Foxes Prefer France

We have bid a not-so-fond farewell to Italy.
"What???" you exclaim in horror. "Everyone LOVES Italy!"
Well, I'm here to tell you that the Foxes prefer France. Read on to find out why...

1) French food is better. "What??" you exclaim in horror AGAIN. "Italian food is fabulous!" We'll give you the unwordly rich and satisfying flavor of an Italian gelato. The artsmanship that goes into every cappuccino. Heck, we'll even give you the pasta and pizza, though we quickly grew tired of both. But c'mon. How can you compete with French cuisine? The cheese, the wine, the bread, the pastries - all are far superior. Plus the French have way more variety. It is possible in France to eat not just regional French cuisine, but also Italian, German, Chinese, Thai, even sushi. Whereas Italy is all about Italian food, with very few exceptions.
2) The French are nicer. "NO WAY!!!" you scream. Okay, we'll admit. It may have to do with the fact that we speak pretty fluent French. But it's true that we got shoddy treatment in Italy. Rude service. Bitter waiters. General lack of interest in who we were or what we were doing there. People trying to rip us off every time we turned around. We'll blame it on the fact that Rome is overrun with tourists in August. But still...
3) France is a first world country. Italy is not. See separate blog posting.
That having been said, we of course had a terrific time and very much enjoyed both Cinque Terre and Roma. But hey, we felt like being provocative and generating some traffic on this blog. So: DISCUSS!

Comments

[MASSIMO_MASOTTI]

The criticism made in this blog, if on the one hand avoids the mystification of the Dolce Vita's country, on the other hand, it is seduced by the equally stereotyped vision of a "Pizza, Pasta, Mafia, Ferrari, Armani and mandolin"'s society ... pity.

PS: it is indicative as your french friend, to make you remember the transalpine's flavors, She offers you a PIZZA, a Pizza typical one of a region that 140 years ago it was Italy (the Savoy)...

[MASSIMO_MASOTTI]

The comparison with France you made here seems to be quite "naif": Rome and the south of Italy, generally offer effectly a less organized urban context than usually you can find in France, but the north of Italy is different...; the italian cooking is most various and rich than you seem to know..., each region or city has its own traditional dishes, and we are not talking about only Pizza and Pasta, but meat, fish and vegetables specialities..., even the variety of cheeses, wines and breads is enormous, probably greater than what can be found in France, it's just less advertised and promoted... and it's true, that's a fault.

[MASSIMO_MASOTTI]

I understand some criticisms, but I also recognise in those a big gap of knowledge: the modern Italy is a country characterized by 2 different polar areas, the north, one of the most developed economies in the world, and the south, one of the less developed european zones.
The old limit of Italy has been always that one to not be able to spread the economic development, homogeneously, throughout its territory and with the time the spread of those 2 areas became even larger.

[Marie]

Mrs. Fox (senior) :
I am honored! But not worthy!! YOU are MY hero!

[Carol Fox]

Marie,
You are my hero!

[eden]

Ok, I feel dear Italy needs some defending. 10 incomparable things:
1. The variety of meats in the Bologna area. Granted, this will not appeal to the vegans out there, but vegans are crazy anyway.
2. Art.
3. Hearing a violin quartet in an out-of-the way church on a Venetian evening.
4. Siestas.
5. The view from a second-floor hotel window on a summer's day in Assissi.
6. Art.
7. Florentine leather.
8. Prosecco.
9. Huge parties celebrating an Italian soccer victory in front of the Roman arena in Verona.
10. Opera.

[Marie]

"we felt like--generating some traffic on this blog. So: DISCUSS!"
You don't have to beg, Dale, I'd be happy to post a comment. Even feel compelled to do so-- as I love these two countries --
1) "French food is better." I agree : a) the country only has 6 cheeses or something, and they're all sort slight variation on each other b) the pastries suck- some are quite beautiful and tempting- but don't fall for it! They taste like ass! Trust me. c) bread is a far cry from French, d) no "real" champagne- that "spumanti" stuff? not an acceptable substitute. How do these people survive?
2) "The French are nicer". You are scaring me. Who are these monsters you are meeting? What about the hot chick at the café that re-applies her make-up when she sees you arrive, Dale? You don't call THAT friendly?
3) "France is a first world country. Italy is not." Totally agree. But do find that in a way it's part of why I love it there. I admit the crap public bathrooms, the blackouts and the sour milk were unpleasant. But the laid back "we're not trying to be a world power" attitude is a nice change. A great quote from an article I read : "Let America police the world and strive to shape history. Italians will shape, to perfection, the cut of a dress, the form of a shoe, the spiral of a pasta, the line of a landscape." "People find purpose in the pursuit of beauty."
(and by the way-- you are also MY heros)

[Jérôme]

hey guys ! you are also my hereos !!!
Next time I see you somewhere, I will coock a pizza savoyarde just for remember the "french cuisine" ;-)

[Lexy]

Dale ! you are my Hero !