The French are class consciousness. They strive to embrace upperclass qualities and have disdain for cultural corruption – which can mean things foreign. As most things are, this has both good and bad qualities.

Good in that a cultural identity provides a template for appropriate behavior. Bad in that there can be a closed mindedness for things that are not French.

For example: It shows class and good breeding in France to resolve disputes diplomatically without physical threats, even among young street toughs. On the other hand any self-respecting Parisian would not be caught dead wearing a pair of Teva sport sandals.

I did encounter some rudeness. Sometimes it was due to the person being worn down from by an ocean of demanding tourist from all over the world who don’t speak French. Sometimes they just expressed a big city brusqueness that I took personally. And sometimes they were just a snob.

Usually I found timidity, fear and insecurity at the root of uncomfortable communications.

Sometimes when I approached someone who did not speak English and they could tell I did not speak French well, I could feel a wave of apprehension flood over them. When it became clear that I could speak French enough for us to communicate I would see their tension release and they became quite friendly.

It can be very awkward mixing languages. Sometimes I felt offended if the other person switched to English during our conversation. Why?

This is the train we took to Bruxelles. It travels at 350 kph (210 mph).

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