A few weeks ago, I packed up five months’ worth of clothes and moved across the world to study abroad in France. It is both exciting and nerve-wracking being here but so far, I’m having a great time! Life in France has a few similarities to my life back home in Canada, however, there are also many differences. So, here is a list of six culture shocks I’ve experienced in my first few weeks living abroad.
Restaurants
At home I’m used to restaurants staying open pretty much all day; you can go at almost any time you want and you’ll be able to order food, but that’s not how restaurants work in France. Most restaurants will open around noon until 2:30 p.m. for lunch and then close. They then open again for dinner at 6:00 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. This was definitely different for me. I once went out for dinner just before 6:30 p.m. one night but the restaurant wasn’t open yet so my friends and I had to walk around the block a few more times before we could be seated. That is something that I never experienced in Canada. Another part of restaurant culture that is different is that in Canada, restaurants pretty much always bring you water without you needing to ask or when you do have to ask you never need to specify what type of water you want. If you’re not careful in France, you will get charged for water. Restaurants charge you for still or sparkling water. However, if you want free water you need to ask for tap water or a “carafe d’eau”.
Sundays
Another total shock for me is that practically everything is closed here on Sundays. All the stores are closed, along with most restaurants. Even most of the grocery stores are closed, or they’re open for about three hours in the morning. They truly use Sundays as a day of rest and relaxation before going back to their normal routines on Mondays. Walking around on Sundays is always really quiet and definitely a lot different than what I’m used to, but it’s honestly really refreshing.
Showers
Okay, this is kind of a weird one, but one of the biggest culture shocks I’ve had since moving to France is the showers. If you’re just visiting Paris or staying in a hotel in some of the other bigger cities in France, you likely won’t notice this change. However, since I’m staying in an apartment outside of Paris, I was shocked to find that my shower is not like the one at home. It’s a bathtub without a shower curtain and nowhere to hang the shower head. At first, I thought that maybe it was just like that in my apartment but upon further research, I have learned that it’s actually common in France for showers to be set up this way. Apparently in France, they usually just squat in the shower while they wash themselves. This was definitely one of the biggest changes for me and one that I am still trying to get used to.
Pharmacies
Okay, this isn’t a culture shock but just something that I’ve noticed. Pharmacies are everywhere in France, they’re pretty much on every street corner. They’re essentially like Tim Hortons for Canadians. No matter where you are, there is definitely a pharmacy nearby.
Taxes
Personally, I think this is something that Canada should start to do. Prices here already include tax. I’m used to calculate how much everything will be once you add tax but here there isn’t that problem. It’s something so little but it’s so nice knowing that the price you see on the price tag is the exact price that you pay.
Everything is smaller
When I say that everything is smaller, I mean that practically everything is smaller. Cars are smaller, sidewalks are smaller, tables at restaurants are smaller and way closer together, even items at the grocery store are smaller. For example, back in Canada if you want to buy a package of lunch meat from the grocery store, it’ll come with a bunch of pieces of meat. But here in France, packages of lunch meat come with two slices in them and the odd one has four slices if you look closely while shopping.
Every day I notice more and more differences between life in Canada and life in France. I feel like I learn something new every day about how things work over here compared to back home. I still have about five months left of my time in France and I look forward to learning all the quirks of their culture here. I wonder what the biggest reverse culture shock will be when I go home!