I take the metro everyday. It is not only the quickest way to get around but it is the most convenient way, in my opinion, to get around Paris. Most people dislike the metro because it is dirty and some very bizarre people use it. While this is all true, you cannot beat the convenience and efficiency that comes with the metro.

Since being in Paris, I have adopted a new persona, in particular in the metro. It is very rare that I say “Pardon” for bumping into someone and it is normal for me to bump into people that are clearly in the way. My new “persona” follows the unspoken rules of the metro that I learned quickly within the first week of being in Paris. For example: you do not stand in front of the door and expect people to squeeze past you when the doors open. You should step outside of the metro, let the others off and then get back on. The others that are also waiting to get on will let you get back on first (most of the time) because they understand what you are trying to do. While this seems like an obvious thing to do, many people, in particular tourists, do not understand the unspoken rules.

There have been plenty of people who now think I am rude but were breaking some of the most basic rules of the metro. One time, two British tourists were breaking the rule I described above and I pushed through them, followed quickly by several other Parisians who all seemed happy that a 6’5″ man was the first to go for it. I was not happy to do it, but I needed off of the metro and they were in my way (same thing happened just the other day on the sidewalk, I will tell that story later).

RATP, the workers that take care of all public transportation in Paris, have taken on the initiative to advertise these previously unspoken rules for all to see. The following are three pictures of different ads that I took today in the metro (unfortunately I did not get the picture of the rule I stated above but I will explain it after the pictures).

RATP placed these ads in the metro to show what not to do. They have taken an animal to fit the trait of what is going on and how they are disrupting others by their behavior. The three examples above have a hen who is talking extremely loud and disturbing others (clucking like a hen), the pig is eating and creating a large mess on the metro while also taking up four seats (hogging the seats and being a pigsty) and two “lovebirds” are standing side by side on the escalator (I am sure that this is the case in many other places but in Paris the left side of the escalator is for walking up and the right side is for standing and riding up). For the “rule” I mentioned above, there are two elephants standing in front of the door not allowing others to pass in or out of the metro. Each ad has the tagline “Restons civils sur toute la ligne” or “stay civil for the entire (metro)line”.

I find the ads to be very humorous but also very true! RATP is showing everyone proper conduct in order to increase efficiency, however, they are also going to increase the peace because these unwritten rules are now written for everyone to see. Whether or not you speak French, the image is very clear and no one can confuse what you are supposed to do. Now, I just hope that people follow these rules!

Here is my short anecdote about what happened by Notre Dame. There was a large group of tourists waiting to cross the street in order to go see the cathedral. While I understand that everyone wants pictures of the cathedral, tourists need to remember that people do live in the place that they are using to up their Facebook likes and that they cannot just take pictures on a tiny sidewalk that has room for four people to walk on, not twenty people to take pictures. Needless to say, I was trying to walk down the sidewalk. I was pressed for time and I could not wait for this group to block the sidewalk, take their pictures, then cross the street. I said loudly “Pardon” and proceeded to keep walking. When someone says pardon in French, it basically means “I am sorry but I am going to walk through now. If you want to move, we will both be happier for it but if you are going to continue talking pictures, I am still going to walk through.” I walked through and no one moved. Now I am in a picture of a Japanese man with Notre Dame and possibly with another woman that got knocked off balance with my bag (so if anyone happens to see that on Facebook, tag me!).

I am not sharing these stories because I want to make fun of the people that are breaking these rules or to show how rude I have become (because it really isn’t being rude!). I am telling these stories because it shows a step that everyone hopefully takes when they are studying abroad. I have gone from being a “tourist” that needs to take a picture of the Eiffel Tower every time I see it to actually living in my new environment. I have picked up vocabulary, gestures, social comportment, and comfort in my location. I have bridged that gap from being just a study abroad student to being a student studying in Paris.