in a nicer restarant.

Well you know, I don't have any illusions about actually fitting in, but neither do I want people to cringe when they see me coming. No point in looking like I just stepped off the cruise ship.

The idea that all French are 24 hours a day fashion plates is just as wrong as the idea that all American tourists dress like slobs. Generalizations are generally bad!

And I generally agree with Patrick and SeaUrchin and sandi.

(Paris in March-everywhere I looked, people of all ages were wearing sneakers..not white but all colors)

smiff, sniff, sniff..... amadis = travdis?

It's a myth that all French people are impeccably dressed and high-fashion. It isn't even likely to believe that the entire population of any country can be that way--that is for a certain class of folks. All you have to do is ride a metro car anywhere to see a bunch of normal looking folks, and many very badly dressed ones.

I've seen guys play petanque, as well as photos, and don't remember any of them not wearing shirts, though.

But if you want slobs, I stayed in a small French village once in Provence and went to dinner at a place where I was probably the only tourist, and likely the only non-French person. This was a place for local folks to have dinner with the family on Saturday night or something (outdoor restaurant of a modern hotel with some live local entertainment). I remember some of the guys there were wearing things that shouldn't have been seen outside their garage -- one guy came to dinner in a T-shirt, athletic shoes and those very short running shorts. Things were a little more casual down there than in Paris, I'd say, but even in Paris, if you dine in a regular cheap restaurant outside the tourist area, you'll see locals wearing pretty ordinary clothes or things you'd pick up at KMart.

so, amadis, if you know what dressing like you just got off the cruise ship means, or even say that, you know what not to wear to look that way, right?

Travdis, we missed you the last couple of weeks. Nobody to pick on.

I wondered where travdis had been hanging.

Evidently on a cruise ship to France.
NOT!

How does someone who never travels find their way to a travel forum?

I don't know who travdis is but it's not me. Apparently this individual has a bunch of you flummoxed.

My question was sincere. Heaven knows there is enough Franco-American misunderstanding these days. I want to try to help, not hurt.

I keep reading that French people are more formal than Americans and don't respect those who don't behave to their standards. But I can't imagine that American-style casualness hasn't made inroads.

Another example: it will feel funny to say "bonjour monsieur/madame" to everybody. I can adjust my speech once I get there, though. My clothing I will be stuck with.

your title does not speak kindly.

Playing boules is an outdoor sport; so people dress for comfort. Or sometimes don't dress at all, as a picture in one of my guides to Provence shows. Talk about saggy bottoms!

I think cigalechanta has hit the nail on the head. Your title doesn't speak of "sincerity."

oh yes my fellow fodorite detectives, the one and only post from "amadis"

Usually when people find this forum their initial posts anyway, include a few questions about travel.

The only question I can find in the OP is <So what gives?>

Actually, suze, my question _was_ about travel. It was about how to dress appropriately in France.

This is an anonymous forum. You will never know who any of the other members are. I could have 600 screen names.

But the fact is, this was my first post here. The response is a bit discouraging. You seem more interested in speculating about each other's identities than in discussing travel.

Countries don't have dress codes, and no one is looking at you. Dress with your own style, I take my style all over the world; if you were going to the Amazon would you wear just a loincloth affair?

And for the record, Hedi Slimane features two pairs of "white sneakers" in his S/S '05 Dior Homme collection, one is an high top in the style of a converse boot; the other a lo-top along the lines of the Adidas Nizza/Superstar.

Re-read your own OP. No, you did not ask questions (accept the one "so what gives?"). You mostly carried on about your own impressions and ideas, what you suppose and notice, what you have read and heard.

Some of us only have one screen name (not 600), so yes I do "know" who many of the other posters are.

Do you really care about how French men dress? Or is this a question about packing your white sneakers?

Although you say your post is ... <about how to dress appropriately in France>, honestly you did not ask that question at all.

Sigh. I apologize for my question being so difficult to understand. Please permit me to restate it.

The travel advice I've read indicates that people tend to dress smartly in France and that someone dressed too casually would feel out of place there. For example,

http://www.friendsinprovence.com/mod...=34&cid=13

On the other hand, in the images I've seen of at least some French people, they look as sloppy as a typical American like me. So the question is, should I upgrade my wardrobe for travel to France? Thanks.

To cigalechanta, I did not mean to be unkind, only to provoke discussion....

If you guys went to more movies, you would have got the jokes about "dress codes" in the original post!!

Gerard Depardieu ends up as a transvestite prostitute in the first film; B. Bardot shows her thingys in the other.

It was a send-up!!

Ok, so let me say that every major city has a part of town where the people dress chic as in Boston, NY, San Fran. etc and in the villages and hamlets they usually don't dress up.
Clean and good manners are more what the French will judge you on.
Americans are too sensitive about what to wear in France. In Paris, you'd dress as you would for New York.

<should I upgrade my wardrobe for travel to France?>

To honestly answer that question we'd need to know how you dress to begin with!

OMG!!! Heeeeeeee/Sheeeeees Back!

tedgale, oh dear, then the joke's on us (well on me anyway)... i guess it would be better not going topless or exposing oneself in France (unless you are at the beach)!!!!

Mmmmmmmm, thingys!

Cigalechanta, thanks for your wise advice.

Tedgale, I don't get your point about movies. "And God Created Woman" and "Going Places" were both very culturally influential. They made the careers of their stars and directors - respectively, Brigitte Bardot/Roger Vadim and Gérard Depardieu/Bertrand Blier.

Dunno what a "thingy" is. But I was impressed that Bardot sashayed around St. Tropez barefoot in blue jeans. I didn't know French girls did that in the 1950's.

Whoa, mkingdom_2. I just looked at the Dior Homme summer 2005 collection. Sloppy is in! They call it the "rock-chic look."

Now I'm thinking I look too neat and clean! Well anyway, I don't think I'll be packing a loincloth just yet....

I went to Paris in Fall 2003. I'm sure I stuck out like a sore thumb, as I wore khakis and jeans most of the time. At the time, the super-pointy shoes were being worn by the fashionistas of Paris, and there I was in big blunt-toed Merrills.

If I could change one thing (and I will when I go back Paris for a second visit this fall) is I would wear a LOT more black in general, and take my black leather jacket. It would be nice to fit in a little more, even though 90% IS attiude.

Also, the French will be a lot nicer if you start all your conversations with "Bonjour" and end them with "merci". They usually switch to English immediately since it only takes a sincere shot at saying "bonjour" to realize their English is probably better than your French. ;)

Good luck in your travels.

Jules in Denver