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pickpocket victims) and endlessly interested in how people
make money and in how much everything costs, which are
two taboo subjects in French conversation. (More on French
etiquette to come.) They also have weak family ties, resulting
in unstructured and haphazard lifestyles.
Many French people complain that Americans quickly
become boring because they like everything superi cially and
yet understand nothing in great depth. Enthusiasm is not so
admired in France as thoughtful analysis.
Yet basically, the French like Americans. They supported
our revolution from England, so we are old friends. They
respect our enthusiasm (in moderation), our cleverness and
our energy. The French young dress and act like American
i lm and rock stars. But they don't understand why Americans
so quickly want to be friends.
The British
Migrations and conquests between France and England
date back to the Celts, and probably earlier. They are still
squabbling, though they did stick together in both of the
last century's World Wars. Even with a healthy percentage
of common blood, much is made by both sides about
the peculiar differences between the Anglo-Saxons and
the Gauls.
Stereotyping among the French paint the British as cold,
insensitive, peri dious and stingy, with no sense of passion.
An English person will invite you to dinner once, they say,
then never again. (A French person may take a year to invite
you, but after that, they will include you forever in their circle.
More on this later.)
The Channel tunnel, the Eurostar service, has certainly
brought these two nations closer together. It is only three
hours now between London and Paris. But the enthusiasm
remains lopsided. Over 12 million Britons visit France each
year. Only three million French go to Britain. If nothing else,
this indicates a clear consensus regarding the superiority of
French cuisine.
One English person has been cheerfully adopted by France
in recent years, the record-breaking round-the-world solo
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