Anyone find the continentals strange?

is_that_so

castletownman wrote: »

Just on this, I was at a seminar for museums before christmas, and one of the lecturers told us to be wary of groups of students from those multitudes of language schools in Dublin.

Like wild animals as soon as they enter a space like a museum

Possibly the juniors, not the adults. With juniors it's also sheer numbers too. It all depends on who's supervising them.

Maurice Yeltsin

I'd wager at least a good third of Germans would qualify for the Irish definition of an oddball.

And tight as a nun's baby cannon.

Well, sort of. They are tight in terms of things like eating out, drinking (I've seen Germans nurse a single free beer in my backpacking days). Yet if you look at any room share pages on FB they think there is noting peculiar about paying upwards of 800 quid for a room in Dublin, even a shared room.

King of Kings

Maurice Yeltsin wrote: »

I'd wager at least a good third of Germans would qualify for the Irish definition of an oddball.

And tight as a nun's baby cannon.

I work for a german crowd i find them quite like the irish...they good craic mostly...decent humour.
The efficiency thing is a myth ...no idea where that came from...they can be useless at times.
Nice women too generally...

Worked for swedish place before...Nordics are weird as fcuk...esp swedes who are boring and i cant fathom the reputation swedish women have....give me an irish or german lady any day.

Zorya

No. They have very nice food. I like the southern ones a lot, the way they argue loudly and laugh and are artistic and clever. And they have a really lovely thing in the sky, the sun, I think it's called. In fact I'm seriously considering selling up in the next few years and moving to a small cottage somewhere near the Mediterranean. That's continental, isn't it? Well, the coast of the continent.

lainey_d_123

King of Kings wrote: »

I work for a german crowd i find them quite like the irish...they good craic mostly...decent humour.
The efficiency thing is a myth ...no idea where that came from...they can be useless at times.
Nice women too generally...

Worked for swedish place before...Nordics are weird as fcuk...esp swedes who are boring and i cant fathom the reputation swedish women have....give me an irish or german lady any day.

Lived with a Swedish girl once in a flatshare. She was awful. Very pretty but totally devoid of any kind of personality and ridiculously uptight. Literally anything slightly outside of her own little box was called 'weird' or 'stupid'. Zero sense of humour, zero ability to laugh at herself. Couldn't move out fast enough.

Feisar

King of Kings wrote: »

I work for a german crowd i find them quite like the irish...they good craic mostly...decent humour.
The efficiency thing is a myth ...no idea where that came from...they can be useless at times.
Nice women too generally...

Worked for swedish place before...Nordics are weird as fcuk...esp swedes who are boring and i cant fathom the reputation swedish women have....give me an irish or german lady any day.

Was in Stockholm once, thought I was entering the land of milk and honeys, I was deffo wrong.

Omackeral

These foreign fellas could be telling belting jokes in Spanish or Italian and we wouldn't know. However, Paddy blurts out "Feck" or "Arse" and if the foreigners don't get it, they're dry sh*tes.

GreeBo

completedit wrote: »

Living away surrounded by foreigners,

If you are living away then you are the foreigner buddy.

SEPT 23 1989

Speaking Esperanto wearing their espadrilles

Nothing in common with that carry on

King of Kings

Feisar wrote: »

Was in Stockholm once, thought I was entering the land of milk and honeys, I was deffo wrong.

Been there a bit not my fav place in the world.

Edgware

Ah ze Paddies you really love ze craic

Mad_maxx

completedit wrote: »

Americans are so strange and foreign to me unless they are from California or Deep South or something. I just like the Californians I’ve met mindset. People from the Midwest are the worst, zero divilment, zero charm.

Mid west is German country

Mad_maxx

Anteayer wrote: »

It's actually true though the coldest and dampest places I've ever lived have been in Ireland and the UK. The quality of many houses and residental apartments is very low - some of the very recent build has caught up but you've a lot of houses here where the temperature plummets within 10 mins or turning off the heating and things like on demand hot water and central heating were considered ridiculous luxuries by a lot of those from a couple of generations ago while they've been standard in many parts of the continent for probably 100 years.

I think part of it is while Ireland and British weather can be miserable it's not generally cold enough to cause hypothermia so we never bothered with proper insulation.

Don't ever go to new Zealand, makes Irish construction look positively Swedish

Seanachai

Maurice Yeltsin wrote: »

I'd wager at least a good third of Germans would qualify for the Irish definition of an oddball.

And tight as a nun's baby cannon.

Well, sort of. They are tight in terms of things like eating out, drinking (I've seen Germans nurse a single free beer in my backpacking days). Yet if you look at any room share pages on FB they think there is noting peculiar about paying upwards of 800 quid for a room in Dublin, even a shared room.

My brother remembers Germans sneaking in their mates to a weekly barbecue that used to be held in a hostel in Oz. They'd clean the place out, they fancies a bit of his mates ham from the fridge, even though it was labelled with a name tag. Said German was caught in the act and marched to the shop to buy new ham.

Feisar

I've only one negative continental story. Two Italians moved into a house share I was in. They announced they would be paying a half share on the electricity as they didn't have laptops. I was only in the house during the week, used to drive up Monday morning to work and drive him on Friday evening so was only in the house from Mon evening to Fri morning. Didn't use the dryer/washing machine.

That fairly softened their cough. Feckin' tight holes.

topper75

is_that_so wrote: »

Great tyres!

Piss poor breakfasts mind.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

completedit wrote: »

Living away surrounded by foreigners, just find their ways so odd. I was sitting around a dinner table and they were having a really earnest conversation about yield curves. I'm probably just an idiot but just find their ways so odd. No wonder Irish people move to other English speaking countries and even then we stick together. Anyone think Irish people in general are just more jovial and better craic than foreigners or is it just what we are used to? Nothing like living away to make you appreciate home ��

*Don't want to come across as bad, just my own experiences living away. You'll never beat the Irish.

But apart form the yeild curves they're perfectly normal...?

ArchXStanton

sbsquarepants wrote: »

Probably going to sound a bit racist - but the more time I spend around our European brethren, the more I realise we are not at all like them!

But it's all good, variety is the spice of life and all that.

I'm the same, anytime I visit these places I feel like one of the wildlings from North of the wall... I don't buy into this European identity propaganda the EU regime is pushing either

Seanachai

ArchXStanton wrote: »

I'm the same, anytime I visit these places I feel like one of the wildlings from North of the wall... I don't buy into this European identity propaganda the EU regime is pushing either

I see the EU and Europe as being distinct, some Irish people don't though for some reason

Anteayer

ArchXStanton wrote: »

I'm the same, anytime I visit these places I feel like one of the wildlings from North of the wall... I don't buy into this European identity propaganda the EU regime is pushing either

Sounds more like the problem is with your perception of how you think others are thinking about you, rather than how they’re really perceiving you.

My experience of continental Europe has been they they don’t generally have any of the “paddy whackery” stereotypes (that originate in Britain or the US) about Ireland.

In France for example there’s a tendency to have a view of Ireland that’s tinged with more arts / cultural view and a notion and in Germany it’s all a view of Ireland that’s based around green, friendly, some awareness of Irish music and even increasingly food products and so on.

In Spain the seem to generally see us as more like them as than the Brits are and I got on like a house on fire with most Spanish people I met.

Same in the Benelux - always felt very welcome.

There also isn’t generally any notion that Catholics are somehow going to comply with some English stereotype of them either as there are plenty of secular Catholics on the continent and it’s very much in the background much like here - I always found in British culture there’s a tinge of sectarianism due to how they perceive their origins and there’s more than a slight tinge or anti-Irish stereotyping. I don’t know how many times I’ve had the odd “joke” that’s crossed the line or someone who’s given me a weird lecture about my catholic guilt (which is even weirder as I’m not catholic - not religious at all). Or someone trying to get me to mispronounce “th”

I also found the French tend to be very much more on the side of Irish notions of republican values and so on and often know more about the troubles and so on than you’d think.

I also got on grand in Scandinavia and Finland.

Europe’s massively varied but I still think there’s more in common than there are differences. If you get talking to most people on the continent you’ll find the big thing is the social and political attitudes are a hell of a lot more familiar than American equivalents - things like attitudes to guns, religion, expectations of public services like health and education and so on.

It’s very easy to see the US as more familiar because we watch American TV shows and speak English. There were far more things in the US that left me shocked at the differences in how they think about things than there were on the continent.

All that said, I think we’ve a hell of a lot in common with places like Canada and Australia and NZ but they also share a hell of a lot in common in values with the EU and continental European values when you look at it too.

ArchXStanton

Anteayer wrote: »

Sounds more like the problem is with your perception of how you think others are thinking about you, rather than how they’re really perceiving you.

My experience of continental Europe has been they they don’t generally have any of the “paddy whackery” stereotypes (that originate in Britain or the US) about Ireland.

In France for example there’s a tendency to have a view of Ireland that’s tinged with more arts / cultural view and a notion and in Germany it’s all a view of Ireland that’s based around green, friendly, some awareness of Irish music and even increasingly food products and so on.

In Spain the seem to generally see us as more like them as than the Brits are and I got on like a house on fire with most Spanish people I met.

Same in the Benelux - always felt very welcome.

There also isn’t generally any notion that Catholics are somehow going to comply with some English stereotype of them either as there are plenty of secular Catholics on the continent and it’s very much in the background much like here - I always found in British culture there’s a tinge of sectarianism due to how they perceive their origins and there’s more than a slight tinge or anti-Irish stereotyping. I don’t know how many times I’ve had the odd “joke” that’s crossed the line or someone who’s given me a weird lecture about my catholic guilt (which is even weirder as I’m not catholic - not religious at all). Or someone trying to get me to mispronounce “th”

I also found the French tend to be very much more on the side of Irish notions of republican values and so on and often know more about the troubles and so on than you’d think.

I also got on grand in Scandinavia and Finland.

Europe’s massively varied but I still think there’s more in common than there are differences. If you get talking to most people on the continent you’ll find the big thing is the social and political attitudes are a hell of a lot more familiar than American equivalents - things like attitudes to guns, religion, expectations of public services like health and education and so on.

It’s very easy to see the US as more familiar because we watch American TV shows and speak English. There were far more things in the US that left me shocked at the differences in how they think about things than there were on the continent.

All that said, I think we’ve a hell of a lot in common with places like Canada and Australia and NZ but they also share a hell of a lot in common in values with the EU and continental European values when you look at it too.

I dunno, I've travelled with groups of Irish people and we've all noticed the differences, but that's a good thing in my opinion, I don't get this need to see us all as one homogenous blob.

This thread reminded me of a quote from a book

"Just remember, it's an easy place to be at home in, Ireland. I think the people are very skilled at relating. I notice, watching the different nationalities on the mountain, the fluidity of interaction the Irish people have with the visitors, and with each other. It's a skill that's less developed in other nationalities, and it's so instinctive it doesn't even look like a skill.

jmayo

juanjo wrote: »

Spaniard here. Yielding curves is one of our go-to subjects in big gatherings, can confirm.

Just admit it once the foreigners, i.e. the Irish and Brits, leave you start having the craic and are great fun altogether.

mikemac2 wrote: »

The continentals I’ve house shared with must have free oil/gas and electricity where they come from

Heating and immersion on full blast hours each day :eek:

Nah it's the Americans that are really bad.
One freaking shirt in the washing machine I have seen.

ToddyDoody wrote: »

Supposedly the Finish will sit silently, and perfectly motionless, at a house party.

They can be loonies with booze, absolute nutters in fact.
Though they can have awful habit of staring, which for Irish people is quite disconcerting.

Maurice Yeltsin

Seanachai wrote: »

My brother remembers Germans sneaking in their mates to a weekly barbecue that used to be held in a hostel in Oz. They'd clean the place out, they fancies a bit of his mates ham from the fridge, even though it was labelled with a name tag. Said German was caught in the act and marched to the shop to buy new ham.

I knew of Germans eating in soup kitchens. Not because they were flat broke and desperate, simply to save money. Miserable bastards.

Charles Babbage

Maurice Yeltsin wrote: »

I knew of Germans eating in soup kitchens. Not because they were flat broke and desperate, simply to save money. Miserable bastards.

This behaviour is not problematic in Cavan.

ToddyDoody

ToddyDoody wrote: »

Supposedly the Finish will sit silently, and perfectly motionless, at a house party.

Well, this is true. My Finish has been sitting silently and perfectly motionless next to the dishwasher for months.

ArchXStanton

ArchXStanton wrote: »

I'm the same, anytime I visit these places I feel like one of the wildlings from North of the wall... I don't buy into this European identity propaganda the EU regime is pushing either

Yeah, how dare they. And they didn't even subjugate the people for centuries before pushing it. Bring back all that British identity propaganda *now*.

lainey_d_123

Feisar wrote: »

I've only one negative continental story. Two Italians moved into a house share I was in. They announced they would be paying a half share on the electricity as they didn't have laptops. I was only in the house during the week, used to drive up Monday morning to work and drive him on Friday evening so was only in the house from Mon evening to Fri morning. Didn't use the dryer/washing machine.

That fairly softened their cough. Feckin' tight holes.

In fairness, I had Irish housemates who tried to pull that one with me. Tried to say that because they went home every weekend and I didn't, I had to pay more. I find that incredibly stingy. Especially because I didn't even stay every weekend - I often went to my boyfriend's at the time, or my own parents, or to visit a friend, and even if I had, that's not how sharing bills works.

The Rape of Lucretia

I know its unfair to tar them all with the same brush, and in fact, you do come across some who speak English quite well indeed, but there are still an awful lot of them who speak little or no English at all, which makes dealing with them, outside the major cities and tourist areas, nigh on impossible.

odyssey06

completedit wrote: »

Americans are so strange and foreign to me unless they are from California or Deep South or something. I just like the Californians I’ve met mindset. People from the Midwest are the worst, zero divilment, zero charm.

Arent people from the Midwest usually of German and Scandinavian heritage... so Continental? Ironic!

Wibbs

The Rape of Lucretia wrote: »

I know its unfair to tar them all with the same brush, and in fact, you do come across some who speak English quite well indeed, but there are still an awful lot of them who speak little or no English at all, which makes dealing with them, outside the major cities and tourist areas, nigh on impossible.

Not sure if serious? Kinda mad thought, maybe bring a phrasebook/language app and try and meet them halfway? I've found folks are much more open if you try to make an effort to speak even the simplest words and phrases and I'm barely lingual never mind bilingual.

Edgware

Anteayer wrote: »

Sounds more like the problem is with your perception of how you think others are thinking about you, rather than how they’re really perceiving you.

My experience of continental Europe has been they they don’t generally have any of the “paddy whackery” stereotypes (that originate in Britain or the US) about Ireland.

In France for example there’s a tendency to have a view of Ireland that’s tinged with more arts / cultural view and a notion and in Germany it’s all a view of Ireland that’s based around green, friendly, some awareness of Irish music and even increasingly food products and so on.

In Spain the seem to generally see us as more like them as than the Brits are and I got on like a house on fire with most Spanish people I met.

Same in the Benelux - always felt very welcome.

There also isn’t generally any notion that Catholics are somehow going to comply with some English stereotype of them either as there are plenty of secular Catholics on the continent and it’s very much in the background much like here - I always found in British culture there’s a tinge of sectarianism due to how they perceive their origins and there’s more than a slight tinge or anti-Irish stereotyping. I don’t know how many times I’ve had the odd “joke” that’s crossed the line or someone who’s given me a weird lecture about my catholic guilt (which is even weirder as I’m not catholic - not religious at all). Or someone trying to get me to mispronounce “th”

I also found the French tend to be very much more on the side of Irish notions of republican values and so on and often know more about the troubles and so on than you’d think.

I also got on grand in Scandinavia and Finland.

Europe’s massively varied but I still think there’s more in common than there are differences. If you get talking to most people on the continent you’ll find the big thing is the social and political attitudes are a hell of a lot more familiar than American equivalents - things like attitudes to guns, religion, expectations of public services like health and education and so on.

It’s very easy to see the US as more familiar because we watch American TV shows and speak English. There were far more things in the US that left me shocked at the differences in how they think about things than there were on the continent.

All that said, I think we’ve a hell of a lot in common with places like Canada and Australia and NZ but they also share a hell of a lot in common in values with the EU and continental European values when you look at it too.

Irish Republican values are miles apart from the Republican views of France.
Eliminating Protestants in Fermanagh South Tyrone and Armagh because of their religion does not classify as Republicanism

Franz Von Peppercorn

Anteayer wrote: »

Some English speaking countries feel a lot more foreign to me. I know the US call lull you into a false sense of security. You think you understand the culture then you're suddenly up against something like accidentally mentioning that you aren't all that into God and are an atheist while you're a bit drunk at dinner and the whole room goes silent. (Happened to me a few years ago)

Or you overhear : he's had two glasses of wine! The Irish are all like that. Gimme a night out with a bunch of Germans or dinner in France any day.

Even the annoying tip chasing waiters and the in your face customer service that makes you feel like they think you're shop lifting gets weird. Not to mention fake smiles and how may I help you type attitudes.

Then the fact they openly discuss salaries and seem to take no time off ever.

This sounds like a cliched version of what Irish people think the average American citizen is like.

Duckworth_Luas

The Rape of Lucretia wrote: »

I know its unfair to tar them all with the same brush, and in fact, you do come across some who speak English quite well indeed, but there are still an awful lot of them who speak little or no English at all, which makes dealing with them, outside the major cities and tourist areas, nigh on impossible.

When they don't speak English it's the ideal opportunity for you to bring up your whole Breunion shtick. If they don't understand it they're more likely to listen to it.

Victor

completedit wrote: »

I was sitting around a dinner table and they were having a really earnest conversation about yield curves.

Two of my brothers are engineers. One married an engineer. One of my sisters (computer aided drawing technician) married an engineer and their eldest daughter is an engineer. I used to work in construction. Dinner conversation might often be about engineering or factory anecdotes, even if that is how to make beer with 30% alcohol by freeze drying.

Some friends with military jobs talk about military stuff.

For us, it beats talking about soccer or reality TV.

The Crowman

ToddyDoody wrote: »

Supposedly the Finish will sit silently, and perfectly motionless, at a house party.

sbsquarepants

Maurice Yeltsin wrote: »

And tight as a nun's baby cannon.

.

:eek::eek::D

ChikiChiki

The more I travelled the more I realise us Irish have a wildness about us. Certainly always up for a good time and provide plenty of laughter. Of course yu will get some utter gob****es in the mix but its all good natured fun generally.

I would have us very similar to the Spanish and South Americans in our outlook on life than the rest of the continental Europeans.

lainey_d_123

ChikiChiki wrote: »

The more I travelled the more I realise us Irish have a wildness about us. Certainly always up for a good time and provide plenty of laughter. Of course yu will get some utter gob****es in the mix but its all good natured fun generally.

I would have us very similar to the Spanish and South Americans in our outlook on life than the rest of the continental Europeans.

I agree. The Spanish especially feel very close to Ireland, and a lot of them choose it over the UK for learning English because they feel like the culture is a lot more similar. I'd have to agree. Things like family, social life, are a lot more similar to Spain than England. I found the English very odd and cold in some ways when I lived in London. A cold formality that seems to extend even to friendships and family relationships.

Seanachai

lainey_d_123 wrote: »

I agree. The Spanish especially feel very close to Ireland, and a lot of them choose it over the UK for learning English because they feel like the culture is a lot more similar. I'd have to agree. Things like family, social life, are a lot more similar to Spain than England. I found the English very odd and cold in some ways when I lived in London. A cold formality that seems to extend even to friendships and family relationships.

A friend from Wolverhampton used to say to me that London can be like a different country to the rest of England, I'm sure there are some great people there but I know what you mean about the coldness there.

partyguinness

To be honest OP I am not thinking about strange continentals right now. I am thinking what a strange dude you are.

partyguinness

Seanachai wrote: »

A friend from Wolverhampton used to say to me that London can be like a different country to the rest of England, I'm sure there are some great people there but I know what you mean about the coldness there.

TBH all big cities are cold. If you have ever been to Wolverhampton I promise you will be on the first train back to London.

meeeeh

Edgware wrote: »

Irish Republican values are miles apart from the Republican views of France.
Eliminating Protestants in Fermanagh South Tyrone and Armagh because of their religion does not classify as Republicanism

I'm not sure poster was thinking of IRA when making those comments. Brits show a lot bigger deference to royals and other nobility while most of Europe (even countries who still have royal family) would mostly ignore old titles. It manifests itself in less divided society, more egalitarian outlook and different political system.

There are countries in Balkans that are about 50 years behind the rest of Europe but in some ways there would be quite a few similarities with Ireland (disrespect for authority, cursing, fondness for drink, great sense of humour...).

Anyway continentals are not uniform group. There are different national traits and then there are different personality traits. The biggest bore I ever met is Irish and I had great fun with some Swedes on one of the holidays.

Sam Quentin

We're here for a serious time not a long time!?

Edgware

meeeeh wrote: »

I'm not sure poster was thinking of IRA when making those comments. Brits show a lot bigger deference to royals and other nobility while most of Europe (even countries who still have royal family) would mostly ignore old titles. It manifests itself in less divided society, more egalitarian outlook and different political system.

There are countries in Balkans that are about 50 years behind the rest of Europe but in some ways there would be quite a few similarities with Ireland (disrespect for authority, cursing, fondness for drink, great sense of humour...).

Anyway continentals are not uniform group. There are different national traits and then there are different personality traits. The biggest bore I ever met is Irish and I had great fun with some Swedes on one of the holidays.

Balkans "great sense of humour" Thats a good one

partyguinness

Edgware wrote: »

Irish Republican values are miles apart from the Republican views of France.
Eliminating Protestants in Fermanagh South Tyrone and Armagh because of their religion does not classify as Republicanism

I think you are conflating Irish republicanism and the military campaign. Plus republicanism in France was not about fighting off a colonial oppressor- overthrowing the monarchy.

completedit

Tbh I doubt any of you have a clue tbh. Probably only interaction with foreigners is in Irish soil. People are people but in general Irish people have a warmth and a fun about them. We have our faults too but there clearly is somewhat personality traits that are common amongst nations of countries especially very homogenous ones lik Europe,

It seems Spanish and South Americans get the Irish idea of fun and having a carefree relaxed attitude to life, the Eastern Europeans are very plan focused and take themselves very seriously. Nice but just not like us

sbsquarepants

completedit wrote: »

It seems Spanish and South Americans get the Irish idea of fun and having a carefree relaxed attitude to life, the Eastern Europeans are very plan focused and take themselves very seriously. Nice but just not like us

Completely racist....but I agree with you:D

I've worked with a lot of both over the past decade or so and of the maybe 100 eastern Europeans I know, all bar one is as tight as a ducks arse. They'd step on each others throats if there was a quid to be made.
Now I get that they've come here to make money and not to party their lives away, but Jesus Christ - I just couldn't live like that.

The one who wasn't came from a well to do family so that's probably the difference. She was also red hot so I tended to forgive a lot of her foibles.

Edgware

sbsquarepants wrote: »

Completely racist....but I agree with you:D

I've worked with a lot of both over the past decade or so and of the maybe 100 eastern Europeans I know, all bar one is as tight as a ducks arse. They'd step on each others throats if there was a quid to be made.
Now I get that they've come here to make money and not to party their lives away, but Jesus Christ - I just couldn't live like that.

The one who wasn't came from a well to do family so that's probably the difference. She was also red hot so I tended to forgive a lot of her foibles.

Did you get a chance to check out her foibles?

sbsquarepants

Unfortunately not. I'm sure they were quite lovely however;)

average hero

For me, the continentals are a great bunch of lads. Of course every country/region is going to have its oddities.

Since returning from the continent a few months ago, I have noticed that there is more and more of a serious/work every hour attitude coming into Ireland. Things aren't as 'casual' as they might have been a few years ago. This is a good thing though in some respects. In comparison to our continental neighbours, we are still wild though!

With regards to craic, I find the Germans and Italians in particular to be good fun. While there are more 'strange' people in German and they can be a bit colder at first, I find them to be good fun once you get to know them. Italians are pretty cool too. Polish, French and Spanish are cool too. People from the Nordics and the Baltics can be hit and miss for me. Generally nice people but quite serious or dour. Must be the weather!