Lawchick

I think saltwater taffy is an American invention.

PatrickLondon

I've always assumed your taffy was our toffee, but I'm happy to be put right.

Likewise I've always assumed Taffy for the Welsh more likely came from an Anglo-Saxon distortion of Dafydd.

Heimdall

Patrick, Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable agrees with you: "Taffy. A Welshman, from Davy (Daffydd, David).

It goes on to quote the old rhyme: "Taffy was a Welshman..." I won't repeat the rest of it, but it refers to the days of the border cattle raids.

caroline_edinburgh

I don't think crowds will affect you, unless you are planning to stay near the stadium(s) (unlikely) but hotel/apartment prices will.

And blightyboy, I disagree that most supporters will fly in for the day - rugby trips I've been on have typically been 4 nights to see one game

Silly me, I booked a weekend of opera in Cardiff in October, not realising that a rugby tournament *supposedly taking place in France* would mean that hotels are full or charging treble their normal price

Mucky

Your info is interesting. The Daffydd (David)you mention could have originally come from Teifi which according to my dictionary is a corruption of David. So maybe the river Taff derives its name from this too. Interesting and more research required I suspect.

R

audere_est_facere

My worst nightmare - a city full of rugger buggers.

They will show you their arses and throw up in your hat.

Rugby fans are the worst sports fans in the universe - either redneck Sith Effrikans or MPS tossers with floppy hair.

twoflower

Quite right, Neil Oz, about the origins of league. Audere - it's only the Wallaby fans that will throw up in your hat. The Springboks will stomp on it and the Kiwis will steal it. Almost went to France this year BECAUSE OF the rugby, but then decided accommodation would be far too expensive. Going next year instead, and will watch the rugby on TV.

Heimdall

This thread is getting fun. I was in Australia during most of the last world cup. All the bars had cinema-size telly screens, and the matches were broadcast non-stop. Fans turned up in their national jerseys, and beer flowed freely.

The best part of all, when I was back home, was watching the final on BBC and seeing the look on Howard's face when he presented the trophy to England.

kerouac

The Rugby World Cup will enthall the French -- even if it is not yet obvious -- as long as they make it at least to the semi-finals. If I am not mistaken, they have always managed to do so so far.

sheila

There have been a few postings on this already, Clea. Some of us are even going. It IS the Rugby World Cup, you know, not just any old tournament.

However, rugby is not mainstream anywhere, and I think you'll find that Paris can absorb the numbers. I don't wholly agree with flanner, in that I think there will be fans from afar who stay the whole time to make their trip worthwhile.

Rugby fans are fun, and they're coming from all over the world for this jamboree.

The games in Paris in your period of stay (it starts MUCH earlier than you think) are on

07/10/2007 at St Denis 21:00

13/10/2007 St Denis 21:00

14/10/2007 St Denis 21:00

19/10/2007 Paris (that means Parc des Princes) 21:00

20/10/2007 St Denis 21:00

The two stadia used are well out of the town centre.

Rugby is the game of choice in the South West of France. Shame on you, St Cirq, that you never noticed. And Stade Francaise are only Champions THIS year. It's usually Stade Toulousaine (whose change strip is pink)

There is a very good reason for not "taking in a game". Have you SEEN the price of the tickets?? When i say "we're going" we're actually going to our wee place in the South West to watch the Scotland on the telly. And even THAT statement is predicated on us beating Italy in the Pool section.

You watched Wales, thereyet, and you don't know what the Taffies, are?

We were in Paris in March, and all i can say is I WISH the Parisians hadn't understood what had happened We stopped in a bar to watch the end of the last game, and I asked the man for a whisky. He poured half a pint of the stuff (malt) and when I looked shocked, he told me in French I needed it after our shocking defeat. We then went to a cafe for supper (we'd been there a couple of nights before) and the waiter brought us... a wooden spoon!!

Don't listen to Grumpy of Tottenham. It's reverse snobbery from a public school kid

My money's on New Zealand.

annhig

hi, clea,

I think you'll be safe - in february, we hit the irish pub in madrid just as we [england] were getting stuffed by the irish. they were very sympathetic. :'(

regards, ann