8:47 "You French people love to riot"

We hate to riot. But we love our rights.

About the 'no' we always say it's often true. The mentality is 'If i say no now, i can always say yes later' because if you say yes right away you can't turn it into a no.

The "no" first does not concern the French as a person in daily life. Rather, it is about services. They will say no if the rules do not allow them to say yes, they are obliged to say no, but afterwards, if they can find a solution, they will do it.

Please note, Parisian culture is not always representative of French culture as a whole. It would be like saying (I imagine) that New Yorkers alone represent Americans well. 😅

I say this because it seems that almost all videos of this type focus on Paris.

We (not only french, but anyone) need to have a short, mid and long term goal:
- long term goal: finish to pay you house
- mid term goal: plan the next holidays
- sort term goal: any pleasure

Work a lot to enjoy holiday a lot.
Take long holidays to enjoy going back to work.

I went to a birthday party recently. My aunt (the host) said it started at 7. We arrived at a quarter past and there were still people arriving after us. And it was at a restaurant. As long as you get there while people haven't started eating yet, you're completely fine. And by eating, I mean started the meal. People here love the apéritif!

That's just how it is here in France. For any type of social gathering, people don't care if you get there "late". Honestly, that's just an accepted social thing.
We do make sure to arrive early/on time for school or work or appointments. Even then, when you're 5 minutes late, it's still fine!

I don't think there is more open relationship in France i just think those that want to be in an open relationship don't have to hide it they can assume easily

05:30The problem is not so much being rich but above all showing it. It's quite rude in France, for example, to say your salary or ask someone how much they earn. And the very large gaps in wealth (billionaires compared to the average for example) are little appreciated, it's true.

Because their fortune is seen by many as a privilege of the same kind as those who wanted to abolish the French revolution. As a reminder, the national motto says freedom EQUALITY fraternity. Large differences in wealth are seen as inequality and therefore a departure from this motto. It must also be said that the majority of our billionaires did not get rich on their own from nothing and through hard work, but most of the time by having inherited the fortune of their ancestors (we are returning to old privileges).

hi , the norm for delay at diner is 15minutes no less, no more, it's called the courtesy for the host (Le quart d'heure de courtoisie) 15 minutes is for the host to put everything in place, and when you are the guest, you bring gift for the host, flowers, vine, chocolate, desert (cake, icecream...) anything you think of. When you are invited, your courtesy is to ask what can you bring, the host every time is going to answer nothing, but if it's not a closed friend, bring something...

Americans have a snacking culture, and most of them are obese. The French eat three meals a day and aren't as fat as Americans. Nutritionists say it's healthier to eat at set times, and these are the times when we're hungry.

Obesity is on the rise in France, but that's because the American culture (snacking) is growing here. Meals are much healthier here.

The French don't generally appreciate people who are too bling and who boast about their money. That's why I think that the person who bought the pastry for 5000 euros is not French, even a French billionaire wouldn't do it, I think. The French don't scratch cars, it's the thugs who can. We are completely monogamous. Maybe what she means is that we don't meddle in other people's private lives. In France, the spaces are smaller than in the US, I think she must be talking about some restaurants in Paris. We are discreet so as not to disturb our neighbours. We are frank but obviously there is a way of saying things, it must be done with delicacy and perhaps not in all circumstances. If we are frank, it is often to help or advise. It allows you to have a real discussion.There are many judo clubs in France but children do many other sports and they are the ones who choose. For meals, it's true that we eat together as a family and that we have always had this habit. We have always been told that it is better for our health. I agree with you, dieticians now say that you have to eat when you're hungry, that you can not have breakfast for example etc. But the majority of French people don't know this and I think they want to give him good advice for her health.I  I think that in Paris, most people work there but live in the suburbs. They have a lot of travel time (often hours), the subways are crowded and they have to hurry to take care of their children or whatever. I think that elsewhere in France, people have more time to exchange. For meal time when you are invited, it is tacitly agreed that you will arrive a little late. If we want people to really be on time, we have to make it clear. To me, I think Americans have a lot of ideals in common with us, but we have a very different culture and history. I love the positivity of Americans. I think we would have things to learn from each other.

French people has two modes: formal and familiar. It is represented in the "You" having a formal and familiar forms (you/thou) in their language.

Formal is "don't show don't tell" and need to be applied to every public places. Basically: Don't show who you are. All kinds of "open display" have to be avoided. No open display of love: don't kiss your lover in public areas. No open display of wealth: don't buy an expensive car. No open display of emotion: don't be loud and laugh out loud. That is their "Vivre Ensemble" (living together) ideas.

Formal doesn't mean "fake" though. Formal is "restraint". No white lies, just tactful. You are bored of your boss' powerpoint? Saying: "it was great" means you are fake and French people who says that will be really badly seen; Saying: "I didn't quite followed everything" is more like it.

Familiar is basically friendly. French are unable to be friendly to someone they didn't bond a little beforehand. It would be hypocritical to be friendly to people you do not care yet. You cannot be "friendly" to a cashier: you don't know that person yet. No small talks. You have to be "formal" and "polite" to show respect.

Politeness is a set of strict rules etiquette that most French follow and being taught while being kids. It may be a real 180° to American custom. To the point where American may feel French are rude to them, while the French put its best effort to be polite and show respect but was seen as distant and cold.

It is basically how American and French imagine what is freedom. For American, Freedom is absolute no matter if it bother someone. For French, Freedom stops where other people start.

Greetings from France :)

About some of your reactions and questions :

- Dutch people are straightforward but they also are very engaged to express it properly. Social codes are almost like rules, they are explicit about it if one crosses the line, and they will respect other guidelines doing so, like being patient about it. It's the German way, so it's a serious matter... but when it comes to the French in love with good words, dark humor, satire, innuendos etc, and so much into opposition to the authority that social codes are not open rules but hidden cues... it's a complete different story. Same goal : going to the point. But in a quite more chaotic and acidic way.

- We are not against wealth but the toxicity many of the wealthiest push against humanity. Obvious signs of wealth tend to make us feel at least suspicious. So most people don't show of, making the ones doing it anyway even more obvious. Also the French way of life is a lot more about being than about having. That's why money, luxury, consumerism etc are devaluated compared to feeling good and well, spending time with friends, having a cool idea, enjoying a madeleine... for real even the most materialist thing any human has to do to survive, eating and drinking, have been elevated to existentialist arts. And when it comes to scratched cars : mainly it happens because we don't care. If intentional it is most of the time because a car is parked where some one thinks it shouldn't, and for sure if it's a Porsche it will look even worse as it will be sign of a wealthy believing not be concerned by rules others have to endure. But if in Paris you can't park your car outside if you want to keep your car pristine, it's above all because most people drive like S and don't give a flying F even about their own cars.

- We are not cuddly, in fact we care a lot about our personal space integrity. It's just that we often lack space. XD
In our big cities the population density is huge, and we have been living in centers for centuries, so it's crowded and places receiving people are compressed. We don't push tables close because we want to smell what the neighbor has ordered, we do it because we can't push walls instead.

- Just two cents about entertainment : we love it a lot, and we love mixing genres with informational segments injecting humor, or straight up comedy injecting political thoughts. I really don't think it's a matter of entertainment against depth, but just about being a lot more into critical thinking, and pushing it every where no matter if it's through journalism, entertainment or just family gatherings. XD

And for what I've lived, we can get along pretty well with Dutch folks. They make us feel comfortable, we make them laugh. Plus we love food and drinks pretty much as well, but don't have same traditions so it's always fun to share our tables.

It can be considered actually kinda rude to arrive on time if you're invited somewhere for dinner. In France or in french-speaking Belgium you"re good if you arrive 15 minutes late :)

lot of cliché here lol. I'm a 37yo native french and I could almost disagree with most of what been told here. But I guess its more like they probably didn't understood very well what happened or what was involved, and get they own feeling / conclusions. But that's ok ^^

I'd be quite interested for you to react to some more recent geopolitical news, or react to some debates on the news or others, in Europe, about what's going on these days.

French are always on time when you host at a time when everyone can actually come lmao

Cool video thanks

Like you Charlie, I only eat when I'm hungry, which happens on evening. I've seen studies tending to proove it is indeed better for the body

We are not "show of"...the young generation tend to ruin a bit our culture, but as French...we enjoy life..food, culture, nature, relationship..and so much to say. We are working to live our life, not living for our work. We are a multicultural country...to talk about you need to move countryside far from the lights of the obvious.