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France Local Customs

Cafes at Pl. de la Sorbonne

by Beausoleil

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Cafes at Pl. de la Sorbonne
by Beausoleil
one of many faience shops in Moustiers
by angiebabe
personally signed by its crafter
by angiebabe
French chic, Paris
by kris-t
street towards pl notre dame early Dic11
by gwened

Most Viewed Local Customs in France

Parlez vous francais? Paris

115 Reviews Before our trip to Paris, my French vocabulary consisted of "croissant" and "crepe" - pronounced improperly, I may add. Armed with just these two terms, I figured we wouldn't starve but wouldn't be...

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Topless Sunbathing Nice

5 Reviews Topless sunbathing is permitted on the beaches of the Cote d'Azur. You'll see a mix of women with their tops on or off as you enjoy the beaches. The lesson to be learned is not to stare like a...

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Food & Drink Lyon

4 Reviews Around Lyon you have many wineyards and also companies which sells guided tours to the wineyards. If you want to do one of these trips, which I did not have time and I was there during the wrong...

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JOAN OF ARC Rouen

1 Review Jeanne d'Arc, patron saint of France, was tried and burned at the stake in Rouen. The English and French fought each other in the Hundred Years War until Jeanne d'Arc helped put Charles VII on the...

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Festivals Avignon

6 Reviews Since the late 1940s, for three weeks in July, Avignon hosts le Festival d'Avignon, during which numerous theatrical plays, both large productions as well as low budget, are shown. The city's numerous...

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Prices Cafe/Bar/Restaurant Yvoire

1 Review This board show you that you will pay different prices depending on your location : - at the bar (the cheapest), - in the restaurant (the most expensive) - on the terrace (the best place to be of...

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Fashion Paris

33 Reviews If you want to look like a local, make sure you are wearing a nice scarf, matched with your coat, artfully knotted around your neck. Even on a rather warm September day when we were sweating, people...

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Local Food Nice

10 Reviews 2006 Monday 1st and every Sunday on May 7, 14, 21 and 28. From 11 AM to 7 PM at Jardins des Arènes de Cimiez Free entrance Kids games, clowns, music, typical dance, local food stands, picnic....

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Festival des Lumières Lyon

2 Reviews The Festival of Lights is probably the most popular as well as the most established event in Lyon occurs on December 8th. Lanterns adorn balconies and windows and streets a full of performers making...

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10.

Money/Tipping Avignon

2 Reviews Service charges are included on all restaurant bills at a cost of between 10 and 15 percent. Extra tips are accepted of course if you have received above good service. s fair to add a little more if...

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11.

Stereotypes: Rude, or friendly? Paris

81 Reviews I've just returned from a wonderful vacation in Paris and I have nothing but great things to say about the folks that live in this magnificent city. Everyone was polite, helpful and friendly, I have...

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12.

Local Music Nice

2 Reviews Listen to: Dum Dum Boys: if you like electro rock/indie-punk, I can highly recommend their album "Electronic Pop Music Created by...". Curl: if you like trip-hop/new wave... Not really my cup of...

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13.

Guignol Lyon

3 Reviews There are three troupes presenting puppet shows daily in Lyon. One is located in a small theater in Old Lyon and the others are in other parts of the city. We attended an afternoon show at the Daniel...

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14.

Dining & Drinking Paris

81 Reviews It is easy to confuse menu (in English) with menu (in French). They are two different words. What is referred to as a menu in English is called a "carte" in French. In French the menu is a prix fixe...

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15.

Siesta Nice

3 Reviews The French love protesting. The tradition goes back to the French Revolution - when the monarchy was overthrown and a lot of people had their heads separated from the rest of them. If its American...

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16.

Weather Lyon

1 Review Lyon is warm and sunny between the months of June and October. In June there is plenty of daylight to get things done and it is also fairly light on the summer crowds. September is usually...

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17.

Toilets Paris

15 Reviews A guide that lets you quickly spot on a map the location of the nearest sanisette (free public toilet). And so you don't have to rush in a café and spend your money !(drinks are especially expensive...

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18.

Pétanque Nice

1 Review Stroll down the Prom as far as the eye can see - shortly before the airport, and at the furthest end of the bay locals from the poorer end of Nice will be out playing petanque, or "boules". Its a...

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19.

Money Lyon

2 Reviews Leaving a pourboire (tipping) is at your discretion. Service charges are included on all restaurant bills at a cost of between 10 and 15 percent. Extra tips are accepted of course if you have received...

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20.

Bastille Day Paris

14 Reviews I purposely scheduled our London/Paris trip so that we could spend at least part of Bastille Day in Paris, we had to leave in the evening but we were there during the day and the night before. We made...

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21.

Nudity Paris

8 Reviews is often used in advertising in France. Nudity is much more frequent. I remember being surprised the first time I saw a naked woman in a yogurt commercial on TV! Yves Saint Laurent pushed new...

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22.

Religion Paris

32 Reviews While I am semi-religious and do enjoy the faith aspects of attending a church service in a foreign country, I also go for the music, the architecture and the ambiance. I mean how else do you get to...

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23.

Tipping Paris

12 Reviews Service charges are included on all restaurant bills at a cost of between 10 and 15 percent. Extra tips are accepted of course if you have received above good service. s fair to add a little more if...

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24.

Street Artists Paris

31 Reviews There are some really good musicians out there on the street, you just need to have your ears and eyes open to catch them. Photo 1 - 2) - These fellows were actually Americans, dressed for the part,...

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25.

Smoking Paris

10 Reviews I shall go to Paris and hope the fear of cigarette smoke is less than in the west. There is no reason why both nonsmokers and smokers can't have a place to go. Unless of course the nonsmokers have a...

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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

les fetes - Public Holidays

by pedroswift

Check for Public Holidays during the period of your visit to France. Service can be curtailed during public holidays. Some tourist sites may be closed. I always highlite "Mondays" on my holiday planner for the same reason. It pays to check ahead for opening hours before wasting time. example of my single A4 page planner.Each year the French observe eleven main holidays:1 January New Year's Day (Jour de l'an) ; 1 May Labor Day (Fête du premier mai) ;8 May WWII Victory Day (Fête de la Victoire 1945; Fête du huitième mai) ; 14 July Bastille Day (Fête nationale) ; 15 August Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Assomption) ; 1 November All Saints Day (La Toussaint) ; 11 November Armistice Day (Jour d'armistice) ; 25 December Christmas Day (Noël) plus Feast DaysYou should also be aware of the unofficial holidays which the French take if a holiday falls on a Tuesday or a Thursday. The Monday...

Son et Lumiere - Sound & Light Show

by pedroswift

A French invention which I have never seen out side of France but no doubt performances are held where ever there is a suitable building.At night, special lighting is used to highlight features of a grand building , Cathedral of Reims, for example. Recorded sound is played in-sync with the changing light show. Sound could be music and commentary or quotations from literature or history etc.We have enjoyed the shows that we have seen so far. Features of the buildings which we had not even noticed during daylight visits were shown and explained.During your trip research, check with tourist bureau sites on the net re Son et Lumiere shows in the town you are planning to visit.Be prepared to stay up late during mid summer as the sun doesn't set until quite late.

The birth of Normandie - Historical fact

by Elodie_Caroline

The birth of Normandy began in the year 795AD. Viking fleets were in the English channel, driven by famine and cold weather, when they happened up on the tiver Siene. The Vikings carried up the Siene until they reached Paris, smashing and pillaging everything on their way.France at the time ,was made up from many feudal landowners, because of this, the Vikings were able to carry on their destruction and devastation as there was no kind of army to fight back and stop them. This all carried on for over a century and the local people started calling the Vikings, 'Le Normans,' because obviously they were from the North. No one seemed to be able to protect the people from all of the death and destruction, but in the end the pillaging and looting faded down net to nothing because there was actually nothing left to pillage! But at least the population was able to get back to some sense of...

A Digital Iron?...

by Porteplume

.Français:Translation will follow soon...= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = English:"A digital iron? It's like an iron, but digital... ;-)"The modernisation of French society as seen by the jaundiced eye of Voutch, drawing taken from his album: Le grand tourbillon de la vie (pub. le Cherche midi éditeur, Paris, 1998.) .

Cheese cupboard

by ATLC

This open cupboard with netting (to keep the flies out) is a common object in French kitchens.Cheese is kept in here in perfect condition, especially if you keep it in a cool larder or cellar. My friends gave me one as a present. I also saw them in all shapes and sizes at town markets.BTW: can anyone tell me what the French word is for this object?

Service charge and pourboire

by adelinemmc

The relevant law is Loi Godard of 19 July 1933. It does not fix the % but imposes 3 principles:-sums collected must go 100% to all front line employee (i.e. who have contacts with clients - this is generally also extended to kitchen staff but this is not a legal obligation;-the manager must prove that he is indeed collecting & how much was collected;-the manager must be able to show how the sums were distributed among elligible employees.The rate itself is at the discretion of each business but generally between 12% and 15%An executive order (décret) dated 27 March 1987 states that in establishments that are imposing a service charge (and therefore use it to pay its staff), then the price displayed must be inclusive of VAT and service and menus and all other documents displayed for clients must state 'service compris' or 'prix nets' as well as the applied percentage. There is a fine for...

Language Lesson

by oldruss

We did a European coach tour last year. As we where close to entering each new country, our tour guide would give us a quick but useful language lesson. Most of the places we visited,I felt,prefered us to speak English. When it came to France, we went through the same routine. However he did say, if we made some attempt at speaking "French", we would be better thought of. He also said, that the French people will avoid speaking English if they are able, even though quite a few will understand what your saying. From memory, we had very few problems making ourselves understood. I would be back there yesterday if I could.

Learn Some French - Tip #251

by pedroswift

May I be so bold as to add this tip to the 250 similar ones under "Local Customs" in an effort to correct the inadequacies of 247 of them. Make the effort to learn some French if you are not au fait with the basics.If you make the effort to speak just a little French, you will be rewarded with a better interaction with the locals.Be aware that the French are ritualistically polite so if you are too lazy to learn much French, at least know the common greetings and thank yous.Typically, one greets the shopkeeper with "Bonjour Madam" or some such and then the other customers as well eg "Bonjour Mesdames &/or Messieurs". If you are staying in one place for a while, shopping every day at the same place or greeting your hotel staff, you will be setting up a harmonious relationship by doing so. Your efforts will be appreciated. Most important : SMILE! What is the common talking point around the...

Invitation to dinner with French

by vinc_bilb

You get an invitation to dinner with French? Great, it could be worst! All this tip is indicative for a formal lunch: adapt to the context. Dinners usually are now less formal.Dress code? : adapt to the contextWhat time? : You must not arrive early nor late (+/- 15 mins "grace period”)Gifts, what to bring? : Bringing house plant or flowers is appreciated (not Chrysanthemums=funeral nor red roses=declaration of love, if not applicable). Depending on context, avoid wine (why: your wine could not match with the meals, not the right temperature, no enough rest time ...)Alternative solution: ask you host in advance. He/She will be happy by your thoughtful attention and will answer most of the time "nothing, just you". Typical order: 1. Aperitif (30 min - 1 hour): This is a before-dinner/lunch drink (usually an alcoholic) 2. The meal (1 - 1.5 hour): Starter, the main course, salad, cheese,...

Avoid yelling to get someone's attention

by deborah822

It is customary to actually stop what you're doing and go to greet a friend or acquaintance. Unlike the US, where a simple wave will suffice, most French people find that rude. It's easy to get accustomed to this because life tends to slow down when you're there :-)

Top 3 Hotels in France

Four Seasons George V Paris Paris

5 Reviews and 551 Opinions The Four Seasons George V is truly one of the world's great hotels. I really, really love to stay...

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Palais de la Mediterranee Nice

3 Reviews and 672 Opinions The hotel was amazing, right on the beach. It was very clean and the rooms were of excellent...

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Hotel Gutenberg Strasbourg

1 Review and 183 Opinions I toured Alsace by bicycle in mid-September, 2008. After the group ride was over, I stayed for 3...

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Questions and Answers

Q: Dear all, Does anyone knows whether it is possible to get a phone sim card in France for use during a short term/traveller stay...

A: get it at any mobile phone provider Bouygues, SFR or Orange. I use Orange. very easy http://agence.orange.fr/search?query=paris&st_like%5BSERVICES%5D%5B%5D=%25 have...

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