Paris is shocking

[BagOfCrisps 24]

I don't know if this is a joke or not, but...

 

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PARIS (Reuters) - Around a dozen Japanese tourists a year need psychological treatment after visiting Paris as the reality of unfriendly locals and scruffy streets clashes with their expectations, a newspaper reported Sunday.

 

"A third of patients get better immediately, a third suffer relapses and the rest have psychoses," Yousef Mahmoudia, a psychologist at the Hotel-Dieu hospital, next to Notre Dame cathedral, told the newspaper Journal du Dimanche.

 

Already this year, Japan's embassy in Paris has had to repatriate at least four visitors -- including two women who believed their hotel room was being bugged and there was a plot against them.

 

Previous cases include a man convinced he was the French "Sun King," Louis XIV, and a woman who believed she was being attacked with microwaves, the paper cited Japanese embassy official Yoshikatsu Aoyagi as saying.

[longboardsk8man 0]

I read the header and thought this was about paris hilton - same applies i guess

[damian 0]

Considering the number of Japanese tourists in Paris per year, a dozen isn't very many. And Paris, although a lot cleaner, is still quite messy and remains the most densely populated city on Earth, lacking anything close to the bizarrely high level of customer service in found Japan. But I really think this say's more about a small number of Japanese than it does about Paris. And these poor wrecks were likely there on a bus tour and only sniffing the outside air at the main boutique brand streets and tourist sights. Imagine if they actually experienced the real world (in Paris or elsewhere).

 

Some additional info is missing from the above article: the longer version also mentions that some Japanese tourists form a huge fairytale romantic expectation of Paris (like they do for the Swiss mountains and villages) and then arrive to find Paris more crowded than Tokyo, dirty, loud, rude and all together far too real. This leaves them with Paris shock syndrome. Personally, I think Paris is the most emotionally liberating city I have ever been in and am in awe of it for that reason alone.

 

FWIW, see more 20-30 year old Japanese people living and hanging out in Paris than any other city that I have spent time in and I can quickly see why they are attracted to the place and feel comfortable there, away from the tourist places.

 

The Japanese tourist is one of the saddest types, I have few kind words for them. My girlfriend was hosting her mother and another elderly lady in Switzerland and France, they were doing some mountain hiking over summer. Whilst travelling through Switzerland they stopped at a place her and I had been to before. Its a really small village just before a mountain pass. Apparently the bar owner made a point of asking if they were Japanese and why on Earth they were in his town and in a group of 3? Its a beautiful little village in a perfect Swiss Alps setting, yet the bar owner said the only Japanese that come there simply pass directly through on a tour bus bound for Zermatt. It was my girlfriend's mothers first time outside of Japan in 65 years, she was very stoked to be in that remote little village.

[nzlegend 1]

 Quote:

Originally posted by db le spud:
remains the most densely populated city on Earth, .

Europe yes, Earth no; try Manila, Cairo and Mumbai for Sardineville. Manilla is the most densely populated.

I wasnt at all shocked by Paris, the sights and history was invigorating and the people ah..unique.

One city that did shock me and leave me most disappointed was New York City. Perhaps I built that one up too much that.
I can see how a soft tour coacher tourist could get freaked out.

[BagOfCrisps 24]

I found the article to be really surprising. I love Paris, think it's a great place to spend some quality time.

 

I wonder if those Japanese have been to Switzerland. I hear the people (and touped cows) are even worse.

[damian 0]

I am trying to find the density ranking where Paris came in first. Perhaps it was a selective ranking, ruling out cities with an income per head of less than X? I can't find it. I recall that it also referred only to inner city density. I'm not going to stand by it.

 

The Japanese are famous with the Swiss for arriving in a big coach and taking a photo of what they are told is important and or iconic. I have seen Swiss cartoons depicting this exact scene: a bus, clicking cameras and a host of Swiss icons which were all one dimensional plywood stage props.

[soubriquet 0]

Soubriquette was at university when the Narita riots started, and the unis were closed down. Not being one to sit on her hands, she took a berth in a cargo ship to Columbo, and spent six months travelling north through Sri Lanka and India. She could read and write English, but India is where she learned to speak it.

 

When she got back to Tokyo, the unis were still closed, so she went back to India, spent six months living in northern Pakistan, and six months travelling overland to Europe. Then a year waitressing in Switzerland. She never did finish that degree.

[Ocean11 0]

> She could read and write English, but India is where she learned to speak it.

 

Does she do the head waggling bit too?

 

I can picture her saying "Oh, you cannot have anko inside and outside your ohagi", with the appropriate emphasis.

 

Our friends' sexy daughter is studying ballet in Paris. She was shocked by how poor quality the general run of French food is - she says it's pre-chewed mush with unidentifiable ingredients, as indeed a lot of it is. She seems to be having a lot of that 2-minute French sex, and her parents are trying to persuade her not to marry one of those Parisian gentlemen.

 

The NHK Paris correspondent has excellent French. He was interviewing some pol the other day, and it sounded perfect. I know quite a few Japanese who have taken a perverse interest in France and French as opposed to England.

[daver 0]

"I know quite a few Japanese who have taken a perverse interest in France and French as opposed to England."

 

yeah, it's almost like a protest against status quo english isn't it?

i've seen this as well. rather odd, because being that i am canadian they want to talk to me in french. usually these people are thoroughly upset to find that their french is far superior to my sub-par ben what!? quebecios.

[number9 0]

 Quote:

The Japanese are famous with the Swiss for arriving in a big coach and taking a photo of what they are told is important and or iconic. I have seen Swiss cartoons depicting this exact scene: a bus, clicking cameras and a host of Swiss icons which were all one dimensional plywood stage props.

I think the Chinese are taking over that role. Especially with tours that try to pack in as many "sights" in a short an itinerary as possible.

The popularity of bus tours makes sense because at one point in post war history, that was the only way regular Japanese people were allowed to leave the country. And it is the same with present day China. But younger Japanese travellers are more independent than past generations, though of course there's huge variation amongst individuals.

[soubriquet 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by Ocean11:
> She could read and write English, but India is where she learned to speak it.

Does she do the head waggling bit too?

I can picture her saying "Oh, you cannot have anko inside and outside your ohagi", with the appropriate emphasis.

She may have done the head shake once, but I`ve never seen it. She doesn`t walk the (chick) walk or talk the talk either. It`s disconcerting when we talk and I hear my accent coming back. After 13 years living in Oz, I find myself thinking "that sounds very English"

I have enquired. Soubriquette`s ohagi is available in season, and you may have anko inside or outside, according to taste, or both by special order.

And closer to on topic, She (and I) would choose a trip to the Hindu Kush over Switzerland, any time.

[damian 0]

Japanese, eaters of slimey mysteries and fried vomit (okonomiyaki), commenting that other food has a pre chewed texture? Pot, kettle. French food is, if anything, a lump of char grilled meat, mustard and fried chips.

 

Soub - I always picked you as going for the utterly useless OL type of Japanese woman.

[bushpig 0]

You must be referring to the kansai fu okonomiyaki spud. Hiroshima fu is nothing at all like that and kicks kansai fu's arse. There really is no comparison.

[damian 0]

I dunno. I'm talking about the stuff that looks like fried vomit. It likely is from kansai.

[bushpig 0]

it is. They call it okonomiyaki, but they don't really know what true okonomiyaki is. Hiroshimajin know what it's all about I just had some tonight in fact MMMMmmmmmmmmmM!!!

[SerreChe 2]

I am still in therapy...

[damian 0]

...from your time in London.

[Ocean11 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by Bushpig:
it is. They call it okonomiyaki, but they don't really know what true okonomiyaki is. Hiroshimajin know what it's all about I just had some tonight in fact MMMMmmmmmmmmmM!!!

Shut up you know-nothing regional partisan henna gaijin. spud is talking about 'monja yaki' -- the fried puke that effete Edokko eat.



huuAAARGh BLOOrtt! ssssssssss....

As for what the French eat when the rest of the world isn't looking, of course there's lots of those lumps of meat and chips that are possibly less edible than McDonalds. But then there's the mess of beans and sausage they serve up in routier and guest houses that recalls boiled puke. And let's not forget rillettes.



urrgh URRRGHH urggh ---- kkkaAAAAaaRgh!

Okay, maybe let's try to forget rillettes.

[Ocean11 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by Bushpig:
it is. They call it okonomiyaki, but they don't really know what true okonomiyaki is. Hiroshimajin know what it's all about I just had some tonight in fact MMMMmmmmmmmmmM!!!

Shut up you know-nothing regional partisan henna gaijin. spud is surely talking about 'monja yaki' -- the fried puke that effete Edokko eat.



huuAAARGh BLOOrtt! ssssssssss....

As for what the French eat when the rest of the world isn't looking, of course there's lots of those lumps of meat and chips that are possibly less edible than McDonalds. But then there's the mess of beans and sausage they serve up in routier and guest houses that recalls boiled puke. And let's not forget rillettes.



urrgh URRRGHH urggh ---- kkkaAAAAaaRgh!

Okay, maybe let's try to forget rillettes.

[bushpig 0]

Spud did call it okonomiyaki, not monjayaki. So regardless of what he was actually talking about, my comment was valid. And don't let me hear you gushing about the local variety of rice, mikan, or whatever else they have out your way again! Where's that picture of that black pot and the kettle when you need it...

[Ocean11 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by Bushpig:
don't let me hear you gushing about the local variety of rice, mikan, or whatever else they have out your way again!

Now that's a really hurtful thing to say. Why would you want to say something so cutting?

[bushpig 0]

I'm sorry...

[thursday 1]

Today is the first anniversary of the Paris riots.

[SerreChe 2]

Let's burn some cars to celebrate!

[torihada 2]

I am stuck in Paris at this moment; 10 days at the Grand Palais for the FIAC art fair. 12 - 9 pm every day and I am going mad. I am sick of steak et frites, or rather lots of meat and no vegetables. Last night I went for Sushi and I ordered in my very bad nihongo, at one point I didn't understand and I said I my nihongo wa heta desu to which he replied rudely (in Japanese) why didn't I speak French, then I replied my French was much worse and we spoke in his very bad English. Mrs T says she doesn't like the Japanese that live in France and someone else I know thinks when the Japanese come tp Paris they look at the rude Parisiennes and think that is the way to behave. I don't know, I am just sick of being stuck here for another 4 days.

 

I think it's effecting me psychologically as I had a dream about snowboarding last night, and it wasn't a good one. c'est la vie.