What is it about the French that is fascinating?

Coming from the library this afternoon, I saw a lady with her two children, a little boy probably aged 6 years and a little girl maybe 2-3 years old.  She was riding her bicycle with the little girl on a babysit on her bicycle and the little boy was riding his own little bicycle in front of her. She had groceries in a bag in front of the bicycle and was busy talking to the little girl.  I was wishing I could take them a picture.  They just looked happy and free from worries.  They created a picture in my mind that was so beautiful.  For a minute I wondered what is so perfect about this scenario?  It occurred to me that the French have many ways of transportation, and most people of low to middle income do not waste their hard-earned salaries on the most expensive commodity in the world....gas!  The French use, public transportation, buses and trams, which are in plenty, at least every 10-15 minutes there is a bus going to the city or coming from the city, the wait time for the trams is almost no wait at all, thousands use the bicycles, and the bicycles have their own designated pathways, others use the roller skates, and a lot more simply walk.  Hence the roads have traffic but not near as bad as any street in Georgia or its outskirts.

Close to the Chateau, I met yet another mother with her two little children, one looked like six months old and the other about a year and half.  She was riding her bicycle and the children were in a carrier at the back with the front covered with mesh net all the way round.  This here made me to stop and look at them until they disappeared out of my eyesight, I thought to myself, what a way to save money and have fun with your children, not going to the movies, but enjoying nature and fresh air.

Even with the down-spiral of the world economy, I have not seen one home here in Strasbourg, with a sale sign or foreclosure screaming at my face, I have not seen any boarded homes.  Does it mean the bad economy is not affecting the French, and if it is is not, it must be because of the way they do not waste their money on unnecessary clothing or big cars or women spending all their money on nail spas, come to think of it, I have not seen one nail shop this far, I have been to the mall and I do not remember seeing anybody with bags and bags of shopping.  The mall stays busy, with people just walking and chatting, but seriously I think we can borrow a leaf from the French.  Most of their cars are sedans, and some are really small, which I see moving along side the traffic without any problems.  Occasionally, I have seen an SUV mainly Jeeps or the BMWs, nothing really like we have at home.  How about, I have not seen a single car wash place!

To know the French are serious about saving the environment, there are no plastic bags at the supermarkets.  You have to purchase your own bug to carry your groceries in, or simply carry them on your hands.  I do not know, there might be other things among the French which might not be as good as the ones I have mentioned above, but if you think how much we are hurting back home financially, we could change our ways some and perhaps live better lives without the daily struggles we go through, do not get me wrong, I do not say we start riding bicycles, that is not in our culture, and I do not say we start walking and putting our children in public transportation to go to school, all I am saying is, we can cut down on some expenses and save our money, after all it is our money, we work hard for it, and it should not be used on shopping sprees to enrich the shop owners while we live from pay check to pay check, or buy food we do not need. Everyday as I walk to the bus-stop, I ask myself, what is it about the French that is fascinating? I have not seen a lot of French taking a bunch of children to the McDonald's, I see old women and men walking, I see people everywhere carrying a single French bread, without many bugs full of groceries, does it mean the French do not like to eat like we do?  I am yet to see a liquor store in Strasbourg, do these people drink anything else besides wine?
Americans save your money, and take time for real vacations.  It is simply beautiful to travel to other parts of the world and see first hand how other people live, they are just like us, so why don't we make some changes?  I know the experience I am getting out of this trip will definitely impact my whole life, and even if I do not buy me a bicycle once we return home, I am definitely going to save my money from now on, and try and see the world.  - Caroline