Talking about Lest we forget, in the late 80s I was in Paris with the missus and we got caught up behind a Farmer's Strike on the Blvd Montparnasse (I think it was). We were standing on the footpath watching the goings on when we heard a tap on a window behind us. We turned around and inside the window of what as a chocolate shop was an elderly lady.
She started to madly beckon us into the shop with her hand. We went in and she asked us where were we from. "British?" she asked.. No No.. we replied. "America?" No... No... "Canada?". No, we are from Australia, we said.
Well!! The lady was truly struck by this. "Oh, Australia" she said in her best broken English. "Very good people, Very brave" she said. "Australia saved France, saved Paris" she said. She was so effusive about Australians. She was apparently a little girl in WW1 and young woman in WW2 and saw it all. Could you imagine. Eventually when we took our leave, she refused to let us go without first accepting her gratitude to Australian soldiers and gave us a huge box of handmade chocolates, the quality of which I have never since tasted.
We used to walk everywhere around Paris. On our way to our hotel we would pass by a cobblestoned street, just like you see in the old movies... all it needed was the Citroen and you could have sworn you were on a movie set. On our first evening, when we were returning back to our hotel, we decided to have a bite to eat instead of a large pub meal. Being novices, we went into what we thought was a bakery, which it was, but that's all it was. We bought bread rolls like you have never tasted in this country. When we went to pay, the baker refused our money. Just refused. Why? "You Australee" he said. "No pay".
And then he pointed us to the next door shop where we could get some meat for the bread rolls (Gamon/ham) and even this shop keeper would not let us pay. This happened also in the Liquor store where we were given one of the best bottles of champagne I have tasted before and or since. It was quite an eye-opener experience.
We took our bits and pieces and sat on the cobblestone street edge and ate and I cannot remember how many french shopkeepers in that little street came out to shake our hands, as if we were the living embodiment of their memories of the Australian troops during the 2 world wars - most of the shop keepers were elderly and I feel sure some of them did experience the both wars..
Wherever we went during our short stay in Paris (about a week) when ever the French heard our accent, they could not do enough to help us, whether it was to help at a shop counter, a metro ticket, directions. Whatever. And it all had to do with their respect and endearing memories of Australians during the wars. They did not do the same for those who sounded English or American.
My understanding is that to this day, some of the smallest French villages celebrate their liberation by Australian troops, they tend their graves out of the utmost respect for them. Lest we forget. I don't think anyone could.
Last edited by humdingerslammer; 25-04-2015 at 07:21 PM.
|
Wrangler Jane (97 TJ)
