Differences Between the USA and France (Part 1)

Through my travels so far I have found an endless number of differences between the USA and France but here are a few that really stuck out to me..... One word people. Food. Food is not regarded as fuel....or even just a social thing here.....its viewed as a whole section of the day. You take time with your food, savoring each morsel like it was your last. Its the supermarkets here that really amaze me. In America the market is just a place to go with a list and mission....in France its a place to plan meals, meander, and generally enjoy just being. You could see a friend in the supermrkets and stop an talk for an entire hour(trust me my host mother has done it). Its not a place to rush through its somewhere to unwind and reflect on the day while you pick up food for a meal. I can still smell the smell of the bakery next door to the supermarket, see the check out person, the aisles and the labels in which I did not understand a word. I remember wondering what the differences were between the brands? Where was the cereal? Ice cream? And how was I suppose to order cheese if I couldn't ask the salesperson for it? I pointed, and shook my head yes, often. I found out that before I went to the check out counter I had to weigh the fruits and vegetables I wanted. In the fruit and vegetable section there was a scale that had a list of the fruits and vegetable on it. All I had to do was find the word (not a simple task), then click on it and a ticket with a price would appear. One time I was buying a head of lettuce....and the ticket came out telling me that the cost $25. I looked at the ticket, I had clicked on fresh herbs and not lettuce. I bought sour milk instead of fresh milk. The fresh milk was in a box without a spout, and as it was located by the dry goods, I had no idea what it was. I was surprised it was not refrigerated. Later I learned that it could last three months in the cupboard if not opened, and only when opened needed to put in the refrigerator. In France, at school (or anywhere for that matter) each day when you see someone you know you greet them. When you know a person well you kiss them on the cheeks and say, "Ca-va?" and they say, "Ca-va." And if you don't know the person very well, then you shake their hand when you see them, and say "Ca-va?" and they say, "Ca-va." Even if someone is rushing to class they will take the time to give one of their friends a bisous.....everything is slowed down in France....like we are on some kind of alternate time plane where there is enough time for all the casualties and intricacies of life In the states we can give a little wave or a slight nod to someone as long as we can get on to our next class without being disturbed. It is not uncommon in an American High School for strange people in the school talk to me on Facebook, but when I ask them why they don't talk to me at school they say they are too shy. In France your not friends on Facebook unless you know the person extremely well (this is what I can tell so far) I hope my little "cultural lesson" has been interesting I am going to lable this as "part 1" and later in my journey through France I will add more differences that interest me...... Bisous Em