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0 pointsdutchieinfrance9y ago0 comments

Sorry to go off on a tangent, but where in France did you experience this? I'm a non-native speaker of French and I have never experienced this, not even when I was in my teens still learning French.

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jimworm9y ago

Once at the railway station in Dunkerque. I started by asking the ticket officer in French if she spoke English, but after she said no she refused to listen. Fortunately there were two booths open and my bad French was better received by the kind girl working there. Good thing too, she was our only way out of town.

dutchieinfranceOP9y ago

Actually, if you come across as a "stereotypical American" then, yes, I can imagine you ran into this. Cf. the movie "A Good Year", where Russell Crowe instructs Americans in a French restaurant to go to McDonald's because they're being obnoxious (apparently).

sporkenfang9y ago

Paris is famous for it, though I've been to several parts of France and didn't have much issue... old people definitely tried to correct my accent but that's fine by me.

renox9y ago

I'm not exactly sure what is the issue? My step-sister is Irish, I talk to her in English and she talk to me in French: this way we can practise our knowledge of foreign language. At work sometimes I did the reverse: a colleague would speak English and I would answer French, it's nice also: no cognitive load when you talk, you just have to be a little careful when you listen.

KennyCason9y ago

Having never been to France, but heard a lot of stories, this may be a France <-> American issue more than a France <-> Foreigner issue.

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