tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post8222638208176161135..comments2023-09-23T11:16:00.352+02:00Comments on The Franco-American Flophouse has moved: The Narcissism of DifferenceVictoria FERAUGEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16319699673885400472noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-14738746111219541712014-06-24T07:20:50.389+02:002014-06-24T07:20:50.389+02:00@Alia, Oh are you a lucky woman. Morocco is a won...@Alia, Oh are you a lucky woman. Morocco is a wonderful country and I loved it almost as much as I loved India. If you are in Casablanca, I really recommend a visit to the Hassan II mosque http://thefranco-americanflophouse.blogspot.fr/2011/01/flophouse-in-morocco-mosque.html<br />Your description of the Moroccans is what I experienced there. People were very kind and patient which I deeply appreciated. I asked a lot of questions and no one ever made me feel like a fool for asking. :-)<br />Good for you for tackling arabic. The language is really the first step toward finding your feet (and not feeling dependent - an emotion I can really relate to).<br />Please come back and let me know how it's going. I'd love to hear more.<br /><br />All the best,<br /><br />VictoriaVictoria FERAUGEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16319699673885400472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-13951342496036620872014-06-24T05:16:13.851+02:002014-06-24T05:16:13.851+02:00Hello Victoria -- Found your site from a comment y...Hello Victoria -- Found your site from a comment you made on Dr. Bramhall's blog. I've only just left the USA and landed in Morocco (for now at least) but I can definitely relate to both of your processes regarding landing in and assimilating a new country, people, language and culture. A complete mix of excitement, adventure and frustration. My husband is also American but lived outside the US for 40 years before we met In Oregon 10 years ago. So he is wonderful in helping me to adjust but I have never felt so dependent on him for navigating me through my days. He speaks enough French to communicate with most Moroccans. The exciting thing for me now (and my ticket to feeling more secure and independent) is that we are both learning Arabic and I find that I have a real facility for the language (although my mouth muscles don't always cooperate.) So I keep telling myself that this will greatly assist me with my integration process. The Moroccan people are gracious, generous and light up completely anytime you speak even one word of their language, so the appreciative feedback is highly motivating, unlike your experience of being criticized and corrected when you first arrived in France. At least I do not have to work, as I am retired. But that is another whole aspect of this, as pulling up stakes and moving to a country that has been demonized by your own at the ripe age of nearly 66 is no small feat. But we're doing fine. Thanks for sharing your process. The piece from Maalouf was very helpful as well. Blessings, AliaAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00779042312565554491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-36526502866694915262013-10-07T10:13:49.533+02:002013-10-07T10:13:49.533+02:00Hi Michael,
Thanks so much for stopping by and re...Hi Michael,<br /><br />Thanks so much for stopping by and reading and for leaving your comment. <br /><br />That whole experience of going through a country's immigration process is something that really binds ALL migrants together. I've been told a time or two, "But surely there is a different (special) process for the average person from a developed country?" <br /><br />Nope. :-)<br /><br />Congratulations on becoming a Canadian. Such a wonderful country - so wonderful that I sent my children there. And I do see what you mean about the liberating act of relinquishing that prior citizenship. Something for me and others to think about.<br /><br />Victoria<br />Victoria FERAUGEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16319699673885400472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-7500365125355044362013-10-07T05:58:19.555+02:002013-10-07T05:58:19.555+02:00Wonderful post. I can relate to the humbling expe...<br />Wonderful post. I can relate to the humbling experience of having to submit to medical exams and the whole regime. I don't know about France, but Canada also required me to march into my local cop shop and have my prints taken so I could then send them to the FBI, who in turn would certify to CIC that I wasn't a bank robber or a terrorist or whatnot.<br /><br />I never felt all that attached to America growing up and never fit in well, so I didn't delay obtaining naturalization and relinquishing US citizenship. Nobody told me to, but I found I wasn't really to fully assimilate without letting go of the past. Feels wonderful.<br /><br /><br />Salut,<br /><br />Michael PutmanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-10603737739146105992011-12-22T17:13:39.877+01:002011-12-22T17:13:39.877+01:00Thanks! Je l´ai déjà trouvé et mis dans ma liste d...Thanks! Je l´ai déjà trouvé et mis dans ma liste de livres a lire prochainement! Je suis ton blog désormais, on reste en contact! :)Laura Rebessihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04577181680303383675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-29012582295712998512011-12-22T16:53:42.563+01:002011-12-22T16:53:42.563+01:00Hi Laura, I's so glad you found something in ...Hi Laura, I's so glad you found something in my piece that spoke to you. It's very comforting to hear that my experiences resonate with other people. Feels much less lonely. :-)<br /> <br />The quotations are from Maalouf's work Les Identités meurtrières which I think was translated into English as In the Name of Identity: Violence and the Need to Belong.<br /><br />All the best,<br /><br />VictoriaVictoria FERAUGEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16319699673885400472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2424131704277823220.post-58719432097394297422011-12-22T12:51:40.042+01:002011-12-22T12:51:40.042+01:00Hi Victoria,
I´m a Brazilian living in France for...Hi Victoria,<br /><br />I´m a Brazilian living in France for 3 years, and I profoundly share the feelings you write about on this post.<br />Where did you find this quotation of Amin Maalouf? I would really like to read the rest. :)<br />Merci<br />LauraLaura Rebessihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04577181680303383675noreply@blogger.com