For years it was our favorite holiday destination: France. But those French ... That language ...
The exclamation "France is a fantastic country, a pity that there are French people" is attributed to our Flevo phenomenon Annemarie J. But that too is an honor for the lady in question.
What is true is that the French are a distinct breed of stubborn bastards with the obstinacy of Asterix and that they are very convinced that they are far superior and actually independent of the rest of the universe.
Add to that the language problem: until recently, French people lived in a French-speaking universe. Even the voice of Obama is synchronized except for the French news. For the French it is broadly the idea that people speak French and that people who don't do that are clearly of a lesser type.
With the advent of the Internet (A French invention, just look for Minitel) it only worked when the French dropped out of the inhibiting lead under the name of the laws. The English-language Internet and English-language computer games ensured that as a tourist in France you now come across thirty-something people who really enjoy trying out this newly discovered language on tourists.
It often sounds a bit like Inspector Clouseau, but still: it's a profit for non-French speaking tourists.
Now, in the season that classic driving is not the first option and where it is usually too cold to spend a nice evening, there is time to do something about the preconditions of our hobby.
Then during our next visit to France we can speak with the French about French classics.
But the French and France remain mysterious to us. Justly. Because behind France there is a world that is strange to us.
French history and culture are so far removed from ours that the entire French existence from the cradle to the grave is simply very different from ours. Firstly, there is a great national awareness in France. In addition, the French are just as fond of authority as they are hard and active. In France everything is arranged centrally from Paris, the bureaucracy and hierarchy are impressive. And in France there is a desire to be absolutely independent and self-sufficient so that the country does not need anyone and is always ready for the next battle with the Germans.
This enormous mix of peculiarities and oddities makes France and the French unique. The country should - just like England - be fenced and declared a museum.
Everything you have ever decided to exchange France as a favorite holiday destination for Germany - which is not a bad alternative by the way - is clearly explained by Ariejan Kleiweg, the Volkskrant's former Volkskrant correspondent in Paris. In 'Surplace' Korteweg analyzes France with infectious narrative pleasure in the pleasant tension between warm involvement and mild detachment between France and the French.
After reading that book, you may review your opinion about France and make France your favorite holiday destination again.
Once you've done that, you can enrich your life even more by investing a winter in a French language course at the Alliance Française or the Volksuniversiteit in your area.
Because if there is one thing that makes French people very upset about it, it is when they meet a visitor who makes it clear that he or she has at least taken the trouble to learn the basics of their language.
And when you return to France after a follow-up course, you have come a step closer to experiencing France as it was intended by God and the French.
The book 'Surplace' has been published by de Geus, www.degeus.nl
The locations of the Alliance Française and the Volksuniversiteit can be found below
www.alliance-francaise.nl and www.folk university.nl