As a parisian, I can say that there is no lie in this video. Some of it makes me really sad, even if there's also a lot to love in the city and it's still my home.
After coming back from studying in France for half a year, I finally appreciated how incredibly safe Prague is. When you can walk alone and take the metro in the night as a female and feel completely safe, you know you live in a good city.
@@rexlapis1075 what I'm saying is that I've never felt unsafe in any public transport at night in Prague and neither on the street. I've lived there for 21 years
@@ninavinterova9875 I get it but as a guy the only thing I disliked about Paris is the air In some places the air is fresh but in certain areas I feel like I am getting suffocated
I'am a parisian for 34 years now. I can't leave Paris even for few days. But what she says in her videos is unfortunately quite true, so even if it is not pleasant to hear, and as it is said with love of the country and the city we have to admit it does exist. It would be great to find a way to solve these problems. And for what she calls "fat shamming" i do say sentences like "oh I could'nt eat something so fat" and for example industrial mayonaise does make me sick. The last time i went to mac donalds i had to go to the toilets to give back the food. :/ So maybe it could be thought as fat shamming for some people but this food really makes us sick.
@@stef75017 Oui je suis d'accord avec toi. Mais il me semble qu'au delà de la santé il y a un culte de la minceur voir maigreur en France qui va au delà de l'aspect santé je trouve. On peut avoir un poids normal sans être mince et manger des choses saines tout en mangeant des produits riches en calories mais qui peuvent faire partie d'un menu équilibré (quand c'est bien dosé). Au delà de ca, si quelqu’un a envie de mal manger de temps en temps, libre a lui. Tu ne crois pas ?
i'm italian living in nyc, but whenever i go home to see my family i feel very fat shamed. they constantly make comments on my body that americans would never make. and no i am not overweight.
I am so happy to see that you touched on the unpleasant side of living in Paris, this really helps in having an objective view on everyday life and last but not least congratulations on having the courage to upload this and face the possible hate. It takes guts to be so honest about it
MY THOUGHTS EXACTLY! I'm happy to visit Paris but am always happier to return home à la campagne. Life is so much simpler and easy-going in the French countryside.
When I visited Paris I loved it but always felt I had to be vigilant not to get my stuff stolen. When I made it to La Rochelle I was so happy I could keep my wallet in my pocket again.
Never saw so much dried up dog shit in my life - these people do not clean up after their animals - about on a par with the chinese who spit everywhere
I've always wanted to go to the French countryside besides going to Lyon, Nantes and Nice. Where would you recommend me visit in the French countryside? I have an architect mind where I love a good balance of landscaping and quaint old buildings.
I think pretty much every Parisian would agree with you. For the 8th one, it’s not only fat shaming. French people, especially Parisians, are constantly judgmental about one’s appearance in general, body shape, clothing, hairstyle... The “feel free to be yourself “ spirit is one aspect of Anglo-Saxon countries I appreciate the most.
@@iranycecilliawonnepereiraa4156 it's not only about fat. You'll get the same comments on your clothing style, your accent, if you have any habit regarded as childish you'll hear about it
Very interesting. You're lovely! Your last point about the beggars...I was in Stockholm last year having a coffee with an old friend (I lived there during the 90s) and watched a woman sitting on the ice-cold ground begging. A man pulled up in a very nice brand-new Audi, picked her up, they ate in the car and she went "back to work." So you are right, it is organized. And it seems the men from this culture make all the money (he drove off in his shiny and warm car as she sat out begging in the cold). It is the women who suffer. I NEVER give them money because it goes only to the men to go enjoy themselves while they put their women and handicapped out in the cold to beg. And many times, I've seen these men yelling at their women in public... treating them atrociously. Disgusting.
The London tube is great... compared to Paris. There are not many perverts at all. As a woman living in London for 10 years I never experienced any great discomfort at all. But I've visited paris a few times.... different story.
Jaana Viit - I’m a Londoner and I’m fed up of the tube, I recognise it’s one of the most well connected transport systems in the UK, but, it’s nowhere near as efficient as the trains/metros in Switzerland, Norway, Austria etc.
@@janesmith1992 Depends were in London you used to live. If you lived in Wood Green or Seven Sisters, I understand why you don't think that London isn't safe.
I used to work in a school in the South of France as a foreign volunteer. Once we the volunteers had to bring a national traditional home-made cake to a gathering organized by the school for the teachers, parents and the children. I made a delicious cake made of nuts, marmalade and chocolate which is a traditional cake in my country. When I arrived to the gathering and offered my cake I made, people started to fat-shame me (especially women) saying: How can you put so many greasy, high-calorie ingredients in one cake?????Are you serious???? Nobody tasted it. Is this the famous french politesse? At that time I almost started to cry and wanted to just leave and put my cake in the dustbin. Now I only laugh at it, I realized that the fat - shaming is cultural thing, especially among women and in bigger cities. I talked to a girl in Toulouse who said: I don't have breakfast because I am not hungry in the morning. Then I don't have dinner because by the time I get home in the evening, I am already not hungry. I was like WTF??? Women in France remain thin by smoking a lot and having coffee without sugar instead of eating, many people are anorexic too. Their cuisine is full of butter, sugar, white flour, greasy fromage and high calorie patisserie. This is not healthy at all, and they shame other people.
YOU ARE SPEAKING SO MUCH TRUTH!! I have lived here for 13 months and every single thing you said I have been through. The public pissing is the absolute worst. I have to walk with my 8 year old daughter and I feel horrible when it happens. So many creeper men! I pushed a guy rubbing too close to me off of me on the metro and my husband thought I was overreacting. You can love Paris and still feel like there are issues. Cutting in line or being ignored at shops drive me mad. I love your candidness, thanks lovely!
I am French. And totally validate your statements here... I lived all over France and Paris and it applies to all areas. I also lived half my life in the uk, and the rudeness and poor customer skills, the French admin... when you have lived and experienced another way of life in different countries you are totally aware that what you are saying is is totally spot on. Sadly 😓
I feel so ashamed to be french.. And also these are many of the reasons why I would probably never live in Paris. Including that I wouldn't feel safe as a gay man there. Living now in Melbourne, Australia, I feel like parisians could do SO MUCH to improve everyone's perception of this beautiful city.
Not necessarily. Rotterdam doesn't smell like piss, certainly not on the metro. Maybe some elevators, but not like Paris. And we don't have the guys trying to trick you into games on the street, no beggars, etc. No real problem with pickpockets or creeps at stations. Of course it happens, but Paris reminds me of Rotterdam twenty years ago. The fact that we don't have these issues anymore to me proves that they can be solved.
I'm not from Paris but Lyon. I visited New York for two weeks. What annoyed me the most (on top of the crazy heat late August/early September) is the piles of trash in the street and the smell in every place I went. In Brooklyn, where I was living in Bushwick, there was big piles of garbage that remained for days before being removed by garbage pickers. When in France garbage is collected every day in the cities, and it's in garbage cans to prevent the smell and sight of it. Then there was the misery. I'm not mad for this though. I'm glad that New York don't kick out the poors to hide them. But it seems like there is so much more misery than in France! That was really sad. But I never felt insecure in New York. Maybe I was naive. But even coming home late at night in Bushwick which is kinda poor, I never felt threatened in any way! Even though I was one of the few white guys in this mostly black neighborhood, I felt comfortable. Maybe that's also due to the fact that cops are everywhere! The police station near where I was living had more police cars in front of it than the number of police cars I crossed in my whole life in France! Ok maybe I'm exaggerating. But they had maybe 30 cars! And mostly brand new ones. From the tiny Smart to the huge american cars like Hummer. I never saw that in France. Once I went at a Caribbean festival in Brooklyn. Along the way I walked to go there, there were two cops at each crossroads! I never saw so much cops except in violent french demonstrations. Finally, I thought people were polite and more respectful than in France. And often willing to help the tourist that I was. I'd love to go back if I had the money, but at a cooler season.
@@0114855 Rotterdam might be a little bit smaller than new York, London or Paris (if you count urban areas because administrative borders mean nothing)
@@paultaylorcomedy Unfortunatly (even french) I have to agree. I do not think we are welcoming, we always complain about everything, we tend to think we are superior, which is of course totally unfounded! I travel a lot in Europe § as a french I do not feel welcome which I can understand, § it's sad. Sometimes I wish I was born elsewhere but I guess I should feel lucky with my standard of living compared to lots of countries in the world. Anyway, Paris is well known in my country to be the worst version of french rudeness ;'( Take care guys. Sorry about all these bad experiences, I feel a bit ashamed now.
@@jackgoumard5293 honestly same. im french born in america, ive never been to france nor outside the usa in general. not only hearing all these things abt the french, but the french also confirming this, makes me feel hurt & kinda scared honestly. its making me not want to visit my own country... im kinda grateful to be in america now. here nobody gives a shit about u (the good way) & most ppl are pretty nice
You forgot to mention some relevant points. 1) Heavy paperwork, 2) Expensive rents and difficulties to find an apartment, 3) High local taxes and 4) the way le métro and suburban trains work (sometimes poorly by the way)
Cannot thank you enough for this video! It offers such an honest depiction of this “romantic city” that a lot of people are often duped by! LoL. The city is like a real marriage; it’s starts with a romantic notion but often ends with an honest experience of living through the good, the bad, and the ugly! Well done.
So true. I lived in Paris for a year in 2011 and I thought all big cities were like that. I then lived in London and Milan and realised oh, no not all big cities are quite that bad ! Especially the men and the pickpockets
Don't worry that's not limited to foreigners... I'm French but I grew up in the mountains (Alps), had to come live in Paris for work (I'm a cop, most of us are sent to Paris after the academy so my coworkers are in the same situation) and I can relate to most of what you're saying. Parisiens are overly stressed, they start shouting at the smallest of inconvenience, women are constantly harassed in some areas, creepy people in public transports, disgusting smells (you're talking about urine but one day I saw a guy taking a crap between two parked cars...), etc... It's just as weird to French people who didn't grow up in Paris, believe me. Most of us are eagerly waiting to leave.
RZZ nn I’m from London, it’s big, it’s busy, it’s dirty, and I love it. I live at London Bridge, pretty central. Some people are too busy to help visitors , but there are many who will stop to help a tourist...I am one of the helpful people!
@@NotEvenFrench malheureusement ce n'est pas qu'à Paris, on a le meme probleme à Lille et je ne veux pas stigmatiser les hommes car heureusement tous les hommes ne sont pas comme ça, mais quand on en parle autour de nous c'est toujours "oh tu exageres" "il t'a sifflée tu vas pas en mourir" "il t'a fait un compliment soit heureuse" BEN NON !!! heureusement ça a l'air de s'arranger depuis "metoo" ... enfin ça s'arrange pas du tout mais au moins les femmes osent en parler ;-) (encore une fois je parle juste des dégénérés qui ne respectent pas les femmes)
@@charlottecordier59 yep, ça n'arrive jamais là ou je vi's en Angleterre, et je pense que c'est malheureusement commun dans certain pays Mediterraneens comme la France.
Oh man! I've been living in Paris for over 9 years now, these are so spot on and you made me laugh so hard :D It is an incredibly beautiful city and I feel that every time I get out on the street and walk around but it definitely isn't a great place to live. Most big cities share the same problems but they compensate for that one way or another. To me, Paris is visually very beautiful and very magical especially at night when the streets are emptier but it lacks the kind of spirit and invigorating energy New York or London has.
Yeah! I've dealt with all of those things in Paris. I think it's good to be honest about the city, I love Paris and I love being there, but many of those things are symptomatic of urban life and people often romanticize the city. When I lived in the 4th, I was lucky to be equidistant between about 5 stations, but the most convenient station we never took at night because the men at that station would harass us relentlessly.
@@adrianaprosen2918 It's a lot more about population density (including tourism) than it is about the big bad immigrants. 20k inhabitants per km² just makes people apathetic and on edge.
I’m from Belgium, I love France, but I hate Paris. I was there today, horrible traffic, horrible people, horrible sanity, horrible life. So much violence, noise, racism, hatred, extremism.. very sad. What’s left to like about Paris?
@@Libanass If I get the chance to go to Paris I would like to spend few days in Paris to see the museums and the most interesting "tourist" place, but after that I will leave for South France, the vineyards and the see. Same with Italy though.
@Samuel Astic compared to other countries, you wouldn’t believe how the the united states is compared to other countries, thats coming from a french person, the only countries i can think of that are nicer are new zealand or canada
I'm Zimbabwean and I'm planning to come and study in France when I finish high school. I very strongly agree with a variety - if not all - of your points and its true as I've visited Paris, its quite saddening how we can't really do much about it. But I'm glad that you brought this to our attention might we find a way to help. Great video, btw. Keep it up!
Everything is so true it hurts. French living in London here and i wouldn't go back to Paris for these reasons. On the bright side it's a beautiful city, charged with history and culturally amazing. Just as many big cities, it's more enjoyable for a holiday than everyday life!
For all non-French people here, plese remember that France =/= Paris. France has so many diversity and Paris is certainly not its best representative place. ;)
WEll I have been treated like shit in Paris for the last time and now the same in Nice. The "I don't give two shits about you or anyone but myself" is pervasive both places.....they act like like their lives are miserable that famous French ennui...well they have what they themselves have worked so hard to create. Life is NOT like this everywhere else. Beautiful buildings built by long dead men and lovely food and art notwithstanding.
I was in Paris twice this year and it was awful. Full of aggressive people and conmen. Charles de Gaulle airport appalling. But get out of Paris and the people and the countryside and the culture are wonderful. ,
I'm from Australia. Upon arrival in France I was fully prepared for a long struggle with the infamous French bureaucracy which I'd heard so much about. Documents, forms and files ready, sharpened and available for upcoming battles with the various French systems. Little did I know just what I was letting myself in for. One thing is for sure - nothing happens quickly around here and you need to be very patient. I don’t mind the fact that the system is complicated, I was prepared for this. What is more frustrating is when you are given conflicting advice from various people who are supposed to represent and work for the system. I get the impression that shitstem is so complex that they don’t even understand it. It's a finely tuned instrument of torture. It actually requires genuine creativity to be this inefficient. Like an avant-garde performance art.
It's the same in the Netherlands. Even getting the right department on the phone in a company or at the municipality could take an hour, five phone calls and three formal complaints. Have you tried the extremely nice and patient approach? Smile until it hurts, sound cheerful, ask interested questions and compliment people, instead of trying to force them into anything and complain. And ask questions to make them feel needed, even when you already know the answer, pretend you're stupid and thank them for taking the time to explain because they are your hero and you wouldn't have been able to find out on your own. Usually that works fairly well over here, in the end everyone just wants to be loved. ;)
Mate you think the French have bureaucracy??!.. Have you been to India where they perfected it from the British themselves to an artform with a ...3 Star Michelin degree! Yeah ;-)
Yes, Civil Law systems have the problem of bureaucracy, it is terrible. Also, one of the problems on France in my opinion is the centralisation, it is such a big and populated country but most competences are centralised which results often in a lack of efficiency due to the complexity of the Public Administration. Regions don’t have much legal capacities compared to more decentralised or federalised countries. But that territorial form is a nuclear part of French idiosyncrasy and mentality that changing it would be terribly hard, even if public policies to improve bureaucracy are implemented. Each country has their pros and cons I guess!
Summary for foreigners or tourists : don't beleive in stereotypes. Paris is a big city with real people living there, with all the troubles coming with that. When Trump said "Paris is no more Paris", he is refering to a stereotypical Paris that never existed, the Paris for tourists and dreamers. Since the highest antiquity, and through the middle-age, Paris has always been a filthy city, full of harsh people, rough intellectuals and students, poor people, migrants looking for a better futur, people who have to work hard to survive, don't forget that the most brutal events in french history took place in Paris : la fronde, the french revolution, the barricades in 1848, Paris commune, etc. But it is also only from chaos that creativity can emmerge. one of the oldest university in Europe, Philosophical enlightments that inpired both american founding fathers and french revolution, artistic upheavals, etc, even communism was inspired by the "Paris commune" in 1871 (that's where the word communism come from) .
you're right on the tourists ideas of paris, but I don't think trump was refferring to that, being the biggot that he is. Also you're totally wrong on the word communism It was invented around the 1830's as Marx and Hegel were starting to write in the the party's manifeste. The only link between communism and commune, is when Marx vehemently opposed lenine (who first said he was doing a different kind of socialism, and then rebranded it communism like a vulgar salesman) and Marx spoke against him and all the fake communists, and said the only society that was close enough to the idea of his communism was la commune de paris. But then again, la commune was more of a social libertarian anarchist and democratic society than communism, in the marxist term of it. Though la commune de paris did had a huge impact on the general socialists, communists,, and and anarchists intellectuals, and still has to this day. The word communism, which was formed on the adjective common, appeared, in the wake of the term socialism, invented by Leroux (1833), in the years that followed the non-revolution of 1830. We do not know however neither the inventor nor the exact date of invention (shortly before 1840). If the word communist was first used in a legal sense (in 1769, Mirabeau uses it to designate "people who have a common right"), the corresponding substantive immediately designated various political utopian doctrines , based on the abolition of private property and absolute equality between human beings. Sainte-Beuve defines it thus, in his correspondence, as a "socialism advocating the suppression of private property" (1840), Proudhon says, in What is property? (1840), that "it is the property which is found at the bottom of all the theories of the Communists" (1840) and Cabet applies in How I am a Communist (1840) to think the organization of "a great society on the basis of equality ... in education, in food, in clothing, in lodging, in furnishing, in labor, in burdens of every kind, and in enjoyments of any kind "(p.6). Moreover, the birth of the word seems to be related to the publication of his utopian Voyages and adventures of Lord William Carisdall in Icaria (1839), reissued in 1842 under the famous title of Voyage en Icaria: the author describes there indeed a an ideal society organized according to the "system of community", which is explicitly opposed to the "system of inequality and property". Anyway, it is distributed by Reybaud, in his Studies on reformers or modern socialists (1840-1843) and meets a great success in France (from 1843, Cabet is called to defend a certain Gouhenant accused of "conspiracy communist ") and in Germany, where Marx makes the title of an article (1842).
As an American living in the US, I apologize. Please pay no mind to the oompa loompa President. He uses the same bullshit rhetoric over here to get what he wants too. I went to Paris back in 2016 and it was amazing. I don't regret any of it and plan on going back.
Ça y est tu es officiellement devenue française tu commences à tout critiquer ! Ahah je plaisante je suis aussi parisien et tu n'es pas la seule à penser tout ce qui est dit dans cette vidéo de nombreux autres parisiens aussi scène plaignent (l'eau qui assèche les cheveux, les mecs trop bizarres etc). N'ait pas peur de donner ton point de vue c'est très intéressant pour les étrangers car même si Paris est une ville magnifique elle est idolâtrée par les étrangers
En même temps le Ph de l'eau atteint 8.4 quasiment partout dans Paris.... Sauf à la source de rue de la butte aux *(j'ai oublié butte à quoi mais c'est bien la seule source ou l'eau vient d'ailleurs que Paris et est donc bien plus saine)*
J'ai été Parisien quelques années et je suis maintenant à Versailles, je n'ai jamais rien remarqué de particulier avec l'eau. ViquelOoste je pense que tu veux parler de la Butte-aux-Cailles Edit: apparemment l'eau ne viens pas du tout du même endroit suivant le quartier de Paris que l'on habite: www.paris.fr/services-et-infos-pratiques/environnement-et-espaces-verts/eau-et-assainissement/l-eau-potable-2266
les parisiens ont choisi Hidalgo, il faut assumer. Sans être de l'autre bord, je pense que Paris était plus vivable du temps du voleur de poules Chirac. Une chose est sûre, j'ai vécu il y a 12 ans, à Saint-Maure-des-Fossés le long de la Marne dans le 94 (Val-de-marne) , et c'était très agréable, puisqu'on profitait uniquement des bons cotés de Paris seulement le soir, voir le samedi. Seulement, fallait éviter de traverser Champigny ...
Seuls les provinciaux fantasment sur Paris et ont un complexe d'infériorité , les vrai parisiens ne sont pas prétentieux ou hautains puisque pour eux vivre à Paris c'est juste normal , ils en ont rien à foutre , alors que les campagnards et les banlieusards s'enflamment quand ils "montent à la capitale".
Thanks so much for the video! It gives me more perspective. However I tend to talk back if someone even dares to say something rude to me anywhere. I find it weird when people are treated rudely and unfairly that they don’t speak up. My approached would will always be to tell people off if they’re being aggressive or rude to me than bashing them behind their backs. Although I fully understand why you made this video and again I appreciate it!
I've lived my whole life in Paris, though I moved to different arrondissements and once to the banlieue, and I have to say that you're not wrong. However I think having adapted to circumstances or not having lived elsewhere, I don't really pay attention to any of this, I know to ignore some and adapt to others, as many others do : Not taking the metro after a certain hour (20h/23h depending on if it's winter or summer) without someone (a guy preferably) to take me where I go, Ignoring the beggars who have anything making them look pitiful (children, pets, act as if they limp, etc), Avoid the parts and times of the day of Paris where guys are weird (it's not everywhere at every time you'll realize), Not paying attention to costumer service unless they are nice, Ignore the noise and make sure I have good windows against noise, etc, Ignore men unless I know them (that's why Parisian women have a reputation for being stuck up, we simply adapted to being a target of sexual harassment, strangers flirting are NOT welcome), Also about harassment, a Parisian woman always covers up (nothing too revealing, not too much make up) because otherwise we're sure to be targeted, Always wear my bag close (preferably in front so I see it) and not putting anything too valuable in accessible places (such as pockets), Drink mineral water (many good brands come from France and are easily accessible) or filter my water, Etc.
Yeah but that's not normal, we should all be able to live our life as we want. And not have to take the subway and make any compromises because of assholes
@@sylvain_guitar9178 As an Australian man I say you're right. Australian women / feminists are constantly making an issue of this and demanding improvement. They're right to do so. You have to push push push to keep talking about these things and demand change. From the Australian experience I can say we're not perfect but women's voices ... they're getting heard there because they keep the issue in the public mind constantly. It's a good strategy. It's not up to women to accept it.
I think you need to move out of France and discover there are places in the world that don't tolerate that bullshit and live happy and stress free lives because of it.
Paris is still my favourite city, I know about all the things you talked about, but every city has issues. I found that not speaking French was not an issue, trying to speak it helped a bit. I did love Auckland though, very, very friendly people. New Zealand is a very beautiful country, spent three weeks there being with a friend who is from Whangarei.
I'm French and I agree with everything you said :) Paris and Marseille are probably the most unsafe cities, people working in customer service are so done with their jobs and lowkey blames it on you, PICKPOCKETS OH MY GOD don't even get me started on that. Hard water, that's kind of recurrent in a lot of French cities. I traveled quite a bit, and I realized that French people are VERY judgemental of others ... Maybe not in Paris, but in most cities I find that there is very few originality in the way people dress, or act. In class, no one dares to speak up or answer the teacher's questions too much, by fear of being judged... And we also really like to complain ;)
As a Vietnamese, I think it pretty much sounds like Saigon hahah. Even when things can get really bad, you'd still miss the city no matter where you go.
Also a guy who lived in Paris for 3 years told me that it is very hard to live in Paris b/c of the high cost of living and housing in relation to avg wage/salary. He told me middle-class Parisians are not financially stable and basically live check to check. He was fine living in Paris b/c he is a physician, but told me that $500k will disappear in an instant.
I'm French and I have lived in Paris for 3 years, and I totally agree with you ! All you described is the reason why I sometimes hate Paris, and why I want now to discover something else. Micro aggressions are particularly exhausting on the long term, and can really affect how you feel. The only problem of this video is the sneak peek you give of Paris ! Any foreign person who will watch this video will be disgusted with the city ^^
The biggest issue I’ve had is the body shaming, and I am NOT big. I’m glad you brought this up...it’s a really sad thing that happens here :( Your other points were pretty accurate too! Not negative at all.
How do they body shame people there? Are there black people in Paris? Because black women are genetically bigger in size than Caucasian women so that would be quite unfortunate.
i live in europe and have been to paris and new york (i even "lived" in ny for a couple of months) and paris almost has a threatening vibe. i don't know how to explain it but while i think the two cities are similar in a lot of ascpects, paris has a certain darkness that's almost scary. i still go there a lot lol it's super close to where i live.
I haven't been to Paris in a long time, but I agree that NYC has a non-menacing vibe. Like any big city you always have to be careful and aware but in NYC I never felt unsafe and I like how there are always regular people out amd about at all hours.
What kind of threatening vibe? Is it the crime? Is it the anti-European sentiment of Muslims? Or vice versa? Or is it Poltical? Could you pls tell me more?
Platypus Paws hey :) nothing in particular, to me it just doesn‘t feel as warm and welcoming as other big cities (ie nyc or rome). Can‘t really tell you why since i‘ve had a great time everytime i went, it‘s just the vibe i picked up :)
I’ve lived in Paris for almost a year and I have to agree with you on most things. I especially found the Parisian women (not all of them!) to be very rude. It’s was their combination of hysterical, impatient and arrogant behaviour which I found very interesting. The Parisian men (not all of them!), as you said in the video, can be very intrusive and sometimes even agressive towards women. The amount of ‘accidental’ touching in the subway I’ve experienced was just disgusting. I used to live near Le Bon Marche and would sometimes buy some delicious macarons or do my grocery shopping there. And you are right, the reluctance of the staff was beyond annoying and made me want to never shop there again. But those macarons though...... Although I loved the city of Paris, the Parisians made my experience less agreeable.
I know right! Im so surprised seems such a shame / paradox a country that is so famous for cuisine patisserie etc etc all i would want to do initially is stuff my face (till i got over it) & just enjoy the beautiful food. sad..
Yves zusje the relation to the food is different on every culture. In France, we have a common approach. We have a discipline taught from the childhood in the family environnent and et the school. So if you step aside from this common discipline you will take some comments.
Have you visited Bretagne? I live in Brest and we’re right next to the ocean... I can literally see it from my apartment! It’s not the prettiest looking city but I too appreciate being close to the ocean because I also grew up not too far from it
Sad that Brest was destroy during the last war and rebuilt as a shithole by sillies architects, that certainly hate Brittany for sure. Same for normandy.
I spent 5 days in Paris and experienced almost every point you made. People asked me when I got back what I thought and were surprised when I didn't describe it as the beautiful romantic place they see in the movies.
So true : it stinks in the metro, people are not often helpful, they can become aggressive so fast. I left Paris a year ago and I have to say that coming back in a smaller city made me think : "oh people are so good here ! Streets are clean, people don't push you, don't ask you for money three times a day (their situations are sad for people who ask for money, but it's so hard to be confronted to the poverty level in Paris'streets every day) I am French and really agree with your point of view on the problems that make living in Paris not as great as it could be. (If there were not those smells it would yet change drastically the atmosphere of the city,... maybe good smells make people more happy and less aggressive : D
@@ViquelOoste tu peux être ironique, mais tu ne te rends probablement pas compte à quel point c'est difficile de voir des gens dans le besoin à tous les coins de rue. Quoi que tu fasses c'est jamais assez. Que t'aies un compte blindé ou que tu sois à découvert toutes les fins de mois, t'es impuissant, et la presqu'indifférence générale fait froid dans le dos
@@mychkineplot7677 ben j'en vois tout les jours, ce que je sais c'est qu'à la fois on n'est pas reponsables et à moins de leurs offrir ton foyer (ou l'une de tes propriétés vacantes si tu es riche) leurs donner de l'argent ne change rien à leurs conditions, perso je leurs souhaite simplement bon courage mais, on est en même temps responsables parce qu'on ne fait rien pour foutre dehors les nantis qui nous exploitent et laisse ces gens crever dans la rue.
Euuu tu dois vraiment vivre dans une petit village pour faire un tel message. Perso des ville (même petite) où on te pousse pas pour rentrer dans des transport eb commun, où il n'y a pas de mendiant et ou tout est propre j'en ai pas vue beaucoup
@@astiertristan non j'ai toujours vécu en ville : ) Et à Paris, entre le début de la décennie et maintenant, le nombre de SDF a bondi, ça se voit, ça se ressent, et ça se compte... Avant certes il y avait des SDF, et dans toutes les villes dans lesquelles j'ai vécu, bien sûr, mais maintenant, des SDF il y en a à la pelle : ça a changé, et pas dans le bon sens Quand aux bousculades, bien sûr, il y en a partout, mais tout de même, ayant passé la dernière année dans deux villes françaises moyennes, et, après des années et des années à Paris, j'ai été agréablement surprise de voir la patience, la gentillesse, l'attention, la non-indifférence des gens les uns à l'égard des autres. J'avais oublié ça à Paris, car certes à Paris ça existe aussi tout ça, mais si peu, si rarement...
As for the creepy guys in the subway. My experience as a teenager in the eighties and nineties has been with immigrants usually away from their wives from Morocco, Algeria. They often thought I was from there too. I was sexually harassed on a daily basis in the metro. Everything described on this video.
I grew up in Montreal (which was colonized by France) and a lot of the cultural aspects are pretty similar. Especially the poor customer service and general rudeness. I honestly didn't realize we were considered rude until I moved and began working in the US. It took a while to adapt to the "friendlier" way of communicating with people and now when I visit Montreal I can see it from an outsider's point of view (I can see how we are perceived to have an inflated self image). I've also been to Paris and I definitely agree with ALL of these but I was used to a lot of it. The only thing that really bothered me during my short visit was the fact that my friends and I (all female) were followed around by some creepy dude at night who was VERY persistent. It was a high school trip during senior year so there were teachers roaming around and it wasn't until we stuck by their side for awhile that he finally gave up. Definitely move in pairs, but Paris is honestly a breath taking city!
I've been living for just a year in Paris and it was soooo hard for me to adapt! I loved your video. you speak the truth! I do like all of your videos about Paris life, they are really helpful, keep going!!
I am French and studied in Paris, and I have lived in the Paris outskirts for 10 years. Right after my studies I moved abroad and never regretted it. I don´t miss the transports and the perverts in Paris. I have never encountered such attitude towards women in the other countries I haved lived in (Austria, Germany, China, Denmark and England). Regarding people being rude towards customers I agree with you, but if you go to the north of Germany you will see it can be worse. ( people rarely say "sorry" for instance) Same in Denmark where customer service is not really important- even though I find people quite pleasant in general. The metro in Paris is horrendous hygiene-wise, what a shame for such a touristic city. Regarding the water, in all the cities I have lived it was the same problem unfortunately, that is not just Paris. In general I agree with everything you say :)
I was so surprised that Copenhagen has many of these traits as well. Scandinavia is thought of as stereotypically very clean, well-run, etc., but Copenhagen is SO dirty and people pee on the street, litter, etc. a lot. I have been to many big cities in Europe that are much cleaner (like Prague). People are also really not open to foreigners at all and often refuse to speak Danish with you or pretend not to understand your accent and ask you to just speak English, so it is very difficult to learn Danish as a foreigner because most Danes aren't willing to have a conversation with you and will outright tell you how bad you are at speaking their language and how they'd prefer you didn't.
I think I am older than many posters on here...Europe was not always this way....the same can be said of some formerly very safe and beautiful US cities....A city does not HAVE to be dirty, ugly, ill behaved and/ or crime ridden. THey evolve over time fo rthe better or the worse. I have seen this in my lifetime with my own eyes that do not lie...some cities are better than they were... NYC for example...heroin sold in TImes Square and porn sops all around in the 70's... just one example.
Same thing in Switzerland when I tried to speak German. It was really frustrating, I hardly learnt anything. They were also very cold as a culture and yes, the same thing in stores. Just a hello, no service whatsoever. Very cold and unopen to foreigners.
Regarding #1 (the pushing and shoving in line), I was in a Monoprix in Paris this evening and had my items on the conveyor belt next in line and the cashier was just finishing up with the customer in front of me. So while I was waiting, an elderly gentleman with a single item pushed - and I mean SHOVED - his way to the front of the line, elbowing everybody else out of the way. When the cashier reached for my first item, I said, “Non, après vous, Monsieur,” and gestured for him to go ahead of me. Well that old man gave me this nicest smile and the nicest “Merci” and I could see he wasn’t really being a jerk, but probably just had trouble standing in line (he didn’t look too steady on his feet) and no one was offering to let him go ahead with his one item. It only goes to show that you don’t always know what is behind those “micro-agressions” you’re talking about. And that goes for any culture, not just French.
@Frances No, I always respected the "Caisse Prioritaire" for the elderly, and there were many other people in this line, not just me. He pushed ahead of everyone right up to the front. Probably because he had only one item and didn't want to wait. But it was okay, I normally would let an elderly person with one item go ahead of me anyway.
I so relate!! I lived in Paris for 5years and still work there all the time and I agree with everything.. esp the micro aggressions... it used to get me really down as everyday is filled with low level aggression and negativity. I think it becomes the norm eventually and you feel so so grateful when a day goes without it. Or overly thankful for normal, good service 😆
I just left Paris after finishing my studies there and I gotta say I used to complain about all of those things but now I'm even missing the dark and dirty sides of it... Parisians have this kind of love hate relationship with their city, constantly dissing it but then again they wouldn't leave it for the world. One thing I didn't expect to miss this much is the eclectic mix of people you meet in the 5am metro, the crazies, the wasted teens, the morning faces, the Paris by nighters, the buskers, those in suits and heels, the occasional drag queen and that one dude hugging a traffic cone.
Your description of so much of Paris actually reminds me of Israel! The customer service especially at public offices like the post office, the fact that the customer is usually never right. The return policies after one makes a purchase. The peeing on the streets, the smells, the smoking and the general attitude is so similar. Oh, and the hard water making your hair and skin rough and the towels brittle. I can't believe how much alike it is! I felt like you were describing life here in Israel.
You nailed it. Some of the problems, though, are to be found in any big city. Organized begging/selling, for example, can be found in any big city in the world. Lack of customer service, oh yeah, Paris is the hands down winner. You take that cookie, girlfriend, and enjoy it!!
Yes, I am French and about customer service, so true! It's always that no one can help you or that the very person who could, is on break on on vacation. Especially in big institutions. It is never about solutions but about passing the responsibility to someone else. And no one has the same answer to what ever problem posed. French administration is as nebulous and ridiculously complicated and never customer friendly. To get a job, an apartment, a degree, a driver licence are like long and painful experiences. Piece of cake in the USA.
Thank you for your honesty - this will help people who are considering moving there. I am sure that in the end the positives outweigh the negative for many people - but it is good to know the pluses & minuses.
Hey Rosie! SO much of what you said also applies to what I have found living in a smaller French city and now living in Brussels!! The micro aggressions are real and I can definitely relate to the ones you focused on. I've never really thought about them in this way, like building up, but I think it explains why I get so frustrated sometimes!! Also the water here is hard too and I hate what it does to my hair, the thirsty creeps, the customer service, the pollution (yes, especially the noisy motorbikes?! What is up with that), everything you said is on point. I didn't think it would be so different from Scotland in so many ways but it really is! And your point about it being land-locked is the same for Brussels - I miss seeing the sea and being able to get to a beach in 15 minutes! Great video, thanks for sharing! :)
These comments are funny because the one time I was followed by a man (in France) from the bus, he was white, blonde, with blue eyes. It's easier to throw blame onto others than to accept that harassment can come from ANY person of ANY nationality. France's problems are not all due to migrants, although for the French that's clearly difficult pill to swallow.
Sofia .... votre prénom est de consonance arabe qui signifie "pure" donc votre prénom vient du sud de la méditerranée : Maroc , Algérie , Tunisie . vous n'avez pas de chance la seule fois ou un français: grand , blond , aux yeux bleus vous siffle dessus ou vous accoste , c'est une exception , d'habitude pour nous les françaises se sont plutôt , des types de troisièmes générations mal éduqués venant du : Maroc Algérie Tunisie qui nous harcèles à longueurs de journées et contrairement a toi ils sont nombreux les types du sud de la méditerranée qui nous sifflent et nous insultent
Accepting that violence can come from many sources does not mean you shouldn't do what you can to oppose it. Therefore, you are more than welcome to shed light on any issues you may have been confronted with. Similarly, white non-muslim people in France harbour legitimate complaints against racist behaviors they are the target of. And you are in no position to discard these complaints as unimportant or meaningless.
The aggressive men in Paris, especially on the Metro, are basically why I've developed the "Metro face." Serious, neutral expression that can turn into a scowl if need be. I live in Germany now and I love the fact that there is 99.9% less catcalling. I get to be basically invisible and it's lovely. Also, we have the Roma "mafia" here in Germany too and if a woman approaches you, you can even see her a few steps away, consulting her friend with how much she got, etc. I feel bad that they have been so mistreated and exploited over the years but...so many of them can also get aggressive, too, just like in Paris, which doesn't help their cause. It's very sad.
It's so crazy how much care the Parisians put into themselves, but don't take the same care about the city they live in. I still want to go to Paris *my dream* but I'm glad I know what to look out for!
I love Paris. I don’t live there, but I do live in France, and I have felt at home in Paris each time I have visited or passed through for over 40 years. It’s a wonderful city, and you are absolutely right about everything you have said about it. The downsides you have described are not little inconveniences, they are major blemished. But somehow, because there are so many superb things about the city, one accepts these major faults. Merci d’avoir dit tes 9 vérités et d’avoir parlé si vivement dans toute la série de vidéos. Bon courage pour la bataille quotidienne!
I completely agree with everything you said rosie and that's why I don't like to come to Paris. I am French and I live near AVIGNON (like your inlaws I believe ), and I identified so much with this video but also with the collab video you did with the guy who toured France with his wife. The quotes they picked up from people living in Province could have been mine!
7:32 this is shocking but true, they even start pleasuring themselves in front of women, even on trains. I never witness that as a guy so I couldn't believe it when a friend of my sister told us that, then I ear quite often those stories on the news lately. A woman has managed to discretly film one guy pleasuring himself in front of her as it wasn't the first time it happened to her and no one took her situation seriously. I've witnessed a crazy guy spitting on girls waiting for the subway while they were sitting on the platform across mine and nobody reacted, not even me as I was as shocked as they were. Sorry but homeless guys can be assholes too, one grabbed my sister's butt in the street at night near the Opera Garnier, another one told out loud he would like to do some nasty stuff to the private parts of 2 women I worked with as we walked in front of him coming back from lunch break... I was shocked, looked at them and they seemed to be used to, they acted as if they didn't ear what he said but i'm pretty sure they did ear him. That was too many information to process as it happened so quickly and suddenly, but for the rest of the walk I was so ashamed of not having reacted, I'm not sure if I would handled it well as I was angered. Welcome to Paris (the city of love?)
I've wanted to move to Paris for some years now, but your first point (which I've heard before!) really bugs me. I hate micro-aggressions/random rudeness! I moved from London to Copenhagen and that was the first time I ever really was confronted with daily micro-aggressions... and a complete lack of service of any kind, it's like that word doesn't exist there. "Happiest country in the world" my ass - maybe during the two months of summer that they get. Not that the weather was much better in England but people seemed happier and far more open. That kind of public behaviour is either just what comes with life in SOME bigger cities, or it might even be a cultural thing.
I am French and it does not happen like that in all of France, there are regions where people are polite and nice, but it's true that it is getting worse and worse with the new generations who lack education.
Actually....I visited some other countries that were quite nice. Even in larger cities. It depends on where in Europe and what cities. I have noticed poor manners more common in some cities and Paris happens to be one of them. I want to share with you that was not always the case. The Paris I stayed in during the eighties was much cleaner and a totally different vibe, altogether. The one I visited recently? Not even close to being the same. I guess according to another person who responded it’s just that other people are perhaps fake. Like Americans… Well. I’m an American and I don’t feel like I’m fake. Perhaps I am and I don’t even know it? My father taught me to be courteous and help others if I can. Allow a lady your seat and open the doors for them. Have respect for your elders. Perhaps he was being fake as he was teaching this to me. I don’t know. It did not seem like it. I come from a very rural area in the United States. Very little to no crime. People really do wave at you and give you their spot in the grocery line. We don’t tolerate loud, obnoxious and rude people. In fact… You would find out quickly that we are not fake if you miss treated someone in a fashion that would be considered rude. The so-called fakeness… Would disappear quickly. If you get a chance visit the Netherlands.The dutch are really cool.
ಠ_ಠ Have you lived in America? I only ask because you say they are fake. You must have first hand knowledge. I assume that you were treated poorly after making you believe they were kind. I understand your mistrust and feelings of passion in regards to them being deceitful. If that’s the case? I apologize for them. I can assure you I do say hello to most people and I felt foolish in some countries when getting on a train and saying, hello to folks....and they looked at me like I was nuts. I quit doing that...as much. I do open doors for others and I treat women with respect. I must be honest in saying that I do have a similar spirit in the fact that if I feel something is wrong, I will say so. I will also defend my friends, family and country at the drop of a hat. I will be honest in saying that could be confusing. We can be quick with a hello and wish you a good day and just as quick to respond to something we feel is wrong. Keep in mind just like Most countries I am sure that the beautiful countryside outside of Paris is much more calm, quiet and safe. The same here in the states. People watch to much television. New York City and Salt Lake City could not be more different. Just an example. Where I live....the houses set about two miles apart. Even farther in many cases. The folks are very nice And would help you if needed. At the same time...it would not be a good place for criminals. They would be asked to move to the city. Politely of course.
I live in Rennes, in Brittany (west coast of France) and it's basically the same here. Esp about the thirsty guys. A few years ago I lived in London for 6 months and not once has a man tried to accost me on the street, first day back home, out for a drink with friends and i already had 3 of them by 8pm, imagine how tired we are
Great video. I lived in NYC for many years, so think a lot of the problems -- especially the "micro-aggressions" -- are just part of big-city life. But, there are other things that do seem to be specific to Paris -- the creepy, "thirsty" men and also pickpockets. In all my years in NYC, I was never pickpocketed. On the other hand, I was in Paris maybe for a week total in my life and my wallet was stolen out of my bag on the Metro, not to mention strange men, one in particular, who persistently followed me around as I went about my business. Nothing like that happened to me during the long period of time I lived in NYC.
Been to both countries & I recently did an internship at NYC. To be honest NYC is safer than Paris & I like the vibe more. But I like the other cities in France
My first half an hour on the streets of Paris, this guy pushed past me, phone in one hand and junk in the other, pissing to the side as he walked! I also had so many people give dirty looks or be openly disgusted towards my mother, who is obese. So I can sympathise with quite a few of these points. But I also understand that disliking aspects doesn't mean you dislike being there :) That first visit I took, I had decided I hated Paris and it was dirty and rude and upsetting, but then on my second visit I was already prepared for what the reality was and actually had such a wonderful time even with that knowledge.
it really sucks in half an hour, (les boules, ca craint in french)..SORRY to hear about your mum too, u should go to Nantes Vannes Paimpol Brehat......, less things to do but easygoing and there is the sea.....
@@erinintechnicolourII Paris "sucks", visiting le louvres ,la tour eiffel, les champs elysees, la butte chaumont ist enougth, french coast is really beautiful...for example "Le mont st michel" bye Erin and enjoy :)
Hi! I am French, and had lived in Paris for 15 years before moving to another country last year... and I agree with you :) all the things you say! It’s nice to hear because being away, sometimes I miss Paris so much and I forget I don’t miss the daily agressions from the creepy guys for exemple... I still love Paris, for many many reasons too, like you. Despite all of that, there are many amazing people and things there. Thank you for your videos! Bravo! Continue :)
Don't be worried about backlash, all of it is soooooo true. I don't live there but these are the nine reasons why I won't live there more than a couple of years... I think the urine smell all around Paris has to do with the lack of public toilets, poor people can't afford to go to a café to use their restroom, also in the metro I guess it's wether drunks or homeless people who can't afford to let their things or their spot behind... so much poverty in this godforsaken town
I love Europe for its history, architecture, sceneries, and food. But Japan is one of my favorite countries because it’s so clean, orderly, and organized. Even the cities there have fresh air. I also like its people for they are so kind and polite. You also feel safe touring around the places in Japan. You can walk at midnight and feel safe.
First, as someone 14 months into a move to France I wanted to say how much I enjoy your videos. You have done a great job of touching on some really relevant topics, things that I think any étranger will really relate to, both positive and negative. Thank-you. I live in Nice and see a lot of the things you have described in this video down here as well (so it's not just a Paris thing) and as a foreign student who speaks to a lot of people from other cultures can confirm that people from other countries are equally shocked when they experience, for example, a supposedly professional civil servant actually yelling at a foreign student who is simply trying to navigate a gratuitously complicated administrative process in front of a room full of people. Or openly mocking them. Or people whose job it is to provide customer service just flat out refusing to do their jobs and help someone who requires aid. It's not something you find in many other countries as far as I can tell. I have friends and classmates from Russia, China, Korea, Canada, Ukraine, the US, England, Spain, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Peru, Argentina, etc etc and they're all shocked at one time or another by the lack of professionalism and the way things just don't function well in France on an administrative level. I actually think you've been quite kind in how you have characterized some of this behaviour. It's hard to argue that it's the individual dignity of French people that makes them unable or reluctant to provide good customer service. Chinese people have no less dignity than the French do and yet they don't really understand why the facteur might just decide they're not even going to try delivering your package and instead will just leave a note saying they tried and that you can go get it yourself at la Poste. This kind of thing happens regularly here and very rarely in other countries. I see a lack of a sense of community in Nice, as I think you mentioned, as well as a very pervasive egoism and I think these things contribute strongly to these behaviours that someone from another culture will probably find baffling. Everyone needs help at some point or another and so when someone comes to us for help it's usually easy to put yourself in the other person's place and do your best to help them. Here that mutual understanding seems all too often to be absent. And I want to be clear that I'm not saying French people lack empathy. On a personal level my French friends are extremely kind. This is a phenomenon that seems to occur primarily when it's someone's job to provide help to others. And any time I have asked my French friends why they think things like customer service are so terrible in France the most common reply is "Behhh tout le monde s'en fiche". Nobody gives a damn. On the other hand, it's going to be sunny and 16 degrees here today. :)
Oh yes...two recent trips to Nice have finally cured me, where they treated us like shit just like in Paris,and we are done there too...never setting foot in France ever again...plenty of other NICER AND KINDER places places in the world.
My French language teacher who is in her earlish 20s mentioned about the thirsty French men and how her and her friends avoided dressing a certain way because they would get followed and harrased. To my surprise she said in Australia she had no issues with this sort of thing which baffled me as us Aussie blokes can be quite blunt and simple and loutish.
@SprattyD Different intentions and expectations, I think. These shows through the bluntness and the "being loutish", declaring that there's no real threat behind the words. Some boys take it as an insult when ignored. They get offended if a woman doesn't respond, or smile, at their "compliments". They take the time to express their appreciation, so they feel that the woman should at least show some gratitude. ((this is my assumption, but I can't really relate, so I could be wrong.)) Boys usually don't practise much introspection, asking themselfs; "I'm I in the wrong here?"
I absolutely agree with everything you said! And most of your points are not just in Paris, it’s all over France, especially the shockingly bad customer service😣
Thank you Rosie for your honest expose of some of the downsides of Paris. As an Aussie who loves Paris & has been there three times I was aware of some of these things but a few surprised me. I think it is good to give a bit of this kind of info to balance any illusions & help people to become more aware ☺ xx
As a parisian, I can say that there is no lie in this video. Some of it makes me really sad, even if there's also a lot to love in the city and it's still my home.
Auch...
Go to India u will b shock more than ur city of light n love
the worst are the ignorants in paris
HOW ARE THERE SO MANY
What do you love about your city?
@@pepimar5236 um well nothing really...
i mean french pasteries and bread is good but apart from that its an awful place
After coming back from studying in France for half a year, I finally appreciated how incredibly safe Prague is. When you can walk alone and take the metro in the night as a female and feel completely safe, you know you live in a good city.
Depends where you walk
@@rexlapis1075 I've never felt unsafe in Prague compared to France
@@ninavinterova9875
Well it really depends
In the morning metro is usually safe
It’s only a little dangerous a night like every other city
@@rexlapis1075 what I'm saying is that I've never felt unsafe in any public transport at night in Prague and neither on the street. I've lived there for 21 years
@@ninavinterova9875
I get it but as a guy the only thing I disliked about Paris is the air
In some places the air is fresh but in certain areas I feel like I am getting suffocated
You've started criticising everything, congratulations!! You're officially a true French!! 😂😆😂😆
C est trop ca😂😊👍oui je pense que tu mérites bien la nationalité française ! Super personnalité @notevenfrench
I think she was kind. There is so much more to criticize in France. Unfortunately.
Ghada Othmani Makni lol
I'am a parisian for 34 years now. I can't leave Paris even for few days. But what she says in her videos is unfortunately quite true, so even if it is not pleasant to hear, and as it is said with love of the country and the city we have to admit it does exist. It would be great to find a way to solve these problems.
And for what she calls "fat shamming" i do say sentences like "oh I could'nt eat something so fat" and for example industrial mayonaise does make me sick. The last time i went to mac donalds i had to go to the toilets to give back the food. :/ So maybe it could be thought as fat shamming for some people but this food really makes us sick.
@@stef75017 Oui je suis d'accord avec toi. Mais il me semble qu'au delà de la santé il y a un culte de la minceur voir maigreur en France qui va au delà de l'aspect santé je trouve. On peut avoir un poids normal sans être mince et manger des choses saines tout en mangeant des produits riches en calories mais qui peuvent faire partie d'un menu équilibré (quand c'est bien dosé). Au delà de ca, si quelqu’un a envie de mal manger de temps en temps, libre a lui. Tu ne crois pas ?
When someone cuts you in line or yells at you that’s not a micro aggression that’s just regular aggression
Its called bad manners. I cant understand why this lady doesn’t say people are rude, its more precise.
This sounds exactly like Rome. Every single issue EXCEPT for the fat shaming. They're much more likely to encourage you to eat more, not less. 😄
So true
@@Lommy9999 in different proportions... Paris is not so bad yet :)
i wanted to write exactly this haha
Esattamente xD
i'm italian living in nyc, but whenever i go home to see my family i feel very fat shamed. they constantly make comments on my body that americans would never make. and no i am not overweight.
I’m a French Parisian and I approve this message.
hahaha
Same thing (former Parisian here)
😆🤣😂🤣😆
I am so happy to see that you touched on the unpleasant side of living in Paris, this really helps in having an objective view on everyday life and last but not least congratulations on having the courage to upload this and face the possible hate. It takes guts to be so honest about it
MY THOUGHTS EXACTLY! I'm happy to visit Paris but am always happier to return home à la campagne. Life is so much simpler and easy-going in the French countryside.
Le bruit et l'odeur !
Il me semble qu'un ancien maire de Paris devait y remédier...
When I visited Paris I loved it but always felt I had to be vigilant not to get my stuff stolen.
When I made it to La Rochelle I was so happy I could keep my wallet in my pocket again.
@@NotEvenFrench Indeed, this year I was sentenced to return to Paris. 😅
Never saw so much dried up dog shit in my life - these people do not clean up after their animals - about on a par with the chinese who spit everywhere
I've always wanted to go to the French countryside besides going to Lyon, Nantes and Nice. Where would you recommend me visit in the French countryside? I have an architect mind where I love a good balance of landscaping and quaint old buildings.
I think pretty much every Parisian would agree with you.
For the 8th one, it’s not only fat shaming. French people, especially Parisians, are constantly judgmental about one’s appearance in general, body shape, clothing, hairstyle...
The “feel free to be yourself “ spirit is one aspect of Anglo-Saxon countries I appreciate the most.
@@iranycecilliawonnepereiraa4156 it's not only about fat. You'll get the same comments on your clothing style, your accent, if you have any habit regarded as childish you'll hear about it
The only plus side to this is if you get a compliment in Paris you know you’ve done something right.
I got into a brawl 2 times in the Paris metro
Very interesting. You're lovely! Your last point about the beggars...I was in Stockholm last year having a coffee with an old friend (I lived there during the 90s) and watched a woman sitting on the ice-cold ground begging. A man pulled up in a very nice brand-new Audi, picked her up, they ate in the car and she went "back to work." So you are right, it is organized. And it seems the men from this culture make all the money (he drove off in his shiny and warm car as she sat out begging in the cold). It is the women who suffer. I NEVER give them money because it goes only to the men to go enjoy themselves while they put their women and handicapped out in the cold to beg. And many times, I've seen these men yelling at their women in public... treating them atrociously. Disgusting.
The London tube is great... compared to Paris. There are not many perverts at all. As a woman living in London for 10 years I never experienced any great discomfort at all. But I've visited paris a few times.... different story.
Jaana Viit - I’m a Londoner and I’m fed up of the tube, I recognise it’s one of the most well connected transport systems in the UK, but, it’s nowhere near as efficient as the trains/metros in Switzerland, Norway, Austria etc.
At least you can take paris metro or even the whole region transport system without breaking your bank account.
Leebpascal1 - Very, very, true! Too much of my money goes on tube fares every month.
I agree so much!! I'm French living in the UK and I'm so glad that I don't get bother by men anymore, I was soooo fed up in France!!
@@janesmith1992 Depends were in London you used to live. If you lived in Wood Green or Seven Sisters, I understand why you don't think that London isn't safe.
I used to work in a school in the South of France as a foreign volunteer. Once we the volunteers had to bring a national traditional home-made cake to a gathering organized by the school for the teachers, parents and the children. I made a delicious cake made of nuts, marmalade and chocolate which is a traditional cake in my country. When I arrived to the gathering and offered my cake I made, people started to fat-shame me (especially women) saying: How can you put so many greasy, high-calorie ingredients in one cake?????Are you serious???? Nobody tasted it. Is this the famous french politesse? At that time I almost started to cry and wanted to just leave and put my cake in the dustbin. Now I only laugh at it, I realized that the fat - shaming is cultural thing, especially among women and in bigger cities. I talked to a girl in Toulouse who said: I don't have breakfast because I am not hungry in the morning. Then I don't have dinner because by the time I get home in the evening, I am already not hungry. I was like WTF??? Women in France remain thin by smoking a lot and having coffee without sugar instead of eating, many people are anorexic too. Their cuisine is full of butter, sugar, white flour, greasy fromage and high calorie patisserie. This is not healthy at all, and they shame other people.
YOU ARE SPEAKING SO MUCH TRUTH!! I have lived here for 13 months and every single thing you said I have been through. The public pissing is the absolute worst. I have to walk with my 8 year old daughter and I feel horrible when it happens. So many creeper men! I pushed a guy rubbing too close to me off of me on the metro and my husband thought I was overreacting. You can love Paris and still feel like there are issues. Cutting in line or being ignored at shops drive me mad. I love your candidness, thanks lovely!
I am French. And totally validate your statements here... I lived all over France and Paris and it applies to all areas. I also lived half my life in the uk, and the rudeness and poor customer skills, the French admin... when you have lived and experienced another way of life in different countries you are totally aware that what you are saying is is totally spot on. Sadly 😓
@@Onnya-Lemox I live in a small town in the South of France, it s very safe and quiet, nothing in cmon with our shithole capital city and region.
I feel so ashamed to be french.. And also these are many of the reasons why I would probably never live in Paris. Including that I wouldn't feel safe as a gay man there. Living now in Melbourne, Australia, I feel like parisians could do SO MUCH to improve everyone's perception of this beautiful city.
I'm a former New Yorker now living in Paris. I agree with all you talk about, but really it's about life in a large city, any large city!
yeah, I was just going to say...wait, isn't this New York? LOL. But Paris does have a twist...quite sharp attitudes...New Yorkers are just brusque.
Not necessarily. Rotterdam doesn't smell like piss, certainly not on the metro. Maybe some elevators, but not like Paris. And we don't have the guys trying to trick you into games on the street, no beggars, etc. No real problem with pickpockets or creeps at stations. Of course it happens, but Paris reminds me of Rotterdam twenty years ago. The fact that we don't have these issues anymore to me proves that they can be solved.
I'm not from Paris but Lyon. I visited New York for two weeks.
What annoyed me the most (on top of the crazy heat late August/early September) is the piles of trash in the street and the smell in every place I went.
In Brooklyn, where I was living in Bushwick, there was big piles of garbage that remained for days before being removed by garbage pickers. When in France garbage is collected every day in the cities, and it's in garbage cans to prevent the smell and sight of it.
Then there was the misery. I'm not mad for this though. I'm glad that New York don't kick out the poors to hide them.
But it seems like there is so much more misery than in France! That was really sad.
But I never felt insecure in New York. Maybe I was naive. But even coming home late at night in Bushwick which is kinda poor, I never felt threatened in any way! Even though I was one of the few white guys in this mostly black neighborhood, I felt comfortable.
Maybe that's also due to the fact that cops are everywhere! The police station near where I was living had more police cars in front of it than the number of police cars I crossed in my whole life in France!
Ok maybe I'm exaggerating. But they had maybe 30 cars! And mostly brand new ones. From the tiny Smart to the huge american cars like Hummer. I never saw that in France.
Once I went at a Caribbean festival in Brooklyn. Along the way I walked to go there, there were two cops at each crossroads! I never saw so much cops except in violent french demonstrations.
Finally, I thought people were polite and more respectful than in France. And often willing to help the tourist that I was.
I'd love to go back if I had the money, but at a cooler season.
New York is much better as is London. NYC has some bad smells but the people aren’t anything like the people in Paris. And London is very neat.
@@0114855 Rotterdam might be a little bit smaller than new York, London or Paris (if you count urban areas because administrative borders mean nothing)
YES!!! This is a less angry version of me 😂👍🏻
Nah, I reckon 3 more months and you'll be 'effin and jeffin.@@NotEvenFrench
@@paultaylorcomedy Unfortunatly (even french) I have to agree. I do not think we are welcoming, we always complain about everything, we tend to think we are superior, which is of course totally unfounded!
I travel a lot in Europe § as a french I do not feel welcome which I can understand, § it's sad. Sometimes I wish I was born elsewhere but I guess I should feel lucky with my standard of living compared to lots of countries in the world.
Anyway, Paris is well known in my country to be the worst version of french rudeness ;'(
Take care guys. Sorry about all these bad experiences, I feel a bit ashamed now.
Lol
Haha, @Paul Taylor!
@@jackgoumard5293 honestly same. im french born in america, ive never been to france nor outside the usa in general. not only hearing all these things abt the french, but the french also confirming this, makes me feel hurt & kinda scared honestly. its making me not want to visit my own country... im kinda grateful to be in america now. here nobody gives a shit about u (the good way) & most ppl are pretty nice
You forgot to mention some relevant points. 1) Heavy paperwork, 2) Expensive rents and difficulties to find an apartment, 3) High local taxes and 4) the way le métro and suburban trains work (sometimes poorly by the way)
Cannot thank you enough for this video! It offers such an honest depiction of this “romantic city” that a lot of people are often duped by! LoL. The city is like a real marriage; it’s starts with a romantic notion but often ends with an honest experience of living through the good, the bad, and the ugly! Well done.
So true. I lived in Paris for a year in 2011 and I thought all big cities were like that. I then lived in London and Milan and realised oh, no not all big cities are quite that bad ! Especially the men and the pickpockets
I am French and I live in Paris since i was a child and I agree at 100% !!
Despite of that, I still loving your city and country!
I was surprised she did not say anything about Muslims
gardensofthegods Why she should say something ?
@@gardensofthegods The next thing you will be racist about will be the Jews, is it?
@@gardensofthegods fuck you hahaha don't come to paris or if you in paris, be careful to say this bullshits little bitch
Don't worry that's not limited to foreigners... I'm French but I grew up in the mountains (Alps), had to come live in Paris for work (I'm a cop, most of us are sent to Paris after the academy so my coworkers are in the same situation) and I can relate to most of what you're saying.
Parisiens are overly stressed, they start shouting at the smallest of inconvenience, women are constantly harassed in some areas, creepy people in public transports, disgusting smells (you're talking about urine but one day I saw a guy taking a crap between two parked cars...), etc...
It's just as weird to French people who didn't grow up in Paris, believe me. Most of us are eagerly waiting to leave.
Hugo Charbonnel if you’re a cop make sure you kick the shit out of all the scum out there
RZZ nn I’m from London, it’s big, it’s busy, it’s dirty, and I love it. I live at London Bridge, pretty central. Some people are too busy to help visitors , but there are many who will stop to help a tourist...I am one of the helpful people!
I laughed out loud there...taking a crap in the street!!? 😳 That’s awful but I’m laughing too 😂 Did he scoop it up in a dog poop scoop after? 😂
.
Thanks for the shout out and for bringing attention to this issue! 👏men out here be thirsty af😂
The migrants aren't fun and why does no one address what is happening in Paris right now?
@@NotEvenFrench malheureusement ce n'est pas qu'à Paris, on a le meme probleme à Lille et je ne veux pas stigmatiser les hommes car heureusement tous les hommes ne sont pas comme ça, mais quand on en parle autour de nous c'est toujours "oh tu exageres" "il t'a sifflée tu vas pas en mourir" "il t'a fait un compliment soit heureuse" BEN NON !!! heureusement ça a l'air de s'arranger depuis "metoo" ... enfin ça s'arrange pas du tout mais au moins les femmes osent en parler ;-) (encore une fois je parle juste des dégénérés qui ne respectent pas les femmes)
@@charlottecordier59 yep, ça n'arrive jamais là ou je vi's en Angleterre, et je pense que c'est malheureusement commun dans certain pays Mediterraneens comme la France.
The lack of deodorant some refuse to wear.
Yes oml
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Oh man! I've been living in Paris for over 9 years now, these are so spot on and you made me laugh so hard :D It is an incredibly beautiful city and I feel that every time I get out on the street and walk around but it definitely isn't a great place to live. Most big cities share the same problems but they compensate for that one way or another. To me, Paris is visually very beautiful and very magical especially at night when the streets are emptier but it lacks the kind of spirit and invigorating energy New York or London has.
E
Yeah! I've dealt with all of those things in Paris. I think it's good to be honest about the city, I love Paris and I love being there, but many of those things are symptomatic of urban life and people often romanticize the city. When I lived in the 4th, I was lucky to be equidistant between about 5 stations, but the most convenient station we never took at night because the men at that station would harass us relentlessly.
Back in the mid 70's when I was in Paris, it was relatively clean, with nice shops and clean walk ways, and streets.
You are very lucky to have visited Paris in the 70's... the good old days when Paris was full of French people...
@@adrianaprosen2918 It's a lot more about population density (including tourism) than it is about the big bad immigrants. 20k inhabitants per km² just makes people apathetic and on edge.
@@adrianaprosen2918 Back in the 70's you'd be choking on diesel fueled cars and trucks, too.
@@CirageNoir Paris was more densely populated in 1970 than it is now.
What a dumb thing to say. Paris has always had an edge like most big cities. It's not like sidewalks weren't already covered in dog shit back then.
Now you are french. And now you understand why french people outside of Paris dont like this city.
Non, c'est votre jalousie et vos complexe qui vous font detester Paris hein ca faut l'savoir.
I’m from Belgium, I love France, but I hate Paris. I was there today, horrible traffic, horrible people, horrible sanity, horrible life. So much violence, noise, racism, hatred, extremism.. very sad. What’s left to like about Paris?
@@Libanass museums and galleries for tourists. Not much for the locals.
🤣😂😂
@@Libanass If I get the chance to go to Paris I would like to spend few days in Paris to see the museums and the most interesting "tourist" place, but after that I will leave for South France, the vineyards and the see. Same with Italy though.
Wow.... now you’ve totally changed my mind about moving to Paris. I’ll stay in the USA. People are so nice here.
@Samuel Astic compared to other countries, you wouldn’t believe how the the united states is compared to other countries, thats coming from a french person, the only countries i can think of that are nicer are new zealand or canada
Great decision
@Samuel Astic no one said "all"
I'm Zimbabwean and I'm planning to come and study in France when I finish high school. I very strongly agree with a variety - if not all - of your points and its true as I've visited Paris, its quite saddening how we can't really do much about it. But I'm glad that you brought this to our attention might we find a way to help. Great video, btw. Keep it up!
Everything is so true it hurts. French living in London here and i wouldn't go back to Paris for these reasons. On the bright side it's a beautiful city, charged with history and culturally amazing. Just as many big cities, it's more enjoyable for a holiday than everyday life!
That's exactly it!: more for visiting than living in.
For all non-French people here, plese remember that France =/= Paris. France has so many diversity and Paris is certainly not its best representative place. ;)
WEll I have been treated like shit in Paris for the last time and now the same in Nice. The "I don't give two shits about you or anyone but myself" is pervasive both places.....they act like like their lives are miserable that famous French ennui...well they have what they themselves have worked so hard to create. Life is NOT like this everywhere else. Beautiful buildings built by long dead men and lovely food and art notwithstanding.
and also, Paris can be pretty wonderful, too. It depends on how you live in it and probably where.
I was in Paris twice this year and it was awful.
Full of aggressive people and conmen. Charles de Gaulle airport appalling.
But get out of Paris and the people and the countryside and the culture are wonderful.
,
france sucks and that’s on
@@latinaalma1947 because you are shit you deserve to be treated like this
I'm from Australia. Upon arrival in France I was fully prepared for a long struggle with the infamous French bureaucracy which I'd heard so much about. Documents, forms and files ready, sharpened and available for upcoming battles with the various French systems. Little did I know just what I was letting myself in for. One thing is for sure - nothing happens quickly around here and you need to be very patient. I don’t mind the fact that the system is complicated, I was prepared for this. What is more frustrating is when you are given conflicting advice from various people who are supposed to represent and work for the system. I get the impression that shitstem is so complex that they don’t even understand it. It's a finely tuned instrument of torture. It actually requires genuine creativity to be this inefficient. Like an avant-garde performance art.
It's the same in the Netherlands. Even getting the right department on the phone in a company or at the municipality could take an hour, five phone calls and three formal complaints. Have you tried the extremely nice and patient approach? Smile until it hurts, sound cheerful, ask interested questions and compliment people, instead of trying to force them into anything and complain. And ask questions to make them feel needed, even when you already know the answer, pretend you're stupid and thank them for taking the time to explain because they are your hero and you wouldn't have been able to find out on your own. Usually that works fairly well over here, in the end everyone just wants to be loved. ;)
Mate you think the French have bureaucracy??!.. Have you been to India where they perfected it from the British themselves to an artform with a ...3 Star Michelin degree! Yeah ;-)
Yes, Civil Law systems have the problem of bureaucracy, it is terrible. Also, one of the problems on France in my opinion is the centralisation, it is such a big and populated country but most competences are centralised which results often in a lack of efficiency due to the complexity of the Public Administration. Regions don’t have much legal capacities compared to more decentralised or federalised countries. But that territorial form is a nuclear part of French idiosyncrasy and mentality that changing it would be terribly hard, even if public policies to improve bureaucracy are implemented. Each country has their pros and cons I guess!
The conflicting advice is the worst - it does get to you, doesn't it.
Paris is a shithole.
Life in France: “CEST PAS POSSIBLE!” “CEST PAS MON JOB HEIN!”
The organized crime one broke my heart. Even a beautiful city like Paris has great sadness.
Summary for foreigners or tourists : don't beleive in stereotypes. Paris is a big city with real people living there, with all the troubles coming with that.
When Trump said "Paris is no more Paris", he is refering to a stereotypical Paris that never existed, the Paris for tourists and dreamers.
Since the highest antiquity, and through the middle-age, Paris has always been a filthy city, full of harsh people, rough intellectuals and students, poor people, migrants looking for a better futur, people who have to work hard to survive, don't forget that the most brutal events in french history took place in Paris : la fronde, the french revolution, the barricades in 1848, Paris commune, etc.
But it is also only from chaos that creativity can emmerge. one of the oldest university in Europe, Philosophical enlightments that inpired both american founding fathers and french revolution, artistic upheavals, etc, even communism was inspired by the "Paris commune" in 1871 (that's where the word communism come from) .
Raphael d : You're the king of PC... Congratulations !! :-)
@@HaroldHivart PC ?
@@camembertdalembert6323 politiquement correct
you're right on the tourists ideas of paris, but I don't think trump was refferring to that, being the biggot that he is.
Also you're totally wrong on the word communism
It was invented around the 1830's as Marx and Hegel were starting to write in the the party's manifeste.
The only link between communism and commune, is when Marx vehemently opposed lenine (who first said he was doing a different kind of socialism, and then rebranded it communism like a vulgar salesman) and Marx spoke against him and all the fake communists, and said the only society that was close enough to the idea of his communism was la commune de paris. But then again, la commune was more of a social libertarian anarchist and democratic society than communism, in the marxist term of it.
Though la commune de paris did had a huge impact on the general socialists, communists,, and and anarchists intellectuals, and still has to this day.
The word communism, which was formed on the adjective common, appeared, in the wake of the term socialism, invented by Leroux (1833), in the years that followed the non-revolution of 1830. We do not know however neither the inventor nor the exact date of invention (shortly before 1840). If the word communist was first used in a legal sense (in 1769, Mirabeau uses it to designate "people who have a common right"), the corresponding substantive immediately designated various political utopian doctrines , based on the abolition of private property and absolute equality between human beings. Sainte-Beuve defines it thus, in his correspondence, as a "socialism advocating the suppression of private property" (1840), Proudhon says, in What is property? (1840), that "it is the property which is found at the bottom of all the theories of the Communists" (1840) and Cabet applies in How I am a Communist (1840) to think the organization of "a great society on the basis of equality ... in education, in food, in clothing, in lodging, in furnishing, in labor, in burdens of every kind, and in enjoyments of any kind "(p.6). Moreover, the birth of the word seems to be related to the publication of his utopian Voyages and adventures of Lord William Carisdall in Icaria (1839), reissued in 1842 under the famous title of Voyage en Icaria: the author describes there indeed a an ideal society organized according to the "system of community", which is explicitly opposed to the "system of inequality and property". Anyway, it is distributed by Reybaud, in his Studies on reformers or modern socialists (1840-1843) and meets a great success in France (from 1843, Cabet is called to defend a certain Gouhenant accused of "conspiracy communist ") and in Germany, where Marx makes the title of an article (1842).
As an American living in the US, I apologize. Please pay no mind to the oompa loompa President. He uses the same bullshit rhetoric over here to get what he wants too. I went to Paris back in 2016 and it was amazing. I don't regret any of it and plan on going back.
Ça y est tu es officiellement devenue française tu commences à tout critiquer ! Ahah je plaisante je suis aussi parisien et tu n'es pas la seule à penser tout ce qui est dit dans cette vidéo de nombreux autres parisiens aussi scène plaignent (l'eau qui assèche les cheveux, les mecs trop bizarres etc). N'ait pas peur de donner ton point de vue c'est très intéressant pour les étrangers car même si Paris est une ville magnifique elle est idolâtrée par les étrangers
En même temps le Ph de l'eau atteint 8.4 quasiment partout dans Paris.... Sauf à la source de rue de la butte aux *(j'ai oublié butte à quoi mais c'est bien la seule source ou l'eau vient d'ailleurs que Paris et est donc bien plus saine)*
Effectivement! Au Québec, on dit “chialer pour chialer!”... La grande tradition française!
Rosie: 🎼Tuuuuu eeees des nôôôtre...!” 😂👍
J'ai été Parisien quelques années et je suis maintenant à Versailles, je n'ai jamais rien remarqué de particulier avec l'eau.
ViquelOoste je pense que tu veux parler de la Butte-aux-Cailles
Edit: apparemment l'eau ne viens pas du tout du même endroit suivant le quartier de Paris que l'on habite:
www.paris.fr/services-et-infos-pratiques/environnement-et-espaces-verts/eau-et-assainissement/l-eau-potable-2266
les parisiens ont choisi Hidalgo, il faut assumer. Sans être de l'autre bord, je pense que Paris était plus vivable du temps du voleur de poules Chirac. Une chose est sûre, j'ai vécu il y a 12 ans, à Saint-Maure-des-Fossés le long de la Marne dans le 94 (Val-de-marne) , et c'était très agréable, puisqu'on profitait uniquement des bons cotés de Paris seulement le soir, voir le samedi.
Seulement, fallait éviter de traverser Champigny ...
@@eunosnurb4123 ce qui ne m'étonne pas, les canalisations romaines amènent de l'eau de partout en île de France
C'est aussi pour ça que les Français de la province détestent Paris aussi xD
Nan ca c'est parce que les parisiens les regardent de haut alors ils sont frustrés :)
T C en 18 ans a Paris j’ai remarqué que les seuls parisiens qui regardent les provinciaux de haut, c’est les provinciaux montés sur Paris 😂
Ouais enfait ce que je voulais dire c'est qu'ils *croient" qu'on les regarde de haut alors ils nous méprisent
oui, mais c'est devenu de pire en pire en 15 ans
Seuls les provinciaux fantasment sur Paris et ont un complexe d'infériorité , les vrai parisiens ne sont pas prétentieux ou hautains puisque pour eux vivre à Paris c'est juste normal , ils en ont rien à foutre , alors que les campagnards et les banlieusards s'enflamment quand ils "montent à la capitale".
Thanks so much for the video! It gives me more perspective. However I tend to talk back if someone even dares to say something rude to me anywhere. I find it weird when people are treated rudely and unfairly that they don’t speak up. My approached would will always be to tell people off if they’re being aggressive or rude to me than bashing them behind their backs. Although I fully understand why you made this video and again I appreciate it!
congrats, you have finally become french enough to criticize paris 😂
Best and smartest comment ever! 😂
I've lived my whole life in Paris, though I moved to different arrondissements and once to the banlieue, and I have to say that you're not wrong. However I think having adapted to circumstances or not having lived elsewhere, I don't really pay attention to any of this, I know to ignore some and adapt to others, as many others do :
Not taking the metro after a certain hour (20h/23h depending on if it's winter or summer) without someone (a guy preferably) to take me where I go,
Ignoring the beggars who have anything making them look pitiful (children, pets, act as if they limp, etc),
Avoid the parts and times of the day of Paris where guys are weird (it's not everywhere at every time you'll realize),
Not paying attention to costumer service unless they are nice,
Ignore the noise and make sure I have good windows against noise, etc,
Ignore men unless I know them (that's why Parisian women have a reputation for being stuck up, we simply adapted to being a target of sexual harassment, strangers flirting are NOT welcome),
Also about harassment, a Parisian woman always covers up (nothing too revealing, not too much make up) because otherwise we're sure to be targeted,
Always wear my bag close (preferably in front so I see it) and not putting anything too valuable in accessible places (such as pockets),
Drink mineral water (many good brands come from France and are easily accessible) or filter my water,
Etc.
Yeah but that's not normal, we should all be able to live our life as we want. And not have to take the subway and make any compromises because of assholes
@@sylvain_guitar9178 As an Australian man I say you're right. Australian women / feminists are constantly making an issue of this and demanding improvement. They're right to do so. You have to push push push to keep talking about these things and demand change. From the Australian experience I can say we're not perfect but women's voices ... they're getting heard there because they keep the issue in the public mind constantly. It's a good strategy. It's not up to women to accept it.
That's sounds like a lot of work just to have some peace.
I think you need to move out of France and discover there are places in the world that don't tolerate that bullshit and live happy and stress free lives because of it.
Paris is still my favourite city, I know about all the things you talked about, but every city has issues. I found that not speaking French was not an issue, trying to speak it helped a bit. I did love Auckland though, very, very friendly people. New Zealand is a very beautiful country, spent three weeks there being with a friend who is from Whangarei.
I'm French and I agree with everything you said :) Paris and Marseille are probably the most unsafe cities, people working in customer service are so done with their jobs and lowkey blames it on you, PICKPOCKETS OH MY GOD don't even get me started on that. Hard water, that's kind of recurrent in a lot of French cities. I traveled quite a bit, and I realized that French people are VERY judgemental of others ... Maybe not in Paris, but in most cities I find that there is very few originality in the way people dress, or act. In class, no one dares to speak up or answer the teacher's questions too much, by fear of being judged...
And we also really like to complain ;)
As a Vietnamese, I think it pretty much sounds like Saigon hahah. Even when things can get really bad, you'd still miss the city no matter where you go.
Also a guy who lived in Paris for 3 years told me that it is very hard to live in Paris b/c of the high cost of living and housing in relation to avg wage/salary. He told me middle-class Parisians are not financially stable and basically live check to check. He was fine living in Paris b/c he is a physician, but told me that $500k will disappear in an instant.
I'm French and I have lived in Paris for 3 years, and I totally agree with you ! All you described is the reason why I sometimes hate Paris, and why I want now to discover something else. Micro aggressions are particularly exhausting on the long term, and can really affect how you feel.
The only problem of this video is the sneak peek you give of Paris ! Any foreign person who will watch this video will be disgusted with the city ^^
Love your honesty,...of course no city is perfect...your observations are spot on...merci....
The biggest issue I’ve had is the body shaming, and I am NOT big. I’m glad you brought this up...it’s a really sad thing that happens here :( Your other points were pretty accurate too! Not negative at all.
How do they body shame people there? Are there black people in Paris? Because black women are genetically bigger in size than Caucasian women so that would be quite unfortunate.
@@love.1995-
There are a lot of black people in Paris
i live in europe and have been to paris and new york (i even "lived" in ny for a couple of months) and paris almost has a threatening vibe. i don't know how to explain it but while i think the two cities are similar in a lot of ascpects, paris has a certain darkness that's almost scary. i still go there a lot lol it's super close to where i live.
sohogrunge, NYC is a dump.
Brennen Nelson maybe you're right but i love it so much. i wish i loved paris or milan as much because it would be way easier for me to move there lol
I haven't been to Paris in a long time, but I agree that NYC has a non-menacing vibe. Like any big city you always have to be careful and aware but in NYC I never felt unsafe and I like how there are always regular people out amd about at all hours.
What kind of threatening vibe?
Is it the crime? Is it the anti-European sentiment of Muslims? Or vice versa? Or is it Poltical?
Could you pls tell me more?
Platypus Paws hey :) nothing in particular, to me it just doesn‘t feel as warm and welcoming as other big cities (ie nyc or rome). Can‘t really tell you why since i‘ve had a great time everytime i went, it‘s just the vibe i picked up :)
I’ve lived in Paris for almost a year and I have to agree with you on most things. I especially found the Parisian women (not all of them!) to be very rude. It’s was their combination of hysterical, impatient and arrogant behaviour which I found very interesting. The Parisian men (not all of them!), as you said in the video, can be very intrusive and sometimes even agressive towards women. The amount of ‘accidental’ touching in the subway I’ve experienced was just disgusting. I used to live near Le Bon Marche and would sometimes buy some delicious macarons or do my grocery shopping there. And you are right, the reluctance of the staff was beyond annoying and made me want to never shop there again. But those macarons though...... Although I loved the city of Paris, the Parisians made my experience less agreeable.
eat all the cookies you want!
It's just French culture. This point is not specific to Paris. You just can't eat what you want whenever you want without getting some comments.
I know right! Im so surprised seems such a shame / paradox a country that is so famous for cuisine patisserie etc etc all i would want to do initially is stuff my face (till i got over it) & just enjoy the beautiful food. sad..
Miaina why though?
Yves zusje the relation to the food is different on every culture. In France, we have a common approach. We have a discipline taught from the childhood in the family environnent and et the school. So if you step aside from this common discipline you will take some comments.
If some Parisian wench tried shaming me about my food I would say That's right! Wanna bite? Oh no? Then bite this!!!!!
I 💯 percent appreciate your REAL honesty..... Honestly. It's a REAL place, NOT a story book
Have you visited Bretagne? I live in Brest and we’re right next to the ocean... I can literally see it from my apartment! It’s not the prettiest looking city but I too appreciate being close to the ocean because I also grew up not too far from it
Sad that Brest was destroy during the last war and rebuilt as a shithole by sillies architects, that certainly hate Brittany for sure. Same for normandy.
Bretagne is the best... \I/...
vous êtes partout c'est pas possible xD
@@Epsillion70
@@sourireanonyme6543 Je suis celtique. Je suis chez moi n'importe où.
This rhymes with my experience of Paris, particularly the rude service. Manners cost nothing.
I spent 5 days in Paris and experienced almost every point you made. People asked me when I got back what I thought and were surprised when I didn't describe it as the beautiful romantic place they see in the movies.
So true : it stinks in the metro, people are not often helpful, they can become aggressive so fast. I left Paris a year ago and I have to say that coming back in a smaller city made me think : "oh people are so good here ! Streets are clean, people don't push you, don't ask you for money three times a day (their situations are sad for people who ask for money, but it's so hard to be confronted to the poverty level in Paris'streets every day)
I am French and really agree with your point of view on the problems that make living in Paris not as great as it could be.
(If there were not those smells it would yet change drastically the atmosphere of the city,... maybe good smells make people more happy and less aggressive : D
Sales pauvres qui me confrontent à la misère !!
@@ViquelOoste tu peux être ironique, mais tu ne te rends probablement pas compte à quel point c'est difficile de voir des gens dans le besoin à tous les coins de rue. Quoi que tu fasses c'est jamais assez. Que t'aies un compte blindé ou que tu sois à découvert toutes les fins de mois, t'es impuissant, et la presqu'indifférence générale fait froid dans le dos
@@mychkineplot7677 ben j'en vois tout les jours, ce que je sais c'est qu'à la fois on n'est pas reponsables et à moins de leurs offrir ton foyer (ou l'une de tes propriétés vacantes si tu es riche) leurs donner de l'argent ne change rien à leurs conditions, perso je leurs souhaite simplement bon courage
mais, on est en même temps responsables parce qu'on ne fait rien pour foutre dehors les nantis qui nous exploitent et laisse ces gens crever dans la rue.
Euuu tu dois vraiment vivre dans une petit village pour faire un tel message.
Perso des ville (même petite) où on te pousse pas pour rentrer dans des transport eb commun, où il n'y a pas de mendiant et ou tout est propre j'en ai pas vue beaucoup
@@astiertristan non j'ai toujours vécu en ville : ) Et à Paris, entre le début de la décennie et maintenant, le nombre de SDF a bondi, ça se voit, ça se ressent, et ça se compte... Avant certes il y avait des SDF, et dans toutes les villes dans lesquelles j'ai vécu, bien sûr, mais maintenant, des SDF il y en a à la pelle : ça a changé, et pas dans le bon sens
Quand aux bousculades, bien sûr, il y en a partout, mais tout de même, ayant passé la dernière année dans deux villes françaises moyennes, et, après des années et des années à Paris, j'ai été agréablement surprise de voir la patience, la gentillesse, l'attention, la non-indifférence des gens les uns à l'égard des autres. J'avais oublié ça à Paris, car certes à Paris ça existe aussi tout ça, mais si peu, si rarement...
As for the creepy guys in the subway. My experience as a teenager in the eighties and nineties has been with immigrants usually away from their wives from Morocco, Algeria. They often thought I was from there too. I was sexually harassed on a daily basis in the metro. Everything described on this video.
I've NEVER been catcalled by a white guy in Paris. Never.
When you re White you Will be cat called mostly by White. I live in a city where no to few migrants but only white men were cat calling me. So rude.
I love hearing an unfiltered take on the city.
I grew up in Montreal (which was colonized by France) and a lot of the cultural aspects are pretty similar. Especially the poor customer service and general rudeness. I honestly didn't realize we were considered rude until I moved and began working in the US. It took a while to adapt to the "friendlier" way of communicating with people and now when I visit Montreal I can see it from an outsider's point of view (I can see how we are perceived to have an inflated self image). I've also been to Paris and I definitely agree with ALL of these but I was used to a lot of it. The only thing that really bothered me during my short visit was the fact that my friends and I (all female) were followed around by some creepy dude at night who was VERY persistent. It was a high school trip during senior year so there were teachers roaming around and it wasn't until we stuck by their side for awhile that he finally gave up. Definitely move in pairs, but Paris is honestly a breath taking city!
I've been living for just a year in Paris and it was soooo hard for me to adapt! I loved your video. you speak the truth! I do like all of your videos about Paris life, they are really helpful, keep going!!
I am French and studied in Paris, and I have lived in the Paris outskirts for 10 years. Right after my studies I moved abroad and never regretted it. I don´t miss the transports and the perverts in Paris. I have never encountered such attitude towards women in the other countries I haved lived in (Austria, Germany, China, Denmark and England). Regarding people being rude towards customers I agree with you, but if you go to the north of Germany you will see it can be worse. ( people rarely say "sorry" for instance) Same in Denmark where customer service is not really important- even though I find people quite pleasant in general. The metro in Paris is horrendous hygiene-wise, what a shame for such a touristic city. Regarding the water, in all the cities I have lived it was the same problem unfortunately, that is not just Paris. In general I agree with everything you say :)
Amazing how American service is considered ,strange' and 'creepy' by a lot of Europeans and Scandinavians.
@@Neville60001 on top of that you never know if the wacko sitting next to you is carrying a gun or not.
Sand : the situation is much worst in San Francisco.
In France, Elisabeth?
@@Neville60001 in France what?
I was so surprised that Copenhagen has many of these traits as well. Scandinavia is thought of as stereotypically very clean, well-run, etc., but Copenhagen is SO dirty and people pee on the street, litter, etc. a lot. I have been to many big cities in Europe that are much cleaner (like Prague). People are also really not open to foreigners at all and often refuse to speak Danish with you or pretend not to understand your accent and ask you to just speak English, so it is very difficult to learn Danish as a foreigner because most Danes aren't willing to have a conversation with you and will outright tell you how bad you are at speaking their language and how they'd prefer you didn't.
Same thing in Sweden about language. Stockholm is also dirty, I think all the big cities are dirty.
I think I am older than many posters on here...Europe was not always this way....the same can be said of some formerly very safe and beautiful US cities....A city does not HAVE to be dirty, ugly, ill behaved and/ or crime ridden. THey evolve over time fo rthe better or the worse. I have seen this in my lifetime with my own eyes that do not lie...some cities are better than they were... NYC for example...heroin sold in TImes Square and porn sops all around in the 70's... just one example.
Same thing in Switzerland when I tried to speak German. It was really frustrating, I hardly learnt anything. They were also very cold as a culture and yes, the same thing in stores. Just a hello, no service whatsoever. Very cold and unopen to foreigners.
so why is everyone focused on Paris, at least in Paris people don't seem as bad as what you describe
Tbf, I'd rather call the employee when I need them than have someone nagging me as soon as I walk in.
same
I don't miss Sephora employees in the States!! I'm just looking, I'm *not* pickpocketing, please go away.
tbf = to be french?
Regarding #1 (the pushing and shoving in line), I was in a Monoprix in Paris this evening and had my items on the conveyor belt next in line and the cashier was just finishing up with the customer in front of me. So while I was waiting, an elderly gentleman with a single item pushed - and I mean SHOVED - his way to the front of the line, elbowing everybody else out of the way. When the cashier reached for my first item, I said, “Non, après vous, Monsieur,” and gestured for him to go ahead of me. Well that old man gave me this nicest smile and the nicest “Merci” and I could see he wasn’t really being a jerk, but probably just had trouble standing in line (he didn’t look too steady on his feet) and no one was offering to let him go ahead with his one item. It only goes to show that you don’t always know what is behind those “micro-agressions” you’re talking about. And that goes for any culture, not just French.
@Frances No, I always respected the "Caisse Prioritaire" for the elderly, and there were many other people in this line, not just me. He pushed ahead of everyone right up to the front. Probably because he had only one item and didn't want to wait. But it was okay, I normally would let an elderly person with one item go ahead of me anyway.
I so relate!! I lived in Paris for 5years and still work there all the time and I agree with everything.. esp the micro aggressions... it used to get me really down as everyday is filled with low level aggression and negativity. I think it becomes the norm eventually and you feel so so grateful when a day goes without it. Or overly thankful for normal, good service 😆
I just left Paris after finishing my studies there and I gotta say I used to complain about all of those things but now I'm even missing the dark and dirty sides of it... Parisians have this kind of love hate relationship with their city, constantly dissing it but then again they wouldn't leave it for the world. One thing I didn't expect to miss this much is the eclectic mix of people you meet in the 5am metro, the crazies, the wasted teens, the morning faces, the Paris by nighters, the buskers, those in suits and heels, the occasional drag queen and that one dude hugging a traffic cone.
I'm french, i live in Paris and i think all the things you said are very true, the administation part omg so true
pessimism and rudeness are two major negative points in paris. And I do appreciate your honesty. truth worths to be said
Your description of so much of Paris actually reminds me of Israel! The customer service especially at public offices like the post office, the fact that the customer is usually never right. The return policies after one makes a purchase. The peeing on the streets, the smells, the smoking and the general attitude is so similar. Oh, and the hard water making your hair and skin rough and the towels brittle. I can't believe how much alike it is! I felt like you were describing life here in Israel.
You nailed it. Some of the problems, though, are to be found in any big city. Organized begging/selling, for example, can be found in any big city in the world. Lack of customer service, oh yeah, Paris is the hands down winner. You take that cookie, girlfriend, and enjoy it!!
I'm a student in Paris but come from another city in France, and I have to say that I completely agree with you 🙄
ALL OF THESE! ALL OF THEM. I've just come back to Australia after a year in Paris and omg so happy to be back
Good on you!
Yes, I am French and about customer service, so true! It's always that no one can help you or that the very person who could, is on break on on vacation. Especially in big institutions. It is never about solutions but about passing the responsibility to someone else. And no one has the same answer to what ever problem posed. French administration is as nebulous and ridiculously complicated and never customer friendly. To get a job, an apartment, a degree, a driver licence are like long and painful experiences. Piece of cake in the USA.
Thank you for your honesty - this will help people who are considering moving there. I am sure that in the end the positives outweigh the negative for many people - but it is good to know the pluses & minuses.
Hey Rosie! SO much of what you said also applies to what I have found living in a smaller French city and now living in Brussels!! The micro aggressions are real and I can definitely relate to the ones you focused on. I've never really thought about them in this way, like building up, but I think it explains why I get so frustrated sometimes!! Also the water here is hard too and I hate what it does to my hair, the thirsty creeps, the customer service, the pollution (yes, especially the noisy motorbikes?! What is up with that), everything you said is on point. I didn't think it would be so different from Scotland in so many ways but it really is! And your point about it being land-locked is the same for Brussels - I miss seeing the sea and being able to get to a beach in 15 minutes! Great video, thanks for sharing! :)
These comments are funny because the one time I was followed by a man (in France) from the bus, he was white, blonde, with blue eyes. It's easier to throw blame onto others than to accept that harassment can come from ANY person of ANY nationality. France's problems are not all due to migrants, although for the French that's clearly difficult pill to swallow.
Sofia .... votre prénom est de consonance arabe qui signifie "pure" donc votre prénom vient du sud de la méditerranée : Maroc , Algérie , Tunisie . vous n'avez pas de chance la seule fois ou un français: grand , blond , aux yeux bleus vous siffle dessus ou vous accoste , c'est une exception , d'habitude pour nous les françaises se sont plutôt , des types de troisièmes générations mal éduqués venant du : Maroc Algérie Tunisie qui nous harcèles à longueurs de journées et contrairement a toi ils sont nombreux les types du sud de la méditerranée qui nous sifflent et nous insultent
Accepting that violence can come from many sources does not mean you shouldn't do what you can to oppose it.
Therefore, you are more than welcome to shed light on any issues you may have been confronted with.
Similarly, white non-muslim people in France harbour legitimate complaints against racist behaviors they are the target of. And you are in no position to discard these complaints as unimportant or meaningless.
I love listening to you! Your voice and the way you talk is so comforting somehow!! You are great...
The aggressive men in Paris, especially on the Metro, are basically why I've developed the "Metro face." Serious, neutral expression that can turn into a scowl if need be. I live in Germany now and I love the fact that there is 99.9% less catcalling. I get to be basically invisible and it's lovely. Also, we have the Roma "mafia" here in Germany too and if a woman approaches you, you can even see her a few steps away, consulting her friend with how much she got, etc. I feel bad that they have been so mistreated and exploited over the years but...so many of them can also get aggressive, too, just like in Paris, which doesn't help their cause. It's very sad.
It's so crazy how much care the Parisians put into themselves, but don't take the same care about the city they live in. I still want to go to Paris *my dream* but I'm glad I know what to look out for!
I love Paris. I don’t live there, but I do live in France, and I have felt at home in Paris each time I have visited or passed through for over 40 years. It’s a wonderful city, and you are absolutely right about everything you have said about it. The downsides you have described are not little inconveniences, they are major blemished. But somehow, because there are so many superb things about the city, one accepts these major faults.
Merci d’avoir dit tes 9 vérités et d’avoir parlé si vivement dans toute la série de vidéos. Bon courage pour la bataille quotidienne!
I completely agree with everything you said rosie and that's why I don't like to come to Paris. I am French and I live near AVIGNON (like your inlaws I believe ), and I identified so much with this video but also with the collab video you did with the guy who toured France with his wife. The quotes they picked up from people living in Province could have been mine!
@@NotEvenFrench Avignon est pourtant une ville morte (juste agréable en tant que touristes), d'après tous mes amis qui viennent de là bas.
How do Americans date French Men?
7:32 this is shocking but true, they even start pleasuring themselves in front of women, even on trains. I never witness that as a guy so I couldn't believe it when a friend of my sister told us that, then I ear quite often those stories on the news lately. A woman has managed to discretly film one guy pleasuring himself in front of her as it wasn't the first time it happened to her and no one took her situation seriously. I've witnessed a crazy guy spitting on girls waiting for the subway while they were sitting on the platform across mine and nobody reacted, not even me as I was as shocked as they were. Sorry but homeless guys can be assholes too, one grabbed my sister's butt in the street at night near the Opera Garnier, another one told out loud he would like to do some nasty stuff to the private parts of 2 women I worked with as we walked in front of him coming back from lunch break... I was shocked, looked at them and they seemed to be used to, they acted as if they didn't ear what he said but i'm pretty sure they did ear him. That was too many information to process as it happened so quickly and suddenly, but for the rest of the walk I was so ashamed of not having reacted, I'm not sure if I would handled it well as I was angered. Welcome to Paris (the city of love?)
Spitting??? Omg!
And they say that the USA is a shithole-at least you can't really get away with harrasment there or here in Canada without disapproval!
City of light
I've wanted to move to Paris for some years now, but your first point (which I've heard before!) really bugs me. I hate micro-aggressions/random rudeness! I moved from London to Copenhagen and that was the first time I ever really was confronted with daily micro-aggressions... and a complete lack of service of any kind, it's like that word doesn't exist there. "Happiest country in the world" my ass - maybe during the two months of summer that they get. Not that the weather was much better in England but people seemed happier and far more open. That kind of public behaviour is either just what comes with life in SOME bigger cities, or it might even be a cultural thing.
@ಠ_ಠ You're one of those rude creepy people in Paris right? ;)
#pointproven
I am French and it does not happen like that in all of France, there are regions where people are polite and nice, but it's true that it is getting worse and worse with the new generations who lack education.
Actually....I visited some other countries that were quite nice. Even in larger cities. It depends on where in Europe and what cities. I have noticed poor manners more common in some cities and Paris happens to be one of them. I want to share with you that was not always the case. The Paris I stayed in during the eighties was much cleaner and a totally different vibe, altogether. The one I visited recently? Not even close to being the same. I guess according to another person who responded it’s just that other people are perhaps fake. Like Americans… Well. I’m an American and I don’t feel like I’m fake. Perhaps I am and I don’t even know it? My father taught me to be courteous and help others if I can. Allow a lady your seat and open the doors for them. Have respect for your elders. Perhaps he was being fake as he was teaching this to me. I don’t know. It did not seem like it. I come from a very rural area in the United States. Very little to no crime. People really do wave at you and give you their spot in the grocery line. We don’t tolerate loud, obnoxious and rude people. In fact… You would find out quickly that we are not fake if you miss treated someone in a fashion that would be considered rude. The so-called fakeness… Would disappear quickly. If you get a chance visit the Netherlands.The dutch are really cool.
ಠ_ಠ Have you lived in America? I only ask because you say they are fake. You must have first hand knowledge. I assume that you were treated poorly after making you believe they were kind. I understand your mistrust and feelings of passion in regards to them being deceitful. If that’s the case? I apologize for them. I can assure you I do say hello to most people and I felt foolish in some countries when getting on a train and saying, hello to folks....and they looked at me like I was nuts. I quit doing that...as much. I do open doors for others and I treat women with respect. I must be honest in saying that I do have a similar spirit in the fact that if I feel something is wrong, I will say so. I will also defend my friends, family and country at the drop of a hat. I will be honest in saying that could be confusing. We can be quick with a hello and wish you a good day and just as quick to respond to something we feel is wrong. Keep in mind just like Most countries I am sure that the beautiful countryside outside of Paris is much more calm, quiet and safe. The same here in the states. People watch to much television. New York City and Salt Lake City could not be more different. Just an example. Where I live....the houses set about two miles apart. Even farther in many cases. The folks are very nice And would help you if needed. At the same time...it would not be a good place for criminals. They would be asked to move to the city. Politely of course.
I live in Rennes, in Brittany (west coast of France) and it's basically the same here. Esp about the thirsty guys. A few years ago I lived in London for 6 months and not once has a man tried to accost me on the street, first day back home, out for a drink with friends and i already had 3 of them by 8pm, imagine how tired we are
Great and honest input on the reality in Paris! We could not have said it better ourselves ;)
Great video. I lived in NYC for many years, so think a lot of the problems -- especially the "micro-aggressions" -- are just part of big-city life. But, there are other things that do seem to be specific to Paris -- the creepy, "thirsty" men and also pickpockets. In all my years in NYC, I was never pickpocketed. On the other hand, I was in Paris maybe for a week total in my life and my wallet was stolen out of my bag on the Metro, not to mention strange men, one in particular, who persistently followed me around as I went about my business. Nothing like that happened to me during the long period of time I lived in NYC.
Been to both countries & I recently did an internship at NYC. To be honest NYC is safer than Paris & I like the vibe more. But I like the other cities in France
New york has this energy that they just wing off the day as efficiently as they can.
My first half an hour on the streets of Paris, this guy pushed past me, phone in one hand and junk in the other, pissing to the side as he walked! I also had so many people give dirty looks or be openly disgusted towards my mother, who is obese. So I can sympathise with quite a few of these points. But I also understand that disliking aspects doesn't mean you dislike being there :) That first visit I took, I had decided I hated Paris and it was dirty and rude and upsetting, but then on my second visit I was already prepared for what the reality was and actually had such a wonderful time even with that knowledge.
it really sucks in half an hour, (les boules, ca craint in french)..SORRY to hear about your mum too, u should go to Nantes Vannes Paimpol Brehat......, less things to do but easygoing and there is the sea.....
btc yann thank you! My next trip I’ll be visiting more outside of Paris :) unfortunately for my mum, it was her only trip overseas
@@erinintechnicolourII Paris "sucks", visiting le louvres ,la tour eiffel, les champs elysees, la butte chaumont ist enougth, french coast is really beautiful...for example "Le mont st michel" bye Erin and enjoy :)
Girl...I say go get yourself a cookie!!! and enjoy every crumb!!! Loved the video.
In moderation yes.
As someone who has traveled France extensively, since high school in the mid-80's, you tell no lies.
Hi! I am French, and had lived in Paris for 15 years before moving to another country last year... and I agree with you :) all the things you say! It’s nice to hear because being away, sometimes I miss Paris so much and I forget I don’t miss the daily agressions from the creepy guys for exemple... I still love Paris, for many many reasons too, like you. Despite all of that, there are many amazing people and things there.
Thank you for your videos! Bravo! Continue :)
Don't be worried about backlash, all of it is soooooo true. I don't live there but these are the nine reasons why I won't live there more than a couple of years... I think the urine smell all around Paris has to do with the lack of public toilets, poor people can't afford to go to a café to use their restroom, also in the metro I guess it's wether drunks or homeless people who can't afford to let their things or their spot behind... so much poverty in this godforsaken town
To be honest, the best things I love about living in NZ is everything you mentioned in this video is completely opposite! LoveNZ
A loud motorcycle, driven in Paris at 2 AM can wake up as many as 100,000 Parisians.
It's on the Bucket List.
I REALLY appreciate ur honesty. It’s nice to know the good, the bad and the ugly 🤪
I love Europe for its history, architecture, sceneries, and food. But Japan is one of my favorite countries because it’s so clean, orderly, and organized. Even the cities there have fresh air. I also like its people for they are so kind and polite. You also feel safe touring around the places in Japan. You can walk at midnight and feel safe.
First, as someone 14 months into a move to France I wanted to say how much I enjoy your videos. You have done a great job of touching on some really relevant topics, things that I think any étranger will really relate to, both positive and negative. Thank-you.
I live in Nice and see a lot of the things you have described in this video down here as well (so it's not just a Paris thing) and as a foreign student who speaks to a lot of people from other cultures can confirm that people from other countries are equally shocked when they experience, for example, a supposedly professional civil servant actually yelling at a foreign student who is simply trying to navigate a gratuitously complicated administrative process in front of a room full of people. Or openly mocking them. Or people whose job it is to provide customer service just flat out refusing to do their jobs and help someone who requires aid. It's not something you find in many other countries as far as I can tell. I have friends and classmates from Russia, China, Korea, Canada, Ukraine, the US, England, Spain, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Peru, Argentina, etc etc and they're all shocked at one time or another by the lack of professionalism and the way things just don't function well in France on an administrative level.
I actually think you've been quite kind in how you have characterized some of this behaviour. It's hard to argue that it's the individual dignity of French people that makes them unable or reluctant to provide good customer service. Chinese people have no less dignity than the French do and yet they don't really understand why the facteur might just decide they're not even going to try delivering your package and instead will just leave a note saying they tried and that you can go get it yourself at la Poste. This kind of thing happens regularly here and very rarely in other countries. I see a lack of a sense of community in Nice, as I think you mentioned, as well as a very pervasive egoism and I think these things contribute strongly to these behaviours that someone from another culture will probably find baffling. Everyone needs help at some point or another and so when someone comes to us for help it's usually easy to put yourself in the other person's place and do your best to help them. Here that mutual understanding seems all too often to be absent. And I want to be clear that I'm not saying French people lack empathy. On a personal level my French friends are extremely kind. This is a phenomenon that seems to occur primarily when it's someone's job to provide help to others. And any time I have asked my French friends why they think things like customer service are so terrible in France the most common reply is "Behhh tout le monde s'en fiche". Nobody gives a damn.
On the other hand, it's going to be sunny and 16 degrees here today. :)
Oh yes...two recent trips to Nice have finally cured me, where they treated us like shit just like in Paris,and we are done there too...never setting foot in France ever again...plenty of other NICER AND KINDER places places in the world.
My French language teacher who is in her earlish 20s mentioned about the thirsty French men and how her and her friends avoided dressing a certain way because they would get followed and harrased.
To my surprise she said in Australia she had no issues with this sort of thing which baffled me as us Aussie blokes can be quite blunt and simple and loutish.
I'm French and I've never had any problems in English speaking countries. Your teacher is right. 😊
@SprattyD Different intentions and expectations, I think. These shows through the bluntness and the "being loutish", declaring that there's no real threat behind the words.
Some boys take it as an insult when ignored. They get offended if a woman doesn't respond, or smile, at their "compliments". They take the time to express their appreciation, so they feel that the woman should at least show some gratitude. ((this is my assumption, but I can't really relate, so I could be wrong.))
Boys usually don't practise much introspection, asking themselfs; "I'm I in the wrong here?"
SprattyD But Australian cities are quite small, Sydney, Melbourne etc can’t compare to Paris, maybe Milan or Lisbon maybe?
I absolutely agree with everything you said! And most of your points are not just in Paris, it’s all over France, especially the shockingly bad customer service😣
Thank you Rosie for your honest expose of some of the downsides of Paris. As an Aussie who loves Paris & has been there three times I was aware of some of these things but a few surprised me. I think it is good to give a bit of this kind of info to balance any illusions & help people to become more aware ☺ xx
Thanks a lot. I’ m suffering of homesickness right now, and your vídeo help me to remember why I leave Paris 🙂