I stumbled across your UA-cam channel and, although I, as a French woman, couldn't be further from your target audience, I really enjoy your videos. It helps me to put my own culture into perspective and to become aware of things I don't even notice because they're so natural and automatic to me. And above all, I appreciate your state of mind and your ability not to resist things that don't make sense to you. Instead of being infuriated and judgmental, or making it personal, it's like you always say to yourself “If 70 million people have been living like this for centuries and centuries, there must be a very good reason and it's certainly not to enrage us or because they're too stupid to know what they're doing. Let's find out what that reason is.” Everyone in the world who travels, short or long term, should learn from this. Thank you for your insight. All the best.
To be honest, as a French person myself (who has lived in the US for close to 7 years) I watch this Channel for the positivity and to remind me of the great aspects of living in this country.
Good morning, I am French (old) and i have a dryer for a long time, but I use it only for sheets and towels. It's need a lot electricity and not very ecological. You can find different sizes of bed (so, 90 cm, 140 cm,160 cm and 180 cm) and the sheets for these beds are easy to find. For the pillows, the rectangular ones are easy to find, I have those and many people have these in France. For the air conditionning it's true is not common, because our houses have insulation and generally shutters we can close when it's too hot, and also we close them at night in winter to keep the house warm, and these A.C. are not ecological at all, and we are concerned about that too. I understand it can be difficult for you to find things you need when you don't know where you can buy them. I am sure it will be easier in a few time. Thank you for your videos, I appreciate your point of view about your life in France,
I’m French but I don’t know why it’s very interesting to watch your videos! 😂 You guys are so positive and open minded! It’s so great for France to welcome people like you guys. I wish you all the best for your life here ❤️
Hi I’m Norway citizen and I’m thinking to move to France 🇫🇷 because France don’t have a lot snow so that is the reason. So can you pls tell me if you know what I have to have to move France Yaay thank you 🙏
I'm french, and I hate square pillows ! I so much agree with you on this. So much wasted space in the bed. I'm tall, and if I want to have my entire body to fit inside the bed, I can't waste any space. Rectangle pillow team here!
As some one who grew up without a dryer, (yes, were were poor) a soft towel equals a used towel. To me, the crispy roughness signifies the towel is fresh and clean.
Thank you for your videos with an American point of view that give the mirror effect of the French point of view discovering the USA! Arriving for the first time in Texas, I asked myself: Why waste money and fossil fuels to dry laundry?! Why put the air conditioning on as if we were on the ice floe? What are legs for in the USA when we never use them! And what a surprise to discover that the houses are made of cardboard and that they have the solidity of movie sets! Sorry for my French sarcasm but if your American audience wants to come to France, they must get used to teasing each other 😇
La France est située sur le 45 ème parallèle donc à équidistance du pôle et de l'équateur. Le climat est tempéré, (sauf à l'extrême sud) nous n'avons pas vraiment besoin de climatisation permanente.. Même par temps de canicule en été, en ventilant correctement ma maison et en me protégeant du soleil avec les volets il ne fait jamais plus de 24 degrés à l'intérieur..
Lol I (Raina) thought so too. You could see I couldn't get through it without cracking up. Its so cute, he's so chill about so many things but...square pillows! 😂
To have a soft towel, dryers are the only option. But for the rest, it is so much better to dry them outside. Laundry feels, smells so good after a time in the sun and the wind.
@@julientardieux L'adoucissant encrasse les machines et est pas top pour l'environnement. Vinaigre blanc oui. Je préfère les serviettes bien rêches de toute façon.
I air dry all of my laundry, my towels and sheets are always soft, there is such a thing as overdrying, this leaves you with crunchy towels, i bring in my towels as soon as they are dry at the peg corners (emplacement des pinces à linge), soft every time, if however i forget them on the line............. crunchy
@@gualime Je n'utilise ni l'un ni l'autre, et ne me suis jamais posé la question concernant les serviettes. Encore moins un sèche-linge, qui est une ruine économique / écologique. ^^ (et prend de la place)
These 5 points are what we French find strange in the Americans. It is common to say that if everyone lived like the Americans, it would take more than two Earths to provide for humanity. The dryer is energy-intensive it does not seem essential. Air conditioning so far neither except in some departments. King size bed and why not separate beds? Sleeping in a bed in 120 centimeters it facilitates the nearenaffective (try you will see). The use of the car is also very different. Me it always amazes me to see big cars in the USA to drive at 60 miles per hour (idem for us for 80 kilometers per hour).Pillows can be found in all shapes so that you are not satisfied with square pillows. This is the main thing. Freedom of choice. Congratulations on your videos that let us discover your American point of view. And your love for your life in France.
Being British, I prefer rectangular pillows and have never seen the point of bulky square pillows that take up too much space and require large pillowcases. Rectangular pillows also look much neater on beds in my view. Having lived in Germany for many years off and on, I’ve always disliked their square pillows. In the last few years, I expect due to travel in countries that DON’T have square pillows, rectangular ones can now be found in most stores. The sizing however is less than perfect - 80x40 cm, which is too wide and not enough depth. I prefer international standard sizing of 75x50cm. 🙂
Great video, as usual! You didn't mention an item of great importance in the French bathroom: le "gant de toilette" versus washcloth! After decades of adaptation, my American family members finally admit it's more practical!😊
Regarding square pillows, I love them, but only when they are not overstuffed. Under-stuffed square pillows are amazing, this way they provide more customizable comfort during the sleep - you can adjust the height and firmness of the pillow simply by pushing it higher or lower, closer/further from the headboard. You can do it with your shoulder if you are a side sleeper even during your sleep. Rectangular pillows were never as comfortable for me personally. And square pillows are also great for other activities such reading the book or a working on your laptop while in bed. A lot more versatility.
Yes not overstuffed and filled with very soft material, not hard foam pellets. I'self love soft natural "duvet", so you can shape it yourself as a wedge from zero thickness to max, having the thin part some where between the middle on your back and the shoulders , the shoulders on a thicker part and your head on the top thickest part. It's an "immersive" confortable experience. 😊
Bonjour, vous avez là la meilleure explication de l'utilité des oreillers carrés, apres le fait qu'ils soient nés de l'habitude, du XV au XVIII siècle, de dormir assis. Ils s'adaptent à toutes les morphologies selon la pression qu'on leur appliquent entre l'épaule et la tête de lit !!!... Bravo Seekbeautytravel pour cette remarquable observation...
Come on, guys ! I'm French and I've had rectangular pillows for the last 40 years ! Beside, you can find everything you talked about anywhere, except drive-ins, true. We don't live like two centuries ago in France...
Your explanations about AC are pretty exhaustive and accurate. It's nice to see you went from "let's make it freezing in the bedroom at night, then pile under the blankets" to an eco-responsible "targeted cooling". In public places (movie theaters, malls, hospitals, public transportations, retirement houses) we often have AC, but don't use it in such a responsible way (yet).
Dans les lieux publics, c'est de la ventilation, pas spécifiquement de l'air conditionné. C'est obligatoire pour le renouvellement d'air, pas pour une question de température, même si ça peut être très pratique. (Et je crois que beaucoup ne respectent ni les recommandations sanitaires ni la législation. Bref.)
Je préfère aussi. Mais je suis surpris qu'ils n'en trouvent pas : il y en a dans tous les magasins de literie, et j'en ai même vu dans les supermarchés.
I'm french and I olso can't sleep with a square pillow. In my family we have always had rectangles pillows. I always tell my entourage "but you have useless space on the top of your head and not enough space on the sides to roll!" 😂😅
Swedish-American here, recently moved to south of France. Check out ventless combination washer/dryers. Use dryer when needed otherwise line dry. Best of both worlds. One appliance uses no dryer air vent.
It's true that you find a lot of square pillows in French houses, especially when you're renting, and I don't like them for sleeping either. But if you want a rectangular pillow for your home, you can easily find them in stores. I've always used rectangular pillows and I've never had any trouble for finding one.
I love your videos so much! Your kindness and bienveillance really shines through. It is such a pleasure to hear your point of view and how appreciative you are towards french culture! I personally tend to focus on the negative parts of France so it makes me really joyful to be reminded of all the nice things i take for granted! Also I'm from Gironde so I'm happy to know you guys love it here :)
Hope both of you are well, Comming from FL, Its dam nice to get away from those HOAs, I have a washer Dryer here in France as I am in a apartment . it has a higher spin cycle and drys your clothes in like 120 minits maxium. You can buy a American top leader washing machine in France its made by Whirlpool europe, We have drive thru McDonalds and Startbuck in my area of France in Bordeaux / Poitiers area. With Pillows you can go to B&M store in Poitiers they all things household at low prices including bed linnin. AC just live with Fans you will get use to it,
Mais le cinquième point😂😂😂😂 j'en peux plus tellement j'ai ri. Mais je comprends qu'il peut sembler difficile de dormir avec un oreiller carré, pourtant on y arrive !!! Merci pour vos vidéos, elles me permettent de voir la France de votre point de vue et d'améliorer ma compréhension orale de l'anglais.
Thanks for trying so hard to get us to come over, I really appreciate these videos. I'm very slowly mentally pulling up my roots here in preparation to move.
Closing the shutters during the day and ventilating at night is really very effective ! I hope the climate won't warm up too much! In the hottest regions, there is now more air conditioning because of the heat waves that seem to be more frequent. In France, we thought, rightly or wrongly, that air conditioning in homes is not good for your health. Laundry drying outside smells great and when you can do it, it's great! I live in a town that seems to be the same size as yours, for people like the elderly whocannot travel, he delivers the medicines if asked. (I don't know if all pharmacies do it. they do it for free so you really have to not be able to travel)
Fun fact 1: without AC, many areas of US states simply wouldn't be as populated if at all. Fun fact 2: pillow shapes vary a great deal from country to country in Europe. I saw in Spain some round ones that are as wide as the mattress. Or in Hungary, pillows are enormous.
I'm Australian with no intention of moving to France (a bit too old now) but I'm loving your channel. I have always hung my washing outside and when it is wet or too cold, I use a rack.
Great video! My husband is French, so we go back and forth. Oddly enough, the square pillows don’t bother me at all. The cylinder-type pillows on the other hand, are horrible. My husband said that was all he used, growing up. 🥹 I think one absolutely needs a/c on the Provençal coast, but I could see living without it elsewhere. On the other hand, I thought you might talk about screens. The mosquitoes drive me crazy in France!
Oh my gosh you're right! Lol, I think we weren't thinking about it because we talked about it at length in another video. But it totally should have been on the list!
I have a dryer but use it sparingly, mainly for towels and sheets. My Texan friend (I'm a Brit in the Languedoc) didn't like to see my washing on the line and offered to give me some money - I explained it was for the environment, trying to save fossil fuels etc. she was baffled. I understood when I went visit her in Texas - most of her neighbourhood had the lights on all night and AC on in empty rooms. It made me wonder why I was bothering! (French are much more eco conscious than US, not having own oil. Also, US is built around the automobile, - no walking! Our towns are tightly packed. Keep up the good work!
It’s a classic French child memory to see your parent running out for hanging off the laundry, yelling, while the rain start. And it’s a fun one 😅 Actually a lot of family in France have a dryer, but it’s really a family thing ! About pillows, I convert myself to rectangular pillows for ten years now and it’s a living dream ! Maybe a very French thing it’s also the traversin to sleep on.
In hot nights, with a square pillow, you got more fresh pillow surface available to you: not only the two faces of the pillow, but also the upper two « unused » faces ! Also you can roll, or fold it if you need a harder pillow : it’s adjustable ! For the drier, many washing machines do have an included drier !
Bravo pour tous vos efforts d'adaptation avec toujours le sourire. Et si, au lieu de penser: "ces choses manquent", vous pensiez, "heureusement, elles ne sont pas là". En effet le mode de vie américain avec son énorme gaspillage d'énergie, est ,ainsi que la Chine, le principal responsable du dérèglement climatique. Cette année, le climat a été particulièrement mauvais si bien que les récoltes de fruits, de légumes, de blé sont presque nulles. Le corps humain est fait pour marcher, s'adapter aux différences de températures mais pas pour ne rien manger.
Funny listening to this at work planning to move to France from Texas, and was discussing adding mini splits to a French home with a friend that also wants to move there
Regarding the pillows. Once I visited a castle (Le Chateau de St Point) and they had these huge pillows in the bedroom, and the guide told us that before people used to sleep sitting up in the bed against the pillows because they were afraid to die in their sleep without receiving the last rights. I looked it up and they said part of it is true and also people had more digestive issues .
Here in Italy dryers exist but are uncommon. There are a variery of drying racks that can be used inside the house (so who cares if it rains?) including the one I use, that is above the bathtub, and retracts in the wall when not in use... so practical! My former washing machine was also a dryer, it lasted 17 years and it was used as a dryer a grand total of 3 times... I simply don't need it!
omg i forgot about it being against the rules to hang your clothes outside.... I lived in an apartment that had this in the lease because it ''brings down the value of the apartment complex'' or something stupid like that... i have a clothes rack now and can dry either inside or outside... but the cost of a dryer adds up!! it's expensive and it costs more than FREE
Bolsters are very popular in France. That's what people use instead of rectangle pillows. They are placed under square pillows, this way you can choose what suits you best . Hotels have them also.
Yeah, hotel beds are seemingly queen and the mattresses are just not good in Europe… although when I was 24 I did sleep at a French cousins house on a queen and that was beautiful up on the hill of Saint Catherine in Rouen… Beautiful to have the birds singing in the window in the morning while hearing the gentle pitter patter of rain on the Spring leaves… what would be hard is this: the square pillow thing… I don’t recall that, but at 24 years old, you can sleep on the floor and be happy… Now at 64… I need the perfect king bed and the perfect square pillows
I have had a home in France for more than 30 years and now live here full time. I have always had a dryer - every appliance store sells them. But like other commentators, I try to dry laundry naturally when weather permits - it saves electricity and the laundry smells nice.
By the way, you can buy heated dryer racks for your bathroom. Then your towels will probably come out softer. But I will say, that all of your clothes will last a lot longer without putting them in the dryer.
Being from Germany and having spent 4 months this year hiking through rural California my experience was that I found so much MORE laundromats than I know here from Europe.
I noticed those same things when I moved here, too. But funny, the square pillows were something I got used to almost instantly. I do have a dryer because I hate doing laundry, so the sooner it's done, the better. Since I'm in Normandy not far from the coast, I usually don't have to worry about it getting hot in the house. I've yet to need to close the volets during the day like I did in other parts of France. A few days/nights each year do get warm, but a fan is enough to be comfortable. And, it definitely cools off at night here, usually into the mid teens celsius (50s Fahrenheit), sometimes even less even in summer (a few weeks ago it dropped down to 9° in my town). Anyway, very practical advice and letting people know some of the things to expect. I have seen a few drive-ins, but they're usually in those ZA or ZI zones on the outside of town. One thing you didn't mention is going to several places to buy stuff to cook, I often get some of what I'm cooking in one place, and the rest in others. Mainly because you get better quality at specialists, or in the marchés. So, there's a store here that only has fruits/veggies, I buy there or the marché since it's such a huge difference in quality. I buy meats almost exclusively at one of the two traiteurs/boucheries, etc., and bread only at boulangeries. It doesn't really take that much longer, and it's pleasant getting to know the sellers, and you feel you're making the best quality choices, yet the prices are about the same.
Same- I bought all rectangle- could never sleep on the square pillows. Mystery indeed! Even my French husband prefers the rectangle. 10 years ago- you could not find rectangle pillows in the store, but now you can- so there is a shift beginning to happen!
It's not that dyers are rare, but on the country side, especially in the south of France, it would be silly to buy one ! When you hang your clothes outside, it dryes very fast with a lovely smell. So it's way better to hang your clothes outside than using a dryer. I live in Paris and I rarely hang my clothes because I live in an appartement, hence I use a dryer.
The pillow part cracked me up! I see a lot of french comments saying it's common to sleep on rectangular pillows. It is not! I don't get how you can sleep on rectangular ones : what do you do with your arms ?? Where do you tuck them ?? How do you adjust your height if the pillow is too thick or too thin ?? Square pillows FTW. All day every day!
As a French, I am TOTALLY AGREE with the point 5. So much so that I use the pillow to relieve my back pain by putting it between my knees when I sleep on my side. This is the best use I have found for it.
J'aime beaucoup vos analyses de nos comportements. J'ai pris conscience du pourquoi j'avais tel ou tel réflexe en vous écoutant réfléchir du pourquoi ces différences existent. 😅
Ahah I love the pillow part! It’s for the cats the sleep on top of your head with you ahah (but you can find loads of ergonomic pillows more rectangle, but it’s harder to find the matching covers)
There is also another factor that keeps houses relatively cooler in areas like yours in France. They have older growth trees that can lower the temperature sometimes as much as 10-15 degrees. I had hiked in the Dordogne in 1990 and there were so many old growth groves of trees around. You didn't mention if you have trees that shade your home there. In France they do not cut down trees to build developments and then plant new trees that need 30-40 years to provide benefits already existing one give. If you have trees around your house, you might show what it looks like there?? And BTW I own a dryer in Ohio, but for 3/4th of the year I hang out my clothing. My gas dryer takes up to an hour in the winter to dry clothing, sheets, and towels. I use it sparingly. Every year I cannot wait to use the sun.
As always, this was a fun video to watch! I know a while back, you mentioned that window screens are very rare in France. If I remember correctly, you mentioned purchasing some roll-down screens. How has that all evolved for you?
I'm not sure but the square pillows may come from the time when people where sleeping almost seated in their bed. Try to be confortable seating in your bed with a rectangular pillow. You can't :) Greetings from the suburbs of Paris!
As an American considering France; jeans. I gotta lotta jeans. Couple of years ago, dryer broke. And the weight of those jeans hanging across a rope in my backyard! They sunk so low, they were almost on the ground. Not to mention; Day 1, nope. Day 2, nope. Three days. And even further years back, tried drying stuff in the house. People said it smelled weird! And we're not even talking about Carhartt work jackets, or hoodies or overalls. So, long story short, until I've converted to a collection of "French" clothes, I'm already google mapping laundromats in France. BEFORE rental apartments! (Thank you by the way for a recent in-depth video on that).
We bought a dryer in france for the Chateau guys. It it more like a dehumidifier. Instead of air drying, it sucks the water out of the clothes and drains the water into a tank. Lol ❤❤
I lived in Central Phoenix for ~8 years. Always had a dryer, used it maybe 12 times total. I loved my clotheslines! And in summer, the first items would already be dry by the time I finished hanging the rest. I look forward to that! Also the lack of drive thru. The little exercise adds up!
I am French, and you're right about the square pillows. I’ve never understood this habit we have here. Personally, I sleep on a very soft bolster, and if I don’t have a choice, I mold the square pillow by pressing with my hands to create a hollow that will fit the shape of my head 😂
In France , people that don't have a dryer has nothing to do with money. They just prefer to have clothes dry outside. But in larges cities , majority of people have a dryer.
Condenser dryers are common enough, you can expel the water to your washing machine’s drain or if need be collect the water in a built in container. And the split system AC is common where we live in southern France … and far cheaper to run than the gas heat for winter. By the way, our electric bill now is about one quarter what we were paying 15 years ago in Arizona. I wonder if you’ll still be thinking about these things 15 years from now if you stay in France!
Haha no we have rectangle pillows! I have never slept on square pillows, at least at home! Back in the days we used to even have "traversins", those little sausage like pillows!
Just a tip : much better than an american style dryer, a dehumidifier and indoor clothing lines in a closed room : natural drying without heating and high comsumption of electricity. There are even specific model (e.g. Aeral from Germany).
I'm french and shall certainly never understand why I should buy a laundry dryer (my canadian MIL was so shocked). Although I've always prefered rectangular pillows. But... the buttons of the comforter upside the bed ? Seriously ?
About the pillows: I moved here almost 53 years ago. Rectangular pillows were not to be found. I think the reason for the square pillows is to work with that bolster pillow that has more or less disappeared (thank goodness). The square pillow up against the bolster gave you an almost seated posture -- lying back rather than lying down. And that, until the latter half of the 20th century was considered a good sleeping position. I admit it was nice for reading in bed. Now, you can find rectangular pillows and pillow cases. When Marks and Spencer's came to France (late '70s?) I got rectangular pillows for us. And we got duvets and duvet covers. All things that have become standard in France, now.
Team traversin here. 😉 You can use it in so many different ways. Not only for head. Square pillows are usefull for reading etc. And may be very comfortable IF you choose them with a lot of air inside . The form is a thing, but , in my opinion, the level of slack is the most important. About the dryers, I use them sometimes during winter especially for towels or comforters, but I do, by far, prefer the smell of fresh outdoor dry clothes. (Plant honeysuckle or lavender near the place you hang up the washing is a good tip). I can understand the need for people living in flats without outdoor or enough space in cities. But, when you have a a large house or/and a garden it seems to me useless and ecologically bad. I have a question: do u guys prefer french viewers comment in french to practice or in English (with mistakes) ?.
Oh!! The flowers near the clothes line is such a good idea!! Feel free to comment in either language as you like. 😊 N'hésitez pas à commenter dans la langue de votre choix.
As a french native, I am underslept for sure. I will definitely invest a bit to give a try to your zara home pillow because pillows have been a problem my entire life for real. my neck is a nightmare.
Interesting. I'm an American living in France. I have a king sized bed and rectangular pillows. You can buy either on Amazon, though I bought mine at local stores. I also have a dryer. Our washer will do an extra spin for 12 minutes. We almost always do that so that the clothes don't have to spend too much time in the dryer. The lack of air conditioning is really a thing. I, also, bought a room ac unit. I don't drive here, so never really thought about the lack of drive-ins. The biggest change for me is living on the 4th floor (5th floor American) and taking the stairs. We do have an elevator, but I'm claustrophobic. I only use the lift for sending up heavy packages. I have never once gotten in it myself. One thing that takes some getting used to is grocery stores where you have to weigh your produce and print out a label before you check out. If you don't know your legumes from your fruit, you're in for a frustrating experience.
Bonjour de la Suisse 😊 Nous avons un sèche-linge, mais nous ne l'utilisons que pour le linge de bain, pour qu'il soit doux justement😊 nous faisons tout sécher à l'intérieur, en hiver ça a même le bénéfice d'humidifier un peu l'air, qui peut être parfois sec à cause du chauffage. Je trouve que le sèche-linge a tendance à abîmer les vêtements plus vite aussi 😊
Hell yeah, it feels like it rained for an entire decade here (i'm just living a 100km northern tha you do ^^). Regarding the soft and fluffy towel problem, the thing is in our regions (the vast majority of the south west of the country has the same probem) the water is full of "calcaire" (sorry i'm not sure of the good translation in english :D ). You have 2 options, add some softener when you do the laundry or add a water-softening machine to the water network of your house. but to me living with no softener since i'm used to it, a non-soft towel means it's fresh 😂 Drive-thru is I think historical 1st, stores were for a long time in the center of the cities in France where the street are usually narrow making it difficult to create some drive through due to the lack of space. And cultural, we're used to walk and we have a bit more time since we don't work from 8am to 9pm (sorry for the cliché here). Regarding AC, you pointed THE thing climate is really different specially between Dordogne and Texas. There is a huge gape of temperature. The daily maximum average temperature is 8°C higher in Texas than in Dordogne. 8°C on an average temerature is really HUGE.
J'allais écrire ça aussi. Mais j'ai vérifié avant si personne n'en parlait : For the rough towel, how hard is your water? It could be limescale. You need to find out but if it's limescale ("calcaire") then you need to put a little white vinegar (the acid dissolves the calcium carbonate) in the washing machine.
Je suis d'accord avec vous. les oreilles carrés ne me servent que pour "décorer" mon lit, je les enlève tous les soirs🤫. Je me sers d'un oreiller rectangulaire à mémoire de forme, plus confortable pour dormir. Quant au lit plus petit, c'est pour faire des économies de chauffage l'hiver...non, là je plaisant .🤗
I think the conversation around air-conditionners or changing work hours in the South of France is put on the forefront more and more each year because it's only becoming hotter. I can't relate, I'm North West so cold and wet is my regional temperature xD
Jason was very proud he figured out how to film that on a day I was gone, so he rigged up the camera on his own. I (Raina) didn't see it until the finished video and I was laughing out loud too. 😂
The first time I went to the south of France, I stayed in a global chain hotel without air conditioning. It never occurred to me to ask - I realized homes didn't have it but I assumed commercial buildings would have A/C, especially those catering to tourists. I managed with a large fan and open windows but I don't think I could live that way all the time. I'd need to buy a portable unit or install a split duct.
The big issue with no AC in France is in the cities, in appartment buildings. Nothing was made for summer, so often, even with newer builds like mine, you got inside insulation in the walls, but no outside insulation. This means the sun is just baking the concrete, and if you get a couple of days at 35°+, then that heat radiates through the building for at least a week even if it cooled down to 20° outside... One thing we could use is the cool air from the underground carparks, but it's just not done (yet). It requires big fans and air ducts to make that fresh air circulate to the higher floors. So french people in cities are massively buying those portable AC units, which are very inefficient compared to a real split AC. Also, big cities like Paris, Lyon or Marseille desperately lack trees, big parks, to help cool off everything. So I'm afraid that in the following years, everyone who can afford it is gonna have AC...
La conception des immeubles du village olympique a l'air intéressante. Les matériaux de constructions permettent de réduire de 6 degrés la température extérieure et il existe un système de tuyaux sous les planchers pour refroidir en été et réchauffer en hiver.
These are all excellent points. That's fascinating about moving the air from the parking garages. We had no idea this was done. Thanks for your comment.
The design of the buildings in the Olympic Village looks interesting. The building materials reduce the outside temperature by 6 degrees and there is a system of pipes under the floors to cool in summer and warm in winter.
I have seen so many Americans who move to EUR (France, Germany etc.) who say that dryers are not a thing here. I don’t think that’s the case, but we only use them for a very limited amount of items such as bed sheets and towels. That being said, since a dryer is kind of viewed as an „add-on“ not EVERY household has one, as a student or intern in Paris for instance I would wash my stuff at home and then go to the closest laundromat and put my towels and big items into a dryer there (otherwise the humidity in my tiny chamber de Bonne would have gotten out of control).
I stumbled across your UA-cam channel and, although I, as a French woman, couldn't be further from your target audience, I really enjoy your videos. It helps me to put my own culture into perspective and to become aware of things I don't even notice because they're so natural and automatic to me.
And above all, I appreciate your state of mind and your ability not to resist things that don't make sense to you. Instead of being infuriated and judgmental, or making it personal, it's like you always say to yourself “If 70 million people have been living like this for centuries and centuries, there must be a very good reason and it's certainly not to enrage us or because they're too stupid to know what they're doing. Let's find out what that reason is.”
Everyone in the world who travels, short or long term, should learn from this.
Thank you for your insight. All the best.
@@carolep.1398 thank you for this lovely comment. It means a lot. 😊
To be honest, as a French person myself (who has lived in the US for close to 7 years) I watch this Channel for the positivity and to remind me of the great aspects of living in this country.
100% Such a great attitude for travelling or just cultural curiousity generally.
as a dutchie i had the same with US-ppl in the netherlands. this kind of video's gives so much more perspective of your own things that normal.
The pillow rant was adorable
Good morning, I am French (old) and i have a dryer for a long time, but I use it only for sheets and towels. It's need a lot electricity and not very ecological. You can find different sizes of bed (so, 90 cm, 140 cm,160 cm and 180 cm) and the sheets for these beds are easy to find. For the pillows, the rectangular ones are easy to find, I have those and many people have these in France. For the air conditionning it's true is not common, because our houses have insulation and generally shutters we can close when it's too hot, and also we close them at night in winter to keep the house warm, and these A.C. are not ecological at all, and we are concerned about that too. I understand it can be difficult for you to find things you need when you don't know where you can buy them. I am sure it will be easier in a few time.
Thank you for your videos, I appreciate your point of view about your life in France,
Square pillows. I have to try that. Thanks for sharing your american POV
I’m French but I don’t know why it’s very interesting to watch your videos! 😂 You guys are so positive and open minded! It’s so great for France to welcome people like you guys. I wish you all the best for your life here ❤️
Hi I’m Norway citizen and I’m thinking to move to France 🇫🇷 because France don’t have a lot snow so that is the reason. So can you pls tell me if you know what I have to have to move France Yaay thank you 🙏
I'm french, and I hate square pillows ! I so much agree with you on this. So much wasted space in the bed. I'm tall, and if I want to have my entire body to fit inside the bed, I can't waste any space. Rectangle pillow team here!
As some one who grew up without a dryer, (yes, were were poor) a soft towel equals a used towel. To me, the crispy roughness signifies the towel is fresh and clean.
Oh!! Wow, I love when people add a perspective I hadn't thought of! Thanks!
Indeed but a clean towel out of a dryer is a pleasure to use 🤩
You need a "traversin". That's it. Or a "polochon". La literie est un art, il existe toute sorte de "coussins" avec des fonctions différentes.
I'm French and I hate traversin, and so do lots of my friends.
@@feraudyh like colors and tastes. My pillow is a traversin. Nothing is better for me.
Je ne peut que dormir sur un traversin les coussins c' est pas pour moi
@@gregoiret6147 c'est votre droit le plus strict !
Mais bon sang mais c'est bien sur !
Thank you for your videos with an American point of view that give the mirror effect of the French point of view discovering the USA! Arriving for the first time in Texas, I asked myself: Why waste money and fossil fuels to dry laundry?! Why put the air conditioning on as if we were on the ice floe? What are legs for in the USA when we never use them! And what a surprise to discover that the houses are made of cardboard and that they have the solidity of movie sets! Sorry for my French sarcasm but if your American audience wants to come to France, they must get used to teasing each other 😇
@@chapichapo6800 😂
La France est située sur le 45 ème parallèle donc à équidistance du pôle et de l'équateur.
Le climat est tempéré, (sauf à l'extrême sud) nous n'avons pas vraiment besoin de climatisation permanente..
Même par temps de canicule en été, en ventilant correctement ma maison et en me protégeant du soleil avec les volets il ne fait jamais plus de 24 degrés à l'intérieur..
Amen
Amen
The pillow topic was hilarious and so true.😂
OMG the pillow segment is hilarious!
I love France and I love watching you guys, you are a great inspiration, thank you!
Jason getting hype about the pillows was so funny! Thanks for sharing
Lol I (Raina) thought so too. You could see I couldn't get through it without cracking up. Its so cute, he's so chill about so many things but...square pillows! 😂
To have a soft towel, dryers are the only option. But for the rest, it is so much better to dry them outside. Laundry feels, smells so good after a time in the sun and the wind.
Sinon, utiliser de l'adoucissant, ça sert à ça...
Adrienhb. Totally false. Just add white vinegar in your loundry. You’ll get your towels softer that a fur.
@@julientardieux L'adoucissant encrasse les machines et est pas top pour l'environnement. Vinaigre blanc oui. Je préfère les serviettes bien rêches de toute façon.
I air dry all of my laundry, my towels and sheets are always soft, there is such a thing as overdrying, this leaves you with crunchy towels, i bring in my towels as soon as they are dry at the peg corners (emplacement des pinces à linge), soft every time, if however i forget them on the line............. crunchy
@@gualime Je n'utilise ni l'un ni l'autre, et ne me suis jamais posé la question concernant les serviettes.
Encore moins un sèche-linge, qui est une ruine économique / écologique. ^^ (et prend de la place)
These 5 points are what we French find strange in the Americans. It is common to say that if everyone lived like the Americans, it would take more than two Earths to provide for humanity. The dryer is energy-intensive it does not seem essential. Air conditioning so far neither except in some departments. King size bed and why not separate beds? Sleeping in a bed in 120 centimeters it facilitates the nearenaffective (try you will see). The use of the car is also very different. Me it always amazes me to see big cars in the USA to drive at 60 miles per hour (idem for us for 80 kilometers per hour).Pillows can be found in all shapes so that you are not satisfied with square pillows. This is the main thing. Freedom of choice. Congratulations on your videos that let us discover your American point of view. And your love for your life in France.
Being British, I prefer rectangular pillows and have never seen the point of bulky square pillows that take up too much space and require large pillowcases. Rectangular pillows also look much neater on beds in my view. Having lived in Germany for many years off and on, I’ve always disliked their square pillows. In the last few years, I expect due to travel in countries that DON’T have square pillows, rectangular ones can now be found in most stores. The sizing however is less than perfect - 80x40 cm, which is too wide and not enough depth. I prefer international standard sizing of 75x50cm. 🙂
Oui, je partage votre point de vue.
I love your channel. Really informative and entertaining. I look forward to it every week. Thank you for your work.
Great video, as usual! You didn't mention an item of great importance in the French bathroom: le "gant de toilette" versus washcloth! After decades of adaptation, my American family members finally admit it's more practical!😊
Regarding square pillows, I love them, but only when they are not overstuffed. Under-stuffed square pillows are amazing, this way they provide more customizable comfort during the sleep - you can adjust the height and firmness of the pillow simply by pushing it higher or lower, closer/further from the headboard. You can do it with your shoulder if you are a side sleeper even during your sleep.
Rectangular pillows were never as comfortable for me personally. And square pillows are also great for other activities such reading the book or a working on your laptop while in bed. A lot more versatility.
@seekbeautytravel we appreciate this thoughtful explanation, but Jason says he's still not convinced. 😂🤷♀️
Yes not overstuffed and filled with very soft material, not hard foam pellets.
I'self love soft natural "duvet", so you can shape it yourself as a wedge from zero thickness to max, having the thin part some where between the middle on your back and the shoulders , the shoulders on a thicker part and your head on the top thickest part.
It's an "immersive" confortable experience. 😊
Bonjour,
vous avez là la meilleure explication de l'utilité des oreillers carrés, apres le fait qu'ils soient nés de l'habitude, du XV au XVIII siècle, de dormir assis.
Ils s'adaptent à toutes les morphologies selon la pression qu'on leur appliquent entre l'épaule et la tête de lit !!!... Bravo Seekbeautytravel pour cette remarquable observation...
Come on, guys ! I'm French and I've had rectangular pillows for the last 40 years ! Beside, you can find everything you talked about anywhere, except drive-ins, true. We don't live like two centuries ago in France...
I agree
Rectangular pillows are very common.
Your explanations about AC are pretty exhaustive and accurate. It's nice to see you went from "let's make it freezing in the bedroom at night, then pile under the blankets" to an eco-responsible "targeted cooling".
In public places (movie theaters, malls, hospitals, public transportations, retirement houses) we often have AC, but don't use it in such a responsible way (yet).
Dans les lieux publics, c'est de la ventilation, pas spécifiquement de l'air conditionné. C'est obligatoire pour le renouvellement d'air, pas pour une question de température, même si ça peut être très pratique. (Et je crois que beaucoup ne respectent ni les recommandations sanitaires ni la législation. Bref.)
Haha the square vs rectangular pillow war is opened :) Great vid btw...
I use both. Square ones are useful to lean against when i read in bed
Elle sera encore plus terrible que la guerre entre les marsupiaux et les placentaires.
Great video as usual and a funny one. Good job and thanks for your optimism 😊
Bonjour, je suis d'accord avec vous pour les oreillers, les rectangulaire sont plus efficaces. Je vous souhaite une bonne soirée
Je préfère aussi. Mais je suis surpris qu'ils n'en trouvent pas : il y en a dans tous les magasins de literie, et j'en ai même vu dans les supermarchés.
I'm french and I olso can't sleep with a square pillow. In my family we have always had rectangles pillows. I always tell my entourage "but you have useless space on the top of your head and not enough space on the sides to roll!" 😂😅
Swedish-American here, recently moved to south of France. Check out ventless combination washer/dryers. Use dryer when needed otherwise line dry. Best of both worlds. One appliance uses no dryer air vent.
It's true that you find a lot of square pillows in French houses, especially when you're renting, and I don't like them for sleeping either. But if you want a rectangular pillow for your home, you can easily find them in stores. I've always used rectangular pillows and I've never had any trouble for finding one.
I live in a condo in texas-no dryer. no problem and clothes last longer
I love your videos so much! Your kindness and bienveillance really shines through. It is such a pleasure to hear your point of view and how appreciative you are towards french culture! I personally tend to focus on the negative parts of France so it makes me really joyful to be reminded of all the nice things i take for granted! Also I'm from Gironde so I'm happy to know you guys love it here :)
Hope both of you are well, Comming from FL, Its dam nice to get away from those HOAs, I have a washer Dryer here in France as I am in a apartment . it has a higher spin cycle and drys your clothes in like 120 minits maxium. You can buy a American top leader washing machine in France its made by Whirlpool europe, We have drive thru McDonalds and Startbuck in my area of France in Bordeaux / Poitiers area. With Pillows you can go to B&M store in Poitiers they all things household at low prices including bed linnin. AC just live with Fans you will get use to it,
Welcome to France vive la différences !!!
Mais le cinquième point😂😂😂😂 j'en peux plus tellement j'ai ri. Mais je comprends qu'il peut sembler difficile de dormir avec un oreiller carré, pourtant on y arrive !!! Merci pour vos vidéos, elles me permettent de voir la France de votre point de vue et d'améliorer ma compréhension orale de l'anglais.
Nothing smells better than bed linens dried outside. Nothing.
Except a good cheese.
@@dalriada7554 Maybe, but you wouldn't want to sleep in that aroma.
@@bastonor Don't dare me. :)
@@dalriada7554 😁
Thanks for trying so hard to get us to come over, I really appreciate these videos. I'm very slowly mentally pulling up my roots here in preparation to move.
Closing the shutters during the day and ventilating at night is really very effective ! I hope the climate won't warm up too much! In the hottest regions, there is now more air conditioning because of the heat waves that seem to be more frequent. In France, we thought, rightly or wrongly, that air conditioning in homes is not good for your health. Laundry drying outside smells great and when you can do it, it's great! I live in a town that seems to be the same size as yours, for people like the elderly whocannot travel, he delivers the medicines if asked. (I don't know if all pharmacies do it. they do it for free so you really have to not be able to travel)
Your stone house is really ideal for protecting yourself from the heat. Now, you can find rectangular pillows in every supermarket.
I really like your personalities! I hope you will continue to enjoy yourself in France and will not be disappointed!
Merci @@marieadriansen2925😊
The simplicity and authenticity of your videos will be the key to your amazing success. Cheers!
Thank you!
Fun fact 1: without AC, many areas of US states simply wouldn't be as populated if at all.
Fun fact 2: pillow shapes vary a great deal from country to country in Europe. I saw in Spain some round ones that are as wide as the mattress. Or in Hungary, pillows are enormous.
Attention! Vous ressemblez de plus en plus à de vrais français ! (Merci, très intéressant)
😁👍
I'm Australian with no intention of moving to France (a bit too old now) but I'm loving your channel. I have always hung my washing outside and when it is wet or too cold, I use a rack.
I enjoy being with you guys it’s very interesting knowing about my mother country 😊I try listening to you guys ❤
Great video! My husband is French, so we go back and forth. Oddly enough, the square pillows don’t bother me at all. The cylinder-type pillows on the other hand, are horrible. My husband said that was all he used, growing up. 🥹
I think one absolutely needs a/c on the Provençal coast, but I could see living without it elsewhere.
On the other hand, I thought you might talk about screens. The mosquitoes drive me crazy in France!
Oh my gosh you're right! Lol, I think we weren't thinking about it because we talked about it at length in another video. But it totally should have been on the list!
I have to admit I did not see the "square pillow" topic coming ;-)
Jason feels strongly about this one, we had to include it. 😂
J'aime toujours autant regarder vos vidéos. 💪 Continuez 😊
I have a dryer but use it sparingly, mainly for towels and sheets. My Texan friend (I'm a Brit in the Languedoc) didn't like to see my washing on the line and offered to give me some money - I explained it was for the environment, trying to save fossil fuels etc. she was baffled. I understood when I went visit her in Texas - most of her neighbourhood had the lights on all night and AC on in empty rooms. It made me wonder why I was bothering! (French are much more eco conscious than US, not having own oil. Also, US is built around the automobile, - no walking! Our towns are tightly packed. Keep up the good work!
It’s a classic French child memory to see your parent running out for hanging off the laundry, yelling, while the rain start. And it’s a fun one 😅
Actually a lot of family in France have a dryer, but it’s really a family thing !
About pillows, I convert myself to rectangular pillows for ten years now and it’s a living dream ! Maybe a very French thing it’s also the traversin to sleep on.
In hot nights, with a square pillow, you got more fresh pillow surface available to you: not only the two faces of the pillow, but also the upper two « unused » faces !
Also you can roll, or fold it if you need a harder pillow : it’s adjustable !
For the drier, many washing machines do have an included drier !
Bravo pour tous vos efforts d'adaptation avec toujours le sourire.
Et si, au lieu de penser: "ces choses manquent", vous pensiez, "heureusement, elles ne sont pas là".
En effet le mode de vie américain avec son énorme gaspillage d'énergie, est ,ainsi que la Chine, le principal responsable du dérèglement climatique. Cette année, le climat a été particulièrement mauvais si bien que les récoltes de fruits, de légumes, de blé sont presque nulles.
Le corps humain est fait pour marcher, s'adapter aux différences de températures mais pas pour ne rien manger.
Funny listening to this at work planning to move to France from Texas, and was discussing adding mini splits to a French home with a friend that also wants to move there
Regarding the pillows. Once I visited a castle (Le Chateau de St Point) and they had these huge pillows in the bedroom, and the guide told us that before people used to sleep sitting up in the bed against the pillows because they were afraid to die in their sleep without receiving the last rights.
I looked it up and they said part of it is true and also people had more digestive issues .
Here in Italy dryers exist but are uncommon. There are a variery of drying racks that can be used inside the house (so who cares if it rains?) including the one I use, that is above the bathtub, and retracts in the wall when not in use... so practical! My former washing machine was also a dryer, it lasted 17 years and it was used as a dryer a grand total of 3 times... I simply don't need it!
Les oreillers carrés sont faits pour caler le dos pour lire ou prendre le petit déjeuner au lit !
Les oreillers carrés sont faits pour caler les oreilles…
Je mets l'oreiller rectangulaire dans le sens de la hauteur et ça va très bien pour m'appuyer le dos contre et lire...
omg i forgot about it being against the rules to hang your clothes outside.... I lived in an apartment that had this in the lease because it ''brings down the value of the apartment complex'' or something stupid like that... i have a clothes rack now and can dry either inside or outside... but the cost of a dryer adds up!! it's expensive and it costs more than FREE
Free is my favourite price 😂
Square pillows are for when you want to sit in bed and more mant for decoration. We have two sets: square and rectangilqr for sleeping
Square pillows might be decorative too.
We usually use « traversin ». A soft cylinder pillow that go across the bed. At least in our home.
Bolsters are very popular in France. That's what people use instead of rectangle pillows. They are placed under square pillows, this way you can choose what suits you best . Hotels have them also.
Yeah, hotel beds are seemingly queen and the mattresses are just not good in Europe… although when I was 24 I did sleep at a French cousins house on a queen and that was beautiful up on the hill of Saint Catherine in Rouen… Beautiful to have the birds singing in the window in the morning while hearing the gentle pitter patter of rain on the Spring leaves… what would be hard is this: the square pillow thing… I don’t recall that, but at 24 years old, you can sleep on the floor and be happy… Now at 64… I need the perfect king bed and the perfect square pillows
There are very good mattresses in France and many shops offer them
I have had a home in France for more than 30 years and now live here full time. I have always had a dryer - every appliance store sells them. But like other commentators, I try to dry laundry naturally when weather permits - it saves electricity and the laundry smells nice.
By the way, you can buy heated dryer racks for your bathroom. Then your towels will probably come out softer. But I will say, that all of your clothes will last a lot longer without putting them in the dryer.
Being from Germany and having spent 4 months this year hiking through rural California my experience was that I found so much MORE laundromats than I know here from Europe.
I noticed those same things when I moved here, too. But funny, the square pillows were something I got used to almost instantly. I do have a dryer because I hate doing laundry, so the sooner it's done, the better. Since I'm in Normandy not far from the coast, I usually don't have to worry about it getting hot in the house. I've yet to need to close the volets during the day like I did in other parts of France. A few days/nights each year do get warm, but a fan is enough to be comfortable. And, it definitely cools off at night here, usually into the mid teens celsius (50s Fahrenheit), sometimes even less even in summer (a few weeks ago it dropped down to 9° in my town). Anyway, very practical advice and letting people know some of the things to expect. I have seen a few drive-ins, but they're usually in those ZA or ZI zones on the outside of town. One thing you didn't mention is going to several places to buy stuff to cook, I often get some of what I'm cooking in one place, and the rest in others. Mainly because you get better quality at specialists, or in the marchés. So, there's a store here that only has fruits/veggies, I buy there or the marché since it's such a huge difference in quality. I buy meats almost exclusively at one of the two traiteurs/boucheries, etc., and bread only at boulangeries. It doesn't really take that much longer, and it's pleasant getting to know the sellers, and you feel you're making the best quality choices, yet the prices are about the same.
Same- I bought all rectangle- could never sleep on the square pillows. Mystery indeed! Even my French husband prefers the rectangle. 10 years ago- you could not find rectangle pillows in the store, but now you can- so there is a shift beginning to happen!
It's not that dyers are rare, but on the country side, especially in the south of France, it would be silly to buy one !
When you hang your clothes outside, it dryes very fast with a lovely smell. So it's way better to hang your clothes outside than using a dryer.
I live in Paris and I rarely hang my clothes because I live in an appartement, hence I use a dryer.
Such useful information. Thank you so much! Agree that a rectangular pillow is a must.😂
Your pillow issue is so funny !!
The pillow part cracked me up! I see a lot of french comments saying it's common to sleep on rectangular pillows. It is not! I don't get how you can sleep on rectangular ones : what do you do with your arms ?? Where do you tuck them ?? How do you adjust your height if the pillow is too thick or too thin ?? Square pillows FTW. All day every day!
As a French, I am TOTALLY AGREE with the point 5. So much so that I use the pillow to relieve my back pain by putting it between my knees when I sleep on my side. This is the best use I have found for it.
J'aime beaucoup vos analyses de nos comportements. J'ai pris conscience du pourquoi j'avais tel ou tel réflexe en vous écoutant réfléchir du pourquoi ces différences existent. 😅
Ahah I love the pillow part! It’s for the cats the sleep on top of your head with you ahah (but you can find loads of ergonomic pillows more rectangle, but it’s harder to find the matching covers)
The pillow part ! 😂😂😂
There is also another factor that keeps houses relatively cooler in areas like yours in France. They have older growth trees that can lower the temperature sometimes as much as 10-15 degrees. I had hiked in the Dordogne in 1990 and there were so many old growth groves of trees around. You didn't mention if you have trees that shade your home there. In France they do not cut down trees to build developments and then plant new trees that need 30-40 years to provide benefits already existing one give. If you have trees around your house, you might show what it looks like there?? And BTW I own a dryer in Ohio, but for 3/4th of the year I hang out my clothing. My gas dryer takes up to an hour in the winter to dry clothing, sheets, and towels. I use it sparingly. Every year I cannot wait to use the sun.
As always, this was a fun video to watch! I know a while back, you mentioned that window screens are very rare in France. If I remember correctly, you mentioned purchasing some roll-down screens. How has that all evolved for you?
I'm not sure but the square pillows may come from the time when people where sleeping almost seated in their bed. Try to be confortable seating in your bed with a rectangular pillow. You can't :)
Greetings from the suburbs of Paris!
As an American considering France; jeans. I gotta lotta jeans. Couple of years ago, dryer broke. And the weight of those jeans hanging across a rope in my backyard! They sunk so low, they were almost on the ground. Not to mention; Day 1, nope. Day 2, nope. Three days. And even further years back, tried drying stuff in the house. People said it smelled weird! And we're not even talking about Carhartt work jackets, or hoodies or overalls.
So, long story short, until I've converted to a collection of "French" clothes, I'm already google mapping laundromats in France. BEFORE rental apartments! (Thank you by the way for a recent in-depth video on that).
We bought a dryer in france for the Chateau guys. It it more like a dehumidifier. Instead of air drying, it sucks the water out of the clothes and drains the water into a tank. Lol ❤❤
I sleep very well on the square French pillows. I’m good with them.
I lived in Central Phoenix for ~8 years. Always had a dryer, used it maybe 12 times total. I loved my clotheslines! And in summer, the first items would already be dry by the time I finished hanging the rest. I look forward to that! Also the lack of drive thru. The little exercise adds up!
I am French, and you're right about the square pillows. I’ve never understood this habit we have here. Personally, I sleep on a very soft bolster, and if I don’t have a choice, I mold the square pillow by pressing with my hands to create a hollow that will fit the shape of my head 😂
French here and I've been using rectangle pillows for decades, you can find them in a lot of place.
In France , people that don't have a dryer has nothing to do with money. They just prefer to have clothes dry outside. But in larges cities , majority of people have a dryer.
Condenser dryers are common enough, you can expel the water to your washing machine’s drain or if need be collect the water in a built in container. And the split system AC is common where we live in southern France … and far cheaper to run than the gas heat for winter. By the way, our electric bill now is about one quarter what we were paying 15 years ago in Arizona. I wonder if you’ll still be thinking about these things 15 years from now if you stay in France!
Haha no we have rectangle pillows! I have never slept on square pillows, at least at home! Back in the days we used to even have "traversins", those little sausage like pillows!
Good to meet you and chat last night in Sauvetat-du-Dropt's amazing Soirée Gourmand.
Just a tip : much better than an american style dryer, a dehumidifier and indoor clothing lines in a closed room : natural drying without heating and high comsumption of electricity. There are even specific model (e.g. Aeral from Germany).
I'm french and shall certainly never understand why I should buy a laundry dryer (my canadian MIL was so shocked). Although I've always prefered rectangular pillows. But... the buttons of the comforter upside the bed ? Seriously ?
About the pillows: I moved here almost 53 years ago. Rectangular pillows were not to be found. I think the reason for the square pillows is to work with that bolster pillow that has more or less disappeared (thank goodness). The square pillow up against the bolster gave you an almost seated posture -- lying back rather than lying down. And that, until the latter half of the 20th century was considered a good sleeping position. I admit it was nice for reading in bed.
Now, you can find rectangular pillows and pillow cases. When Marks and Spencer's came to France (late '70s?) I got rectangular pillows for us. And we got duvets and duvet covers. All things that have become standard in France, now.
Merci pour la vidéo
Team traversin here. 😉 You can use it in so many different ways. Not only for head. Square pillows are usefull for reading etc. And may be very comfortable IF you choose them with a lot of air inside . The form is a thing, but , in my opinion, the level of slack is the most important.
About the dryers, I use them sometimes during winter especially for towels or comforters, but I do, by far, prefer the smell of fresh outdoor dry clothes. (Plant honeysuckle or lavender near the place you hang up the washing is a good tip). I can understand the need for people living in flats without outdoor or enough space in cities. But, when you have a a large house or/and a garden it seems to me useless and ecologically bad.
I have a question: do u guys prefer french viewers comment in french to practice or in English (with mistakes) ?.
Oh!! The flowers near the clothes line is such a good idea!!
Feel free to comment in either language as you like. 😊
N'hésitez pas à commenter dans la langue de votre choix.
As a french native, I am underslept for sure. I will definitely invest a bit to give a try to your zara home pillow because pillows have been a problem my entire life for real. my neck is a nightmare.
The UK have rectangular pillows too, but most of Europe don't. In Greece, we have slightly more square pillows (not exactly square)
Interesting. I'm an American living in France. I have a king sized bed and rectangular pillows. You can buy either on Amazon, though I bought mine at local stores. I also have a dryer. Our washer will do an extra spin for 12 minutes. We almost always do that so that the clothes don't have to spend too much time in the dryer. The lack of air conditioning is really a thing. I, also, bought a room ac unit. I don't drive here, so never really thought about the lack of drive-ins. The biggest change for me is living on the 4th floor (5th floor American) and taking the stairs. We do have an elevator, but I'm claustrophobic. I only use the lift for sending up heavy packages. I have never once gotten in it myself. One thing that takes some getting used to is grocery stores where you have to weigh your produce and print out a label before you check out. If you don't know your legumes from your fruit, you're in for a frustrating experience.
Bonjour de la Suisse 😊 Nous avons un sèche-linge, mais nous ne l'utilisons que pour le linge de bain, pour qu'il soit doux justement😊 nous faisons tout sécher à l'intérieur, en hiver ça a même le bénéfice d'humidifier un peu l'air, qui peut être parfois sec à cause du chauffage. Je trouve que le sèche-linge a tendance à abîmer les vêtements plus vite aussi 😊
Hell yeah, it feels like it rained for an entire decade here (i'm just living a 100km northern tha you do ^^).
Regarding the soft and fluffy towel problem, the thing is in our regions (the vast majority of the south west of the country has the same probem) the water is full of "calcaire" (sorry i'm not sure of the good translation in english :D ). You have 2 options, add some softener when you do the laundry or add a water-softening machine to the water network of your house.
but to me living with no softener since i'm used to it, a non-soft towel means it's fresh 😂
Drive-thru is I think historical 1st, stores were for a long time in the center of the cities in France where the street are usually narrow making it difficult to create some drive through due to the lack of space. And cultural, we're used to walk and we have a bit more time since we don't work from 8am to 9pm (sorry for the cliché here).
Regarding AC, you pointed THE thing climate is really different specially between Dordogne and Texas. There is a huge gape of temperature. The daily maximum average temperature is 8°C higher in Texas than in Dordogne. 8°C on an average temerature is really HUGE.
J'allais écrire ça aussi. Mais j'ai vérifié avant si personne n'en parlait :
For the rough towel, how hard is your water? It could be limescale. You need to find out but if it's limescale ("calcaire") then you need to put a little white vinegar (the acid dissolves the calcium carbonate) in the washing machine.
The pillow thing made me laugh out loud. My bed has so many pillows on it, I live in Chicago, I call it the fortress of pillowtude! Lol
Je suis d'accord avec vous. les oreilles carrés ne me servent que pour "décorer" mon lit, je les enlève tous les soirs🤫. Je me sers d'un oreiller rectangulaire à mémoire de forme, plus confortable pour dormir. Quant au lit plus petit, c'est pour faire des économies de chauffage l'hiver...non, là je plaisant .🤗
In France, we do not use pillow, but bolster with cover bolster .
I think the conversation around air-conditionners or changing work hours in the South of France is put on the forefront more and more each year because it's only becoming hotter. I can't relate, I'm North West so cold and wet is my regional temperature xD
LOL the pillow segment 🟦 😂
Jason was very proud he figured out how to film that on a day I was gone, so he rigged up the camera on his own. I (Raina) didn't see it until the finished video and I was laughing out loud too. 😂
@@BaguetteBound He should be proud!
The first time I went to the south of France, I stayed in a global chain hotel without air conditioning. It never occurred to me to ask - I realized homes didn't have it but I assumed commercial buildings would have A/C, especially those catering to tourists. I managed with a large fan and open windows but I don't think I could live that way all the time. I'd need to buy a portable unit or install a split duct.
There is more and more air conditioning in the south of France
You need to get one of those dehumidifiers that dry clothes. Then you hang it indoors and all is good.
The big issue with no AC in France is in the cities, in appartment buildings. Nothing was made for summer, so often, even with newer builds like mine, you got inside insulation in the walls, but no outside insulation. This means the sun is just baking the concrete, and if you get a couple of days at 35°+, then that heat radiates through the building for at least a week even if it cooled down to 20° outside... One thing we could use is the cool air from the underground carparks, but it's just not done (yet). It requires big fans and air ducts to make that fresh air circulate to the higher floors. So french people in cities are massively buying those portable AC units, which are very inefficient compared to a real split AC. Also, big cities like Paris, Lyon or Marseille desperately lack trees, big parks, to help cool off everything. So I'm afraid that in the following years, everyone who can afford it is gonna have AC...
La conception des immeubles du village olympique a l'air intéressante. Les matériaux de constructions permettent de réduire de 6 degrés la température extérieure et il existe un système de tuyaux sous les planchers pour refroidir en été et réchauffer en hiver.
These are all excellent points. That's fascinating about moving the air from the parking garages. We had no idea this was done. Thanks for your comment.
The design of the buildings in the Olympic Village looks interesting. The building materials reduce the outside temperature by 6 degrees and there is a system of pipes under the floors to cool in summer and warm in winter.
I don't think it be cost effective to remove all the carbon monoxide and other chemicals😳 from air in parking garage. No way is that a safe idea
I have seen so many Americans who move to EUR (France, Germany etc.) who say that dryers are not a thing here. I don’t think that’s the case, but we only use them for a very limited amount of items such as bed sheets and towels. That being said, since a dryer is kind of viewed as an „add-on“ not EVERY household has one, as a student or intern in Paris for instance I would wash my stuff at home and then go to the closest laundromat and put my towels and big items into a dryer there (otherwise the humidity in my tiny chamber de Bonne would have gotten out of control).