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.)