Whenever I could, I tried to order food in French. Most waiters spoke back to me in English but this was not done to deter my from using my American-accented French; they were trying to be helpful and maybe practice their English. However, I did have one bad encounter with a waiter who got mad at me for making him run back and forth a couple of times after he did not hear that I asked for an extra plate and ketchup. It seemed to me that the customer is not always right in Paris, but I can understand why he was annoyed with me. On a more positive note, when a local woman saw me and my family staring at a map, looking for the metro stop, she was eager to help although she knew no English. Not to worry, I have been taking French for 5 years so I finally had to use it. My experience with this kind, friendly woman was (almost) enough to erase the angry-waiter brouhaha out of my mind.
I'll leave you with these tips for knowing what to expect from Parisians
- Do not be offended if you speak French to someone and they answer in English - this is a city of tourists!
- Do not be too picky with a waiter or a salesperson - they are the most likely to become agitated from dealing with tourists all day
- Do not expect everyone to know your language!
- Do not flip through magazines for too long at a newsstand without the intention of buying something - this is anecdote I'll have to leave out ;)
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