An Angry Little French Man

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Today was a free day, which naturally started with a huge breakfast at the hotel. At 9:45, Hayley, Natalie, Brian, Devin and I took the RER to Versailles. We entered in the garden, which seemed to go on for miles. The weather was crisp and felt like fall back home. Everywhere I turned there was green grass, beautiful fountains, trees with leaves that we in the process of changing color and fluttering to the ground. There isn’t any space in Cádiz for grass or trees so it was a really nice change of scenery for us. We took a tram down to Marie Antoinette’s house and garden. I personally don’t have much of an interest in Marie Antoinette, so seeing her house was of little importance to me, but I enjoyed having Natalie tell me about the life of Marie Antoinette. The garden outside of her house is enormous and exquisite.

Unfortunately, this is where our trip took a turn for the worst. Devin’s camera slipped out of her pocket at some point through our venture in the garden and we didn’t realize it until we had returned to Versailles. We desperately hoped that it would still be there when returned to look for it… unfortunately we spent hours roaming around the garden, retracing our steps only to find that it was gone. Devin had arrived in Paris two days before the rest of us and had taken a lot of pictures, which is why she was so upset over her lost camera. She asked a few people around the garden who were carrying the same type of camera if they had found it, but unfortunately they had not. The worst part of the day was un unpleasant encounter that occurred while we were waiting for the tram in front of Marie Antoinette’s house. She asked a middle-aged French man, in what little French she had acquired during her trip thus far, if he had found the camera that he was holding. He was furious and responded as if she had slapped him across the face. He said (in broken English) that it was his and then proceeded to lecture her in a very forceful tone about keeping track of her things. He turned to the group of people in front of him in line and muttered something in French about Americans. His was equally as rude. The 5 of us were so shocked that a human being could be so inhumane, that we just stood there in awe. Devin, who had already been on the verge of crying, burst into tears as she responded to the man in manner that was extremely polite for someone who had just been yelled at. I was impressed with the way she handled herself, I cannot say that my reaction would have been as classy. The irony of the situation is that Devin is by far the most responsible and organized person in our entire group.

The angry man called attention to how important it is to remember that each citizen of a country can be viewed as representative of his or her entire population; therefore, when you talk to a foreigner you must keep in mind that the person you are talking to might associate your interaction with your country instead of viewing you as an individual. That being said, I completely understand how the stereotype about the French being rude and hating Americans came about. It only takes one bad encounter to create stereotypes like that. Luckily, due to my positive experience with the French citizens up until this point, I am able to maintain my perception that they are very nice people.

We finally ate lunch around 4:30 in the afternoon and then took the RER back to Paris. Devin and Hayley went back to the hotel. Brian, Natalie, and I walked around the streets and bridges, which were breathtaking during the sunset, when everything beginning to light up. We ended up at a bridge that was very peculiar. It was in a beautiful location in the heart of Paris, but the entire thing was covered in padlocks that people had put there. I found out later that people make a wish and lock it onto that bridge so that it will come true. I also tried my first dessert crepes tonight. YUM. Tomorrow is our last day in Paris, I hope we can do a lot to make up for the time we lost today.

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