I hope you guys enjoy this video, something a little different from my usual vlogs. Don’t forget to hit that like button or leave a comment below as it supports my channel. As always thank you for your support.
City girl advising on fruits and vegetables. SMH. Country folk know this. Pick it when its ripe. Start going to farmers markets in the U.S. The reason the produce from grocery stores lasts longer is because it's picked nearly green. Try this: next time you buy pears buy a few apples too. Put them together in a bag for several days. Apples emit a gas that will ripen other fruit. Works with plums, peaches etc. Of course fresh off the tree is best.
I feel like this is one of the rare french culture shocks that I totally agree with and I think it’s because I also come from California and live in Aix. A lot of the French stereotypes are really just about Paris and not French people
So awesome that you’re from Cali too. Even when I went to Paris everyone was so nice, so many people always say the French are mean or rude. Hasn’t happened yet!
May be it is because your husband speaks French. Sometimes it is because of a communication problem with non English speaking French that want to spare themselves the bother of trying to be understood or sth like that.
@@noefillon1749 I understand why Parisian people would not be happy about speaking in English with the 30th tourist they meet in a day, but you can still nicely say to them "go away", there's no need to be rude with people. I'm a french guy from normandy, and all my experiences with Parisians on the street were the same : rude answers. I get why Parisians are annoyed with tourists, since there are so many of them, but we are still human being, there's no need to be impolite
I thought everyone ate around a dinner table. I live in Boston and my parents have always made it very clear that we always sit together as a family and eat.
I remember eating at the table as a family when we were younger and as we got older we only ate at the table for holidays. Glad it’s still a tradition in your family.❤️
NO, DO NOT force your way in a roundabout unless you want to get into an accident. People inside have the priority, you have to go when you see no car coming from your left, at least on the line you're taking. For those who don't know / are not used to it, roundabouts usually have 2 or three lines in France, sometimes even more. So it may seem that you have to force your way, but you actually pass when you can. You simply have to hurry when there is no one. The only roundabout I ever had to force my way into was the one at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
In California, you can have equally good produce as in France, you just need to have a garden! We have the tastiest peaches, pears, apples all from our yard. So juicy you have to eat them outside. I do miss the wine in France. Red wine in the US makes my face flushed, nose stuffy and gives me headache (it’s not Sulfites). For some reason my face doesn’t turn red drinking the wine in France, perhaps less alcoholic there? It sucks because we live in the Sonoma wine country here.
Ughhh I still dream of having my own garden 😍 I’m glad they’re just as good as they are here. Now that you mention that about the wine in US I realized my cheeks also would get flushed from time to time.
New subbie here! Also a Cali girl living in the south of France 😌 I totally related to a lot of these culture shocks you mentioned and made a similar video on my channel! Excited to see more from you - Bienvenue 🇫🇷🥰
Great content as always! I love those comparison. Also because it gives us, french people, a different prospective on our own way of living! (Also as an Architect, toilet without a sink is not logical but it's definitely a thing...)
New subscriber here! I really like your vibe. 😍 I lived in Barcelona for 5 months and it took me a while to get used to that I cannot go grocery shopping on a Sunday because everything is closed. 😂 Another thing was definitely that so many people smoke, but that's something I have found pretty common generally in Southern Europe.
Sam Fournier actually I’m in a country suburb about 40 mins northwest of Paris. Probably head into Paris 3-4 times a week. G/f is French so I’ve been here several times over the last 2 years. Soon we take a little trip to the south. Usually argeles-Sur-mer. What’s not to love about Paris? 😀. Except it’s a bit hectic for us so glad we get to live/escape a train ride away
Hello again Sam, It still seems important to me to moderate your impressions about France and especially about children who smoke ... I'm 53 years old and I've spent all these years in France - Paris, Orléans, Perpignan (cause I'm French lol) - and I've rarely seen children smoke. Teenagers aged 15, 16, 17 okay, more rarely teenagers between 13 and 15 and this is most often in secret from parents. But children, it's still exceptional. We don't meet in France, children who smoke on every street corner. :)) Friendly,
Bonjour Sam! This was great - my hubby is french too but we live in England. I agree with lots of your culture shocks 😂. Patrice has told us to much hilarity from our boys about the Motocrotte that they used to have in Paris- the motorbikes with the job of going round hoovering up the dog poo. I don’t think they have them any more but it sounds like they still need it😂. Loved this vlog and you’re really natural and engaging in front of the camera. Well done! A bientot mon ami💜🙏🙏😊
So, a few things... there are parts of U.S. that are closed down on Sundays. Especially in the South. And on the East Coast, dinner parties are conducted like you described but Los Angeles is different. In LA, people hardly get together for dinner. It's really an LA thing and one of the negative things of LA. Smoking was a big thing back in the 90s in LA. And hitchhiking was very common in America up until the late 80s. People would hitchhike cross-country all the time. But Americans have grown less trusting of each other in recent decades. Maybe because of our movie horror culture?
@@SamFournier yeah, back in 2001, my brother and I were planning a year long backpacking trip to Europe where we'd take trains and hike across European towns. But 9/11 changed everything. I think that and Helicopter Parenting kind of took away thoughts of that kind of adventure from American youths during the last 20 years. Before 9/11 hitchhiking and backpacking wasn't that crazy of an idea. Weird how things have changed...
Bonjour Sam. I was told by a friend from Paris that in the not-too-long-ago past, children would go to the neighborhood tabac to by candy kind of how we went to 7-11 in the U.S. My friend mentioned that it may be one of the reasons why smoking starts at a young age in France. For laughs, ask your husband if he ever had réglisse when he was a child. Let him explain to you what it is. À bientôt
It seems you can only see France through American eyes, at least when this was published. I hope you’ve taken time to learn some French. That will help you understand the culture. What seems crazy at first eventually makes sense once you understand the pourquoi.
Well I am American and never traveled or learned much about other cultures and I’m so grateful for my experiences here. I am still learning day by day and am so grateful for my growth while I’ve been here❤️ Thank you for watching.
As an American, I studied in Montpelier for a year and lived in Sete. As a semi-fluid French speaker (at the time), I found the accent much easier than Parisian French. I also found the people to be much nicer and easy-going (I'm from the Southern US and found the south of France to be similar). Personally...a southern French accent was much easier to understand, as a non-native speaker. And the people were friendlier, IMO. My heritage is from Northern France (near Belgium) so I was somewhat surprised by my stereotype and reaction. I would also say, if you don't speak French...at least a good bit...your life will be difficult until you do. Learn the language (at least a bit) BEFORE you decide to move here. ALSO...as an American...LEARN THE METRIC SYSTEM. At least semi-fluently!
I have come across nothing but kind people here in France. I actually moved here unexpectedly and yes it has been difficult not speaking french but I do with what I have and am currently in French classes helping me get by until I'm fluent. Haha, yes there is lot's to adjust to here but it's definitely a blessing to be here.
I've lived in Bretagne and the South West of France. They may be nicer than Parisians (I don't think they are) but it will be way harder for you to integrate in society than in Paris. The smaller the town, the harder it will be. I have family in Bretagne, so I go there quite often. The only friend I made where people who weren't born there and didn't already have a friend circle. Even when you are with someone you know, his friends will salute them and ignore you most of the time. In the South West, it may easier to talk to stranger than in Bretagne, but it won't lead you anywhere. One of my colleague kept saying that "we should go and eat together some day" and we never did in two years :D There's a lot more people open to make new friends in Paris where there's people coming from everywhere.
Wait til France reopens. I'm going into my 13th year living in Paris. And, I don't know what they do down south, but typically restos in Paris are closed on week-ends, and most definitely Mondays, typically the 2-days they're closed are Sundays and Mondays., unless you go to a God awful tourist cafe. A/C is unheard of in Paris. Department stores you feel a wisp of air. I do know in the south buses have a/c, in Paris NO, only some trams, and they're only at a wisp. Bienvenue à France...
I loved hearing these… But I just have to add the fruits and vegetables don’t have preservatives added to them unless they’re canned or frozen. The reason they last so long in California is because they are picked before they are ripe and they are using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 💗💗💗
This is not the first US citizen in Europe video to mention the work life balance and opening hours and it is fairly common to hear things like; "your government cares for you and gives you more holidays", "the French taking care of their people" or "apparently, there's a law to give workers a day of rest". Most of these rights were not doled out like rewards by some loving and caring benefactor, they are mostly the result of workers and unions and families fighting for years, decades even, to get these conditions of employment as a right, and this is done by electing representatives and (forming) political parties that would try to implement them for the people. We all have culture shocks and sometimes they reveal much more about the person having them than perhaps they realise.
Smoking : We are trying "to give it up". Actually, it was announced this year by Macron that the objective in 2030 is to have a generation of non-smokers. Wishful thinking probably but we have to start from something.
Actually French don't find smoking as chic or anything like that. They do know it's just a poison. It is just sooo much a part of the French habits, and have been for decades that it is very difficult to get rid of it. In fact a ton of laws have been put in place since 1991 and the law Evin that forbids smoking in public places (public places have a very specific definition that I would not precise here). Taxes on cigarettes are also very high. A cigarettes pack (20 cigarettes) costs about 9.80 € which is very expensive. It is meant to discourage people to smoke (and to reimburse the state that will have to heal their cancers... my humour is quite dark sometimes).
You talk like it's legal and well accepted to urinate in the street in France. It's forbidden. The fines vary depending on the cities. In Bordeaux for example the fine is 450 €. Don't put everybody in the same bag. It's only a minority of people, mostly homeless, who pee in the street. The average French doesn't use the street as a toilet. About bathrooms and toilets, it's not always separated. In my appartment the WC and the bathroom are separated but in the previous one and the one before they were in the same room. There's a lot of things that you will think specific to France that you can find actually in other European countries. Smoking for example. If you go to Greece, it's about the same than in France.
I hope you didn’t take offense to this video, I am just explaining what I have experienced here in France after moving here from the States. I also have never been to Europe so these are all just culture shocks for me.
@@SamFournier am pretty much sure of that, i wasn't even asking, just pointing it out in case you've missed it Back in the "old good days" a famous director back then "Alfred Hitchcock" started what we now know as cameo's, appearing for a brief period in one of the movie scenes in a camouflaged way Thanks for the videos they are helpful to whom ever want to move to France like me
Oh my god you moved to LA - amazing! I’m from the UK and moved to lyon for a few months a few years ago and it was SUCH a culture shock. Great video concept x
french smoke real cigarettes less and less, it was worse in the eighties lol we see now a lot of électronic cigarette! welcome in France and your husband seems nice!
@@SamFournier dont get me wrong. It's always very interesting to have an outsider view of your own country and you seem to have genuinely experienced these things. But imagine if I went to California and did a video saying that everyone in America wears leg warmers and shoulder pads!! 😂
Drivers are not crazy. There are rules with roundabouts. Nobody forces their way. It is simply that Americans never learn what lines are for on the highway. Once you learn this simple thing, you understand roundabouts. "Public urination is disgusting" Yes, it is. Speaking frankly, i am a guy, and i never understood that. When i am really at my limit, i generally go to a random shop and ask. Sometimes they refuse, oftentimes, they accept if you are polite. I don't see guys just releasing pressure from the valve in the streets very often, but i see it sometimes. Dang, we are not in the Middle Ages anymore guys, get real. But yeah... why would they do that...? It is a mystery i never solved.
@11:07 Why not have everything together? LOL, I'm an American and I can tell you you'd be most shocked and disturbed at the level of airbourne bacteria that comes from toilets. Its an honor to separate them, trust me!!! Just think of homes equipped with "water closets" aren't connected to where your most sanitary things are #toothbrush and it's so genius!
The south of France is a lovely place with interesting food and wine. The beaches can be enjoyed for at least 5 months of the year. Nature is superb. The lifestyle is very very different from Paris and its suburbs. But I have a problem understanding the heavy "accent meridional" of uneducated people south of Valence. I have heard Occitan, and can barely tell that it's a romance language.
Hi Sam, this is so good. I’m use to the kissing 3x on the cheeks. I prefer French men over Americans. By the way, where did you get your top or dress? What brand is it? Merci beaucoup amie.
La dernière fois que j'étais à Berlin, j'ai essayé d'acheter des céréales sucrées. Le foutu commis de magasin m'a juste regardé complètement fou. J'ai dit le hel avec alors. J'ai marché dans la rue et m'a apporté un bol de gruau. Puis je suis rentré chez moi et ai vomi aussitôt dans les toilettes. Quelle mauvaise journée ce fut.
J'aime beaucoup cette vidéo parce que c'est pas tous les jours qu'on peut voir des étrangers parler le sud de la France parce que d'habitude c'est que Paris que Paris que Paris
Haha, I’m looking at graduate schools in France and I’m struggling with this. Everything I find on the internet about schools is Paris Paris Paris! Like, I just want to get to France! It doesn’t need to be Paris but everyone only wants to talk about Paris! 😂 (hopefully I understood your comment, still learning français 😆)
The south of France is absolutely stunning! When I mentioned to people that I was moving to France everyone thought it was Paris😂 Definitely so glad I ended up in Aix en Provence!
I did see a lot of candy being sold during Halloween but I didn’t know if it was celebrated since it’s my first year here and it was the first day of Confinement. Haha.
@@SamFournier Well Halloween is slowly enterin' into French youth habits and in tv adds but it's really slow, many Frenchies really keep on thinkin' Halloween is like Thanksgivin' : just an American tv series stuff which has nothin' to do in France reality.
It don't know when or why people start celebrating Halloween here. It blows my mind each year. This is just a cultural thing that appeared over night thanks to American tv shows and movies
I miss so much the aperitifs, the real cheese, the real food, real conversations, but not the dog poops, the drivers agressivity, and the insecurity. I am curious to know how it is for women now in France. So much women harassment, name calling, even grabbing if you turn into the wrong street....Would value your opinion. I love that it does not happen where I live in the US. I feel much safer than in France.
Wow! I’m surprised that happened in France as I have not experienced any of that. Coming from Los Angeles I experienced so much cat calling, harassment and I definitely felt like LA was not safe. I feel very safe living here. What area of France did you live at?
@@SamFournier I lived in many places in France, in Europe and around the world. It was very different in France before all that uncontrolled immigration of people coming from countries and cultures that despise women. In 30 years in the States, I have never been harassed once - and I am still very "harassable" ;) - Insecurity and rapes have exploded in France, and in Europe, statistics are there, as well as faits divers. It was not like this before - French's have always been flirtatious, but respectful of women. Now there is a fast growing population component in France that is very dangerous for women. Several women in my French family have been harassed, and they frequent nice and "safe" areas, called names, my nephew was severely beaten as to steal his cell phone in a very chic area in Paris. These actions are always committed by the same kind of people. You have been in France only for a few months. Just be careful and stay safe. I mean it.
@Kiki Kiki I’m French, I have left almost 15 years ago. But this comment was valid. Many of my overseas friends had the same candid experience without any preconceptions
i think theres a sense of nationalism w the french or at least aggressive pride like they see themselves as being super openminded and free spirited and free thinkers but if you discuss anything that compares France to anyone else suddenly its a competition and theyre unable to view things objectively.
les gens, qui urinent dans la rue, peuvent se faire prendre par des policiers en civil et avoir une forte amende ... idem pour ceux qui jètent leur cigarette par terre ...
you talk about it being tough for US people, grow thicker skin. she is simply talking about her experience, she never said she was miserable. sorry it hurts your feelings.
Paul, I'll help you fund her return flight to L.A. In the meantime, keep your eyes open for a woman who is not so easily "shocked" by everything that's not american.
Not everyone is bitter about their life Karen. You must only talk to yourself since you are that annoyed about someone having a different reaction than yourself. If you don't like the content why even watch it
I can't stand the French dinners/get togethers. They always go on and on and on and on up to 8 hours. The typical start at 19 H and can end at 6 am the next moring. Not thanks.
@@SamFournier Where I am in France they like to start their gatherings far too late and go on for far too long. I simply don't have the patience to sit at a the diner table for more then 45 min. And they tend to just talk for hours on end at the table and the food gets cold. I get board and want to be back home by 10 pm. But these are usually with my Husbands coworkers I tell him he already spend 40 hours a week with them so why make it more? They have to celebrate every little work related event out of the office on weekends or week nights. I simply cannot understand. With his family it is much different and enjoyable and his family know that I am American and understand that I am not trying to be rude when I do things differently then them. There was on time that I did not mind because the hostess have spent a good bit of the time in the US and know how Americans are so they were able to keep me entertained.
Moi, ce qui me choque, c'est que vous êtes en France, et que vous ne soyez pas capable d'aligner 2 mots en Français.. Et, de raconter de telles conneries, avec un verre de rosé à la main, ça c'est un stéréotype Américain. Facile de toujours cracher sur les autres, mais pourquoi être partie des States si c'est pour critiquer le pays qui vous accueille ? PAs contente ? Retour pays.
I just moved here and it was an unexpected move so that I could be with my husband. I never knew I would end up in France, that is why I don’t speak the language yet. I am not talking down on the country whatsoever, I love it here. I’m just sharing the culture shocks that I experienced. Whenever someone enters another country there are always going to be things that they are not used to or have never experienced, I am just sharing mine. I’m sorry you took offense to it. That is never my intention on this channel, it’s to share my experience on living life abroad. All the best to you.
Pfff vous êtes ridicule là. Elle dit ce qu'elle a vu et en quoi c'est différent de chez-elle. Si elle n'en avait dit que du bien ça aurait été malhonnête. Je trouve que la vidéo dans son ensemble n'est quand même pas pas vraiment à charge. Elle nous est plutôt favorable. Vous parlez de conneries mais vous n'en citez pas une seule. Bref une critique qui me semble infondée (jusqu'à preuve du contraire) et surtout absolument pas constructive. Pour la langue je pense qu'elle est mieux à même de se défendre que moi.
I find the speaker to be the typical "fresh off the boat" american who does the superficial critique of things that are different; but she lacks the curiosity to learn why. She repeatedly says, "I'll never understand why." Hopefully with time she learns to ask "why" instead of just thinking if it's different, it's weird. Just sayin'. Some travelers judge and sound like snotty superior Americans leaving the US for the first time on a high school field trip. Others transcend the differences-are-weird mentality and grow. (Ex-Californian now living in France.)
I hope you guys enjoy this video, something a little different from my usual vlogs. Don’t forget to hit that like button or leave a comment below as it supports my channel. As always thank you for your support.
Do you think the men peeing are washing away the dog pooh?
City girl advising on fruits and vegetables. SMH. Country folk know this. Pick it when its ripe. Start going to farmers markets in the U.S. The reason the produce from grocery stores lasts longer is because it's picked nearly green. Try this: next time you buy pears buy a few apples too. Put them together in a bag for several days. Apples emit a gas that will ripen other fruit. Works with plums, peaches etc. Of course fresh off the tree is best.
@@retireorbust Thanks for the tip on using the apples, so good to know!
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Bonjour! Very off-topic, but may I ask: where is your top from? It’s so pretty! 💕 Hope you have adjusted well since posting this video.
I feel like this is one of the rare french culture shocks that I totally agree with and I think it’s because I also come from California and live in Aix. A lot of the French stereotypes are really just about Paris and not French people
So awesome that you’re from Cali too. Even when I went to Paris everyone was so nice, so many people always say the French are mean or rude. Hasn’t happened yet!
@@SamFournier Yeah or if someone is rude or whatever that’s just more of a people problem not a French problem
May be it is because your husband speaks French. Sometimes it is because of a communication problem with non English speaking French that want to spare themselves the bother of trying to be understood or sth like that.
@@noefillon1749 I understand why Parisian people would not be happy about speaking in English with the 30th tourist they meet in a day, but you can still nicely say to them "go away", there's no need to be rude with people. I'm a french guy from normandy, and all my experiences with Parisians on the street were the same : rude answers. I get why Parisians are annoyed with tourists, since there are so many of them, but we are still human being, there's no need to be impolite
Love the fact about fresh produce. It's so true. This is why I love France. Great food and socialising culture.
It’s so delicious🍅🍓🍷
I'm surprised you saw so many hitchhikers! It was common in the 1980s, and the last time I saw one was probably 20 years ago.
I was shocked, I’ve seen young girls, an elderly gentleman and some young men. That was all within the first month of me being here!
I thought everyone ate around a dinner table. I live in Boston and my parents have always made it very clear that we always sit together as a family and eat.
I remember eating at the table as a family when we were younger and as we got older we only ate at the table for holidays. Glad it’s still a tradition in your family.❤️
Keep up sharing. I will arrive in south France in May 2021 to stay a year.
How lovely!
Si j'ai bien tout compris vous avez quitté le sud de la France🤔
You forgot to mention how handsome french men are 😂
Fournier’s Adventures Well that’s a given, I married one!
They really are.
....
Maybe I should move to France… /j
NO, DO NOT force your way in a roundabout unless you want to get into an accident. People inside have the priority, you have to go when you see no car coming from your left, at least on the line you're taking. For those who don't know / are not used to it, roundabouts usually have 2 or three lines in France, sometimes even more. So it may seem that you have to force your way, but you actually pass when you can. You simply have to hurry when there is no one. The only roundabout I ever had to force my way into was the one at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
Good thing I don't drive!
@@SamFournier Ahah it's a habit.
In California, you can have equally good produce as in France, you just need to have a garden! We have the tastiest peaches, pears, apples all from our yard. So juicy you have to eat them outside. I do miss the wine in France. Red wine in the US makes my face flushed, nose stuffy and gives me headache (it’s not Sulfites). For some reason my face doesn’t turn red drinking the wine in France, perhaps less alcoholic there? It sucks because we live in the Sonoma wine country here.
Ughhh I still dream of having my own garden 😍 I’m glad they’re just as good as they are here. Now that you mention that about the wine in US I realized my cheeks also would get flushed from time to time.
I love this video. Very interesting for me a French Guy! Really need to discuss about this together! Hope you’ll publish more video like this
I’m glad you liked it! We will definitely discuss the culture Shocks. I’m interested on the culture shocks you faced in America.
SAM!!!!! This is the first time I'm getting to binge watch your videos and I'm super excited to watch!!
Oh my goodness! I feel so honored that you’re watching my videos. You are such an amazing creator and I absolutely love your energy and content ❤️
New subbie here! Also a Cali girl living in the south of France 😌 I totally related to a lot of these culture shocks you mentioned and made a similar video on my channel! Excited to see more from you - Bienvenue 🇫🇷🥰
What a small world! There is so many more culture shocks, glad you could relate!❤️🤗
I love your videos of the sights and sounds of France but I loved this one. It was so informative! Dan and I were like "what?!". Loving your bangs
Ana Baisa thanks Mama! Miss you guys a lot. I’m glad you enjoyed this video, I’ll start including more videos like this in my channel.
🤔 Bangs ??? what are bangs 🙁?
@@davewebster6945 it’s the way the hair is cut and falls on my forehead.
@@SamFournier Aha, thank you Sam for enlightening my darkness 😊👍🏽.
One comment: fruits last longer in the US because there are full of...of...? I let you finish the sentence :)
Right?! The fruit in my house (I’m from Portugal) lasts maximum 1 week
Great video! I'm surprised that you didn't bring up the pink toilet paper. 😂
😂😂😂 that was definitely a culture shock
@@SamFournier For me, too. Super thin and cheap! 🤣
Great content as always! I love those comparison. Also because it gives us, french people, a different prospective on our own way of living! (Also as an Architect, toilet without a sink is not logical but it's definitely a thing...)
MHelldoon Merci Beaucoup!
Sometimes there is a little sink in the toilets' room
New subscriber here! I really like your vibe. 😍 I lived in Barcelona for 5 months and it took me a while to get used to that I cannot go grocery shopping on a Sunday because everything is closed. 😂 Another thing was definitely that so many people smoke, but that's something I have found pretty common generally in Southern Europe.
Thank you so much for subscribing. That must have been a lovely experience to live in Barcelona❤️
Loved this! Perhaps an updated version? Or how you’ve now gotten used to these shocks?
Haha, yes. This was when I first arrived, I definitely need to do an updated version.
Bonjour from Paris. Going to be here 3 months myself. Also previously from SoCal
hsc3 knives Bienvenue! How do you like Paris? I’m located in Aix-en-Provence and am in heaven!
Sam Fournier actually I’m in a country suburb about 40 mins northwest of Paris. Probably head into Paris 3-4 times a week. G/f is French so I’ve been here several times over the last 2 years. Soon we take a little trip to the south. Usually argeles-Sur-mer. What’s not to love about Paris? 😀. Except it’s a bit hectic for us so glad we get to live/escape a train ride away
hsc3 knives sounds like the perfect set up!
Hello again Sam, It still seems important to me to moderate your impressions about France and especially about children who smoke ... I'm 53 years old and I've spent all these years in France - Paris, Orléans, Perpignan (cause I'm French lol) - and I've rarely seen children smoke. Teenagers aged 15, 16, 17 okay, more rarely teenagers between 13 and 15 and this is most often in secret from parents. But children, it's still exceptional. We don't meet in France, children who smoke on every street corner. :))
Friendly,
When I say children I meant teenagers. Sorry for the miscommunication.
Bonjour Sam! This was great - my hubby is french too but we live in England. I agree with lots of your culture shocks 😂. Patrice has told us to much hilarity from our boys about the Motocrotte that they used to have in Paris- the motorbikes with the job of going round hoovering up the dog poo. I don’t think they have them any more but it sounds like they still need it😂. Loved this vlog and you’re really natural and engaging in front of the camera. Well done! A bientot mon ami💜🙏🙏😊
Thank you so much for watching and for the feedback. That is so hilarious, they definitely need to bring that job back😂
So, a few things... there are parts of U.S. that are closed down on Sundays. Especially in the South. And on the East Coast, dinner parties are conducted like you described but Los Angeles is different. In LA, people hardly get together for dinner. It's really an LA thing and one of the negative things of LA. Smoking was a big thing back in the 90s in LA. And hitchhiking was very common in America up until the late 80s. People would hitchhike cross-country all the time. But Americans have grown less trusting of each other in recent decades. Maybe because of our movie horror culture?
Wow, I never knew there were some similarities in other parts of the US.
@@SamFournier yeah, back in 2001, my brother and I were planning a year long backpacking trip to Europe where we'd take trains and hike across European towns. But 9/11 changed everything. I think that and Helicopter Parenting kind of took away thoughts of that kind of adventure from American youths during the last 20 years. Before 9/11 hitchhiking and backpacking wasn't that crazy of an idea. Weird how things have changed...
Restrooms are pretty recent so its separated because theres not much place.
That makes sense. Thanks for watching.😊
Bonjour Sam. I was told by a friend from Paris that in the not-too-long-ago past, children would go to the neighborhood tabac to by candy kind of how we went to 7-11 in the U.S. My friend mentioned that it may be one of the reasons why smoking starts at a young age in France. For laughs, ask your husband if he ever had réglisse when he was a child. Let him explain to you what it is. À bientôt
It seems you can only see France through American eyes, at least when this was published. I hope you’ve taken time to learn some French. That will help you understand the culture. What seems crazy at first eventually makes sense once you understand the pourquoi.
Well I am American and never traveled or learned much about other cultures and I’m so grateful for my experiences here. I am still learning day by day and am so grateful for my growth while I’ve been here❤️ Thank you for watching.
7:37 Look at the mirror behind. ;)
Haha, we learned not to have those mirrors there 😂😂😂😂
First time to your channel. Thanks, Sam, for sharing your candid first impressions.
Thanks so much for watching Virginia☺️ I hope you have a lovely day!
I enjoyed this. I had to stop halfway through, but it's a chill to hear you talk about your experience there.
Thank you so much for watching!
@@SamFournier My pleasure. 🙂
New Subbie. I’m going to be living vicariously through you so make it good! 👍🏼💕🌿
Aww thank you so much! I will try not to disappoint
I don’t think I’d be able to get over the dog poop ridden streets! It’s good to see you Sammy! Cheers 🥂
crucialxdood haha, neither can I. At least the beauty France has to offer makes up for it. Santé🥂
As an American, I studied in Montpelier for a year and lived in Sete. As a semi-fluid French speaker (at the time), I found the accent much easier than Parisian French. I also found the people to be much nicer and easy-going (I'm from the Southern US and found the south of France to be similar). Personally...a southern French accent was much easier to understand, as a non-native speaker. And the people were friendlier, IMO. My heritage is from Northern France (near Belgium) so I was somewhat surprised by my stereotype and reaction. I would also say, if you don't speak French...at least a good bit...your life will be difficult until you do. Learn the language (at least a bit) BEFORE you decide to move here. ALSO...as an American...LEARN THE METRIC SYSTEM. At least semi-fluently!
I have come across nothing but kind people here in France. I actually moved here unexpectedly and yes it has been difficult not speaking french but I do with what I have and am currently in French classes helping me get by until I'm fluent. Haha, yes there is lot's to adjust to here but it's definitely a blessing to be here.
I've lived in Bretagne and the South West of France. They may be nicer than Parisians (I don't think they are) but it will be way harder for you to integrate in society than in Paris. The smaller the town, the harder it will be.
I have family in Bretagne, so I go there quite often. The only friend I made where people who weren't born there and didn't already have a friend circle. Even when you are with someone you know, his friends will salute them and ignore you most of the time.
In the South West, it may easier to talk to stranger than in Bretagne, but it won't lead you anywhere. One of my colleague kept saying that "we should go and eat together some day" and we never did in two years :D
There's a lot more people open to make new friends in Paris where there's people coming from everywhere.
Wait til France reopens. I'm going into my 13th year living in Paris. And, I don't know what they do down south, but typically restos in Paris are closed on week-ends, and most definitely Mondays, typically the 2-days they're closed are Sundays and Mondays., unless you go to a God awful tourist cafe.
A/C is unheard of in Paris. Department stores you feel a wisp of air. I do know in the south buses have a/c, in Paris NO, only some trams, and they're only at a wisp.
Bienvenue à France...
Thank you for the welcome! Wow, 13 years is a long time. I’m very excited for France to open up so I can truly experience everything.
Even if I am French, I still do not understand why people let their dog poop on the floor 😑😮💨😵💫 it is so dirty and annoying.
Nice video 🌷✨️
Haha, I don’t get it either. I will say the French dogs are so well behaved here.
I loved hearing these… But I just have to add the fruits and vegetables don’t have preservatives added to them unless they’re canned or frozen. The reason they last so long in California is because they are picked before they are ripe and they are using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 💗💗💗
You are absolutely right!
Nice video :)
Paulo, on te voit dans le miroir :p
😂😂😂
Hello new subscriber! I had empathy with you being from LA and married to a French man :). Subscribed and loved the video ❤️🤗
Thanks for watching, I’m so glad you enjoyed it ❤️
thank you for using day dream breeze in your video!
Thank you for creating it ❤️
I have a question are the hospitals also closed on Sundays?
This is not the first US citizen in Europe video to mention the work life balance and opening hours and it is fairly common to hear things like; "your government cares for you and gives you more holidays", "the French taking care of their people" or "apparently, there's a law to give workers a day of rest".
Most of these rights were not doled out like rewards by some loving and caring benefactor, they are mostly the result of workers and unions and families fighting for years, decades even, to get these conditions of employment as a right, and this is done by electing representatives and (forming) political parties that would try to implement them for the people.
We all have culture shocks and sometimes they reveal much more about the person having them than perhaps they realise.
I loved the moles and frites (mussels and fries) in Nice. So many options and so delicious.
I still haven’t had the pleasure of visiting Nice but once lockdown is lifted that will be my next stop!
😂north of France and Belgium are the most famous for the « moules frites »
I hate the kissing too even though I’m French 😂
Haha, I was hoping I’d get used to it.
Bah c'est culturel, je crois. Perso je trouve leur "hug" terriblement intime, beaucoup plus !
Smoking : We are trying "to give it up". Actually, it was announced this year by Macron that the objective in 2030 is to have a generation of non-smokers. Wishful thinking probably but we have to start from something.
I love it and definitely have hope!
Actually French don't find smoking as chic or anything like that. They do know it's just a poison. It is just sooo much a part of the French habits, and have been for decades that it is very difficult to get rid of it. In fact a ton of laws have been put in place since 1991 and the law Evin that forbids smoking in public places (public places have a very specific definition that I would not precise here). Taxes on cigarettes are also very high. A cigarettes pack (20 cigarettes) costs about 9.80 € which is very expensive. It is meant to discourage people to smoke (and to reimburse the state that will have to heal their cancers... my humour is quite dark sometimes).
Try open heart surgery. That's how I quit.
You talk like it's legal and well accepted to urinate in the street in France. It's forbidden. The fines vary depending on the cities. In Bordeaux for example the fine is 450 €.
Don't put everybody in the same bag. It's only a minority of people, mostly homeless, who pee in the street. The average French doesn't use the street as a toilet.
About bathrooms and toilets, it's not always separated. In my appartment the WC and the bathroom are separated but in the previous one and the one before they were in the same room.
There's a lot of things that you will think specific to France that you can find actually in other European countries. Smoking for example. If you go to Greece, it's about the same than in France.
I hope you didn’t take offense to this video, I am just explaining what I have experienced here in France after moving here from the States. I also have never been to Europe so these are all just culture shocks for me.
I could also smell urine especially on the side streets. I was there for Bastille Day and party time at night.
at exactly 9:40 a head pub up in the small rounded mirror behind you
😂😂😂 It’s my husband
@@SamFournier am pretty much sure of that, i wasn't even asking, just pointing it out in case you've missed it
Back in the "old good days" a famous director back then "Alfred Hitchcock" started what we now know as cameo's, appearing for a brief period in one of the movie scenes in a camouflaged way
Thanks for the videos they are helpful to whom ever want to move to France like me
Oh my god you moved to LA - amazing! I’m from the UK and moved to lyon for a few months a few years ago and it was SUCH a culture shock. Great video concept x
That’s awesome you lived in France for a while. I can’t wait to go to the UK. Thanks for watching
french smoke real cigarettes less and less, it was worse in the eighties lol we see now a lot of électronic cigarette! welcome in France and your husband seems nice!
I’m glad it’s less and less, I like that they put pictures of what can happen on the packaging. As far as my husband goes, he’s alright I guess😝
Hitchhiking? Everybody smoking? Did you go to France in the 80s?
I work in a school in France and out of 50 teachers, about 4 smoke.
Now that you say that it does sound like the 80s but I just moved here and that is what I’ve experienced so far.
@@SamFournier dont get me wrong. It's always very interesting to have an outsider view of your own country and you seem to have genuinely experienced these things. But imagine if I went to California and did a video saying that everyone in America wears leg warmers and shoulder pads!! 😂
Thanks for the like on my reply!! 😊
Drivers are not crazy. There are rules with roundabouts. Nobody forces their way. It is simply that Americans never learn what lines are for on the highway. Once you learn this simple thing, you understand roundabouts.
"Public urination is disgusting" Yes, it is. Speaking frankly, i am a guy, and i never understood that. When i am really at my limit, i generally go to a random shop and ask. Sometimes they refuse, oftentimes, they accept if you are polite. I don't see guys just releasing pressure from the valve in the streets very often, but i see it sometimes. Dang, we are not in the Middle Ages anymore guys, get real. But yeah... why would they do that...? It is a mystery i never solved.
Oh they get all up on ya while waiting for your food in line! And they will pass you up if you’re not paying attention!
So true! I’ve been cut in line plenty of times haha.
😂 I thought so until I lived in China. On a scale of 10, USA is 1, France 3 and China 9 😄
@11:07 Why not have everything together? LOL, I'm an American and I can tell you you'd be most shocked and disturbed at the level of airbourne bacteria that comes from toilets. Its an honor to separate them, trust me!!! Just think of homes equipped with "water closets" aren't connected to where your most sanitary things are #toothbrush and it's so genius!
I never thought of it this way. So true, now I’m grateful😂😂😂😂
@@SamFournier 😂👌🏾
The south of France is a lovely place with interesting food and wine. The beaches can be enjoyed for at least 5 months of the year. Nature is superb. The lifestyle is very very different from Paris and its suburbs. But I have a problem understanding the heavy "accent meridional" of uneducated people south of Valence. I have heard Occitan, and can barely tell that it's a romance language.
I can’t wait to enjoy the beaches next year
Did you just said people with accent are uneducated or something around those lines?
@@kesleygeorge6093 Clear your mind of preconceptions, then reread what I wrote.
@@lylecosmopolitethats litterally what you said though
@@pierren___ You have misunderstood me.
Hi Sam, this is so good. I’m use to the kissing 3x on the cheeks. I prefer French men over Americans.
By the way, where did you get your top or dress? What brand is it? Merci beaucoup amie.
Sam, do you have American Indian ancestry? I am part Cherokee.
My Mom did one of those 23 and me DNA tests and she had some Native American in the results. I hope to do one of those DNA tests one day.
La dernière fois que j'étais à Berlin, j'ai essayé d'acheter des céréales sucrées. Le foutu commis de magasin m'a juste regardé complètement fou. J'ai dit le hel avec alors. J'ai marché dans la rue et m'a apporté un bol de gruau. Puis je suis rentré chez moi et ai vomi aussitôt dans les toilettes. Quelle mauvaise journée ce fut.
Oh honey… if think French driving is bad….. u rlly don’t want to be in India
😂😂😂 I’d probably have a ton of anxiety.
J'aime beaucoup cette vidéo parce que c'est pas tous les jours qu'on peut voir des étrangers parler le sud de la France parce que d'habitude c'est que Paris que Paris que Paris
Haha, I’m looking at graduate schools in France and I’m struggling with this. Everything I find on the internet about schools is Paris Paris Paris! Like, I just want to get to France! It doesn’t need to be Paris but everyone only wants to talk about Paris! 😂 (hopefully I understood your comment, still learning français 😆)
@@pooploops bonne chance
espérant que en France ça va bien se passer
The south of France is absolutely stunning! When I mentioned to people that I was moving to France everyone thought it was Paris😂 Definitely so glad I ended up in Aix en Provence!
@@SamFournier it could definitely be worse 😂😂😂
@@TheFrederic888 very true
Oh the fragile butterfly.......
You forget also : no Halloween in France, and no heavy-metal on French mainstream medias.
there is Halloween in France lol
I did see a lot of candy being sold during Halloween but I didn’t know if it was celebrated since it’s my first year here and it was the first day of Confinement. Haha.
@@SamFournier Well Halloween is slowly enterin' into French youth habits and in tv adds but it's really slow, many Frenchies really keep on thinkin' Halloween is like Thanksgivin' : just an American tv series stuff which has nothin' to do in France reality.
It don't know when or why people start celebrating Halloween here. It blows my mind each year. This is just a cultural thing that appeared over night thanks to American tv shows and movies
France is not 1 culture... the south is really different than nord/ Paris....
I miss so much the aperitifs, the real cheese, the real food, real conversations, but not the dog poops, the drivers agressivity, and the insecurity. I am curious to know how it is for women now in France. So much women harassment, name calling, even grabbing if you turn into the wrong street....Would value your opinion. I love that it does not happen where I live in the US. I feel much safer than in France.
Wow! I’m surprised that happened in France as I have not experienced any of that. Coming from Los Angeles I experienced so much cat calling, harassment and I definitely felt like LA was not safe. I feel very safe living here. What area of France did you live at?
@@SamFournier I lived in many places in France, in Europe and around the world. It was very different in France before all that uncontrolled immigration of people coming from countries and cultures that despise women. In 30 years in the States, I have never been harassed once - and I am still very "harassable" ;) - Insecurity and rapes have exploded in France, and in Europe, statistics are there, as well as faits divers. It was not like this before - French's have always been flirtatious, but respectful of women. Now there is a fast growing population component in France that is very dangerous for women. Several women in my French family have been harassed, and they frequent nice and "safe" areas, called names, my nephew was severely beaten as to steal his cell phone in a very chic area in Paris. These actions are always committed by the same kind of people. You have been in France only for a few months. Just be careful and stay safe. I mean it.
@@mrsmarple9756 so scary, thank you for the warnings and I’m so sorry for your family members having to deal with this.
@Kiki Kiki I’m French, I have left almost 15 years ago. But this comment was valid. Many of my overseas friends had the same candid experience without any preconceptions
@@TheFrederic888 ..
You look Mexican American. How did you find a french husband?
I am Mexican American ❤️ I met my husband on a dating app, Bumble🐝😊
@@SamFournier Thanks! I will try it!!
Is this dog poop thing, a thing in Paris too?
Yes, definitely!
I can see Paul in the little mirror.. lol. Hi Paul!
🤣🤣🤣
i think theres a sense of nationalism w the french or at least aggressive pride like they see themselves as being super openminded and free spirited and free thinkers but if you discuss anything that compares France to anyone else suddenly its a competition and theyre unable to view things objectively.
You can critize France as much as you like, actually it’s a national sport. The only condition is that you have to be French 😄
We are superior
les gens, qui urinent dans la rue, peuvent se faire prendre par des policiers en civil et avoir une forte amende ... idem pour ceux qui jètent leur cigarette par terre ...
Salut les Fourniers ! 👌
Diego Castaneda Velarde Salut!👋🏼
Did you get out of France? You sounded pretty miserable there. Old continent be tough place for US people?
She talked about many things she likes in France. Did you miss that?
you talk about it being tough for US people, grow thicker skin. she is simply talking about her experience, she never said she was miserable. sorry it hurts your feelings.
Paul, I'll help you fund her return flight to L.A. In the meantime, keep your eyes open for a woman who is not so easily "shocked" by everything that's not american.
Not everyone is bitter about their life Karen. You must only talk to yourself since you are that annoyed about someone having a different reaction than yourself. If you don't like the content why even watch it
I can't stand the French dinners/get togethers. They always go on and on and on and on up to 8 hours. The typical start at 19 H and can end at 6 am the next moring. Not thanks.
8 hours! Wow! I agree that it’s too much. I haven’t been to a get together that’s that long yet.
@@SamFournier Where I am in France they like to start their gatherings far too late and go on for far too long. I simply don't have the patience to sit at a the diner table for more then 45 min. And they tend to just talk for hours on end at the table and the food gets cold. I get board and want to be back home by 10 pm. But these are usually with my Husbands coworkers I tell him he already spend 40 hours a week with them so why make it more? They have to celebrate every little work related event out of the office on weekends or week nights. I simply cannot understand. With his family it is much different and enjoyable and his family know that I am American and understand that I am not trying to be rude when I do things differently then them. There was on time that I did not mind because the hostess have spent a good bit of the time in the US and know how Americans are so they were able to keep me entertained.
I'm French and have NEVER experienced a dinner that long 🤨
@@kesleygeorge6093 it must be a department thing then. In the area I live they go on and on and on.
Moi, ce qui me choque, c'est que vous êtes en France, et que vous ne soyez pas capable d'aligner 2 mots en Français.. Et, de raconter de telles conneries, avec un verre de rosé à la main, ça c'est un stéréotype Américain. Facile de toujours cracher sur les autres, mais pourquoi être partie des States si c'est pour critiquer le pays qui vous accueille ? PAs contente ? Retour pays.
I just moved here and it was an unexpected move so that I could be with my husband. I never knew I would end up in France, that is why I don’t speak the language yet. I am not talking down on the country whatsoever, I love it here. I’m just sharing the culture shocks that I experienced. Whenever someone enters another country there are always going to be things that they are not used to or have never experienced, I am just sharing mine. I’m sorry you took offense to it. That is never my intention on this channel, it’s to share my experience on living life abroad. All the best to you.
Pfff vous êtes ridicule là. Elle dit ce qu'elle a vu et en quoi c'est différent de chez-elle. Si elle n'en avait dit que du bien ça aurait été malhonnête. Je trouve que la vidéo dans son ensemble n'est quand même pas pas vraiment à charge. Elle nous est plutôt favorable.
Vous parlez de conneries mais vous n'en citez pas une seule. Bref une critique qui me semble infondée (jusqu'à preuve du contraire) et surtout absolument pas constructive.
Pour la langue je pense qu'elle est mieux à même de se défendre que moi.
I find the speaker to be the typical "fresh off the boat" american who does the superficial critique of things that are different; but she lacks the curiosity to learn why. She repeatedly says, "I'll never understand why." Hopefully with time she learns to ask "why" instead of just thinking if it's different, it's weird. Just sayin'. Some travelers judge and sound like snotty superior Americans leaving the US for the first time on a high school field trip. Others transcend the differences-are-weird mentality and grow. (Ex-Californian now living in France.)
To me the video was a candid representation of first impressions. Not overly judgmental and no “snotty” attitude. Careful how YOU judge people.