hmm

to "i should know" - attractive girls start receiving all sorts of attention from boys and men of all ages when they are very young - certainly before they get to college. and genesea herself was only talking about being hit on - not necessarily being made to feel special. anyone who doesn't know that these 2 things are not necessarily the same thing must not be getting much attention from men either (your post gives you as an american female guy basher rather than the italian man you claim to be.)

xxx

<BR><BR>The reason men &quot;hit on&quot; women is simple. SOMEONE has to take the initiative if a man and woman are going to meet, and women, for the most part, do not do this. <BR><BR>Solution: women should &quot;hit on&quot; men first, thereby pre-empting them!

Justin

Genesea,<BR><BR>Mike sounds like an angry person who has a bone to pick with his sister. <BR><BR>Anyone who leaves such gratuitive messages at this site certainly sounds like a shallow thinker.<BR><BR>Your message didn't come across as 'me, me, me'.<BR><BR>Hope you won't let such nastiness dampen your enthusiasm for letting us know of your observations.<BR><BR>Keep 'em coming!

Alan

Genesea,<BR><BR>I copied the addresse to see photographs of you and was told the site couldn't be found.<BR><BR>If the address is incorrect, would you please change it? <BR><BR>Thanks<BR><BR>P.S. It doesn't matter what you look like, but, having read your observations for over a month now, I'm curious.<BR><BR>Please keep writing.

Genesea

Thanks for the comments -- my website is found at www.geocities.com/truckzter<BR>If you choose the &quot;Me&quot; link you'll find some hobbies and a picture -- and once you're at the &quot;Me&quot; page visit the &quot;More Me&quot; and you'll find more pictures.<BR><BR><BR>Let me add some more observations about French people and life:<BR><BR>1) They are not obsessed about new cars -- or impresing people with their cars.<BR><BR>2) Medicine is SOOO CHEAP!<BR><BR>3) French people will smoke under No Smoking signs -- and no one will say anything about it.<BR><BR>4) Single French guys can cook, iron, and wash dishes!! (It's so awesome .. my 24 year old French brother made me dinner one night complete with vegetables because he knew that I had been missing veggies.)<BR><BR>5) It's no abnormal for 30 year old single French men and women to be living with their parents.<BR><BR>6) French university bathrooms are always missing toilet paper and soap -- they aren't cleaned nearly as well compared to my public university back home. <BR><BR>7) Most French people do not wash their hands after using the toilet.<BR><BR>8) French people let their dogs crap anywhere -- I don't get it.<BR><BR>9) My French professors (male and female) stink so bad -- do they not smell it?<BR><BR>10) Bank and cheese television commericals contain people having sex.<BR><BR>11) There are more women than men in the universities.<BR><BR>12) The French eat plain yogurt with sugar mixed in.<BR><BR>13) The French will eat practically anything.<BR><BR>14) French wine contains a lower percentage of alcohol compared to Californian wine (12 percent compared to 15 percent).<BR><BR>15) Wine is cheaper than water.<BR><BR><BR>

Huh

&quot;gratutive&quot;?

xxx

<BR><BR>{10) Bank and cheese television commericals contain people having sex.}<BR><BR>Ah, bless their libertine hearts...gotta love the French!

Diedre

Can't wait to go back to France in May.<BR><BR>Your delightful observations fill the gap of time till then.<BR><BR>Please keep writing!<BR>

Julie

G - I was on a train to Fontainbleau 2 weeks ago in a &quot;non-smoking&quot; car where 2 people got into a very loud fight because one of the guys was smoking. but the smoker ended up helping us change trains in the end. It was funny.

Genesea

Today I was in E. Leclerc (a giant supermarket/clothing/everything store), and I noticed (again) that all the bathing suits for sale were one-pieces. I found that very odd. So I mentioned that to my American friend, and she told me that at public pools women/girls are not admitted if they are wearing anything other than a one-piece. If this statment is accurate, then I'm really surprised. I can't believe that one-pieces would be mandated at a public pool -- especially in France. Any explaination? It just seems like this type of conservatism is an oxymoron compared to France's acceptance of nudity and skin.

Michelle

Dear Genesea:<BR><BR>I can't explain the logic, but several summers ago some friends of ours were in France on vacation. The husband wore the longer, trunk-like swimsuit appropriate for men over 40. He was not allowed at the pool unless he wore the Speedo type suit!!! Go figure!!<BR>They never got a straight answer why.<BR><BR>Keep sending your reports!!<BR><BR>Cal Poly Alumna, <BR>Michelle

Vincent

Well, although French myself, it took me some time to understand the &quot;Speedo only&quot; rule in public pools, and I've been told that most - usually - teenagers who show up in those long trunks actually use them all day long, sit on cafes and buses and benches, etc. and it wouldn't be hygenic for everyone to share these germs when they dive into the pool. For what it's worth... <BR><BR>Anyhow, this explanation would at the same time confirm and contradict Genesea's cliches about French hygiene: these teenagers don't care about it, but obviously the authorities do. As for your teachers smelling... Well, they must smell for you since you obviously come from a very sanitized society, but to smell in a mountain town in December, you really have to suffer from a lack of bathroom or something, which is quite unlikely with teachers. Of course, you are going to reply that they DO smell, and since I don't have my nose on their armpits, this discussion is leading us nowhere, but I frankly think this is a typical case of cultural misunderstanding. I don't want to play drugstore semiologist, but it's a fact that the smell and sex issues prop up quite often in your reports, usually to wonder/sneer at the abundance of these commodities in France compared to a blander, less sensuous and more puritanical society such as the one you come from. No need to hold a PhD in sexology to know that body odours are linked to sexual activity; in today's London Time Out, there even is an article on non-flavoured toiletry products, aimed at keeping clean whilst getting rid of that off-turning soap smell. And, believe me, I don't know what's worse: the metro at 18h00 in summer with a pot-pourri of body odours, or the same metro in the morning rush hour with clashing fragrances of perfumes, eaux de toilette, after shaves, of diverse qualities and olfactive tones.

Ira

Hi Genesea<BR>Let me add some more observations about your observations:<BR><BR>1) They are not obsessed about new cars -- or impresing people with their cars. <BR> They can't afford it. If they could they would.<BR><BR>2) Medicine is SOOO CHEAP!<BR> It's paid for by very high taxes.<BR><BR>3) French people will smoke under No Smoking signs -- and no one will say anything about it.<BR> They are very civilized.<BR><BR>4) Single French guys can cook, iron, and wash dishes!! <BR> They are very civilized.<BR><BR>5) It's not abnormal for 30 year old single French men and women to be living with their parents.<BR> They can't afford a place of their own.<BR><BR>6) French university bathrooms are always missing toilet paper and soap -- <BR> If the students could afford it they would not have to steal from the university toilets.<BR><BR>7) Most French people do not wash their hands after using the toilet.<BR> That's not what their mothers taught them.<BR><BR>8) French people let their dogs crap anywhere -- <BR> No one is perfect.<BR><BR>9) My French professors (male and female) stink so bad -- do they not smell it?<BR> No, they do not. One's smell and taste organs blank out continual background odors and tastes. Try not bathing or washing. After a few days you won't smell yourself.<BR><BR>10) Bank and cheese television commericals contain people having sex.<BR> They are very civilized. What is more aphrodisiacal than money?<BR><BR>11) There are more women than men in the universities.<BR> This is true of most minority groups in the US. It is probably because women are kept out of apprentice programs, so that most of the good jobs available to them require college degrees.<BR><BR>12) The French eat plain yogurt with sugar mixed in.<BR> They are very civilized. They do not use as much sugar as we do in the US. 10.7 lb per capita in US, 7.25 in France.<BR><BR>13) The French will eat practically anything.<BR> True, but they cook it so well.<BR><BR>14) French wine contains a lower percentage of alcohol compared to Californian wine (12 percent compared to 15 percent).<BR> That is because the French have stricter controls over wine production. The higher alcohol content comes from the addition of sugar in the hopes of making a poor wine better. (This is not a blanket condemnation of US wines. There are many US vintners producing excellent wines.)<BR><BR>15) Wine is cheaper than water.<BR> As it should be.<BR><BR> Love your posts.

Michael

Ira, some of your comments are off the mark. <BR><BR>1. I don’t know when was the last time you were in France, but I would guess that the percentage of new cars there is about the same as in the States. One no longer sees the old 2CV and other cars of that ilk. <BR><BR>2. Yes, the French pay high taxes, but when you add in Federal income tax, State income tax (depending on the state), sales tax (ditto), Social Security tax and other minor taxes, we may be fairly close to their rate, especially if you add the non-tax payments we make for health care. Moreover, newspapers report periodically, i.e. when they discuss the high cost of medical care in the U.S., that the pharmaceuticals charge the U.S. consumers much more for medicine than they charge in the rest of the world.<BR><BR>6. I think that it is less an issue of affordability than one of servicing. In Brant&ocirc;me I walked into a public bathroom that had just been serviced, i.e. cleaned, and there was no toilet paper.<BR><BR>9. About five years ago I met a Frenchman who reported that the French were the dirtiest people in Europe according to a study of body cleanliness of emergency room patients. Yes, they simply looked at the condition of their underwear. I was skeptical, but he insisted that it was true.<BR><BR>14. California wines are not “chaptalis&eacute;s” (sp?), as were some cheap wines in France. However, the vineyards are irrigated and we have more sun and heat than in France (check the latitudes). High alcohol is not necessarily good. In fact, Bonny Doon vineyards takes some alcohol out of its wines to improve them.<BR>

americaine

Love you posts. Fun to read, reliving my study abroad experience, can't wait to go back...<BR><BR>My advice for the negative comments are to ignore them. They don't dignify a response. Keep sending your observations as they come!<BR><BR>I feel bad that you aren't getting vegetables! Is this perhaps characteristic of your region? My family lived near provence/cote d'azur and we had vegetables with every meal. In fact, I really didn't like many vegetables until I studied in France. The French prepare them so well! Ratatouille... mmm... Even when we ordered pizza once in a while, my host mom would serve a salad on the side. If you explore other regions of France, be sure to try the vegetables. They are wonderful!<BR><BR>Keep 'em coming. I really love reading this thread. I feel like I am back in France! Best wishes.

Rita

Congratulations! Enjoy this wonderful experience. I just viewed your website and really enjoyed it. You only live once.<BR><BR>Ignore all the smart... comments. Alot of people can't get through the day unless they insult, demean, etc.<BR><BR>Smile and be happy. Rita

Genesea

Hmm ... well, like I said, I created my website for my friends and my family .. not just complete strangers .. it is taking a risk just to open up and let strangers see bits of who I am .. and if I've always wanted to be a model -- that's an honest confession, nothing for others to rip into and get snippy about.

Susan

Genessa - I'm among the vast majority who have loved reading your posts. <BR><BR>How is the smoking situation? We were last in France 2 years ago and found the heavy smoking in restaurants a really negative aspect. A local told us there are anti-smoking ads on TV), but no one pays any attention.<BR><BR>I took a French class but the teacher (American who'd lived &amp; taught English in France about 20 years ago) was really discouraging: she claimed that &quot;if you can't speak perfect French, then don't speak it at all in France&quot; (as if the French demanded perfection).<BR>Happily, your quite different experience of their being forgiving of your French no matter how much you screw up is much more positive.<BR>Anyway, thanks for your posts.

SA

Keep up the good work. Please disregard the blatant abuse of others on this board. I don't know about some of your experiences but if you are blonde you will certainly get attention (wanted or not). My wife has taken to wearing hats more when she has had enough (blatant stares) or is running about w/out me.

geth

I've really enjoyed your posts. I always wanted to do a semester away when I was a student, but it just didn't happen. I enjoy reading about the differences, and the things that are the same.