Differences

 As we have now lived in France for more than 17 years we rarely notice cultural differences and consequently don't comment on them as we did when we first moved here.

However yesterday John called me to look at photographs published in the UK Telegraph. 

To us it summarised the French attitude "if you don't like it do something about it". This usually involves very direct action.Well yesterday it became more than the wine growers of  Corbiere (Region boardering Spain) could take. They blockaded the toll booths on the motorway and ambushed lorries coming from Spain, destroying lorry-loads of Cava and Rose wine. They maintained that Spanish wine was being sold at half the price of French (the fault of some Government levy) and argued that Spanish producers were allowed to add chemicals that were forbidden in France. Whatever happened to EU regulations?

Wine growers are having a bad time at present. Locally much of the harvest has been lost to mildew. We recently saw a programme about vintners in Bordeaux and Burgundy who are struggling to sell their red wines as it is not the drink of choice for younger people. They needn't worry we are doing our best to keep them going!! All joking aside it must be difficult to see this previously revered liquid unceremoniously being sent off to be made into industrial alcohol and bio-fuel. Furthermore these vineyards have often been tended by the same family for generations and it must be very hard to make the decission to grub them up for a one off compensation payment. Having no expertise in agriculture but a little knowledge about soil I assume that vines were planted in this stoney and impoverished ground as nothing else would grow. I assume that eventually it could be used for grazing but meat eating is being discouraged so they see no future. Presumably their children have seen this coming for a long time and have sort employment in up and coming industries.

So this is one of the major differences between the English and the French. The French are not prepared to just moan and, even though their actions yesterday were oviously illegal, there was no sign of any police in the photos.  Vive la Revolution!!