One cultural element that is effectively unavoidable and shows a significant difference between the US and France is the the shop setup of each country. The stores in a city not only provide for its citizens' needs, but they can also be rather telling of the city's culture and values.
There are certain stores that can be found all over Aix, but are far and few in between back in the States, such as fromageries (cheese stores), crepe stands, and bakeries on every corner, but I find myself equally interested in that which one cannot find in France.
For one thing, I have no idea how french people watch movies. There are enough theatres in the city to provide the opportunity to watch a new release occasionally, but paying €10 per person every time you see a movie would add up way too fast, plus that only accounts for the newest movies. I'm sure that DVDs exist here, but I don't know how people find them. There are no video rental stores. There is no redbox. There is no DVD section of Monoprix (basically the french equivalent of Target). I have yet to spot any electronic stores that would have CDs or DVDs. Netflix and Hulu don't work in this country. I simply have no idea how they do it. Black market? That must be it.
Another category of items in France that must be traded entirely through the black market is pets. Everybody walks through the streets of Aix with their tiny little dogs, matching the size of their cars, but there are no pet stores to be found. All of the pet supplies that I've seen in France thus far populate the second smelliest aisle of Monoprix (the gold, of course, going to the cheese aisle), but I'm like 92% certain that you can't buy puppies at the grocery store -- not even in Europe. Logic might suggest that everybody goes to breeders here, valuing the pedigree of their canines enough to go to a specialist for the breed that they want, but then what about fish? Are french college student deprived of the love and affection that cuddly little betta fish are famed for bestowing upon their owners? Who will they play fetch with while putting off their lack of homework to not have to do in the morning?
Come to think of it, I have seen some fish for sale in Aix, although I don't think they would make for premium pets; they were a slight bit too dead for that. Ah, yes, the morning market. Every morning in Aix, one can find the outdoor market open until 13h (1:00pm in America speak), filled with offerings of fresh fruits and vegetables, local honey, fresh fish and other equally stinky seafoods, handmade pastas, scarves, hats, and various other goodies for the best prices to be found in the second most expensive city in France. One of my personal favorite aspects of the marché is the conversation that you get to have with the merchants.
Already being in southern France, I myself have picked up a bit of a southern accent on top of my american mispronunciations, but my accent is nothing compared to the thick southernness of their accents. Just hearing them say a price that contains either 20 (vingt) or 5 (cinq) provides a fair amount of entertainment for the visit, but there are certain characters that naturally bring a smile to your face any time that you speak to them.
For example, a woman that my friends and I refer to as "the Lavender Lady" holds a special place in our hearts. I'm sure that you will be surprised to learn that the Lavender Lady earns her living by selling lavender. Yes, I know. You did not see that one coming at all, and now you need some time to recover from that shocking revelation. I'm sorry that I didn't prepare you for that one. It's okay. Take your time. You good now? Good. Anyhow, the Lavender Lady is approximately 200 years old and has worn the exact same outfit every day the entire time. She wears a dress with a blanket wrapped around her stomach. This blanket does not reach above or below her stomach. She doesn't need to warm her legs. Just her stomach. This warm-stomached woman is, quite simply, just a sweet little old lady, telling visitors to her little stand how good lavender is for you. Evidently she bathes in lavender every day, so she never gets sick.
Provence is known for its lavender production, so lavender products can be found all over the marché and various stores. I strongly recommend lavender syrup, especially added to limonade (the French improvement of lemonade). The one thing that this city clearly loves far more than lavender, though, is shoes. The downtown area of Aix-en-Provence is mostly comprised of restaurants and shoe stores, because the two things that they will never limit to the black market are food and footwear. By american standards, both may seem grossly overpriced the vast majority of the time, and that just goes to show another cultural difference between the two nations; America takes pride in providing things affordably enough for the common man to be able to get anything, working along the lines of the American Dream, and France prides itself in making everything of the best quality possible, working to hold an elite role. Despite these differences, though, it all just comes down to providing for the people of each nation in a way that not only fulfills their physical needs, but expresses what they value as a culture.
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