I LOVE AUSTRALIA!!
If anything his trip has made me appreciate my country more ...
Let me explain – ive just run away from the dinner table up to nicis room (escaping from dinner)
Nici didn’t come to dinner today and I sat on a table with Sylvia (our teacher) and some other people ...
Amongst random conversation Sylvia explained this (we were talking about how the French were rude)
- the French have a society which is regulated by lots of social rrules: rules of conduct and behaviour; if you don’t follow these rules than people are offended/intimdated and think you are strange
- in france you don’t show emotion – very individualistic; you don’t smile at people – because they are intimdated and always suspect the worst ... don’t look at people in the metro ... etc
- the reason for this is because French society teaches you to work your way up;l for example in class you start at zero and have to earn your marks; in Australia you start at 100 and lose marks ... in the French system it is very bureaucratic; the French don’t act individually and always ask their ‘supervisors’ – they follow rules rather than acting impusively
all the people on my table were like wooow france is so great its wonderful how there are social rules; and Sylvia explained that I (me ana) might find the French rude because im very extroverted and I always smile at shop assistants etc and that the French find this intimidating and will react with hostility ...
FAIR ENOUGH ... and I said yes ok; I don’t like how the French are so cold and I don’t like the idea how their society is goverened by one right set of rules – and if you act outside of that set you are WRONG; it is a very exclusive society ....
Sylvia said Australia is very much more laidback/relaxed/no rules etc .... and that Australian society favoured extroverts – because people made up their own social interaction --- and I said yes; you don’t have to follow ‘rules’ – ie. I can show up to uni in trackies, or dressed up – and either way its OK – I’m not questioned/ not looked down upon....
Today on the metro (train) all the lights wen out – all the French coldly ignored it – pretended nothing was wrong; in Australia – someone would crack a really lame joke!!!! In france no one talks to each other on the train ... and in australa --- people talk on the train and bag connex ...
The French are too serious
I don’t like the French
Sylvia said that amercias/English/Australians/Italians are similar - they do what they want; don’t follow rules/ casual and laid back ....
i really miss home for all of that ... really really ... the French are too serious/ too obsessed with appreance, rules and social interaction --- it is as if they are acting towards a façade rather than naturally
I do understand how this is comforting to people who are shy/awkward – because if society teaches you to act in a certain way – and you follow that way – you will be accepted ....
I find it stifling
To me – I feel that a society which teaches one proper way of acting – and excluding all other methods of interaction, is stifling individual creativity and behaviour ....
GRRRRRRRR ANY OPINIONS !!!! so now im sitting in nicis room ...
Oh and also – apparently the Australians/uks ‘drink’ and get drunk because we don’t have social rules and can only express ourselves while drunk .... but the wonderful French DO NOT DO THIS .... my whole table agreed with Sylvia when she made this point --- ahhh EXCUSE ME – stupid table, everyone I know drinks because it is FUN!!! Grrrrrrr stupid serious people ....
PLSSSSSSS post your opinions on this – id love to hear what people think ...
Anyway .... some other news
1) I brought a coat – NONE of the pictures I posted; it’s a coat from zara – will post pictures tomorrow mornining --- its wonderful mum you’d really like it .... its like a white/creamy and its very very chic --- beautiful big collar – very 1960s Audrey Hepburn ....
2) We had a walk with monsieur le grand today; hes the boring French guy that gave us the lecture on Wednesday morning; anyway, Sylvia gave us a talk on Tuesday morning about monsieur le grand doesn’t understand Australian eccentricity and outgoinginess (I think this was directed at us – me nici Amanda, primarily me – because we keep singing songs about waffles and ham) ... ANWAY ... we went for the walk; then Sylvia invited monsieur le grand to lunch with her; at this point, people started separating and me and nici said – we are going to have pizza and we left the group ... suddenly we turn around and monsieur le grand is following us~!!!! Sylvia is looking after him!!! What is going on?? It turns out that monsieur le grand preferred to have lunch with us HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH ... he choose the crazy Australians over going with everyone else .... its funny because of the talk she gave on Tuesday morning --- when I mentioned it at dinner, she said ‘oh I invited him to lunch; mmm the French really like their young girls’ ... so me and nici and monsieur le grand had lunch together ....
thats allllllll that is news ....
we did some museum stuff this morning went to the opera etc ....
BIG FRIENDLY AUSTRALIAN GOODBYES TO ALL MY FRIENDLY WARMMMMMMM AUSTRALIAN BUDDDDDDDIES :D
Love me xxxxxxx
