Originally Posted by
jmhayes
Awesome post by Landing Gear. I did this last week and it went smoothly; despite a dozen or so trips to Paris, this bit of advice:
... is absolutely essential. I've usually rehearsed what I'm going to (try to) say in French before I reach the person I'm going to say it to, but today I was reminded of this bit of Must Have Info: pleasantries first, then business! I went to buy a
carnet in the Metro, and the first response I got was basically "dit quoi?" ... then she interrupted me and emphasized
Bonjour ... and invited me to ask again, AFTER saying hello first!
Thanks again for a terrific post, very well researched and helpful.
Welcome back to the USA!
It's my pleasure to help you, JM, and glad you had a good trip.
When I was a kid and my parents took me to France, I only knew two words in French, "bonjour" and "merci." Everyone was so nice to me that I eventually learned a lot more.
In case you didn't see, I have posted another thread where Motorola is now selling unlocked GSM phones direct to consumers.