Random Things You Notice in France | France Culture Shocks | Expat in France

🌟 CHECK OUT MY NEW CHANNEL, BADASS CAREERS - Helping you find your purpose and do work you love: bit.ly/badassyoutube 🌟
Join me for some random things you notice in France as an Expat!
✌SUBSCRIBE & FIND ME BELOW FOR MORE FUN TIMES ✌
📷See more of my daily life on Instagram: _notevenfrench
💎SHOP NOW at Francophile Designs: rdbl.co/2qxn6Ce
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We hear a lot about French stereotypes and clichés about French People...but what is it really like to live in France? This isn't your typical French stereotypes list - here we explore French culture shock, expat life in France, what it's like to move to France and what is life really like in France (as seen by an Expat in France, otherwise known as an expatrié en france). Buckle up for this episode of culture shock France! Think of it as a behind the scenes guide to France.
What about you? Have you noticed any really random things in France? Or in life abroad in general? Let me know down below!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VIDEO NOTES
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FREE STUFF
AirBnB travel credit (25€ or equivalent): bit.ly/2yTkCAH
LIFE IN FRANCE BOOKS
* Best French Grammar book that I've found: amzn.to/2g511py
* Best on French parenting, Bringing up bébé: amzn.to/2xORnz1
* Best on multicultural workplaces: amzn.to/2fEU9hQ
- Favourite fiction read, Almost French: amzn.to/2xOdbKZ
MY CAMERA: amzn.to/2H0m3oF
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can join me, Rosie, for even more adventures on Not Even French! If you are interested in French culture, life in Paris, or tales from a New Zealander (kiwi) living a long way from home, please ❤SUBSCRIBE❤ for new videos released each WEDNESDAY! ✌✌
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Description may contain affiliate links.

[@camilleblavot579]

Liberté - Egalité - La bouffe !!!!

[@camilleblavot579]

Right , because fraternity hides around food :)

[@teambeining]

Make a shirt for your shop: I’m just here for la bouffe- perfect for me!

[@loloclem2994]

Amen !

[@ayelemensah8816]

Où est la pétition pour en faire notre devise officielle?

[@c-buck]

I laughed so hard when I heard that!

[@aidanclarke6106]

Historically, French kids were shamed at school for their accent. Having an accent was seen as being a peasant and/or being uneducated. Nowadays it may be acceptable to have a slight accent from the area you were born but a strong accent is something you can easily be mocked for.

[@GabrielChatrousse]

How do you recognize french people? They're talking about food before eating, they talk about food during eating and then they talk about food after eating: D It's true: je suis français et depuis qu'on m'a dit cela, je l'ai constaté de nombreuses fois ;)

[@blueeyedwolf4175]

About putting employees "au placard" when you want to get rid of them but can't because of laws protecting them, well, you can get rid of them, it's not forbidden in the contract. You just have to pay a lot of money to do so, or to negociate with them. But it's easier for companies, especially the big ones, to put them in a corner until they get so depressed they resign. It's actually a real strategy companies use that we take a lot of issue with. When they want to get rid of a lot of people at the same time, they make their employees work in unbearable conditions until they go crazy and break the contract themselves. It's cheaper to destroy people's mental health than to pay the money required to fire them properly. Just check out France Telecom in the late 2000's, a lot of employees commited suicide because of this strategy. "Au placard" is not just a way to deal with an unproductive person. It's a way to save money no matter the consequences on people.

[@cami4974]

It's true that some entreprises can use it as a strategy, because to be "au placard" is not very good for the self confidence of the person, it means basically that he never has responsabilities, never feel useful for seomething, his work has no sense, so maybe he 'll prefere to go somewhere else, on his own. A person who quit, no need to pay, while entreprises indeed have to pay to fire a person.

[@fodor6864]

Yep, exactly, happened to my dad two years ago. They pushed him so hard that he entered a huge burn-out and that he constantly had to leave for "disease holiday" (congé maladie), he physically couldnt handle the pressure of the job anymore. That lasted until they have the right to fire him without paying money, as if he quit the job by himself. And that was not even in a big company...

[@vaninaahahaha2151]

Was looking for this comment. To "put somebody in the closet" ain't quite a light topic in France... :/

[@melissaockey1346]

Blueeyedwolf that’s quite awful

[@clairebag4715]

I think what people have trouble understanding is how difficult it is to hire in France. There are a lot of social obligations, and social charges are very high (the employee only receives about 50% of what the employer pays, the rest goes into charges). Moreover, if the employee does not work or does not correspond to the position, the companies cannot fire him without a long procedure and costs. This means that today French companies are afraid to hire, because an employee requires a lot of costs, procedures and sometimes problems. The closet technique is absolutely awful, but the problem in the end is much broader. Companies in France are really not helped and the employee is overprotected.

[@SarsLL]

It's called "quart d'heure de politesse". Basically it's more polite to arrive a little bit late as long as you don't arrive more than 15 minutes late. For a French person there's nothing more rude than a person arriving early as your host might not be ready. Hence why it's more polite to arrive a little late to esnure you're host is fully ready.

[@djmasterdj]

Regarding the food (having the head, eyes , etc) is so normal for me as a Portuguese person.. We actually check if the fish is fresh or not by its eyes.

[@vajra1171]

We love cheques because when you pay by chèque, you earn a little bit of time (about one week) before to effectivelly pay...

[@Lwena]

French accent may be sexy to foreigners but not to french people ; when I hear a French speaking english with a strong french accent, it makes me cringe so bad XD

[@V0Y463R]

that's really sad lol i love it so much

[@fussel895]

I agree x,) oh well

[@tonec3369]

I agree with queen snookers. French is probably one of the most intruiging accents in the world. Funny how all the French people I've spoken to are trying to lose their accent, and all the while I'm trying to learn French and develop a French accent! French spoken with a strong Scottish accent is..eh.. interesting, lol.

[@someone-ou3ht]

I would like to be a native english speaker just to understand why French sound sexy with their accent because I can't understand that at all 😂

[@azertyuiop7893]

I always feel like an idiot when my French accent gets noticeable.

[@adrienplazas554]

Yesterday I (a French) was in England, I prepared a hot chocolate for an English friend and I described her the recipe as I would usualy do only to ear her saying: "only a French would describe a hot chocolate as having body". Well, I suppose I'm definitely French then. :|

[@LauraMorland]

Because only French hot chocolate *has* body! The French make it with a real bar of chocolate; we anglophones use powder.

[@AnthonyAndrews0128]

I remember telling a French friend I liked his accent when he spoke English. He told me he didn't like it and that was the end of that conversation. And yet, I am terrible with my French. Confidence and all that. So when I spoke to someone in French, telling her my French is terrible (in French) she said it was nice.

[@wololeiro2364]

lol.

[@pedrorosal560]

Je suis français mais j’imagine que ta chaîne doit être super utile pour un/une futur-e expat, y’a plein d’informations super utiles ! PS : tu as dit jambon de lait mais il me semble que le vrai nom est cochon de lait :)

[@paolina1802]

J'ai passé toute la vidéo à me demander ce que c'était jambon de lait et maintenant j'ai compris XD

[@boutineaulouis2838]

Il existe aussi l'agneau de lait ... tout aussi cruel et délicieux.

[@alexysq2660]

*@Pierre Rosier* ~En vrai je crois que t'as raison la`-dessus "le cochon de lait"; mais - n'importe quoi on l'appelle - c'est encore aussi degueulasse, scandaleux et epouvantable que des toutes "bidoches", comme c'est le resultat du meurtre d'animaux qui sont vraiment autant sentients que nous, et qui devraient etre en droit - nous pareil - d'exister, et de vivre leurs vies.

[@shaezbreizh86]

@@alexysq2660 plant life matter ! xd

[@larchange1657]

Clair !

[@kyu4404]

As a french follower i have to say that i love that kind of videos!!that's so fun to see the diferences between several cultures and make you realize that your usuale way too think and live is not this only one... Good job for your chanel!keep going and à bientot!!😉

[@lollymuse]

About people telling other people off... I see exactly what you mean. In France you have a lot of people who do that and I hate it. I am French but I would never do that. I think I understand why though, it’s coming from our school education. At school it’s like we are not allowed to make errors, and if we do we are told off or punished in some way (which is stupid because errors are the basis of learning). By telling other people off, we reproduce what we have lived as kids, not leaving room for error.

[@teambeining]

I am guessing that this is why the French have a reputation of being rude.

[@francoisg.582]

Not really. It is more tied to the fact that french people love discretion and have a very complicated way to interact. We are the exact opposite of americans on that matter. We think they are over-friendly, matter of education. An example: the good way to be for a seller in a shop is to say hello and ask if you need help. But if you stay close or insist, it will be very inconvenient for the customer. I could go on and on about the rules of relationships, with the Tu/Vous (You plural and singular), for boss you're supposed to use Vous, or for elders or for foreigners. In the high class society (nobles especially) the children have to use Vous when they talk to their parents. Even for french people it can be complicated sometimes. And let's be honest, that reputation comes from parisians, who see more than the whole french population as tourists in a year. I guess it depends on your luck... but if you stay a bit, you'll find out that people are friendly as soon as you're not a complete stranger anymore.

[@iagreewithyoubub]

I've had this similar experience in London, that rude attitude of "you should know better." Interesting theory about the schooling.

[@theblacktiger59]

As a french, I found that you are on point, especially about food binding people. I want to add that it's not only food, but the whole experience of a dinner that people enjoy.

[@coccirea5557]

I don't know if it's the same thing for others, but I have the impression the "accent thing" is more about the fact we "make fun at" those who have a bad English accent at school (so it's a shame to have a big accent) and the fact that... well... French just sounds like French for us, it doesn't sound sexy at all, just normal, so we don't necessarely understand why everybody says French accent is sexy... just like if it was a stereotype you know xD The thing with food is so true ! We always try to eat national food on holidays 😂 (sorry for my English ^^)

[@desplanchesstevan1418]

Having a french accent is having a bad accent for us. And personnaly, I feel like so embarassed when I see a French with a French accent talking to an english speakers' crowd.

[@Puty0urlipstick0n]

C'est trop ça ! On se moque tellement de nos accents, alors que les américains/anglais/néo-zélandais trouvent ça super joli ! Comme quoi :))

[@jonaspetitpas3994]

French accent is totally, absolutely ridiculous, with sounds they totally invented, that are not even used at all in other french speaking countries. Every accent might sound sexy. Why English speakers like French people speaking English is actually rather probably because they spontaneously use a higher level of English language, since there are really different level of language in English and most of the classy, sophisticated (like just this one...) and intellectual words come from French and are more easy for us to use and remember.

[@Vmarchildon]

Also I have to say that the accent thing is even worst when some French come over here in Canada and make fun of our accent! I admit the French Canadian accent is different but some of them are borderline rude when they joke about it, ahahaha. But luckily for us, our accent is so much easier to "hide" when we speak english!

[@Puty0urlipstick0n]

I've never heard of any french person making fun of the canadian accent? Usually from what I know we think it's pretty cute!

[@DarkIsatis]

I can't speak for all French people out there, but I think it's very disheartening when people mention your accent. Learning a foreign language requires a lot of effort. If you like a language, you usually aim for perfection. You don't want to make any mistake. You want to speak like a native. So when people tell you you have an accent, it feels like despite all your efforts, you still stand out like a sore thumb. Another problem is...a lot of people seem to think having an accent is a sign that you don't speak the language well. You could be 100% fluent and your grammar could be perfect, some people would still consider you speak broken English if you have the slightest hint of a foreign accent. Imagine spending years learning a language, putting all your heart into it, being excited about meeting new people and communicating with them in their language, and instead of appreciating your efforts, they just put you down because you don't sound like them. It really hurts and it damages your confidence. If someone made an effort to learn your language and you can understand them, why focus on their flaws? If they're trying to fit in, why alienate them? That said, it might be a cultural thing. Some cultures "celebrate" diversity. French culture values it too, but we don't like making a big deal out of our differences. It's all about making people feel included, like they belong with us. You can't possibly feel like you belong when people constantly remind you that you don't sound like them, that you're different, and that no matter what you do, you'll always be foreign.

[@JessicaLescarbeault]

Exacly! Also, when you ARE a French speaker but not from France, it can be really rude to be mocked for you accent or to be told to « please speak French » or « good / proper French. » I feel like only French people do that and only accept the normative Parisian accent as the « right accent. » I feel like accents in English aren't being mocked as much. They are, but in a fun way while jocking and mostly in non-formal situations. An American won't seriously tell a British to « please speak proper English » or vice versa... Or they won't look at you like they are so surprised to find out you exist. Maybe English people will make fun of a Scottish accent, but they're aware of it's existence and don't feel as if it's not really English, you know... :-/ It diminishes other varieties of the language when diversity is inevitable when the language is spread around the world and not it's a bad thing or a thing to be ashamed of. I feel like French people do that a lot, (or maybe it's just Parisians). Anyway, I speak both French and English and I have never encoutered that in English speaking places I went to (or not to that level I mean. An English person won't make an Irish or an American person ashamed for their accent the way French people do with a French Canadian accent, for example... )

[@JeSuisCommeCela]

Merci pour ce commentaire ! Française habitant à l'étranger, c'est exactement ce que je ressens !!

[@kernow9324]

Wow, I don't know where to start. Believe me, anyone mentioning your accent is not mocking you. As I have said a few times already this afternoon, to a native English speaker, a French accent is adorable. Please don't ever lose it. It's not a flaw. I think this is all in your mind. It's not reality.

[@LauraMorland]

+Darkisalis, Your written English is perfect, and idomatic to boot, and so clearly you *have* worked very hard to achieve your level of fluency. However, you should .be avare that it is IMPOSSIBLE to speak a foreign langage without an accent if you learn it after the onset of puberty. (The only exceptions I know of are certain "freaks of nature", or Dutch or Germans who move to an anglophone country in their early 20s... but English is a Germanic language.) So you are excoriating yourself for no raeason... except that your English teachers au lycée gave you (and everyone) a complex about it. (And they were all French, right? So they were, more than likely, TEACHING you with an accent.) À propos, I live in Paris and function with my American accent. Like you, people ask me where I am from nearly as soon as I open my mouth. Although I continue to work hard to improve my grammar and syntax, I know that I will always be perceived comme étrangère. However, there is a place for foreigners in France... Or in Paris, at least. Cela dit, the other day I ended up sharing à taxi from Béziers to Narbonne (the train never appeared), and had a long talk with the driver about local politics. Hé was speaking very fast with a strong accent de Languedoc. I was pleased that not only was I able to understand him -- I kept asking him "follow-up questions" the whole time -- but that he never once asked me where I was from. It was a relief to feel "normal," I must admit.

[@Jess-Rabbit]

@@JessicaLescarbeault I actually make fun of English people jokingly to my English friend, but not because of his accent, which I actually enjoy. Just the words they use and certain pronunciations that stand out and are funny

[@KimberlyGreen]

Sur le sujet d'un français qui semble séduisant en parlant anglais ... English is a language that places stress primarily on consonants, which gives it a harder, more guttural nature. In contrast, French places the stress primarily on vowels, giving it a softer, more flowing nature. It also gives the French language a more intimate "feel". Therefore, when a French person uses their natural vowel-stress tendency when speaking English, it softens the words and lends some of that intimate feel. The result is that the English-speaking French person comes across as being not only more "exotic" but also more in-touch with human sensuality. It is definitely *not* a bad thing. ;-)

[@armanced.5053]

Kimberly G. What a great analysis 😍

[@KimberlyGreen]

Merci beaucoup Armance :-)

[@ShmuPixel]

Bon à savoir, merci pour l'analyse pertinente! :)

[@bricelarie6527]

Kimberly G C'est sur, La lettre, Les consonnes, Les voyelles, Nombril de l' aguerrie Après, Neil c'est le meilleur !!!!!

[@KimberlyGreen]

Brice. Je suis desolée. Je ne te comprends pas. Ma compétence en français n'est pas très forte, pour le moment. Pouvez-vous m'aider à comprendre? Qu'est-ce que «Nombril de l'aguerrie» et qui est «Neil»?

[@indreurbonaite5886]

I find your comments spot on, as an intern in France I agree on most things.

[@brigittaglover9913]

Hahah the fish face is amazing.

[@quoniam426]

Never saw fish heads on the table, unless you go in high class restaurants. Unless it is a very recent fashion. Cochons de lait are a thing, but it a very rare thing. Chicken doesn't have its head nor does it have its palms. Just has the wings structure.

[@Ardanel68]

For me living in eastern France, having the whole fish at home is common (trout for exemple) : either we buy it whole or just went fishing. We do eat the cheeks of the fish, very small piece of meat just under the eyes but it's delicious.

[@ritamary72]

Your videos are really fun and interesting. I am so fascinated by culture, the variety of ways that humans live. Your videos explore cultural anthropology of the French in such an entertaining, informal way. Thanks for doing this.

[@Mfah82]

Il existe un film français qui s'appelle justement "Liberté, égalité, choucroute"

[@anaratimchenko2455]

Please make more videos on this topic! They are sooo interesting to watch! Love them!

[@yanniwang]

Just discovered your channel and I love your vibe! Keep making new videos 💖💖

[@andreaorbzy31]

Great video Rosie! You’re one of my fav expats on YT!!

[@Aranka11]

Thank you for your very interesting videos about French culture 🙂👍🏻

[@DoseDeNet]

Thank you Rosie for sharing these very informative videos, we appreciete it

[@krsone19]

Hahaha - I like your fish face impression, very realistic that was awesome!!

[@JosetteMichalon]

The checkbook thing is still around because our regular banking is so bad and slow that signing a piece of paper and giving it to someone is actually easier than any other options unless you can pay with your credit card. Bank transfers are a joke, you need to add the person you want to give money too, then wait between 24 and 48h for the bank to approve the recipient. Only then can you send money and it will not be instant. Of course no mobile apps will help you do so. Banking in your country is so much easier, the other day a friend of mine purchased tickets for both of us and in less than 5 minutes I could add his bank account and send him the money for it. Also, food

[@ds4436]

Super vidéo, tout est tellement vrai ! Tu m'as fait prendre conscience de certaines de mes habitudes (comme téléphoner souvent à mes parents) que je ne voyais pas de l'intérieur ! Très bonne continuation à toi !

[@TheCapitaineCarnage]

You said that food brings us together? Really? Just start a conversation with Pain au Chocolat or Chocolatine and you'll see if it brings us together! Historically speaking, wars were waged because of food related topics in France!

[@agentx320]

it's chocolatine you morron

[@nozaakilkhanova6874]

😂😂😂😂😂😂 my my mother in law re-married and moved from Grenoble to Bordeaux 🙈 OMG! They are a happy family except when it comes to pain chocolat (yes, I prefer pain chocolat although I’m not even french)

[@castornounourse]

nononono do'nt do that ! you will begin a world war 3 !!!!!

[@johannbitan6164]

I am a french living in Australia and you made me smile :) I miss french food so much !

[@martavillena2709]

Hahaha it was fun listening to every point! 😊 I'm from Spain and very into french culture I'll have to say that it was a sock for me how they were not attached at all to family if you compare it with italian and spanish culture. We can call our parents even everyday. For us family is present always and not only for christmas, easter etc maybe too attached 😅

[@patedamande1842]

hi ! i'm french, i dont really know for others family but in mine we speak a lot by SMS, exept for my grandma we call her like 1 or 2 time in a week, i though its was cool like that i was chocked by the fact some family can call everyday ^^! i love those cultural difference !

[@nikkiscott4341]

Être mis au palcard" is called a "sideways promotion" in English (UK). The hope is often that the person will finish by leaving.

[@bake4la1]

American expat that just moved to Paris in February. Just came across your videos and I love them! So relatable haha

[@Migoyan]

Comme on dit, quand l'appétit va tout va !

[@melaniebredau8801]

Encore une vidéo super intéressante ! Merci Rosie !

[@Vince_vanca]

I love the fact the fact that transcription goes bonkers from time to time...it's adding some fun.... and know I want to go to la placa too :p

[@AndrewPrior]

Great video, I always wonder when I see or notice things here is what must they think of living in Australia or NZ. 😀🇫🇷🇦🇺

[@thencis56]

About cheques, I think you undervalue it's utility. I guess you noticed but it's primeraly used in situations where the other person needs a garantee. It's a easy way to lend money without paying for it. For exemple I use it as the doctor's office, because of the 1 day between the moment I have a consultation, and the moment social security give me the money for it. If I only have 30€ on my account, I make a cheque for the consultation (20€), the social security card send the order for me to receive 20 €, (so I have 50 €), then the doctor cash the cheque and I'm back at 30 €. In the process I never had to lose any money, or even lend it for one day. It's also really useful when you rent something. You just do a cheque as a warranty that you'll give the thing you borrow back. It's also really easy to send money by postal service this way. You sure that if anyone else opens the letter (think about christmas cards), they can't steal the money. As a young french I don't use it that often but don't underestimate it, it's really a good money tool !

[@cami4974]

Well, I admit that I love to have food discussions (of curse not 100% of my time, just in some occasions), and when, while sharing a meal, a person gives us another way he knows of how to cook such an ingredient, or how it reminds him something he enjoyed to eat once, or he acts (falsely) outraged to protest on a weird mix, or share a memory about how his father was cooking it or how he tried to find a recipe and finally understand what was missing or else, well I don't know why, I don't know if it's a french thing, but it makes this person sympathetic to me, maybe just because I find that cooking (usually for other people) is kind of a generous action.... and tasting is kind of an intimate and pleasant feelling easy to share

[@indrinita]

The telling off thing as you described it, I notice something similar here in Germany (I'm a Canadian expat living in Germany), but they are not as vocal, though they will be if they feel the situation merits it. But generally people don't hesitate to tell you if you're in the "wrong" by their social mores, or if they think you're "doing something wrong" in their eyes. I used to think it was rude, but now I don't actually take it too personally, as I see it as a communitarian approach to society - i.e. it's not so much about everyone minding their own business, but about "reigning people in" as it were so that people within all of society run better together. I don't know if I'm describing it in a way that makes sense, but this is my understanding of it now after five years of living in Germany. It's very much in the same vein of "educating children". In Canada, people leave each other alone more, but here I find people aren't too afraid to kind of get into your business as it were, and "correct you" when they feel they should. I think they see it as a duty. Then again, perhaps I'm just giving them too much benefit of doubt here, and in fact they're just being holier than thou XD cultural differences are a funny thing! In my experience of travelling through France without knowing someone personally, I don't find people to be as helpful and friendly as I do of the Germans (I speak French as well as German), but it also depends on the region of course.

[@stillmakic]

I'm glad you mentioned the one about adults telling other adults off like they're their children.. I had that happen to me in Nice when I stepped on board a bus to ask the bus driver where another bus stop was. I said bonjour first of course, but not loudly enough apparently. He told me in French, "no, that's not how you come up to me. You must say bonjour first before you get on board and then ask me the question." I told him I had already said it but his mind was made up already. That pissed me off for a couple hours because he basically scolded me off like I was his son. I'm glad someone else was able to point out that that behavior is pretty normal there!

[@noefillon1749]

As a French, I'd never do such a thing and I'd not appreciate someone do this to me. I think most of us are like it, but may be it is an aspect of the culture that makes one more likely to meet that kind of ppl in France than elsewhere.

[@steviebarrett]

The anecdote about cheques is quite interesting. They are all but dead here in the UK with the exception of my friend who still uses them, maybe he should move to France

[@MsRumex]

A few years ago in Canada cheques were very very popular methods of payment and actually still are.

[@yoyotopyoyotop5447]

@Rosie, Did you know that there are streets named after great historical cookers ? rue Brillat-Savarin in Paris, Pont Paul Bocuse near Lyon, avenue Taillevent in St-Germain-en-Laye, etc

[@katherinemarsh784]

Very informative & interesting. :)

[@helenegarnier47]

I'm French, but i've never eat a chicken or pork wirh the head of the animal... I think that really depend of the family, that's not specially french

[@paolina1802]

Après c'est assez rare de manger du cochon de lait...

[@Lambert7785]

good stuff, thanks

[@mdqquinn2513]

Everything you mention is so true! The books of MFK Fisher on cooking, recipes, memoir, lived in France for many years eons ago, have many of the same observations! Well worth reading! Also, Gertrude Stein's 'Paris, France', Adam Grlopnik 'Paris to the moon' for a modern take, also 'Paris I love you, but you're bringing me down!' by Rosecrans Baldwin. What I find fascinating is how British, France, Germany are so distinct yet so near...while Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, United States share so much ( friendliness, etc) despite vast distances. I suppose constant wars affected this.

[@mihufung5892]

Haha, i’m from Vietnam and watching your video makes me realize how much French culture affected us. We also put whole animal food on the table, chicken with head attached. We have flexible time, and of course you need to read between the lines when talking to someone, especially at workplace. Love your video

[@yoyotopyoyotop5447]

About the food in France, some people keep records of all the menus they gave in the past to their friends or for special events in the family as new year's eve, christmas and other meetings in order to be sure it will never be the same twice ! My parents did that. I don't think it's something rare, I'm pretty sure many French people do that

[@yoyotopyoyotop5447]

At the same time, the Germans will usually eat some pizza made of the last evening noodles. Hmmmm yummyyyy :) And that's not a joke !!!

[@dianne6559]

I have been watching your videos for awhile now as they pop up on my KZbin feed and love your channel. It's quite funny because we have recently moved to New Zealand from South Africa and some of the things you mention about France we think of New Zealand. For example a cheque. I have not seen or used a cheque in 15 plus years, I had to cash a cheque for my husband the other day and said... cheques - do you really still get cheques. They no longer exist in South Africa. We find people in New Zealand really obsessed about food, and what you eating. Like in the tea rooms (smoko room 😉) people are always asking what you having for lunch and discuss each other's lunch. Some doctors and dentists rooms are in old "houses" and a nurse does pap smears. Where I am used to going to a gynecologist in a sterile medical centre for any gynae problem. After watching your channel I have come to realise everything is different in different regions. I do a lot of temp work and no one dresses up to come to the office, men wear shorts and Jandals in summer. Being on time, is met with you are so early 😅 and we find New Zealand so laid back compared to where we lived in South Africa. There are so many cultural differences but we love it here

[@LivieCaroline]

"Liberté, égalité, la Bouffe"! You made my day :)

[@sarahleach9997]

Great insights

[@almatoledo1608]

Loved it¡! More please¡!

[@hazelhoyte7668]

You made me laugh about the fish head, that I can handle. It's the chicken head and the whole piglet that I can't take. I was surprised about the cheques though. In the UK even the secondary schools are going cashless/paperless, the kids get their finger scanned when they want to buy lunch in the canteen.

[@stephaniemiersch]

A little late in commenting because I just discovered you. Love your channel! Interesting how in France, they will put an employee "dans le placard". Here in Québec, "on les mets sur une tablette" on a shelf!

[@luxomars4049]

Vous êtes gentils, sur une tablette on les vois encore, nous dans le placard, on les voit plus 😀

[@eddyparkinson3960]

THank you, this is the shizzle we need. Can you go to Mont st Michel and do a review?.

[@eddyparkinson3960]

Thank you

[@CaptainDangeax]

Hi Rosie. Don't forget to go to Cancale (just the west end of Mont Saint Michel bay) and enjoy marvellous sea food. I'm waiting for your report about it.

[@quoniam426]

Avoid Mont St Michel in the most crowded periods, it is preferable to go there in April or September.

[@TheWegeg]

Liberté, Égalité, La Bouffe !!! Sounds quite catchy to be frank ;)

[@mdkinfrance]

OMG, yes to all of this!

[@Puty0urlipstick0n]

J'adore ce genre de vidéo, ça me fait réaliser comment nous français sommes vraiment et ça me fait tellement rire ! Merci Rosie c'est top haha :D

[@orogor]

There s a few things about cheques, there's no processing fee, you can use it as a consign and physically give it back if you borrow something, you can use it for any amount of money if you dont have the change with you, some peoples actually expect that it will be processed later as some form of free credit, you can mail it and it s not useful to steal them, it leaves a payement trail as opposite to change. That said, i use maybe 5 per years

[@irina-ty1336]

Hello Rosie. I'm french and it's always lovely to have someone to analyse all our little defects. For the french accent, it may be consider as sexy, but for us, having a strong accent means you aren't really good in English. So it isn't really a compliment. And for what you say about the receptionnist, most of the time, there is big pannel saying "go there, go there" but people don't follow them, so people get annoy, and even more if it's the thirtith personn to take the wrong way on the day. Good day to you !

[@vincentmeffre3699]

Hi Rosie! another good video about French culture. I'm French and I'm pretty good with what you said. One point mind me. When you talk about the way people talk in France, it's just a particuliarity of Parisians. even in the professional world, everything is really different in the "Provinces" (the "Provincials" is like Parisians name people who do not live in Paris, that generally mean that they are a kind of elite and that they are better than others). they are often fed up with tourists and other people doing as at home, and they became very rude. It's my personal feeling about the question. After, you're right, I'm French and I love fooooooooood. it is the favorite theme of the conversation anywhere in France. After you talk about the French accent (or maybe before I do not remember ^^). Since school, every child makes fun of his fellowship when he tries to speak in English and it is even worse when he try to speak with a native speaker accent. The accent is therefore a kind of taboo subject in France. France also has mostly 5 or 6 different accents and even more maybe. In general, you can know where the person face to you comes from just listening to its accent. and some of the accent is very bad for foreign languages. just another thing about one of your transition. one deformed your very pretty face and it's pity. please avoid it next time ;) have a nice weekend! bye

[@chatbud]

Dear Rosie, today is a grey Thurs at where I am and I've having the sore throat. That said, this video had me giggling all the way. This is the 5th video I've watched of you and I've subscribed. Pls make more of similar videos. HAHA

[@solitairesmith3553]

Yassssss Im half french and half American. When i go to Paris and Brussels to see family i never get over the heads still on the chicken and the fish. My uncle always covers the head of the fish with a napkin and cuts it off for me. GOD BLESS HIM. Ive never understood this.:)

[@camembertdalembert6323]

you have to change bank. In my bank, there is a device where you can put your cheque and it's processed automatically and the money is on your account immediately.

[@marielisec.a.3072]

We still use checks in Quebec (NOT as much as in France, not in restaurant for example) for things like paying rent or recently I sent 2 checks by mail to pay for my organic veggie baskets. I love my checks: they have cat paws prints on them hahaha! I'd be sad if they completely disappeared :P

[@genatzvalee]

On a totally different note, I love your English pronunciation. Your "French" sounds like "fringe", "checkbook" like "Chick book", "secondly" like "seekingly" ;D Love it!

[@laurettemad4977]

Hello 😊 The accent problem is so true, living abroad it took me a while to understand people were sincere and not making fun of me.. I don't know why, but in English, French don't like accent (not only the French one), while we love accent French... School trauma? 🤔 I also noticed something, or maybe it's just me, but I feel like French daily humour is mainly based on "sous entendu", word pun and sarcasm, which was not really understood during my Erasmus exchange ... Or maybe it's just me? & I love chèques 😋 Super video, I loved watching you speaking about France when I had home-sickness, thank you 😊

[@LauraMorland]

Laurette, are you saying that French don't like to hear other French people speaking English with an accent, but that you love "accented" French?

[@laurettemad4977]

@@LauraMorland haha two years later I think I forgot a word "in" to mean : foreign people speaking French with an accent = lovely ; while French/Italian/Spanish accent in English = "bad english"

[@LauraMorland]

@@laurettemad4977 Nothing could be further from the truth, as far as anglophones are concerned! We love to hear our language spoken with all those accents, in that same order, I'd guess (although it varies): French, Italian, and Spanish.

[@laurettemad4977]

Thanks, I will try to remember that to be less and less shy when speaking to native speakers 🙃

[@LauraMorland]

@@laurettemad4977 Please do, Laurette! The "fear of bad pronunciation" is a terrible after-effect of *incorrect* teaching methods by generations of teachers of English in France. (Most of whom, ironically, had an accent themselves, as the French lycées almost never hire native English speakers to teach the language -- Rosie has a video interview on her channel that discusses this very fact.) More to the point, the great majority of English speakers -- if not all -- are *not* judgmental about accents. As long as someone is understandable, we just don't mind. That said, some accents are nicer to listen to than others. The Chinese accent in English is not, unfortunately, very pretty. The French accent in English is at the other extreme: we find it to be the *most* delightful accent in English!

[@DreamyFlowerz]

Liberté, égalité, MANGER!!!! °^°

[@giseled4678]

DreamyChara liberté égalité pâté

[@paulinaangie2813]

I agree so much on telling off in a parent-to-a-child way!

[@quinetlea]

Hey Rosie! As for the French accent since we are very judgmental we tend to make fun of people with a strong French accent (but we usually like foreign accent... why?!). I myself tried to get rid of my accent but since I have been abroad for a year I understood (and accepted) that my accent is just part of my personality now. Love your videos!

[@SuperLn1991]

Checkbooks are usefull sometime. for exemple when I need to take my car to the garage and the bill is expensive, I give them a checkbook and ask them to wait until the end of the month to put it at the bank. So I will have my salary. Or when I need to give someone money but I don't have cash and since it's too long to register their accompt number, I just give them a checkbook. Or when my mum want to give me money for something but she doesn't know how much it will be (like when I'am going to the hairsaloon) , she give me one with her signature and I just write the number when I know it!

[@SuperLn1991]

yes but no body use it in france, so... I would probably be the only one, and it would be difficult for elders.

[@fredpaillaugue1049]

I'm french, and the "liberté, égalité, LA BOUFFE !" just made me laugh so loud ! Soooo true. ^^

[@shuaguin5446]

Paté is not raw meat. It may seems like it but it's not, paté is meat crushed with veggie ( oignons, ail, échalottes) and sometimes white wine and then cooked for several hour at low temperature.

[@maegc9876]

Considering the food question, it's actually a seldom thing to serve meat or fish whole, still with the head, tail... The only "common" example I can think of is during towns' celebration in summer, for example (14th of July, flea market, etc), where you can sometime have an public event with a meal consisting in a pork cooked on a skewer (sorry, really not sure about this word). Hence the cooking method, you serve it like this, whole. Also, I don't think that raw meat is a usual thing. It's true that you can find steak tartare in some restaurants, but it's far from being in all of them, and I believe I've seen it more in gastronomic or "high standing" restaurants. Partly because I don't think it's really a popular dish. And that's also the only dish I can think of right now when talking about raw meat and French food. All that being said, I don't eat a lot in "chic" restaurants, and as some other people said, some things might be more specific to them. For doctors, we do have some buildings only for medical uses, but it's true that a lot of specialists are in appartment buildings, where you have people in the other flats who are just regular people living here. And you have a nameplate on the front of the building showing the doctor(s) working here. That being said, it's generally a true medical place, with a secretariat, a waiting room and an or multiple offices as you could find in a building dedicated to medical uses. But you also have doctors (usually general practitioners) who have an office in their appartment or flat, like really at the same place where they are living. And you really feel like in someone's place... I find it a little bit intimidating and uncomfortable, I guess. And all of this stands for every town, big or small. To finish, I do think that it generally feels bad to have someone telling you you have a strong French accent. Simply because one of the cliché about French seems to be that we don't speak other languages, and if we do, it's REALLY BAD, and/or we don't make any effort about it. So I guess I'd find it hard to take it as a compliment to tell me right away that I have a strong accent (even if I know I do have one). But I think it also depends on the way it's said. By the way, I always see stuff saying that French accent was elected amongst the sexiest in the world, but I never had any compliment about it, so I'm a little bit disappointed...

[@Adelesprings]

The thing with chèques is that there's no fee. Your banks have to provide the checkbook for free as long as you go get it yourself, and it costs nothing for the emitting or receiving person.

[@Ceelvain]

@10:00 "Liberté, égalité, la bouffe" I'd vote for that! :D

[@amayelle40]

L'accent français en anglais est tellement horrible ! Je n'arrive pas à me faire au fait qu'il soit considéré comme "le plus sexy au monde".

[@ottawant4908]

Si tu était anglais tu le trouverais sexy ! Mais je suis sur que tu est français car c'est tous les français qui disent ça !

[@nathael6350]

Iron Panther c’est louche car moi Quand j’entends quelqu’un parler français avec un accent étranger très prononcer ça m’énerve

[@ferikk92]

C'est complètement une question de goût. Si on entend ça à ce point c'est aussi parce qu'en dehors de l'accent, il y a des tics de langage typiquement français qui passent pour exotiques en anglais. Et c'est aussi lié à notre réputation pour tout ce qui est romance et drague. Comme si l'accent sous entendait notre comportement. Je vis à Londres et l'accent français sera pas forcément sexy, mais peut être aussi marrant, sympa ou agaçant. Dans tous les cas, il ne laisse pas indifférent.

[@PepetheDoctor]

Ouai mais c'est un fait alors FIERTÉ 😂😉💪

[@latoucheF7]

Non, il n'est pas horrible, simplement on nous a appris à en avoir honte.

[@darcyferrigno]

I am marrying into a NYC Sicilian family....yes, even in the states the family thing is very important. The family gatherings are crazy!

[@felix25ize]

The fish head lol !

[@cyclonev]

Hy! I'm French and used to be an expat ( Canada) . I just discovered your channel and it is quite delightful to see how is it feel the other way around. But as I was reading the comments section I am curious to know how many parts of your audience is French?

[@DanicaChristin]

I had no idea cheques were still used in France! They stopped using them all together in Germany 15 or 20 years ago. In Australia they are still used every now and then. And as I hear they are extremely common in North America

[@tulipwindmill]

Chequebook! That would explain why my friend doesn't have a credit card lol! As for family,my friends are a very close family,some of them live together!

[@TiborVass]

Thanks for reminding me how the French like to scold between adults. I totally don’t miss it! I think nowadays I would yell back. I’m living away from France and I like watching your videos because you notice the little things that sometimes I miss. Cheers!

[@rushdialrashed9627]

I swear , u r the best.

[@LD-cc2de]

Funny now that u mention that, the french will make the most interesting conversation about the most boring of things..My husband whos french will call his father and talk about some food he ate, or a book etc etc.Its funny.And Im like, whaaaaaat, u were talking about a shoe?😅😂😂

[@patedamande1842]

yeah ! we really love the little things of life, the beauty is sometime in the details ^^

[@Kaiso54]

Checks should be obsolete by now ... I feel ya. I've been surviving without a checkbook but I had to ask a few times family or friend to write a check for me and reimburse them later. But thankfully payment by bank transfer is becoming more common where there was "check only" before.

[@kylarren4366]

Les sous entendu, in my next work experience is when you go to smoke i didn't remember what we said but it was not "i go to smoke"

[@stillpill7437]

The "chèques" culture in france is due to what you said: when you receive you have to go to the bank and then wait for it to be counted. French people use chèques mostly because of the delay in the payment, it's really useful to end the month if you are a bit short

[@jeniferbfly]

As an American in the medical field, and have worked in a hospital and a doctor’s office, I find it fascinating that their ‘clinics’ are in apartments buildings. It reminds me of old fashion doctor house calls. Very cool

[@luxomars4049]

Yes, that’s correct and true for Paris downtown. Not true elsewhere in France

[@katego370]

I'm the Northern neighbor, I'm Belgian, and checks is something you see in old movies or hear about but I have never physically seen a check or a checkbook here in Belgium. It's completely out of use basically. Growing up, we always went on family vacation to France (Baie de Somme and Île d'Oleron) and my dad always had to go to the bank to get a check for the deposit for our accommodation. We have a big family so we just rented a house for a few weeks but we were only aloud to pay the deposit with a check. It's definitely not a European standard...

[@gmaildinozz]

By law, there is no taxe on payment by cheque and they are free (you still can paid with other method and you can order your cheque online wathever your [french] bank).

[@martha7408]

Hello Rosie! Great video as usual. Just wondering if many of the French are vegetarian, or often cook veggie meals?

[@thedavidguy01]

Thanks for the interesting and amusing video. Large US companies do the same "put them in the cupboard" thing. Because large companies typically give severance as part of a layoff (much, much smaller severance than in France but still something), it's cheaper if they quit. Of course, in the US you can just fire them, but if you fire someone without cause you risk a lawsuit, especially if they're over 50 or a woman or non-white. So they give them a horrible job or a really stupid, boring job and hope they quit.

[@RachelMargison]

Okay the cheque book thing right away is soo weird to me! I've never once in my life used a cheque book in Aus so I didn't even consider that as something different.

[@ShmuPixel]

France has quite a bit of old-fashioned tricks up its sleeves sometimes, and cheques is one of them. Although with time and a little bit of knowledge on how things work, you can manage to skip them entirely. I've had a cheque book for years and barely used 3 of them, mostly because you would need one to pay the first month of rent when moving somewhere. Otherwise, you can just ask your bank to transfer the rent automatically to the landlord. Unless the amount is huge (or maybe because you're broke for a while and need to delay a payment), there is not much use for cheques anywhere even in France.

[@alekshar9690]

cheque books are mostly usefull for renting deposits and payments you cannot pay in cash on locations that have no credit card payment devices. Out of that it becomes quite useless

[@paolina1802]

I'm French and I had no idea other nationalities didn't use a cheque book like we did all the time lol (I hate cheques though)

[@looorrainebzh]

C'est marrant parce que des animaux servis entier (le poisson ou le poulet avec la tête), je n'ai jamais vu ça moi^^ (pourtant je suis française^^). En France, on aime beaucoup utiliser les subtilités de notre langue^^ et honnêtement, ça peut être un calvaire de communiquer avec des gens qui ne connaissent pas bien ces subtilités, voir ne les comprennent pas, même quand on leur explique^^ (c'est le cas de mon chéri, il est belge donc il n'a pas tout à fait la même culture linguistique et on passe notre temps à s'engueuler à cause de tout petits détails comme ça^^ mais honnêtement, même entre français, même en vivant depuis toujours dans le même village, on peut mal se comprendre^^). On se fout tellement de nous partout parce qu'on est mauvais en langues étrangères qu'on devient susceptible^^ On nous dit toujours qu'avoir le bon accent quand on parle une langue étrangère, c'est SUPER important alors quand on nous dit qu'on a un fort accent... on est vexé^^ Peut être aussi parce qu'on apprécie pas particulièrement quand les étrangers parlent français avec un accent à couper au couteau (c'est difficile à comprendre, c'est pas agréable dans une conversation, ça la ralenti énormément) alors on ne veut pas être comme ça non plus^^ Je pensais que tout le monde aimait parler de bouffe^^ C'est vrai que c'est un sujet de discussion qu'on adore, peut être parce qu'il est sans fin, on a toujours quelque chose à dire, une astuce, une spécialité, une anecdote etc à ce sujet. La sécurité de l'emploi, c'est vraiment un sujet compliqué. C'est super important de protéger les gens du licenciement parce que le jour où vous êtes au chômage, c'est très très compliqué économiquement, ça peut vraiment être une catastrophe familiale mais d'un autre côté ça ralenti le marché de l'emploi et ça donne lieu à des choses abérantes comme le fait qu'on retrouve beaucoup de gens assez incompétents à des postes élevés (notamment dans l'administration) parce qu'on ne peut pas les virer alors quand les gens n'en peuvent plus de bosser avec cette personne, ils la recommande pour un poste plus élevé sans scrupule tant qu'ils n'ont plus à travailler avec elle...

[@Kevinchartron]

J'ai vu un paquet de fois des poissons ou des petites volailles servis entiers dans des restaurants. Mais il s'agissait de restaurants traditionnels, pas de restaurant gastronomiques. Et à chaque fois que j'ai commandé un poisson (une truite par exemple), je l'ai toujours eu entier dans mon assiette.

[@looorrainebzh]

Kevin Chartron Je n'ai jamais vu ça moi et jamais mangé dans un restaurant gastronomique.

[@n0rmal953]

Les animaux entiers ne sont pas si courant que ça a part les fruit de mers et les poissons. J'ai deja vu de volailles entières au boucher mais jamais au resto. Mais c'est vrai que ça existe mais de mon côté je ne vois pas ça souvent.

[@Kevinchartron]

Tout dépend de ce qui est proposé à la carte et de ce que vous commandez. Si vous demandez un poisson, on vous apporte un poisson. Mais si vous commandez une partie commandé une partie seulement, il ne sera évidemment pas entier (type aile de raie ou filet, par exemple). Quand on commande une truite, on a la truite entière dans son assiette.

[@looorrainebzh]

Kevin Chartron Moi je n'ai jamais vu de poisson entier ou autre donc ça ne doit pas être courant ...

[@chinchenping]

The reason we use check so much is because it is, as of today, the only payment method (other than cold cash) that is "free". Any other means of payment, the bank take a share of it, transfers, debit cards ... you name it, banks take some of it. So basically, administrations (taxes, town halls stuff like this) will usually only take checks. It's changing now since the gov is trying super hard to have everybody use transfer to cut the human cost.

[@juliendurillon7378]

By the way, did you know that the lines on the checks are actually a text printed in very small characters. The lines you write above.