Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

Acknowledging the problem is always the first step…


From the Today Show:

http://www.today.com/id/49063771/#52373321

From Thomas Reuters international:


One of the world’s most visited cities but also famous for its rudeness, Paris has embarked on a campaign to improve its reputation and better cater to the needs of tourists.

Waiters, taxi drivers and sales staff in the French capital all too often come off as impolite, unhelpful and unable to speak foreign languages say local tourism chiefs, who are handing out a manual with guidelines on better etiquette.

A six-page booklet entitled “Do you speak Touriste?” contains greetings in eight languages including German, Chinese and Portuguese and advice on the spending habits and cultural codes of different nationalities.

“The British like to be called by their first names,” the guide explains, while Italians should be shaken by the hand and Americans reassured on prices.

Of the Chinese, the fastest-growing category of tourists visiting the City of Light, the guide says they are “fervent shoppers” and that “a simple smile and hello in their language will fully satisfy them.”

France is the world’s top destination for foreign tourists, with Paris visited by 29 million people last year. The business tourists bring to hotels, restaurants and museums accounts for one in 10 jobs in the region and is a welcome boost to the economy at a time of depressed domestic consumption.

The Paris chamber of commerce and the regional tourism committee have warned, however, that growing competition from friendlier cities like London meant Paris needed to work harder to attract visitors, especially from emerging market countries.

Some 30,000 copies of the handbook on friendly service is being distributed to taxi drivers, waiters, hotel managers and sales people in tourist areas from the banks of the Seine river up to Montmartre and in nearby Versailles and Fontainebleau.

Setting realistic linguistic ambitions, it suggests offering to speak English to Brazilians – who it describes as warm and readily tactile and keen on evening excursions – by telling them: “Nào falo Português mas posso informar Inglês.”

Reporting by Natalie Huet. Editing by Catherine Bremer and Paul Casciato.

Copyright (2013) Thomson Reuters.

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

Go Fig wrote:
Acknowledging the problem is always the first step…


One of the world’s most visited cities but also famous for its rudeness, Paris has embarked
on a campaign to improve its reputation and better cater to the needs
of tourists.

Waiters, taxi drivers and sales staff in the French capital all too often come off as impolite,
unhelpful and unable to speak foreign languages say local tourism
chiefs, who are handing out
a manual with guidelines on better etiquette.

Why should they be any different than people with the same jobs in the
USA? I realize our country covers so much territory that even those of
us who SPEAK other languages tend to forget them through disuse.
However, I really sympathize with foreign tourists visiting here - if
they do not speak fluent English, they can be severely handicapped!

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

On Tue, 02 Jul 2013 14:09:15 -0700, "EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)"
wrote:




Go Fig wrote:
Acknowledging the problem is always the first step…


One of the world’s most visited cities but also famous for its rudeness, Paris has embarked
on a campaign to improve its reputation and better cater to the needs
of tourists.

Waiters, taxi drivers and sales staff in the French capital all too often come off as impolite,
unhelpful and unable to speak foreign languages say local tourism
chiefs, who are handing out
a manual with guidelines on better etiquette.

Why should they be any different than people with the same jobs in the
USA? I realize our country covers so much territory that even those of
us who SPEAK other languages tend to forget them through disuse.
However, I really sympathize with foreign tourists visiting here - if
they do not speak fluent English, they can be severely handicapped!

Amen to that.

On the rebuttal side, I have (perhaps) 400 to 800 words in my French vocabulary.
This has always been more than adequate for me to purchase a METRO ticket,
interpret a menu, order a meal, and locate the men's room.

The legendary French rudeness I cannot attest to, never having received any. On
the contrary, Parisians (and all other French) have been nothing but cordial to
me.

Or perhaps I am simply too forgiving.


FrankC
(chg Arabic# to Roman to reply)

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

Frank Clarke wrote:
On Tue, 02 Jul 2013 14:09:15 -0700, "EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)"
wrote:



Go Fig wrote:
Acknowledging the problem is always the first step…


One of the world’s most visited cities but also famous for its rudeness, Paris has embarked
on a campaign to improve its reputation and better cater to the needs
of tourists.
Waiters, taxi drivers and sales staff in the French capital all too often come off as impolite,
unhelpful and unable to speak foreign languages say local tourism
chiefs, who are handing out
a manual with guidelines on better etiquette.
Why should they be any different than people with the same jobs in the
USA? I realize our country covers so much territory that even those of
us who SPEAK other languages tend to forget them through disuse.
However, I really sympathize with foreign tourists visiting here - if
they do not speak fluent English, they can be severely handicapped!

Amen to that.

On the rebuttal side, I have (perhaps) 400 to 800 words in my French vocabulary.
This has always been more than adequate for me to purchase a METRO ticket,
interpret a menu, order a meal, and locate the men's room.

The legendary French rudeness I cannot attest to, never having received any. On
the contrary, Parisians (and all other French) have been nothing but cordial to
me.

Or perhaps I am simply too forgiving.

That was always my experience, too. Of course, I never walked into a
store demanding (in English) "Do you have ....?" without so much as a
polite "Bon jour", first. Usually, once my American accent was
apparent, the person in the shop would reply in English. (Although
sometimes, the French sense of humour being what it is, they'd let me
struggle along until I had to admit defeat and ask if someone spoke
English.)

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

On 03/07/2013 4:04 PM, Frank Clarke wrote:
men to that.

On the rebuttal side, I have (perhaps) 400 to 800 words in my French vocabulary.
This has always been more than adequate for me to purchase a METRO ticket,
interpret a menu, order a meal, and locate the men's room.

The legendary French rudeness I cannot attest to, never having received any. On
the contrary, Parisians (and all other French) have been nothing but cordial to
me.

Or perhaps I am simply too forgiving.



I have been to France several times. I had one rude waiter, a middle
aged guy who is still working in what is an entry level job in most of
the rest of the developed world. Everyone else was very polite.

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

On Wed, 03 Jul 2013 15:13:46 -0700, "EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)"
wrote:




Frank Clarke wrote:
On Tue, 02 Jul 2013 14:09:15 -0700, "EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)"
wrote:

On the rebuttal side, I have (perhaps) 400 to 800 words in my French vocabulary.
This has always been more than adequate for me to purchase a METRO ticket,
interpret a menu, order a meal, and locate the men's room.

The legendary French rudeness I cannot attest to, never having received any. On
the contrary, Parisians (and all other French) have been nothing but cordial to
me.

Or perhaps I am simply too forgiving.

That was always my experience, too. Of course, I never walked into a
store demanding (in English) "Do you have ....?" without so much as a
polite "Bon jour", first. Usually, once my American accent was
apparent, the person in the shop would reply in English. (Although
sometimes, the French sense of humour being what it is, they'd let me
struggle along until I had to admit defeat and ask if someone spoke
English.)

:)

In 2008 Norene and I wound up leading an ad hoc tour -- ourselves and four
friends -- long story -- into France starting with a week in Paris then off into
Normandy and the Loire. http://tbm-mo.home.mindspring.com/2008FR/index.html

We rented an apartment for 6 in Montmartre and split it 6 ways, $400/wk/person.
Joe M, the only other guy, is retired USMC and so is up at 6am wherever in the
world he is. Joe's education is strictly high school and I can't say his
command of French extends as far as "bonjour", but he reads voraciously. At
6:00 he rises, grabs his Kindle and goes to the living room to read for 30-45
minutes, then gets the key, lets himself out, and he prowls the streets of Paris
looking for breakfast. The first morning he stumbles into a bistro and sits at
the counter. The waiter hands him a menu; "Bonjour, monsieur." Joe says "Oh,
sorry, I don't read French". The waiter whisks it away and hands him another:
"No problem. Here's one in English."

All the locals apparently think to themselves "Oh, good; here's someone who
can't massacre our language, and we get to practice our English on him!" In
moments he's surrounded by Parisians: "What is that?"

"It's a Kindle."

"Qu'est-ce que c'est 'kindle'?"

"It's an ebook reader. You download books from the web and you can read them
here."

"Do they have 'Les Miserables'?"

Joe downloads a copy of LM in French. Ooooh. Aaaaah.

We stayed in Paris 7 days. Joe ate breakfast there 5 days. By the time we left
for Normandy he was 'a regular'.

Tell Joe all about how snooty and rude Parisians are. He can always use a good
laugh.



FrankC
(chg Arabic# to Roman to reply)

it seems there is some purpose behind it.. You can't say it pointless for sure

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

On Tuesday, July 2, 2013 3:03:46 PM UTC-5, Go Fig wrote:
Acknowledging the problem is always the first step…





From the Today Show:



http://www.today.com/id/49063771/#52373321



From Thomas Reuters international:





One of the world’s most visited cities but also famous for its rudeness, Paris has embarked on a campaign to improve its reputation and better cater to the needs of tourists.



Waiters, taxi drivers and sales staff in the French capital all too often come off as impolite, unhelpful and unable to speak foreign languages say local tourism chiefs, who are handing out a manual with guidelines on better etiquette.



A six-page booklet entitled “Do you speak Touriste?” contains greetings in eight languages including German, Chinese and Portuguese and advice on the spending habits and cultural codes of different nationalities.



“The British like to be called by their first names,” the guide explains, while Italians should be shaken by the hand and Americans reassured on prices.



Of the Chinese, the fastest-growing category of tourists visiting the City of Light, the guide says they are “fervent shoppers” and that “a simple smile and hello in their language will fully satisfy them.”



France is the world’s top destination for foreign tourists, with Paris visited by 29 million people last year. The business tourists bring to hotels, restaurants and museums accounts for one in 10 jobs in the region and is a welcome boost to the economy at a time of depressed domestic consumption.

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

On Fri, 26 Jul 2013 12:20:07 -0700 (PDT), wrote:




Where is the infamous scRunge when we most need him, lol...???

Need... You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it
means ;-)



FrankC
(chg Arabic# to Roman to reply)

Parisian official start politeness campaign
 

Martin wrote:

On Sat, 27 Jul 2013 19:05:46 -0400, Frank Clarke

wrote:



On Fri, 26 Jul 2013 12:20:07 -0700 (PDT), wrote:









Where is the infamous scRunge when we most need him, lol...???



Need... You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it

means ;-)



It would be a good test of whether the politeness campaign had reached

the occupants of the gutters of Paris.


Even the gutters are ashamed of the squalidly inimitable scRunge...


--
Best
Greg