I wear jeans all the time on long haul international flights, and I'm not French, I'm Italian-American. I wouldn't think of wearing sweatpants or shorts, or flip-flops, on a flight. It just seems incredibly slovenly to me.
@@corycianangel6321 French comics are more like graphic novels. The majority of them are made for adult readers. They cover as various topics as written novels do. The graphic book « My Friend Dahmer » by Derf Backderf is considered as a comics in France. I hope that my answer did help.
Come on. Eating grapes with a fork? I'm French and I have never seen anything like that. By the way a lot of people eat hamburgers or pizzas without using a fork or a knife.
I now live in Australia and always eat burgers and pizzas with the hands but true in France, I actually used to eat fries with a fork in a restaurant, i would not fit in anymore 😂 Let's not push it for the grapes though, always with my hands, life is way too short to use a fork 🤦
@@r.s5918 Well, I personnally do both : I usually start my pizza with cutlery when it's hot and then I end up with my hands ! Same for hamburgers, unless they're too big to be eaten with the hands ! And for french fries, I do both too... and I'm French !
The thing about Halloween, st Patrick's day or even valentines day is that they are recent imports from the American way of life so a lot of people don't get why we should celebrate those holidays.
Of course I don't expect all French people to celebrate American holidays. But if you're married to an American who enjoys those holidays, it's frankly ridiculous to not want to celebrate them.
Please Robin. Feature in a video to share what it is like living with an American woman, as a French man. It would be very educational and interesting to get this perspective.
It seems like everything about American culture is about consumption (many celebration, snacking, decoration for every parties which last only one night...). They think all of that is their choice but the society just pushes them to consume as much as possible. (I am not saying it is not like that in Europe but far less)
@@cindland haha that's called binging ! And in france it is known to be one of the root cause for obesity so we tend to be disciplined about when to eat :) and normally if you have well balanced meals you don't need to eat when ever ! :)
@@PilotVianney I would love to eat that way. But life and schedule craziness in the US doesn’t make it easy! At my job in a high school, we get literally 25 mins for lunch. After restroom and waking to the lunch room, 10 minutes is gone. Then if you need to make a phone call or walk to your car for something...times up!! Just one small example.
I'm french and I have to say, I was very surprised when I heard that people in the US go out in sportswear, reaaally surprised about them wearing flip flops outside of the beach, and just out of my mind when I saw videos of people in their pyjamas at college or at the grocery store! I would never think about doing that in France, and if I ever did people would think I'm going to a costume party of some sort haha!
im american and when I was living in france I always felt like i had to look nice going to the grocery store. I definitely basically wore pajamas to go to class in university haha- its just normal here. people prioritize comfort over style.
@@mirka I don't know of anyone who leaves breadcrumbs trails in their place. Sure, it can happen that a few crumbs will fall on the floor when you carry the bread from the kitchen to the dinner table for instance, but unless you live in a pighouse, you don't leave them on the floor, and this just happens by accident. Yet, don't believe that every single household in France is inhabited by people who dress up every day, eat with forks and knives and clean their houses. Some people just don't, by lack of education, lack of time, laziness, or mere "I don't give a sh*t" attitude. About 67 million people live in France, so you will definitely find all sorts of behaviors, habits, customs, differences between regions (north and south, east and west, etc.), ethnic origins, wealth, education... It's not homogeneous. There are common trends, but also clichés and stereotypes that only represent the "average" French person.
Hi ! I'm french, and I don't really see myself in your examples ^^ I usually wear casual clothes at home and it really doesn't bother me opening to neighbours or postman wearing a short and a tshirt, but of course I dress up when I go out. Forks and knives are usefull when you don't want to make a mess with your meal ! Pizzas are not often pre-sliced here, so it's kinda normal to me. And for burgers, if we're talking about crap fast food, we eat that with fingers just like everybody, but when you cook a nice home made burger with a fresh steak, good cheese and everything, you just can't eat that without dropping everything everywhere. For celebrations, well ... from my point of view, it's creepy to overjoy everything. At some point, it's like it's fake and in a way you HAVE to buy tons of stuffs to impress everybody and not be the grumpy one.
Your remarks are exact for hamburger and other things like for the opening to neighbours. But a lot of French are like she says in her points. Bread, I can't have a diner if there's not a good "baguette" lol. Only when I eat asian food I do an exception. :)
I don't really understand what you call "casual wear". I only wear old, ragged jeans and a shapeless sweatshirt when gardening, cleaning, or doing crafts. But as soon as I'm done doing that, I put on normal clothes that I can go to stores in or see friends with. For burgers, I don't know, I never eat them (I hate chewy burger buns and I don't like cooked ground beef).
The BD thing it's not only a French thing. It's a French-speaker's thing. BD and graphic novels are highly respected in the French world. We grew up with them. Talk to any French, Belgian, Swiss or Québécois and they will tell you their BD are important. I still have my parents' collection of Tintin, Astérix, Gaston Lagaffe or Lucky Luke. I'm not a huge BD buyer but I would gladly read those of my friends.
I'm really with your Robin on the 'make an effort in the clothing' department. Here on the west coast of Canada it actually kinda bugs me when you go out for a nice meal or concert (in an alternate universe of course) and people are wearing their yoga clothes. Doesn't have to be fancy, but a little effort creates the ritual of 'this is something special worth celebrating.' Even if it's for a Friday night dinner date at home. Maybe that's just the French part of my ancestry coming out, or my love of costumes :)
Haha I snuck my snack and watched the whole thing in my sweats. You nailed it! (French hubby agrees! 😂). I’d add “you don’t waste ANYTHING.” I even had ne pas gaspiller in my wedding vows.
Wasting is a great one! I loveeee that about French culture. Something that its rubbing off on me more and more, but i'm not as frenchified in that as i should be! Also love the sweats and sweets while watching ;)
As a French living in US, I completely get it. Yeah I work from home, yeah I still dress up every day... I mean I need to walk the dog. Walking the dog in sweatpants is inappropriate :D
Lol then I'm sure u see 'inappropriate' ppl every day bc Americans just don't give a crap about what they look like when they are going out in public to do a quick errand. Yoga pants and sweat pants have become part of our culture at this point 😆
@@rockinchik06 Well for us it is a kind of mark of respect for the other people, to make the effort not looking too casual :) so yeah I would also find it strange to get out in yoga pants for myself even if everyone did, but that's a cultural habit...
@@jeromecorsi2126 I understand that. I am an American who has been living in Korea for the last 5 years, and Koreans rarely, if ever, leave their apartment building in casual/home clothes as well. But as a woman I think women have different perspectives than men. For example, all men have to do is change clothes. That's so easy. But women have to put on makeup and fix our hair on top of that. And that 30 mins-1 hr of work is not worth going out to do a quick errand just to please other ppl visually. It's kind of ridiculous in my opinion.
Except most Americans wouldn't take it as an insult, bc pb&js are a good cheap lunch, ha. And with French bread and French jam, I'm sure it'd taste even better, 😄
Mmmm... I really like being casual American. I mean if I'm not going anywhere I'm often in sweatpants and a t shirt. Also, I like to snack whenever I want to. I eat pizza, breaded shrimp and, --- natch, grapes with my fingers, and don't think anything of it. I would like to see Robin make a cameo. ;)
This was perfect! Sometimes I think I would prefer the french way of life over the american but I think i'd miss eating pizza with my hands in sweatpants at an "inappropriate" time of the day. I'd love to see Robin's version of this
You know a lot of people stay home in pyjamas (as I am right now) and eat pizza without any fork and knife (just as I did last week). I guess it depends on the generations.. but still.
OMG Laughed so hard! You are truly hilarious. Could relate to quite a few of these points so some may also be a European guy thing. My hubby was shocked the first time I insisted on going to the supermarket in sweat pants and asked me if I was gonna change! 😂 Oh and don't get me started on eating pizza with a knife and fork!
😂😂😂 Regarding eating time you absolutely right. I live in the UK for for more than 15 years now and I still have my french eating habit. Even when I tried to eat at different schedule, it felt like I was committing a crime😂😂😂 as we say "chassez le naturel, il revient au galop". I also work for a French company(70% of staff are french) in London and when they tried to change our lunch break(to make it a bit later) it was an uproar and almost went on strike😅 and we took it to the union(syndicat)and got our 1-2 pm break back💪😝 And the snack time is called "le goûté" which is around 4-5pm. When I was little it was more like yogurt, biscuits, fruits, chocolate not all in the same day of course, and still kept that habit😅. And it's the equivalent of "the afternoon tea" here in the UK same time as well. By the way, I like your vidéos and your bubbly personality😊, and can feel your love and admiration for your country of adoption. keep going😉.
Getting rid of BDs ? Not buying bread everyday ? Snacking ? You're in a world of trouble if you even think of doing away with those three pilars of society. But you need to look at what American culture evolves around also. Half of the films that come out of Hollywood are based on comic books these days. The big difference between the two countries is that in America you are a little limited when it comes to comic books. I mean supeheroes are ok, but maybe, just maybe it's a little overdone. There was a time when comic books where a lot more diverse in America, think Crumb for instance. The range of comic books in France is simply astounding, and most of them are not for children, and would be frowned upon in the US. I was born and raised in America, and moved to Europe 25 years ago. A large bag of chips like the one you were holding can last me a couple of months. I do have a bottle of ketchup in my fridge. It stays there untouched for 5 or 6 years. I keep it to remind of the terrible habits I used to have, and, also, for it's decorative touch. A splash of red with a white background is pleasing to the eye. Lack of bread is what started the french revolution, and you wouldn't want to go through that again, now would you ? It became quite messy very fast.
@@corycianangel6321 I'm not a specialist in this. But I know they're many. Here a selection from babelio : www.babelio.com/livres-/bande-dessinee-francaise/18791
@@corycianangel6321 I don't know if many of them are available in english, I mean apart from Asterix/Tintin. Ha, I looked it up and I found some ....one in particular that I really like, author : Edgar P. Jacobs , here's a link to the english catalog www.bedetheque.com/serie-23267-BD-Blake-and-Mortimer-The-Adventures-of.html Check out that link bedetheque also.
My French bf thought I was weird for buying Halloween decorations and a pumpkin to carve. I told him that celebrating holidays is just about having la joie de vivre 🥳
je confirme, impossible pour moi de manger sans une fourchette et un couteau. J’ai horreur d’avoir les doigts sales. Et pour les BD pareil j’en ai plein, il faut savoir que la france et le japon sont les deux plus grands consommateurs et createurs de BD/comics/manga au monde! Super video, je me retrouve dans chacune de ces situations ! 😂
Pareil pour la fourchette et le couteau - en fait, je viens d'apprendre avec cette vidéo qu'il existait des gens qui n'en utilisaient pas pour manger des pizzas ou des hamburgers ^^
Halloween and Saint Patrick's Day are not traditional holidays in France. They have been imported recently and could have been a great addition but in fact had the effect of replacing traditional local holidays which were similar. For example, carnival, which used to be a huge thing with costumes, parades,... In my hometown, it was an important activity in school to prepare the costumes, dances,... for the carnival parade. It doesn't exist anymore. Now they prepare costumes for Halloween. Only cities with a long carnival tradition has kept the celebration, like Nice.
@@Laurent69ftm Yes, I begin to see it around pubs. Irish pubs have always celebrated St Patrick's Day but it was less than what I saw in the last couple of years (perhaps it was more a local trend). I am not sure it could take since children are not in the loop (so easy with the costumes and the sweets for Halloween).
Dinner at 7, ha! I lived with a French family while studying abroad in Montpellier (yeah, yeah, the differences between the south and the north), and dinner was NEVER before 9. EVER. As a college student used to eating dinner at 5 before 6 pm class/rehearsal, it was TORTURE
I think it differs from family to family : we personnally eat at 7 pm or 7:30 pm, rarely later! It's fun to see that there is such a difference between French people on that point ! I don't know anyone who usually eats later than 8 pm, and yet you seem really surprised to hear that ! Really interesting point of view ! To me 9 pm is more a time to eat in Spain or other countries that live at night. But it's true that I live in la province 😂
It also depends on the generations. My grandparents eat around 6 p.m., my parents around 7:30 p.m. and I rather around 8:30 p.m. Ouf course without snacking since lunch, it's just a habit.
I am french and I eat peanut butter " le jardin bio" no salt, no sugar, just organic peanut. Really good on french bread. And our BD collection is our proud, we would never get rid of it. My children love them as much as my husband and I, and our whole families love them too. I never had a diet in my life but when I need to loose some weight, I stop snacking for some month and it works very well. But I end up snacking again especially when I see my kids eating at 4.
BREADCRUMBS YESSS !!! I live with a frenchie and his crumbs are the bane of my life !!! Why can't they use a plate ?? At my in-laws they think I'm completely nuts for putting my bread on a plate and it's now become something of an 'in joke' that they dramatically present me with my tiny bread plate at each meal. My Christmas present from them last year was a 'ramasse miettes' !
Man, culture dies hard. My grandpa had a 'weird' habit of putting his bread directly on the table cloth. He was French Canadian; a family that had been in Canada for 250 years.
I've been watching French films for decades and I noticed a long time ago this habit in movie after movie in meal eating scenes.I sometimes inadvertently blurt out loud "Why don't you guys use a plate?" I think about the crumbs all over the place and how much that would irritate me to clean up. Nonetheless I love the French and their culture despite this oddness.😍
For the bread plate, there is a rather simple explication. I don't know how it is in the USA, but in France, we use a tablecloth every meal. So you can put your bread on the table/tablecloth because it's clean, and at the end of the meal, you take your tablecloth and shake it at the window to get all the crumb outside. So like that, no problem of crumb
OMG! I had no idea the comic book thing was French! My husband is the same! You should see the amount of comic books we have! Our entire downstairs has 30 (THIRTY!) designer cases that hold over fifty comic books each... Yeah. People often ask if we have children. My hubby loves snacking. He's snacks more than I do. I'm more of a "a light snack with a cocktail" guy. So it's usually around 5/6 in the evening for me. Hubby works at an organic market that sells Acme bread (a great Bay Area bakery that sells amazing baguettes), so he brings bread home from work! I lucked out on that one. When we were dating, my (then-future) husband would not let me buy him a shirt because he was VERY paticular. Six months after moving to California, we were walking through Costco and he picked up three pairs of shorts, a pair of jeans, and three shirts. I ruined him in six months! He moved into the California lifestyle!
Funny video Kate. I recognize myself in almost all your points. Just to opening to neighbours or postman I'm more relax of your husband and maybe also eat sometimes (but not all the time, really just sometines), between meals and I don't have a fixed eating schedule either. But it usually stays between noon and 2 p.m., and between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. I forget : There's two BD which deal with the puzzles that we encounter when we are confronted with the French administration. But for that you have to understand French humor. The fist is "The 12 labors of Asterix" (Les douze travaux d'Astérix), and the second is "Les Bidochon, volume 9: The fools are released" (Les fous sont lâchés).
I am so glad I found your channel! I had many good laugh as a French women married to a Canadian. When I fist moved to North America I thought people were absolutely nuts when shopping with full carts at Costco, I was thinking "Why do people need SO MUCH FOOD?!"Now I swear by the Costco membership and the good quality products you can find there!
i'm french and i just want to say that not all of that it's true for every family.... i didn't recognize myself in a lot of what you mentionned here ! I think it's true for a lot of people but do not necessary think every french are like that ^^'
Haha, I could definitely relate. I just moved to the South of France from Los Angeles with my French husband. He doesn’t have the comic books but has a collection of Manga that I too told him to get rid of but he declined, so we made a deal, it stays at his Moms. Haha
hahah great compromise! I didn't mention this in the video, but his mother's basement is FULL of boxes of comic books too. Robin has two brothers so they have tons! Poor mom has to keep them all right now since no one has space in their parisian appartments for all of them :)
This is such a big cultural difference! my bf wanted to get rid of some manga (we're both French) and I was like DUDE NO that's a classic I'll still read it if you don't >< but we don't have that much, compared to other people... and I have to admit I left some of mine at my parents' place due to lack of space in Paris :P
I’m Indian and met my French husband while I was working in North Carolina. Ive studied and worked in the US (8years in total) and met him during the last 3 years of my stay. We just moved to Montpellier France !
So funny and I can relate, I am from a French culture living with a husband from a Chinese culture... so many little things that come to surprise you (and him also, to be fair). Example: I had to explain xmas to him when we had children, he could not get the element of surprise and why do we bother to wrap the present....yup. And by the way, our common language is English.
These are all so true! There are things I miss about the American way of celebrating lots of holidays and events (even wedding & baby showers etc) with loads of decorations. Luckily I have a few other American friends in France who I can go all out with once and and a while. I think our frenchies are even starting to appreciate it :) And the bread! It’s a chore to get it but also usually comes home missing just a bit off the top...
i always set the table, every day, with fork, knife, and small dessert spoon, even if i'm not sur what we'll choose to eat for dessert. and of course, soup spoon at the dinner, if i plan a potage. you need fork/knife for asparagus, if it's in a formal dinner. but however, as these are not alone in the meal, there's always fork and knife. ok, i eat grappes with my fingers... i'm from the south, may be ? except in a fruit salad, then i use spoon.
Hey, great video, as always ! However, some things don't apply to me : I know people who snack and I often spend my whole days in pyjama or sweat pants or "lounge wears", and my mother don't say anything !! And for the pizza/burger stuffs... I often order some and if I often eat them in a plate (especially for pizzas because I don't want my clothes to get stained^^), I don't eat them with cutlery, unless the pizza is too hot to be eaten with the hands and the hamburger's too large... and loads of my friends do the same ! For the grape thing... Never seen that in my whole french life ! No one does this !!
In the Philippines, we also have "national eating schedules"... BUT we are accepting of eating every hour if you want lol as long as your boss doesn't smell or hear your food Also, one of the most important meals of the day is "Merienda" or afternoon snack time at 3pm. ❤️
Literally no French person would EVER have dinner at 7pm. 8pm is already really early but if you have an apéro with friends before it's more like 10pm or even later 😂😂 very hard for someone who is used to different eating times 🤪
@@noefillon1749 Interesting. My parents-in -law live in In the rural south (Gers) and so both hab quite long commutes to Toulouse. Still in the 10 years I've lived in France not a single time did the have dinner earlier than 8.30pm. I think because they prep good food and that also takes it's time and work just finished at 6pm anyway. But I'm sure it's different for plenty of people. Still I would never consider the normal eating time 7pm ☺️
I think it also depends on where you're from in France. But there is plenty of people who eat at 7pm, just look in the restaurants at that time of the day
I was raised “French’ in South Africa - never realized that until I learned more about France. My Grandmother would peel a peach using a knife and fork and then eat it without touching it with her bare hands.
I just discovered your channel and you are GOLD. Been married to a Frenchie for 5 years. Snacking so funny I used to hide a box of Sepculoos cookies in my winter coat in the closet during summer. "I'm just looking for something in the closet". HAHAHA
Your video was pretty funny! BD are really important in the european french speaking culture and yes, we keep them for the next generation :p They are quite expensives, often gifts for christmas or birthdays so you keep them unless you don't like them and don't read them at all :) My brother and I "herited" the very first edition of a ton of Tintin from my father who bought them when he was a child x) They were so old that they were falling into pieces... It's very common to keep your comics book, your Duplo/lego and your plushies/dolls to give to your children ;) "C'est indémodable" :D Anyway now I understand the "omg this is an adult who buy comics books !" from the american tv shows :D I was always "Why this is such a big deal???" :p
I've personally never eaten grapes with a fork! Something funny happened to me. I went to Scotland with my father to accompany a group of children. We went to Mac Donald. It was the first time my father was going to a fast food. He asked for a fork and a knife, and they gave him, and he ate his burger at Mac Donald with a fork and a knife. In fact, the french are so used to eat with a fork and a knife (not grapes) that I discovered for the first time when I went to the states that it was possible to eat without a fork and a knife. But isn't it the case all over Europe?
We're a comic/geek culture family, so I'm kind of with Robin on that point. I think it's completely normal for lots of people in the US to have a comic book collection, too - but they aren't the cool hard cover versions like France. I only have an Asterix BD.
Oooh in the Philippines we also do not celebrate holidays via decorations (except Christmas!! That holiday starts on September 1st LOL) BUT we celebrate more by having big meals with fam and friends. Decors are just an unnecessary expense (UNLESS it is Christmas where we go ALL OUT LOL)
Americans are known for their ability to entertain whereas French people are known for their ability to leisure (most of the time around a meal ;-)). That may explain the differences between each way to celebrate.
Love your videos... on point and makes me laugh as a french man and my Argentinian wife will most likely agree even though my collection of BD is a lot less impressive than your own french man
I love to get dressed nicely for a flight, even long haul. Flying was always such a special event when I was a kid and people were always dressed nicely for flying. The habit still stays for me. Even after a long flight, I feel ready to get started with my day when I land, in part because I feel great when I think I look great.
True for the comic books! My father has more than 2,000 of them (we counted them once!) and my boyfriend's father approximately the same I think^^ But it's true that they should not be underestimated in literature: some are really awesome and beautiful and there are many kinds of stories and drawings so everyone can find some to his/her taste. I have a preference for the ones by Loisel (Peter Pan, Magasin Général, Le Grand Maure...) if you have or had the occasion to read it.
It fascinates how when I read comments or discussions, it's almost always the US Americans who defend this kind of diet, sometimes aggressively even. I mean people all over the world indulge in (unhealthy) snacking or fast food but man, Americans love huge portions and sugar! And if you think about it, eating bread makes you feel fuller for longer and you'll have less cravings for snacks. I don't know... It's a mystery to me, the same as to why someone needs to add ice in every kind of drink (I'm not French by the way).
Eating bread I think, comes from the days when people didn't have a lot to eat. Remember what Marie Antoinette said when she was told the people in France don't have bread. Let them eat cake. Bread fills you up as you said; the rest is just luxury.
@@slidenapps The quote from Marie-Antoinette is largely misinterpreted. But bread remains a staple food not only because it fills you but because of its nutritional value; depending on the type of flour and the ingredients you get a substantial percentage of fibres, minerals and vitamins.
Manga, Anime, video games and Japanese culture are just a HUGE thing in France ! Most of the people I know are into one of those things or are interested in Japanese culture ! I even read somewhere we were the second bigger manga consumers in the world just after the Japaneses and the European country where people eat sushi the most !
Eléonore Riha That makes a lot of sense! I've been wondering about it because I know at least 2 French animators who are fairly popular because of their works in anime. Then, there's the French adaptation of City Hunter. Then, there are anime like Chi's Sweet Home and Osomatsu-san movie promotions in France. And lastly, they are even lucky enough to have 2.5D stage perfomances in Paris! And that stage performance they're adapting is Innocent manga. The French otakus are very, very lucky in those aspects!
@@corycianangel6321 For that, you should thank famous french host Dorothée because she's the one who introduced animes to young french kids in the eighties with her cult TV show "Club Dorothée" and these kids then became teenagers, and then adults and they're still keen on Mangas and all those kind of stuffs, and some of them created publishing houses and so on !
The French worship two cultures other than their own: those of Italy and Japan. And one of our common points with the Japanese is the comic books, they are just as prolific as we are, and you will find mangas for every age just as you’ll find French comics for every age. I am not the greatest manga fan myself but Akira, Gunnm and Appleseed stand there, right in the middle of my 300 or so comics. Kawai!
@@jetaddicted Hi, I'm French and I had never heard of Italian culture being worshipped in France. Where does that come from? I was born in '99 and most people from my generation tend to worship American and British cultures way more thant Italy. Nobody I know really gives a damn about Italian culture outside of roman mythology, pizzas and pasta.
LOL so funny! We have these same conversations. and I def. feel like I have to sneak my snacks! Funny story about the decorating... I was like "oh look everyone actually decorated for 14 juillet" My husband: "what are you talking about?" Me: "all the flags and the bleu, blanc, rouge..." Him: "That's for the World Cup obviously!"
Entirely agree about celebrations, in France going all out with the decorations and "holiday spirit" is seen as tacky. At best it's something you do to humor young children, but the idea of making a big deal out of some holiday is not part of French culture. Christmas means a decorated tree in the living room and presents for the kids, New Year's Eve means a nice dinner with friends, Easter means chocolate for the kids (again), Valentine's Day means doing something nice with your significant other however you define "nice" in your couple... and that's about it as far as celebrations go. One holiday that French people find especially cringe-inducing in the US is the Fourth of July. You also nailed it with snacking. Over here we DO get taught to only eat at mealtimes, even if among the younger generations that's more and more respected in the breach rather than the observance. Our parents dutifully reminded us that snacking is the surest way to put on weight. Personally, I used to be married to a Chinese woman who loved her little snacks (though they were much healthier than crisps or candy bars), and we compromised on at least having her eat only in the kitchen. When it comes to knife and fork, due to cross-cultural osmosis I'm now open to using chopsticks if it's the right kind of food to eat with...
Thats the perfect word to use the way we decorate and celebrate everything in the US. Tacky. But i seriously love it. It doesn't seem like christmas to me without thousands of lights shining everywhere in the house, and a santa clause that sings on the chimney and christmas carols playing all the time. My husband is like what in god's name is this.... hahaha it's so different but learning to compromise and combine different traditions is fun too like you said! If chopsticks are better for certain food why not!
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified You should absolutely go to "Alsace" around Chritsmas, lots of houses are decorated on the outside. This is the part of France who knows how to celebrate Christmas the way you seem to like ;)
An accurate rendition of me, a Frenchie, watching this video: "oh come on who actually owns an extensive collection of BDs anymore that's just not a Thing" *lifts eyes from my screen for a second and fall directly on the complete Asterix collection I got from my dad* "...alright maybe it is" It's so natural I hadn't even realized it lmao
You know there is this charming channel about a woman named Kate who says she is 'living in France with a French husband'. I have begun to suspect for a while now that it's all a fabrication. She confesses, even in this video, her love for decoration. She seems to have gone so far as to have bought French comic books to stock her shelves to LARP for us. She occasionally visits France just to keep up the illusion, but this year it's becoming clear. It's just all unraveling. The seams on her fantasy are clearly showing. I mean where in France could she have possible bought a jar of peanut butter THAT BIG. And Skippy??? The poor girl. The touch of having her mother smuggle it across the border was mild genius. I mean I should have guessed a while ago when she gave her 'French husband' the name Robin. I have traveled in France for years and never met a 'Robin'. It would have had a ring of authenticity if she had called him Jean-Luc or Étienne. Clearly the whole fantasy is a form of role-playing. And we won't even discuss the baby issue. (Just sad.) Short of demonstrating a BD loving French guy on her channel I'm afraid the mask is off now. And good luck with that. How would she even find an American man who knows what BD even is? But at least this fantasy is interesting. Let's see what her next gambit is.
hahahahahahah can you imagine if it all came out that I actually don't exist and i'm making these videos in chicago..... Also, completely agree that I've only met three other Robins in my life (though its pronounced Ro-Bain not really Robin like I do) and they all come from Sete where he was born.... I always tell him it's a name for a girl in the US too!
Yeah I agree Robin is totally legit, it's not super common atm but I know at least two. And I've actually never met an Etienne myself (or a Jean-Luc for what it's worth, except Jean-Lucs on French television) :P
Yes there are a lot of common first name in English and in French. Robin is a first name which was very spread in 80'. It is not the same pronunciation. The worst english first name which was given in France during the 80', was Kevin and it is become cheesy since.
if a man ever shamed me for eating a snack, i would just leave. i know they don't do it to be rude, but wow, as an american it still blows my mind that this is still accepted today.
Frenchie here I'm bi I dated both men and women who are fellow frenchies and I got told "can't you just wait for dinner it's bad for you you're gonna get fat" by both sides of the pond. It's so pummeled into us by our moms and dads that snacking is bad for you from a very early age that we just can't help it, it's stronger than us we have to say "come on diner is in just about an hour can't you wait honey ?"
For the comics: same thing here with me. I kept my collection which I started at the age of 6. And now my son is reading them. Now for the rest. Your boyfriend seems to be very old games. Because on my side, even as a baker's son, I don't feel obligated to buy bread all the time. Especially since the bread of today cannot be kept like the sourdough bread of "Levain". Then, he has too formal ways. He reminds me of one of my ex girlfriends who were like that. Something that we are all taught as kid. But sometimes it's too much. And I was telling her, that's why people don't think you are "cool". Too many manners. Like eating pizza with a fork. I only do it in restaurants.
During the first video I saw on your channel, I remember thinking "Oh she's got largo Winch. Nice!" By the way, BD is not the same as Comics or Manga. All nice but not the same! And very nice channel, very accurate.
As a Frenchman, I do not recognize myself in this video.... well except for 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 where I do not see the issue, and to be fair, about 2, you can get away eating cookies (let’s say it is a “goûter” at flexible time) ^^’ PS: Pierre is a very common name in France :-)
Hi, sorry for you but you got an extreme one! We don't always eat bread (even if a lot of French people do), we don't always eat with the fork and knife (especially pizza, it's so annoying - but in a restaurant you should do it unfortunately), not so many people read BD anymore (I'm very surprised with your statistics, it looks like people who read them read 20 a year to compensate with the ones who don't), and I always wear sweat pants and be very relax with my clothes at home and my boyfriend too. All of it, it really depends on people.
haha loved this video. My husband literally wears chinos every single day (even on long haul flights). I could relate to every single thing except the bread- I have no idea why my husband is not obsessed with bread like the rest of his family.
One of your best! I am only half French (mother was from Pays Basque and father is from London) but I recognise so much of myself in what you have recorded - except the BD - and it all rings so true (only very slightly exaggerated ... :- )
Some people just need something to complain about, especially if it comes from America. if peanut butter came from Australia this would not be a topic at all.
As an American living in Tbilisi Georgia I can tell you that peanut butter IS an issue. Most of what passes for peanut butter here is from the Philippines and has way too much sugar. I'm really missing the Adams brand.
As for jumpsuits and homewear, the first one is considered as a "tenue de sport" which can only be worn for sports. And homewear is a very very recent thing in France. Ten years ago, shops didn't sell these kind of clothes.
During the pizza point, I got a commercial saying (in french) : "What you're watching is a pizza, it has nothing to do with the video you'll been watching but..." Haha, nope ! Try again !
Nice video ! Cutting your grapes is really weird though, I've only ever seen it done by people who don't like the seeds and they're considered really picky...
I'm french, and I must say that I agree with you for all the points except the last one. Fork and knife really depends, at home I don"t use them for pizza or hamburger. However if I'm at the restaurant, I'll probably going to use the fork and knife for pizza and burger. But eating fruits with fork and knife, even for me it's weird. PS: Your camera is autofocusing/re-focusing a lot in the video (it makes a little sound), is it normal ?
For the decoration, it is very true that it is super downsized.. But also houses are smaller so you have less space to store it.. And i think that we are clearly more eco-friendly than the U.S so.. You can have 10 different decorations for the whole year and you can´t buy it for just one night and then throw it away.. Pollution. And i guess that it is also how you manage a budget.. Maybe an American, with 300 euros or $ would do 100 on decoration as it´s part of the "event" 100 on food and 100 on drinks while we would probably go for 125 on food 125 on drinks and maybe 50 on decoration.. And i would even say just like 10 or 20 to be realistic. It is really seen as unnecessary, as you won´t eat it or drink it lol. I think that the Christmas tree is the only thing that people will continue to buy, probably because you enjoy it for like 2 or 3 weeks, not one evening only
@@jazmine9570 True, but you also have many people that will go crazy for Valentine´s day and the Superball and St Patrick´ s day and the 4 th of July and Halloween and Thanksgiving and Chritmas and New Year´s Eye and... And if you live in Paris in 50 m 2, no garden, no garage, no cellar or else, that´s complicated to make room for something that will be there for a very short period of time... However, France and the U.S.A having the same colour on their flag is pretty nice.. You can just buy a lot of stuff that is Blue, White and Red and rearrange it between the 4 th and the 14 th of July..
I wear jeans all the time on long haul international flights, and I'm not French, I'm Italian-American. I wouldn't think of wearing sweatpants or shorts, or flip-flops, on a flight. It just seems incredibly slovenly to me.
I'm American and I agree with you. Gee, I thought jeans were casual wear on a flight!
It's just fabric, lighten up.
How odd -flip flops and shorts are std summer wear in midwest US. People not wearing that would be a bit atypical.
It would be fair to mention that french comics are not all about superheros.
So true!!
Really?! What kinds of stories do French comics have?
@@corycianangel6321 Well, you have every kinds. Science Fiction, history, thriller, Fantasy, Adventure...
@@corycianangel6321 French comics are more like graphic novels. The majority of them are made for adult readers. They cover as various topics as written novels do. The graphic book « My Friend Dahmer » by Derf Backderf is considered as a comics in France. I hope that my answer did help.
Humoristic, historical, thriller, comic based on novels...
Come on. Eating grapes with a fork? I'm French and I have never seen anything like that. By the way a lot of people eat hamburgers or pizzas without using a fork or a knife.
In a restaurant, eating a hamburger or French fries with the hands is definitly not something to do ! Even pizza, people would look at you weirdly
Of course in fast food it is the opposite : people will find you bizarre if you use a knife and a fork
I get dirty looks ALL THE TIME in restos eating burgers and pizza with my hands. I've never been served grapes tho so I don't know
I now live in Australia and always eat burgers and pizzas with the hands but true in France, I actually used to eat fries with a fork in a restaurant, i would not fit in anymore 😂 Let's not push it for the grapes though, always with my hands, life is way too short to use a fork 🤦
@@r.s5918 Well, I personnally do both : I usually start my pizza with cutlery when it's hot and then I end up with my hands ! Same for hamburgers, unless they're too big to be eaten with the hands ! And for french fries, I do both too... and I'm French !
The thing about Halloween, st Patrick's day or even valentines day is that they are recent imports from the American way of life so a lot of people don't get why we should celebrate those holidays.
I don't even have any idea of when St Patrick's day is.
(a French)
Isn't St.Patricks day an Irish holiday? But yeah, it's the same all around Europe, no need to celebrate foreign holidays :)
Then don't.
While St. Patrick’s Day is Irish, it’s an NYC holiday. Halloween is different in the EU.
Of course I don't expect all French people to celebrate American holidays. But if you're married to an American who enjoys those holidays, it's frankly ridiculous to not want to celebrate them.
Please Robin. Feature in a video to share what it is like living with an American woman, as a French man. It would be very educational and interesting to get this perspective.
It seems like everything about American culture is about consumption (many celebration, snacking, decoration for every parties which last only one night...).
They think all of that is their choice but the society just pushes them to consume as much as possible. (I am not saying it is not like that in Europe but far less)
I certainly agree with being pushed to consume, but 'consummate', well, you'd better check the meaning on that one! ;-p
@@davidchicoine9209 Oh yes sorry i just checked it was not what i meant haha what should i have said instead ?
@@helenedevys2498 You meant "consume."
"le gouté" is more at like 4-5pm :) not allowed to eat before 4pm in the afternoon ! haha ...
Yes! And at 3pm we're still in school. (My primary school even finished at 5).
So no one can eat something when they feel like it???
@@cindland haha that's called binging ! And in france it is known to be one of the root cause for obesity so we tend to be disciplined about when to eat :) and normally if you have well balanced meals you don't need to eat when ever ! :)
@@PilotVianney I would love to eat that way. But life and schedule craziness in the US doesn’t make it easy! At my job in a high school, we get literally 25 mins for lunch. After restroom and waking to the lunch room, 10 minutes is gone. Then if you need to make a phone call or walk to your car for something...times up!! Just one small example.
@@cindland In French schools we have 55 minutes in the worst case, 2 hours in the best case.
I'm french and I have to say, I was very surprised when I heard that people in the US go out in sportswear, reaaally surprised about them wearing flip flops outside of the beach, and just out of my mind when I saw videos of people in their pyjamas at college or at the grocery store! I would never think about doing that in France, and if I ever did people would think I'm going to a costume party of some sort haha!
im american and when I was living in france I always felt like i had to look nice going to the grocery store. I definitely basically wore pajamas to go to class in university haha- its just normal here. people prioritize comfort over style.
You guys find sportswear in public unacceptable, but leaving breadcrumbs trail in apartment is OK ?
😲😲😲
@@mirka I don't know of anyone who leaves breadcrumbs trails in their place. Sure, it can happen that a few crumbs will fall on the floor when you carry the bread from the kitchen to the dinner table for instance, but unless you live in a pighouse, you don't leave them on the floor, and this just happens by accident.
Yet, don't believe that every single household in France is inhabited by people who dress up every day, eat with forks and knives and clean their houses. Some people just don't, by lack of education, lack of time, laziness, or mere "I don't give a sh*t" attitude.
About 67 million people live in France, so you will definitely find all sorts of behaviors, habits, customs, differences between regions (north and south, east and west, etc.), ethnic origins, wealth, education... It's not homogeneous. There are common trends, but also clichés and stereotypes that only represent the "average" French person.
Hi ! I'm french, and I don't really see myself in your examples ^^
I usually wear casual clothes at home and it really doesn't bother me opening to neighbours or postman wearing a short and a tshirt, but of course I dress up when I go out. Forks and knives are usefull when you don't want to make a mess with your meal ! Pizzas are not often pre-sliced here, so it's kinda normal to me. And for burgers, if we're talking about crap fast food, we eat that with fingers just like everybody, but when you cook a nice home made burger with a fresh steak, good cheese and everything, you just can't eat that without dropping everything everywhere. For celebrations, well ... from my point of view, it's creepy to overjoy everything. At some point, it's like it's fake and in a way you HAVE to buy tons of stuffs to impress everybody and not be the grumpy one.
Your remarks are exact for hamburger and other things like for the opening to neighbours. But a lot of French are like she says in her points. Bread, I can't have a diner if there's not a good "baguette" lol. Only when I eat asian food I do an exception. :)
I don't really understand what you call "casual wear". I only wear old, ragged jeans and a shapeless sweatshirt when gardening, cleaning, or doing crafts. But as soon as I'm done doing that, I put on normal clothes that I can go to stores in or see friends with.
For burgers, I don't know, I never eat them (I hate chewy burger buns and I don't like cooked ground beef).
The BD thing it's not only a French thing. It's a French-speaker's thing. BD and graphic novels are highly respected in the French world. We grew up with them. Talk to any French, Belgian, Swiss or Québécois and they will tell you their BD are important. I still have my parents' collection of Tintin, Astérix, Gaston Lagaffe or Lucky Luke. I'm not a huge BD buyer but I would gladly read those of my friends.
I'm American and absolutely loved the Tintin comics when I was a kid. Great stories and truly works of art.
I'm really with your Robin on the 'make an effort in the clothing' department. Here on the west coast of Canada it actually kinda bugs me when you go out for a nice meal or concert (in an alternate universe of course) and people are wearing their yoga clothes. Doesn't have to be fancy, but a little effort creates the ritual of 'this is something special worth celebrating.' Even if it's for a Friday night dinner date at home. Maybe that's just the French part of my ancestry coming out, or my love of costumes :)
Haha I snuck my snack and watched the whole thing in my sweats. You nailed it! (French hubby agrees! 😂). I’d add “you don’t waste ANYTHING.” I even had ne pas gaspiller in my wedding vows.
Wasting is a great one! I loveeee that about French culture. Something that its rubbing off on me more and more, but i'm not as frenchified in that as i should be! Also love the sweats and sweets while watching ;)
I'm French, married with a spanish guy and living in the UK and I kinda miss all of these little french habits 😅
As a French living in US, I completely get it. Yeah I work from home, yeah I still dress up every day... I mean I need to walk the dog. Walking the dog in sweatpants is inappropriate :D
Why is it inappropriate? Not the standard here in winter but rest of the yr is extremely common.
@@lijohnyoutube101 It is just cultural. I have been raised that way :D I don't criticize other people doing it, I just still can't!
Lol then I'm sure u see 'inappropriate' ppl every day bc Americans just don't give a crap about what they look like when they are going out in public to do a quick errand. Yoga pants and sweat pants have become part of our culture at this point 😆
@@rockinchik06 Well for us it is a kind of mark of respect for the other people, to make the effort not looking too casual :) so yeah I would also find it strange to get out in yoga pants for myself even if everyone did, but that's a cultural habit...
@@jeromecorsi2126 I understand that. I am an American who has been living in Korea for the last 5 years, and Koreans rarely, if ever, leave their apartment building in casual/home clothes as well. But as a woman I think women have different perspectives than men. For example, all men have to do is change clothes. That's so easy. But women have to put on makeup and fix our hair on top of that. And that 30 mins-1 hr of work is not worth going out to do a quick errand just to please other ppl visually. It's kind of ridiculous in my opinion.
"You eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch," was an insult someone I know had once said to Americans.
Except most Americans wouldn't take it as an insult, bc pb&js are a good cheap lunch, ha. And with French bread and French jam, I'm sure it'd taste even better, 😄
Mmmm... I really like being casual American. I mean if I'm not going anywhere I'm often in sweatpants and a t shirt. Also, I like to snack whenever I want to. I eat pizza, breaded shrimp and, --- natch, grapes with my fingers, and don't think anything of it. I would like to see Robin make a cameo. ;)
This was perfect! Sometimes I think I would prefer the french way of life over the american but I think i'd miss eating pizza with my hands in sweatpants at an "inappropriate" time of the day. I'd love to see Robin's version of this
You know a lot of people stay home in pyjamas (as I am right now) and eat pizza without any fork and knife (just as I did last week). I guess it depends on the generations.. but still.
Nice to see your new comedy-theatre style delivery, it really suits you and seems to come very naturally to you.
OMG Laughed so hard! You are truly hilarious. Could relate to quite a few of these points so some may also be a European guy thing. My hubby was shocked the first time I insisted on going to the supermarket in sweat pants and asked me if I was gonna change! 😂 Oh and don't get me started on eating pizza with a knife and fork!
😂😂😂 Regarding eating time you absolutely right. I live in the UK for for more than 15 years now and I still have my french eating habit. Even when I tried to eat at different schedule, it felt like I was committing a crime😂😂😂 as we say "chassez le naturel, il revient au galop".
I also work for a French company(70% of staff are french) in London and when they tried to change our lunch break(to make it a bit later) it was an uproar and almost went on strike😅 and we took it to the union(syndicat)and got our 1-2 pm break back💪😝
And the snack time is called "le goûté" which is around 4-5pm. When I was little it was more like yogurt, biscuits, fruits, chocolate not all in the same day of course, and still kept that habit😅. And it's the equivalent of "the afternoon tea" here in the UK same time as well.
By the way, I like your vidéos and your bubbly personality😊, and can feel your love and admiration for your country of adoption. keep going😉.
Getting rid of BDs ? Not buying bread everyday ? Snacking ? You're in a world of trouble if you even think of doing away with those three pilars of society. But you need to look at what American culture evolves around also. Half of the films that come out of Hollywood are based on comic books these days. The big difference between the two countries is that in America you are a little limited when it comes to comic books. I mean supeheroes are ok, but maybe, just maybe it's a little overdone. There was a time when comic books where a lot more diverse in America, think Crumb for instance. The range of comic books in France is simply astounding, and most of them are not for children, and would be frowned upon in the US.
I was born and raised in America, and moved to Europe 25 years ago. A large bag of chips like the one you were holding can last me a couple of months. I do have a bottle of ketchup in my fridge. It stays there untouched for 5 or 6 years. I keep it to remind of the terrible habits I used to have, and, also, for it's decorative touch. A splash of red with a white background is pleasing to the eye.
Lack of bread is what started the french revolution, and you wouldn't want to go through that again, now would you ? It became quite messy very fast.
hahaha all it say here ! As French myself ...I just can agree with your comment. :))
Are there any good French comics/graphic novels to recommend? The only ones I know are Asterix, The Adventures of Tintin, and Le Transperceneige.
@@corycianangel6321 I'm not a specialist in this. But I know they're many. Here a selection from babelio : www.babelio.com/livres-/bande-dessinee-francaise/18791
@@corycianangel6321
I don't know if many of them are available in english, I mean apart from Asterix/Tintin. Ha, I looked it up and I found some ....one in particular that I really like, author : Edgar P. Jacobs , here's a link to the english catalog
www.bedetheque.com/serie-23267-BD-Blake-and-Mortimer-The-Adventures-of.html
Check out that link bedetheque also.
@@corycianangel6321 Everything by Riad Sattouf, Esther's diaries and The Arab of the Future !!!
Just moved to France a month ago after dating only french guys in the last few years, had to come to the source 🤣🤣
How did you get to come into France when the boards are closed?
@@Cookie-ye5dq I have videos on my channel documenting my move and my life here :)
@@IdentitySelection I just checked your channel and I have to say, your videos are great !
@@nicolasmartin8136 thank you !! 😊
Love the stories about difference in culture and think we all need to be aware. Love the pointers.
My French bf thought I was weird for buying Halloween decorations and a pumpkin to carve. I told him that celebrating holidays is just about having la joie de vivre 🥳
je confirme, impossible pour moi de manger sans une fourchette et un couteau. J’ai horreur d’avoir les doigts sales. Et pour les BD pareil j’en ai plein, il faut savoir que la france et le japon sont les deux plus grands consommateurs et createurs de BD/comics/manga au monde!
Super video, je me retrouve dans chacune de ces situations ! 😂
Pour les BD j' ajoute la Belgique quand même.
@@ringwe pour les BD j'ajoute la Suisse quand même💪
@@ringwe Je pense qu'il entendait par là la BD franco-belge. L'un ne va pas sans l'autre.
@@Redgethechemist Oui, c'est certain...
Pareil pour la fourchette et le couteau - en fait, je viens d'apprendre avec cette vidéo qu'il existait des gens qui n'en utilisaient pas pour manger des pizzas ou des hamburgers ^^
I'm French & I quite recognize myself with your 6 items 😅 Still a bit exaggerated with fork for grapes. Very nice video. Take care
J'ai toute la collection des Astérix en BD, ouf je suis Français.
Officiellement un vrai Français alors :)
GG DUDE
Et mafalda alors
Halloween and Saint Patrick's Day are not traditional holidays in France. They have been imported recently and could have been a great addition but in fact had the effect of replacing traditional local holidays which were similar. For example, carnival, which used to be a huge thing with costumes, parades,... In my hometown, it was an important activity in school to prepare the costumes, dances,... for the carnival parade. It doesn't exist anymore. Now they prepare costumes for Halloween. Only cities with a long carnival tradition has kept the celebration, like Nice.
Saint Patrick's day? I'm French and I still don't know what it is! You say it's now been imported?
@@Laurent69ftm Yes, I begin to see it around pubs. Irish pubs have always celebrated St Patrick's Day but it was less than what I saw in the last couple of years (perhaps it was more a local trend). I am not sure it could take since children are not in the loop (so easy with the costumes and the sweets for Halloween).
Dinner at 7, ha! I lived with a French family while studying abroad in Montpellier (yeah, yeah, the differences between the south and the north), and dinner was NEVER before 9. EVER. As a college student used to eating dinner at 5 before 6 pm class/rehearsal, it was TORTURE
I would actually agree that while I said 7 pm in the video, more like 8 pm. But that gets later as soon as there are guests coming over!
I think it differs from family to family : we personnally eat at 7 pm or 7:30 pm, rarely later! It's fun to see that there is such a difference between French people on that point ! I don't know anyone who usually eats later than 8 pm, and yet you seem really surprised to hear that ! Really interesting point of view ! To me 9 pm is more a time to eat in Spain or other countries that live at night. But it's true that I live in la province 😂
It also depends on the generations. My grandparents eat around 6 p.m., my parents around 7:30 p.m. and I rather around 8:30 p.m.
Ouf course without snacking since lunch, it's just a habit.
As a french person, I eat between 7 and 8pm. Eating at 9pm is clearly a no-no, and this is the habit I've seen around me.
I decided to celebrate quarantine by always wearing a nightgown every day. Why should I bother to put on clothes if I am not going to leave the house?
I am french and I eat peanut butter " le jardin bio" no salt, no sugar, just organic peanut. Really good on french bread.
And our BD collection is our proud, we would never get rid of it. My children love them as much as my husband and I, and our whole families love them too.
I never had a diet in my life but when I need to loose some weight, I stop snacking for some month and it works very well. But I end up snacking again especially when I see my kids eating at 4.
BREADCRUMBS YESSS !!! I live with a frenchie and his crumbs are the bane of my life !!! Why can't they use a plate ?? At my in-laws they think I'm completely nuts for putting my bread on a plate and it's now become something of an 'in joke' that they dramatically present me with my tiny bread plate at each meal. My Christmas present from them last year was a 'ramasse miettes' !
Man, culture dies hard. My grandpa had a 'weird' habit of putting his bread directly on the table cloth. He was French Canadian; a family that had been in Canada for 250 years.
I've been watching French films for decades and I noticed a long time ago this habit in movie after movie in meal eating scenes.I sometimes inadvertently blurt out loud "Why don't you guys use a plate?" I think about the crumbs all over the place and how much that would irritate me to clean up. Nonetheless I love the French and their culture despite this oddness.😍
For the bread plate, there is a rather simple explication. I don't know how it is in the USA, but in France, we use a tablecloth every meal. So you can put your bread on the table/tablecloth because it's clean, and at the end of the meal, you take your tablecloth and shake it at the window to get all the crumb outside. So like that, no problem of crumb
@@irina-ty1336 ahh this makes sense I guess. Merci pour l'explication !
OMG! I had no idea the comic book thing was French! My husband is the same! You should see the amount of comic books we have! Our entire downstairs has 30 (THIRTY!) designer cases that hold over fifty comic books each... Yeah. People often ask if we have children.
My hubby loves snacking. He's snacks more than I do. I'm more of a "a light snack with a cocktail" guy. So it's usually around 5/6 in the evening for me.
Hubby works at an organic market that sells Acme bread (a great Bay Area bakery that sells amazing baguettes), so he brings bread home from work! I lucked out on that one.
When we were dating, my (then-future) husband would not let me buy him a shirt because he was VERY paticular. Six months after moving to California, we were walking through Costco and he picked up three pairs of shorts, a pair of jeans, and three shirts. I ruined him in six months! He moved into the California lifestyle!
Funny video Kate. I recognize myself in almost all your points. Just to opening to neighbours or postman I'm more relax of your husband and maybe also eat sometimes (but not all the time, really just sometines), between meals and I don't have a fixed eating schedule either. But it usually stays between noon and 2 p.m., and between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
I forget : There's two BD which deal with the puzzles that we encounter when we are confronted with the French administration. But for that you have to understand French humor. The fist is "The 12 labors of Asterix" (Les douze travaux d'Astérix), and the second is "Les Bidochon, volume 9: The fools are released" (Les fous sont lâchés).
I am so glad I found your channel! I had many good laugh as a French women married to a Canadian. When I fist moved to North America I thought people were absolutely nuts when shopping with full carts at Costco, I was thinking "Why do people need SO MUCH FOOD?!"Now I swear by the Costco membership and the good quality products you can find there!
i'm french and i just want to say that not all of that it's true for every family.... i didn't recognize myself in a lot of what you mentionned here ! I think it's true for a lot of people but do not necessary think every french are like that ^^'
Haha, I could definitely relate. I just moved to the South of France from Los Angeles with my French husband. He doesn’t have the comic books but has a collection of Manga that I too told him to get rid of but he declined, so we made a deal, it stays at his Moms. Haha
hahah great compromise! I didn't mention this in the video, but his mother's basement is FULL of boxes of comic books too. Robin has two brothers so they have tons! Poor mom has to keep them all right now since no one has space in their parisian appartments for all of them :)
This is such a big cultural difference! my bf wanted to get rid of some manga (we're both French) and I was like DUDE NO that's a classic I'll still read it if you don't ><
but we don't have that much, compared to other people... and I have to admit I left some of mine at my parents' place due to lack of space in Paris :P
Haha, I love how it’s all stored at the parents house! Great minds think alike😉
I’m Indian and met my French husband while I was working in North Carolina. Ive studied and worked in the US (8years in total) and met him during the last 3 years of my stay. We just moved to Montpellier France !
So funny and I can relate, I am from a French culture living with a husband from a Chinese culture... so many little things that come to surprise you (and him also, to be fair). Example: I had to explain xmas to him when we had children, he could not get the element of surprise and why do we bother to wrap the present....yup. And by the way, our common language is English.
These are all so true! There are things I miss about the American way of celebrating lots of holidays and events (even wedding & baby showers etc) with loads of decorations. Luckily I have a few other American friends in France who I can go all out with once and and a while. I think our frenchies are even starting to appreciate it :)
And the bread! It’s a chore to get it but also usually comes home missing just a bit off the top...
i always set the table, every day, with fork, knife, and small dessert spoon, even if i'm not sur what we'll choose to eat for dessert. and of course, soup spoon at the dinner, if i plan a potage. you need fork/knife for asparagus, if it's in a formal dinner. but however, as these are not alone in the meal, there's always fork and knife.
ok, i eat grappes with my fingers... i'm from the south, may be ? except in a fruit salad, then i use spoon.
I'm danish and my husband (also danish and 74 years old) is still collecting comics. I must admit- I love them too.
Hey, great video, as always ! However, some things don't apply to me : I know people who snack and I often spend my whole days in pyjama or sweat pants or "lounge wears", and my mother don't say anything !!
And for the pizza/burger stuffs... I often order some and if I often eat them in a plate (especially for pizzas because I don't want my clothes to get stained^^), I don't eat them with cutlery, unless the pizza is too hot to be eaten with the hands and the hamburger's too large... and loads of my friends do the same ! For the grape thing... Never seen that in my whole french life ! No one does this !!
I simply ADORE this channel! 💖
Pro tip, at 5:30 you can argue it’s still le goûter if you want to snack on something sweet, and say it’s l’apéro if you want crisps
Haha nice! 😃
Thank you!
In the Philippines, we also have "national eating schedules"... BUT we are accepting of eating every hour if you want lol as long as your boss doesn't smell or hear your food
Also, one of the most important meals of the day is "Merienda" or afternoon snack time at 3pm. ❤️
A great insight into life in France and love the humour.
Literally no French person would EVER have dinner at 7pm. 8pm is already really early but if you have an apéro with friends before it's more like 10pm or even later 😂😂 very hard for someone who is used to different eating times 🤪
Well if you must wake up early to work the next day, you would hardly have dinner after 8 or 8:30pm, or at least for me
@@noefillon1749 Interesting. My parents-in -law live in In the rural south (Gers) and so both hab quite long commutes to Toulouse. Still in the 10 years I've lived in France not a single time did the have dinner earlier than 8.30pm. I think because they prep good food and that also takes it's time and work just finished at 6pm anyway. But I'm sure it's different for plenty of people. Still I would never consider the normal eating time 7pm ☺️
Well, I can tell you that my colleagues who start their day's work at 4 am at the Post Office don't have dinner at 10.
I think that for people who don't have a long commute normal eating time would be around 7:30 and 8:00 before the bulletin news.
I think it also depends on where you're from in France. But there is plenty of people who eat at 7pm, just look in the restaurants at that time of the day
I was raised “French’ in South Africa - never realized that until I learned more about France. My Grandmother would peel a peach using a knife and fork and then eat it without touching it with her bare hands.
What is the link with France?
But we wear casual clothes, jeans ARE casual?!
Can't agree more. How can you be more casual than jeans? I own jeans for casual times :)
Aww Yess!!! I wanna meet Robin! 🌻A husband tag and how you met story time would be nice 🥺🥺
I just discovered your channel and you are GOLD. Been married to a Frenchie for 5 years. Snacking so funny I used to hide a box of Sepculoos cookies in my winter coat in the closet during summer. "I'm just looking for something in the closet". HAHAHA
Your video was pretty funny! BD are really important in the european french speaking culture and yes, we keep them for the next generation :p They are quite expensives, often gifts for christmas or birthdays so you keep them unless you don't like them and don't read them at all :) My brother and I "herited" the very first edition of a ton of Tintin from my father who bought them when he was a child x) They were so old that they were falling into pieces... It's very common to keep your comics book, your Duplo/lego and your plushies/dolls to give to your children ;) "C'est indémodable" :D Anyway now I understand the "omg this is an adult who buy comics books !" from the american tv shows :D I was always "Why this is such a big deal???" :p
About food, it remind me the face of the waiter in Chicago when i asked for silverware to eat a pizza....
I've personally never eaten grapes with a fork! Something funny happened to me. I went to Scotland with my father to accompany a group of children. We went to Mac Donald. It was the first time my father was going to a fast food. He asked for a fork and a knife, and they gave him, and he ate his burger at Mac Donald with a fork and a knife.
In fact, the french are so used to eat with a fork and a knife (not grapes) that I discovered for the first time when I went to the states that it was possible to eat without a fork and a knife. But isn't it the case all over Europe?
We're a comic/geek culture family, so I'm kind of with Robin on that point. I think it's completely normal for lots of people in the US to have a comic book collection, too - but they aren't the cool hard cover versions like France. I only have an Asterix BD.
Oooh in the Philippines we also do not celebrate holidays via decorations (except Christmas!! That holiday starts on September 1st LOL) BUT we celebrate more by having big meals with fam and friends. Decors are just an unnecessary expense (UNLESS it is Christmas where we go ALL OUT LOL)
Americans are known for their ability to entertain whereas French people are known for their ability to leisure (most of the time around a meal ;-)). That may explain the differences between each way to celebrate.
Absolutely. Such a good way of looking at it.
Love your videos... on point and makes me laugh as a french man and my Argentinian wife will most likely agree even though my collection of BD is a lot less impressive than your own french man
I love to get dressed nicely for a flight, even long haul. Flying was always such a special event when I was a kid and people were always dressed nicely for flying. The habit still stays for me. Even after a long flight, I feel ready to get started with my day when I land, in part because I feel great when I think I look great.
True for the comic books! My father has more than 2,000 of them (we counted them once!) and my boyfriend's father approximately the same I think^^ But it's true that they should not be underestimated in literature: some are really awesome and beautiful and there are many kinds of stories and drawings so everyone can find some to his/her taste. I have a preference for the ones by Loisel (Peter Pan, Magasin Général, Le Grand Maure...) if you have or had the occasion to read it.
It fascinates how when I read comments or discussions, it's almost always the US Americans who defend this kind of diet, sometimes aggressively even. I mean people all over the world indulge in (unhealthy) snacking or fast food but man, Americans love huge portions and sugar! And if you think about it, eating bread makes you feel fuller for longer and you'll have less cravings for snacks. I don't know... It's a mystery to me, the same as to why someone needs to add ice in every kind of drink (I'm not French by the way).
Eating bread I think, comes from the days when people didn't have a lot to eat. Remember what Marie Antoinette said when she was told the people in France don't have bread. Let them eat cake. Bread fills you up as you said; the rest is just luxury.
@@slidenapps The quote from Marie-Antoinette is largely misinterpreted. But bread remains a staple food not only because it fills you but because of its nutritional value; depending on the type of flour and the ingredients you get a substantial percentage of fibres, minerals and vitamins.
I heard somewhere that so many people in France that like Japanese manga, is it true? Is it connected to what you say about them liking comic books?
Manga, Anime, video games and Japanese culture are just a HUGE thing in France ! Most of the people I know are into one of those things or are interested in Japanese culture ! I even read somewhere we were the second bigger manga consumers in the world just after the Japaneses and the European country where people eat sushi the most !
Eléonore Riha That makes a lot of sense! I've been wondering about it because I know at least 2 French animators who are fairly popular because of their works in anime. Then, there's the French adaptation of City Hunter. Then, there are anime like Chi's Sweet Home and Osomatsu-san movie promotions in France. And lastly, they are even lucky enough to have 2.5D stage perfomances in Paris! And that stage performance they're adapting is Innocent manga. The French otakus are very, very lucky in those aspects!
@@corycianangel6321 For that, you should thank famous french host Dorothée because she's the one who introduced animes to young french kids in the eighties with her cult TV show "Club Dorothée" and these kids then became teenagers, and then adults and they're still keen on Mangas and all those kind of stuffs, and some of them created publishing houses and so on !
The French worship two cultures other than their own: those of Italy and Japan.
And one of our common points with the Japanese is the comic books, they are just as prolific as we are, and you will find mangas for every age just as you’ll find French comics for every age.
I am not the greatest manga fan myself but Akira, Gunnm and Appleseed stand there, right in the middle of my 300 or so comics.
Kawai!
@@jetaddicted Hi, I'm French and I had never heard of Italian culture being worshipped in France. Where does that come from? I was born in '99 and most people from my generation tend to worship American and British cultures way more thant Italy. Nobody I know really gives a damn about Italian culture outside of roman mythology, pizzas and pasta.
LOL so funny! We have these same conversations. and I def. feel like I have to sneak my snacks! Funny story about the decorating... I was like "oh look everyone actually decorated for 14 juillet" My husband: "what are you talking about?" Me: "all the flags and the bleu, blanc, rouge..." Him: "That's for the World Cup obviously!"
I so can binge watch your videos.
Entirely agree about celebrations, in France going all out with the decorations and "holiday spirit" is seen as tacky. At best it's something you do to humor young children, but the idea of making a big deal out of some holiday is not part of French culture. Christmas means a decorated tree in the living room and presents for the kids, New Year's Eve means a nice dinner with friends, Easter means chocolate for the kids (again), Valentine's Day means doing something nice with your significant other however you define "nice" in your couple... and that's about it as far as celebrations go. One holiday that French people find especially cringe-inducing in the US is the Fourth of July.
You also nailed it with snacking. Over here we DO get taught to only eat at mealtimes, even if among the younger generations that's more and more respected in the breach rather than the observance. Our parents dutifully reminded us that snacking is the surest way to put on weight. Personally, I used to be married to a Chinese woman who loved her little snacks (though they were much healthier than crisps or candy bars), and we compromised on at least having her eat only in the kitchen.
When it comes to knife and fork, due to cross-cultural osmosis I'm now open to using chopsticks if it's the right kind of food to eat with...
Thats the perfect word to use the way we decorate and celebrate everything in the US. Tacky. But i seriously love it. It doesn't seem like christmas to me without thousands of lights shining everywhere in the house, and a santa clause that sings on the chimney and christmas carols playing all the time. My husband is like what in god's name is this.... hahaha it's so different but learning to compromise and combine different traditions is fun too like you said! If chopsticks are better for certain food why not!
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified You should absolutely go to "Alsace" around Chritsmas, lots of houses are decorated on the outside. This is the part of France who knows how to celebrate Christmas the way you seem to like ;)
An accurate rendition of me, a Frenchie, watching this video: "oh come on who actually owns an extensive collection of BDs anymore that's just not a Thing" *lifts eyes from my screen for a second and fall directly on the complete Asterix collection I got from my dad* "...alright maybe it is"
It's so natural I hadn't even realized it lmao
You know there is this charming channel about a woman named Kate who says she is 'living in France with a French husband'. I have begun to suspect for a while now that it's all a fabrication. She confesses, even in this video, her love for decoration. She seems to have gone so far as to have bought French comic books to stock her shelves to LARP for us. She occasionally visits France just to keep up the illusion, but this year it's becoming clear. It's just all unraveling. The seams on her fantasy are clearly showing. I mean where in France could she have possible bought a jar of peanut butter THAT BIG. And Skippy??? The poor girl. The touch of having her mother smuggle it across the border was mild genius. I mean I should have guessed a while ago when she gave her 'French husband' the name Robin. I have traveled in France for years and never met a 'Robin'. It would have had a ring of authenticity if she had called him Jean-Luc or Étienne. Clearly the whole fantasy is a form of role-playing. And we won't even discuss the baby issue. (Just sad.) Short of demonstrating a BD loving French guy on her channel I'm afraid the mask is off now. And good luck with that. How would she even find an American man who knows what BD even is? But at least this fantasy is interesting. Let's see what her next gambit is.
... Ahaha 😂 I will stay tune with you to see what happens next time!
hahahahahahah can you imagine if it all came out that I actually don't exist and i'm making these videos in chicago..... Also, completely agree that I've only met three other Robins in my life (though its pronounced Ro-Bain not really Robin like I do) and they all come from Sete where he was born.... I always tell him it's a name for a girl in the US too!
Yeah I agree Robin is totally legit, it's not super common atm but I know at least two. And I've actually never met an Etienne myself (or a Jean-Luc for what it's worth, except Jean-Lucs on French television) :P
Yes there are a lot of common first name in English and in French. Robin is a first name which was very spread in 80'. It is not the same pronunciation. The worst english first name which was given in France during the 80', was Kevin and it is become cheesy since.
if a man ever shamed me for eating a snack, i would just leave. i know they don't do it to be rude, but wow, as an american it still blows my mind that this is still accepted today.
Frenchie here I'm bi I dated both men and women who are fellow frenchies and I got told "can't you just wait for dinner it's bad for you you're gonna get fat" by both sides of the pond.
It's so pummeled into us by our moms and dads that snacking is bad for you from a very early age that we just can't help it, it's stronger than us we have to say "come on diner is in just about an hour can't you wait honey ?"
I couldn't stop laughing 🤣.....I want to hear Robin's response.....come join her Robin!!
This video was great. Versatility is the key.
For the comics: same thing here with me. I kept my collection which I started at the age of 6. And now my son is reading them.
Now for the rest. Your boyfriend seems to be very old games. Because on my side, even as a baker's son, I don't feel obligated to buy bread all the time. Especially since the bread of today cannot be kept like the sourdough bread of "Levain". Then, he has too formal ways. He reminds me of one of my ex girlfriends who were like that. Something that we are all taught as kid. But sometimes it's too much. And I was telling her, that's why people don't think you are "cool". Too many manners. Like eating pizza with a fork. I only do it in restaurants.
During the first video I saw on your channel, I remember thinking "Oh she's got largo Winch. Nice!"
By the way, BD is not the same as Comics or Manga. All nice but not the same!
And very nice channel, very accurate.
As a Frenchman, I do not recognize myself in this video.... well except for 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 where I do not see the issue, and to be fair, about 2, you can get away eating cookies (let’s say it is a “goûter” at flexible time) ^^’
PS: Pierre is a very common name in France :-)
Some comic books are practically "works of art". After reading an edition of "Jane Eyre," illustrated by Dame Darcy I can see why.
Hi, sorry for you but you got an extreme one! We don't always eat bread (even if a lot of French people do), we don't always eat with the fork and knife (especially pizza, it's so annoying - but in a restaurant you should do it unfortunately), not so many people read BD anymore (I'm very surprised with your statistics, it looks like people who read them read 20 a year to compensate with the ones who don't), and I always wear sweat pants and be very relax with my clothes at home and my boyfriend too. All of it, it really depends on people.
haha loved this video. My husband literally wears chinos every single day (even on long haul flights). I could relate to every single thing except the bread- I have no idea why my husband is not obsessed with bread like the rest of his family.
Robyn, gives us your perspective :)
Excellent. Je n'ai jamais mangé le soir avant 20 heures pas 19 heures.
Hi, you could use the World Cup decorating spree as "bargaining power" to put an extra ghost or pumpkin on the shelf for Halloween. ;-)
Absolutely! I'm like look at how much fun you had with the decorations at the World Cup. Let's maybe have three pumpkins this year instead of 1 :)
One of your best! I am only half French (mother was from Pays Basque and father is from London) but I recognise so much of myself in what you have recorded - except the BD - and it all rings so true (only very slightly exaggerated ... :- )
You can't ask a French man to throw away his XIII collection! It's XIII! It's amazing!
For the defence of your French man, XIII is an amazing comic book ;D
Loved that...
Funny and True.... 😁😁😁
❤️
Kate you are always such a breath of fresh air merci madame
I also had a douchy French boyfriend called Pierre. Made me laugh real hard :D
Hahaha! Peanut butter is always a touch point, when traveling/living abroad; lol.
Some people just need something to complain about, especially if it comes from America. if peanut butter came from Australia this would not be a topic at all.
As an American living in Tbilisi Georgia I can tell you that peanut butter IS an issue. Most of what passes for peanut butter here is from the Philippines and has way too much sugar. I'm really missing the Adams brand.
PB a staple in my house. ❤️
Get a grinder and some peanuts, make your own fresh peanut butter. Problem solved.
@@Falconlibrary Easier said than done. I'm not exactly in a 'normal' country. But if I come upon bulk peanuts I'll see what I can do.
Jeans and a sweater ARE lounge wear. Sweatpants mean you have given UP. Says my french husband
Can't agree more. French here :)
I agree and I am American! Sweats are the ugliest clothing items ever invented. There are many comfortable clothes that look good.
A mon avis ça dépend du milieu dans lequel chacun évolue pour les couverts, ou des régions. Il faudrait éviter de généraliser ce genre de clichés.
We don't consider it an effort but rather a norm, so the opposite may be culturally considered as being neglected
As for jumpsuits and homewear, the first one is considered as a "tenue de sport" which can only be worn for sports. And homewear is a very very recent thing in France. Ten years ago, shops didn't sell these kind of clothes.
So true, but I am starting to see lounge wear more and more though in stores! :)
I love comic books. Lovely memories of reading them.
that eating schedule is the exact same as New Zealand and has always been like the growing up
I love all your videos!!!
During the pizza point, I got a commercial saying (in french) : "What you're watching is a pizza, it has nothing to do with the video you'll been watching but..." Haha, nope ! Try again !
hahahahah, you're like, that's exactly what this video is talking about thanks! #coincidence
Nice video ! Cutting your grapes is really weird though, I've only ever seen it done by people who don't like the seeds and they're considered really picky...
Omg, the bread crumbs and the dress up every single day while I was wearing pijamas during the lockdown!! I thought my frenchie was special lol
I'm french, and I must say that I agree with you for all the points except the last one. Fork and knife really depends, at home I don"t use them for pizza or hamburger. However if I'm at the restaurant, I'll probably going to use the fork and knife for pizza and burger. But eating fruits with fork and knife, even for me it's weird.
PS: Your camera is autofocusing/re-focusing a lot in the video (it makes a little sound), is it normal ?
Especially grapes. Grapes with a fork is crazy.
Glad to hear that grapes with a fork is kind of nuts for other people too! And for the pizza and burgers. :)
For the decoration, it is very true that it is super downsized.. But also houses are smaller so you have less space to store it.. And i think that we are clearly more eco-friendly than the U.S so.. You can have 10 different decorations for the whole year and you can´t buy it for just one night and then throw it away.. Pollution. And i guess that it is also how you manage a budget.. Maybe an American, with 300 euros or $ would do 100 on decoration as it´s part of the "event" 100 on food and 100 on drinks while we would probably go for 125 on food 125 on drinks and maybe 50 on decoration.. And i would even say just like 10 or 20 to be realistic. It is really seen as unnecessary, as you won´t eat it or drink it lol. I think that the Christmas tree is the only thing that people will continue to buy, probably because you enjoy it for like 2 or 3 weeks, not one evening only
@@jazmine9570 True, but you also have many people that will go crazy for Valentine´s day and the Superball and St Patrick´ s day and the 4 th of July and Halloween and Thanksgiving and Chritmas and New Year´s Eye and... And if you live in Paris in 50 m 2, no garden, no garage, no cellar or else, that´s complicated to make room for something that will be there for a very short period of time... However, France and the U.S.A having the same colour on their flag is pretty nice.. You can just buy a lot of stuff that is Blue, White and Red and rearrange it between the 4 th and the 14 th of July..