I came across an article in The Local this past week, where a Franco-British person took a few habits from each culture to assess whether they embraced their French or British side more. I don't have a French parent but after 9 years of living in France, I decided to write my own answers. It was an opportunity to write something a little more fun so here goes...
1 - Not being able to go without a cup of tea. Ever.
I'm going to assume that the author of the original piece was referring to a builder's brew in which case... I'm OK if I don't have one of those on a regular basis. Give me a flat white (oat milk) or an infusion over a builder's brew every time. It's only when I go back to the U.K. that I find myself desperate for a cup of Earl Grey - weird right?
France - 1 Britain - 0
2 - Not being able to live without cheese.
Before moving to France, I could have easily lived without cheese but there's no turning back now that I've discovered the joy of tartiflette and a great French cheeseboard. This means that whenever I go back to the U.K. I seek out locally-produced British cheese at the market, which is not good for my waistline (but great for my tastebuds).
France - 1 Britain - 0
3 - Not having to sit down to eat a proper lunch.
The concept of eating lunch at your desk is a common stereotype of the Brits. French people are guilty of the same thing: my boyfriend eats in front of his computer at least once a week and I work in a communications agency (made up of about 99% of French people) who do it on a regular basis. I personally love getting out of the office over my lunch break, either for a gym session / a walk around in the sunshine / a fun lunch with a friend. I can't deny that if I am chained to my desk over lunch, it's heartening to see the restaurant terraces full of people when I pop out to grab some food.
France - 0 Britain - 1
4 - Sitting outside a café with a coffee and a cigarette and watching (judging) the passers by.
Very French / Parisian thing to do as the café culture is non-existent in the U.K. I used to do this in my early twenties but I wouldn't do it now for several reasons: the coffee in standard French cafés is pretty gross; I'm an ex-smoker so it's good to avoid temptation and I'm trying to be less judgemental in general.
France - 0 Britain - 1
5 - Going mad about charity shops.
I miss charity shops in France - it's really not a thing like in the U.K. There are plenty of secondhand stores dotted around the city but there's no charitable angle. There are 2 Oxfam stores located in Paris but they're quite a way from my house, which is not very practical given the amount of books I'd like to drop off. As mentioned in the original article, your safest bet is Emmaus, which donates all earnings to help the homeless community.
France - 0 Britain - 1
6 - Apologising for literally everything.
Yes, I'm very British like that. I'm SO sorry.
France - 0 Britain - 1
7 - Not really minding the rain, in fact, quite enjoying it sometimes.
I'm from the north of England, which obviously means that the rain is woven into my DNA! So long as you have one or all of the following, there's nothing to be scared of: a hood, some sturdy shoes or an umbrella. Driving in the rain however is not so fun - I'll never forget a hairy experience on holiday in Cornwall, with Flora and my sister, where we had to drive back to our Airbnb at night and it was PELTING it down!
France - 0 Britain - 1
8 - Putting a bar of chocolate between a baguette and then eating it all.
I have never tried this French goûter (snack). Not even those I see in Cyril Lignac's Chocolaterie can tempt me. I guess if I have children in France then I won't deny them but it's a non from me.
France - 0 Britain - 1
9 - No chocolate bar? No worries.
My heart belongs to Crunchie chocolate bars, so it's Crunchie or nothing. Wave as much Nutella in my face as you like France, I ain't falling for it.
France - 0 Britain - 1
10 - Not minding that every floor in a house is covered in carpet.
I'd totally forgotten that I grew up in a house that had carpet EVERYWHERE. I'm going to have to turn my back on my British roots here and say no to carpeted floors. It's not cute. Rugs, ok. But I love an exposed surface underfoot.
France - 1 Britain - 0
11 - Having a good old rant with the shopkeeper / waiter / neighbour / bus driver about literally everything and anything.
OK, the French can keep their moaning. If I'm going to get chatting to any of the above people, it's going to be about something more positive. For example, who your favourite Fab 5 member is / how amazing Sandra Oh & Jodie Comer are in Killing Eve / the last book you read that blew your mind / your favourite skin care products etc. (Feel free to chat to me about any of those things in the comments section below btw).
France - 0 Britain - 1
12 - Treating my dog as if he's a king i.e. letting him sleep in my bed and actually cooking his meals.
I don't have a dog - but I do see one in my future. We just welcomed a kitten (Oscar) into our home: I'm open to testing him out in the bedroom but we live in a duplex so I'm worried he will hurt himself going down the weird stairs. My other half is not a fan of this idea as he thinks once Oscar spends one night in our bedroom, he'll want to spend all his nights in our bedroom. Tricky one to compromise on - maybe Oscar can just help us decide by either loving it or hating it?
France - 0 Britain - 0
13 - If I've got a cold, forget medicine.
Hell no, I head straight to the Boots website! In case you didn't know, the French have a thriving love affair with medication pills but I always make sure that my medicine cabinet is stocked with Lemsip and Boots flu pills. My other half is highly suspicious of these English concoctions, believing them to be less efficient (based on no scientific evidence whatsoever) than their French counterparts.
France - 0 Britain - 1
14 - Being able to laugh at not entirely politically correct jokes.
I think that the main difference between French and English humour can be summed up by the following: an English person will make fun of themselves but a French person will make fun of others. Quite often, they'll specifically make fun of "otherness". The French also have degrees of humour: so "premier degré" is the equivalent of "at face value" whilst "second degré" is the French take on irony, which I still cannot wrap my head around after 9 goddamn years.
There's definitely a linguistic issue: because I still translate things literally in my head sometimes, I can take second degré humour at face value. But another part of me just finds this type of humour to be borderline offensive. The Local gets into it here in slightly more detail but I think I need to continue discussing this topic with both French and expat friends.
Sidenote: I watched Hannah Gadsby's Nanette on Netflix this past weekend, which provided much food for thought about jokes and self-deprecating humour. One of my favourite gossip sites did an AMAZING review here and I would highly recommend that you watch the show itself. You will laugh out loud but you will often be squirming in your seat or fighting away the tears as Hannah shares her ugly truths.
France - 0 Britain - 1
15 - Hating the wine but finishing the bottle anyway.
God, no. I spent too much of my university years drinking what we call "paint stripper" wine (it's so bad that it's probably harming internal organs). The reason I drank this terrible wine was dictated by my student budget, so please don't start making bad jokes about how terrible English wine is. French all the way on this one.
France - 1 Britain - 0
17 - Dunking my croissant in my morning coffee.
I'll pass on this one - but please pass me some fruit jam to smear all over my flaky croissant : )
Conclusion: I'm undeniably British with a few French flairs to keep life interesting!