Title: Life in the fast lane

 

 

 Just don't overtake me!

I have realised that there is a universal language that everyone understands- it’s called the Beatles.

We attended an event recently which had guys singing and very good they were too. However. I did think it was a bit strange as they were French but were singing English songs to a French audience (except us). The French did look a bit bored as they did not know many of the songs but when they played ‘Hey Jude’ they all came alive and started singing along.

The same thing happened in Indonesia last year, everywhere we went we saw groups performing Beatles songs and everyone was singing along.

So, if you are ever in an awkward situation and you are struggling to be understood just start singing “She loves you yeah, yeah yeah.”

20 top tips for living or visiting Normandy

1.       A French driver is obliged to overtake you, no matter where you are, how fast you are driving and what the weather conditions are. We were once overtaken on a steep hill ( won’t call it  a mountain- don’t want to be too dramatic!) climbing up to a ski resort, a driver overtook us on a blind bend and it was snowing heavily.

2.       Don’t forget that most businesses close between 12.30 and 14.00, we have been caught out many times

3.       Don’t come before Easter if you want anything to be open, unless you want Normandy all to yourself of course.

4.       Please do not be alarmed if complete strangers say hello or wave at you, it’s quite normal here, even when you walk into a huge DIY shop. It takes a while to get used to.

5.       Don’t expect the same level of politeness in Paris, when I was a driver for the Olympics last Summer not one Parisien thanked me for stopping at a crossing for them.

6.       If you buy a carrier bag in a supermarket, cashiers feel the need to write the date on it (no idea why).

7.       People still write cheques here especially in supermarkets when they are in front of me.

8.       It is very rare to find a builder who does a bit of everything, they tend to specialise in one thing, they are very charming and insist on shaking your hand every morning. They will disappear in the summer for a very long holiday but normally the quality of their work is very good. When they say tantôt they mean this afternoon which really means next August (think I’ve told you that one before but it’s always good to be reminded).

9.       French people don’t do milky coffees, it’s usually an espresso with sugar. No skinny flat whites here!

10.   Never take wine if you invited over, flowers are the norm here. The French are not big drinkers (so we have found) and only drink when they are eating. That excludes the guys that you see in a Tabac in the mornings drinking glasses of wine (not even I drink that early).

11.   For some unknown reason graffiti is worse here (and in Europe generally) than in the UK, yet young people appear far politer and quieter than in the UK.

12.  Don’t expect to get into a restaurant after 13.30 here, they tend to eat about 12.30 and are out by 14.00.

13.  Lunchtime seems to be the best time to eat (providing you get there at 12.30!) and the plat du jour is normally very good and good value.

14.  Lots of pork here, though you never see any pigs and lots of cheese and dairy (rows of it in your average supermarket) but you see lots of cows. Shellfish is great too and very reasonable.

15. They are heavily into herbal teas and if you visit a neighbour, they will offer you a  box containing a variety of them.

16.  They love anything British by the way, especially biscuits in fancy tins.

17.   Be prepared to say things at least twice (in French) as they struggle to understand us speaking their language.  I listened to a guy trying to order a bottle of Muscadet once, he must have said it four times to the waiter, eventually he pointed to it on the menu and the waiter said “ah Muscadet!” I wanted to say “ that’s what he said!” but felt I shouldn’t interfere.

18.  Young people tend to have good English (they are listening to our music and watching our films) and when you speak to them in French they want to speak to you in English back. I don’t need to practise my English so I carry on in French, it’s a very weird conversation but we get by.

19.   Yes petrol is more expensive here- get over it !! but we don’t pay road tax so the more you drive the more petrol you use, so the more you pay (which is the way it should be).

20.   We don’t see much rubbish here, if we see something dumped, we are mortified and contact the Maire straight away.

In other news

Internet is back on. When I saw the engineer in the lane I wanted to hug him, it’s been broken for just under 3 months, I can get back to online shopping!

I’m off to Madrid for a belated 60^th birthday celebration, it will be interesting to see if there are any groups singing Beatles songs.

 

                                                             Adiós