Re: CHAT: A pretty bad language joke :]

> > I have a funny story...I went into a cafe the first time I was in Paris,
> > in 1995 (well, maybe second time; I was two months away from being born
> > there!). I asked what is a croque monsieur, and the man there told me to
> > leave...
>
> What a strange reaction! I know that in Paris, cafés are quite unwelcoming with
> foreigners, but I wouldn't have thought of such a reaction! After all, most of
> their income comes from tourists... Well, even for people from the province like
> me, they are not very nice, so...
It wasn't really in a touristy area, it was hidden in a side street near
Gare du Nord.

>
> then I went to another place, where they were nice and told me
> > what it is, and I had three, and afterwards I had a big argument with
> > the
> > waiter, I left him 10 francs for pourboire and he yells at me, you
> > forgot
> > your money, and I said, no that's for you, he said, but you already
> > paid,
> > I said, yes I know, that's a pourboire, and he didn't seem to
> > understand,
> > he kept trying to give it back, until I decided, enough of this and left
> > the cafe and the money there...
> >
>
> In some cafés, waiters are forbidden to get pourboires, because service is
> already included in the price you paid. I suppose he didn't want you to give
> your money for nothing. Did you speak French? With an accent? Parisians seem to
> expect that everyone speak French without any accent (they don't understand that
> they are the ones with an accent :) ), and if you speak with an accent they get
> very annoyed easily. Don't ask me why, I never understood how a Parisian mind
> works...
I spoke French yes, but I wasn't consciously making an effort to speak
Standard French, thus it was probably mostly Joual...making me look like a
lumberjack or fur-trapper, I guess ;)

-------ferko
Ferenc Gy. Valoczy

Suurt chugunikka peene ahjo suhe et toukka.

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