How France was portrayed and how it really is
By: Dinu Wijayaweera
Tags: France, Paris, Voyageur, Travel Writing, Perspective

I felt misguided about certain things thus I thought I would pen it down.

Before coming to France, this is what was portrayed to me;

France is so fancy and clean.

French people are proud and mean in general.

The culture is modern and has the typical western culture.

Being a European country things must be fast and high tech everywhere.

Amazing styles and fashion.

Beautiful architecture.

People are gorgeous.

French people don’t bath regularly.

Paris is the prettiest city in France.

Paris being the international city of love — France is all about romance and love.

But actually,

I found people from France in general are absolutely kind and welcoming. They also give privacy for the others as well. They have been helpful during my toughest times based on my personal experience. However the ways of people may depend on the city. Parisians are supposed to be a bit ‘arrogant’ — which is stated by French people themselves.

France and the French are very practical — cars to clothes. They are also frugal. They are concerned about their fitness and it’s common to see people jogging at all times of the day. They balance out their work and life well which is my favourite thing ever. They give priority to relaxing and destressing, so the next day they would be entirely committed to their work.

I used to think it would comparatively be very clean and fancy etc. but some people just throw their trash or cigarette butts on the ground and you would kind of have to watch out for dog poop when you are walking ;)

The fashion sense is actually effortless and considers the practicality of things. They wear clothes which look comfortable — they use chalk colours for autumn and winter, and, wear white shoes with everything. The stockings and leggings is to keep the legs warmer during the cold seasons, while the countries close to the equator adopt the same styles without considering the practical aspects. The make up is absolutely subtle and light. It highlights the natural beauty of the individuals. So when talking about the appearances, I do find them beautiful and neat.

They say perfumes became popular because they couldn’t bath due to the cold weather — This I am not too sure. However, here is a video explaining about the whole French don’t bath situation. All the people I knew, did shower (I hope lol).

Culture — it was different to what I may have expected. Yes they love their wine and baked goodies. But their culture is not as the US. They are traditional in their own sense and they are comfortable with the way of life. The parents similar to Asian parents do not approve if the clothes are too revealing. Most of the children would actually get the full freedom after they turn 18 when they are going to college. Did you know it was illegal for women to wear trousers in France until 2013 due to an age old due to an age old rule imposed in 1800!

Having the city of romance, you would think the country would be welcoming of LGBTQ, but actually they are a bit reluctant and are still gradually opening up to the idea. Despite France being praised for love and romance — it hasn’t been great for the ladies. There have been a bit too many news about violence against women.

So, when I say traditional it applies for administrative tasks and public departments as well. They are quite slow and most speak only French. However, technology is slowly seeping in, so I trust it is going to be better in the coming years. Especially because research area is thriving in France.

Paris is beautiful and has its charm of sophistication and grand architecture. But you should visit other beautiful cities France has to offer, then decide if Paris is your favourite city. And beware, for some reason google maps don’t work properly in Paris! But there would be other apps like RATP which would help you out.

But truly, France should be visited — Yes, have a stroll in Paris with friends, but you should visit the other towns, especially the south of France — the coastal cities to vineyards.