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| Europe |
| Disaster for tourism as US visitors shun Paris |
| 2003-08-01 |
| We know this already, but a few interesting quotes. They just don’t get it. EFL. Tourism is of enormous importance to France. Last year, 77 million visitors arrived, lured by France’s gastronomy, wealth of history and topographical variety, bringing in £24 billion. American tourists alone accounted for £4.2 billion. "After the Iraq crisis, many American tour operators just airbrushed France out of their brochures. Instead of offering a tour including Britain, France and Italy, say, we are now replaced by Spain," said [president of France’s travel agents’ union] M Balderacchi. A brief tour of the centre of Paris yesterday confirmed his fears, with not a busload of camera-wielding Americans or Japanese to be seen. On a clear, sunny day, the bateaux mouches that ply the Seine were all but empty. Three or four heads stared balefully from an red open-top sightseeing bus. "Thanks very much, Tony Blair and friends," said the bus conductor. "Us? It can’t be our fault! We’re not responsible for our actions! Bloody Anglo scum, why don’t they come here?" "Where have all the Americans gone?" asked a gloomy waiter in a cafe next to Notre Dame. "Usually two waiters are hard pushed to cope during the summer months, but this year it’s just me - not enough custom." It might be tough, mon ami, but if you have a busy night you’ll just have to try to be twice as rude. Iraq is one factor. But Serge Thellier, who has had a souvenir stand on the Ile de la Cite for 43 years, blamed the dollar. "The Americans were like flies round honey in the 1980s when there were 10 francs to the dollar," he said. "Give me two euros to the dollar and they’ll be back, bin Laden or no bin Laden." Dirty vermin Yanks! Why, oh why, are they not coming?! According to figures published yesterday by the hotel industry association, hotel bookings were down by a quarter throughout France for July, with the luxury sector the worst hit. Its president, Andre Daguin blamed Iraq, Sars, oil-sullied beaches from the tanker Prestige, strikes which led to the cancellation of many summer festivals and the recent forest fires. "We have been spared nothing," he said. Hey blame the Israelis too while your about it, for existing. And blame the Iraqi population for making Saddam kill them. Blame the Kurds. Blame your cash cattle. Blame everything, but never, never for one moment think you might be to blame yourselves. Not only Paris is suffering. Tourist visits are down by a third on the coast in Aquitaine and inland in the Dordogne and Lot-et-Garonne. The French Riviera has not been spared either. Rentals of luxury yachts along the coast are down by half. Not a single boat has been hired by an American in Cannes or Monaco, according to one yacht company. "We can expect a lot of firms to go under," said one owner. In an editorial this week the newspaper Libération said the strength of anti-French sentiment across the Atlantic had been underestimated. "Convinced that the peace of the brave begins at the table, the French never really believed the Americans would fall out of love with them," it said. Got yourselves the irresistible whore delusion, huh? To add to the tourist trade’s woes, even the French are staying at home. According to a report published yesterday by the national tourist board, only half are taking breaks this summer and for shorter periods. Until recently, virtually the whole of France was on holiday in August. Gotta stay home and strike, I suppose. |
| Posted by:Bulldog |
| #27 No worries AP! The first year I spent in London, in intercollegiate halls of residence, I had a terrific bird's eye view of St Pancras Station (actually the frontage of the station is the Midlands Hotel, to be boringly pedantic), and the new British Library as it was being contructed. Compensated just a little for being trapped in a shoebox-sized room! |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-8-2 6:08:24 AM |
| #26 PD---The Isles of Langerhans is a wonderful area. While there visit the Monastary of St. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-8-1 9:58:21 PM |
| #25 MY Isles of Langerhans better not be too well scattered - it's West Nile Virus time in Colorado... again! |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-8-1 9:18:49 PM |
| #24 Mandar...is your wife's name DeiDei? If so, just have your brother-in-law Dexter transport you to an alternate universe where Frenchmen still have balls. *winks* |
| Posted by: Watcher 2003-8-1 9:15:21 PM |
| #23 "...beautiful far-flung Isles of Langerhans..." PD, ROTFLMAO! Beautiful! |
| Posted by: CGeib 2003-8-1 9:07:25 PM |
| #22 Damn you, Raphael! I got watermellon shrapnel all over the screen and keyboard. Pulling the fire alarm on the Eiffel Tower....that's rich! Mandar. Go to somewhere quality first. Then Paris, then somewhere quality next. The toughest job you will have to do is to be pleasant, romantic, and charming in Paris, surrounded by such....dreck....pardon my French, heh heh. You may have to rehearse this one like a special ops mission, so you are convincing to your Lady in such ambience. As for me, I am going to Kodiak Island with m'lady. We are going to Larsen Bay, where a friend of mine will loan me her truck and we will drive to the dump and see over 15 big ass Kodiak bears live and in color. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-8-1 7:56:50 PM |
| #21 Mandar, do something crazy like pulling the fire alarm on the eiffel tower hehe |
| Posted by: Rafael 2003-8-1 7:31:38 PM |
| #20 Hey this is great. As if rude waiters, bad wine, expensive hotels with lousy service, a difficult language and arrogant citizens wasn't enough to drive tourists away in droves........ Of course there is absolutely no possibility of this creating any semblance of penetence or other conciliatory poses from these snotheads. |
| Posted by: SOG475 2003-8-1 7:29:35 PM |
| #19 Mandar - We feel your pain. Sorry, I couldn't resist. Having principles always comes with a price tag, though this one is obviously born out of some childish fantasy - and remarkably selfish. How romantic (as an example) will it be if you, one half of the equation, would rather be in London or Rome or Poughkeepsie or Tierra Del Fuego or the famous & beautiful far-flung Isles of Langerhans? Sheesh! Good luck, regardless of what you decide - a tough spot. |
| Posted by: PD - Prez for Life - Isles of Langerhans 2003-8-1 6:30:38 PM |
| #18 Mandar, Have some fun. Don't tip the waiter. Stop off in Spain, Italy, or Prague first and then while you're in Paris, discuss the diffences in public. Be creative...... |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-8-1 5:56:22 PM |
| #17 I may do it, but I wont like it....to give my hard earned money--dollars--to those surrender monkeys just galls me....and to be treated like a red headed step child will make me fume in my USA t-shirt. Maybe a compromise is the best thing, and I do want her to be happy....but in FRANCE??? Cant she be just as happy strolling down Times Square? I dont know... I do like the idea of going there and leaving...hit Amsterdam again, find a nice quiet coffee shop and curse the French under my breath as I remember the 60's in the best of ways. Cheers guys, thanks for the suggestions...I'll do the right thing |
| Posted by: Mandar 2003-8-1 5:47:29 PM |
| #16 Mandar Do what ya gotta do, but keep Paris down to a couple of days, fill her in on the lack of tourism, strikes, dogs and cats living together, woody allen, and have a good Fun destination B on schedule. She is going after the dream to live it but it will be sad when the expectations turn into a downer. Minimum time in paris. Good luck and send us a report, typewritten, double spaced. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-8-1 5:38:13 PM |
| #15 Er, Mandar. This may not be what you want to hear, but I'd say go. Fulfilling such a pledge to your wife's pretty important. If I were you, I'd sort out some kind of compromise: take her to Paris (you can say "I told you so" as frequently as you like), but only for a couple of days. You don't have to be on your best behaviour any more than the locals. After Paris, spend a few more days somewhere more appealing like Prague, London, Rome, Barcelona... |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-8-1 5:14:30 PM |
| #14 Mandar, Don't do it. being 1/2 French, it's been painful for me the last 40 years seeing how the country I spent my summers as a young boy turn into a rabid cesspool of anti-americanism, laziness, and just plain crap. The France your wife knows is gone. The last time I was back was in '93 to bury my grandmother. I remember one of our final conversations. She said France was done. It pains me to see how the character of the people in the country have gone from the incredibly hardworking and dedicated grandparents I knew to the selfish, lazy, and whiny people of today. Needless to say, I won't be back anytime soon. The world is a big place; is going to the land of no-toilets, dog-shit on the sidewalk, no garbage pickup due to endless strikes so appealing? |
| Posted by: Francis 2003-8-1 4:52:01 PM |
| #13 My wife loves Paris..for 14 years I have told her I would take her back for her 45th birthday. This is the year....she knows and cares squat about politics, she only wants to go back to Paris...and I understand...the heat is on me big time, pressure, pleading, jumping up and down...I'm about to cave...help me...send me strength....not gonna do it, I will pay for this, but I am strong...I will not give in...I may be single soon, but not gonna go over there...not gonna do it...the pressure is terrible....the guilt...how do I stand strong? I'll go back to NY, but not going to Paris....help me... |
| Posted by: Mandar 2003-8-1 3:39:54 PM |
| #12 The French refused to allow overfly rights to us F-111 on their way to Libya and their economy suffered as Americans refused to go to France. Now they actively oppose the US at the security councel and they expect less of a response? They are just crazy. |
| Posted by: Yank 2003-8-1 2:38:37 PM |
| #11 Gee, I guess the brilliant wizards that used Woody Allen whining about going back to France may have misjudged American sentiment? |
| Posted by: wills 2003-8-1 1:56:31 PM |
#10 My husband works with a lot of WWII vets (he delivers oxygen), one vet, upon reading some of the horrendous things that are being said and done in France said, "I hate the French. We beat the Germans off their backs twice, and the sons of bitches STILL surrendered.""Convinced that the peace of the brave begins at the table, the French never really believed the Americans would fall out of love with them," it said. Bulldog: You're right, they really do not get it. They can't say, however, that they weren't warned. I, for one, am not crying for the sorry bastards. You reap what you sew. |
| Posted by: Celissa 2003-8-1 1:18:33 PM |
| #9 Carl, Yeah I wondered what that meant exactly. I think it's a reference to the historic/archaic/inapplicable practice of enemy officers eating together after a battle, having a jolly good banquet to celebrate the end of the fighting. What animosity there may have been between soldiers was supposedly instantly forgotten. War/international conflict's just politics, oui? Nothing personal, just 'business'. In other words, they don't think they've done anything to feel guilty about, so why the bitterness? They really Do Not Get It. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-8-1 1:06:43 PM |
| #8 "the peace of the brave begins at the table" somebody please re-translate this into something that makes sense. or, explain it for an unculchah-ed yank. |
| Posted by: Carl in NH 2003-8-1 12:45:07 PM |
| #7 Yes, I had already read about this, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy reading it again. Post it four or five more times, if you like. |
| Posted by: Matt 2003-8-1 12:42:51 PM |
| #6 They make a killer stuffed tomato in France. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2003-8-1 12:40:32 PM |
| #5 "...with not a busload of camera-wielding Americans or Japanese to be seen" Okay, I can understand the lack of Americans, but Japanese ? Perhaps allied solidarity means something after all ? |
| Posted by: Carl in NH 2003-8-1 12:31:37 PM |
| #4 OOOHHOOOHHOOOH!!!!!!!! Maybe they should ask themselves why we hate them. Maybe look for "root causes." |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-8-1 12:28:41 PM |
| #3 I guess they'd be happiest if we just stayed home and mailed our money to them. The waiters can send us rude thank you notes ("You call that a tip, American pig dog?"). |
| Posted by: Dar 2003-8-1 12:26:22 PM |
| #2 I read the Liberation article that MerdeinFrance linked to. Japs AND Brits are also staying "home." Yet American tourism is up in Italy and Spain. I wonder why that is?? Liberation also had the same tone, blame the US (or it could just have been how babelfish translated). Even better, the froggies think it's an "organized" boycott. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-8-1 12:25:41 PM |
| #1 The last time I saw Paris... we were rooting out the German resistance that the First French Army had failed to take care of when it "liberated" the city. Channeling my dad... |
| Posted by: Chuck 2003-8-1 12:21:08 PM |