WHAT'S IN A NAME?

A lot of French people complain when they come back from England – either because they claim the food and coffee are bad, it rains all the time and because they drive on the wrong side of the road…

While it’s true that home cooking is generally more adventurous in France, I’ve found that pub food has really improved recently, with many traditional (and regional) dishes replacing the over-cooked steak and chips…that you still find in French bars everywhere! Furthermore, people tend to rave about the British breakfast (with or without the baked beans and black pudding), much more sustainable than a bowl of coffee (yes – a bowl!!) and a tiny croissant.

The quality of coffee has improved too – not just in all the expensive chains like Costa, Nero and others – but in homes too. And the consumption of instant coffee in France remains high.

Concerning the weather, the rate of precipitation of Bordeaux is higher than that of London… 923 mm in Bordeaux and 601 mm for London! It even rains more in Toulouse (668 mm) and Naples (1,006 mm)…( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London#Climate)

And as for driving on the left…well, all countries used to drive on the left from the time of stage-coaches (and possibly even before). And most trains still do. It is only since the invention of the gear tick that cars gradually moved on to the “other” side.

The other gripe is about names – Waterloo and Trafalgar in particular! I understand that French people are not too happy to be reminded of these crushing defeats – but then again, if Napoleon (commemorated in street names in virtually every French city – in spite of being a military dictator!) had not declared war on so many nations during his reign, these battles may never have happened. And I’m sure these names will not be changed, even though some French people would perhaps like that.

But while it comes to names, there is a bit of a problem on this side of the channel. There is a small hamlet, some 100km (60 miles) south of Paris which is called “Mort aux Juifs” – literally, “Death to the Jews”!

Although a rather offensive name and despite numerous requests to change it, the Deputy Mayor Marie-Elizabeth Secretand refuses to oblige, saying “it has always been called that!” (http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-28764207)

Difficult to know how to react to that – if we keep things just because they have always been like that, France would still be an autocratic monarchy, women would not be able to vote (let alone become deputy mayor)…and there would probably be no rue Bonapartes either…

trafalgar square