Help! Need info on London/Paris

[Guest]

Son's going to England (London mostly?) and Paris as part of his masters class in Criminal Justice. Should be an interesting trip! Anyway, he was told open-toed shoes/sandals were regarded as offensive. Is that true? Most times he'll be dressing business/business-casual. Any other helpful hints from our over-seas members/world travelers?  Thanks. This place is a wealth of info, knowledge, BS and outrageous humor. Love it!

Bob

edited to correct most typos.

[Silver Bullet]

I don't think they allow open carry.

[mfree]

Who's going to stop you? *evil grin*

[Smith]

I've never heard of the sandal taboo.  London could be a slightly cool and wet place to wear sandals, though.  

I'd advise him to downplay his "Americanisms" and wear dark colors, like greens, browns, and blacks.

[Art Eatman]

I spent two years in Paris.  I didn't really see enough warm weather to matter.  I wore a jacket more often than not, and I'm not talking about sports coats and such.  

Paris is on a line with Newfoundland or thereabouts, and London is north of Paris.

80F is a heat wave.

Open toed shoes?  Well, yeah, if you like cold feet...

Art

[theCZ]

I spent a few days in Paris in the early summer of 2005.  I saw lots of people with sandals.  It was very hot when I was there, I was really glad to leave.  Then again, I was just a backpacking traveler just out of college, I didn't have to impress anybody.

[BillBlank]

Sandals are seen as footwear for hippys. Not a good idea unless you like wet feet and crushed toes either.

[Smith]

Do you have any real questions about London or is the sandal issue the only one?

[Lo.Com.Denom]

he was told open-toed shoes/sandals were regarded as offensive. Is that true?

Only if his feet smell...

Seriously though, just tell him to behave as he would in any other major city and I'm sure he'll be fine. Stay out of the bad areas, don't look like a victim, stay alert, don't stare at strangers, blend in... etc, etc, you know the rest.

I'm no fan of big cities, but Londoners often get a bad rap for being unfriendly. I would say that I've found them to be reserved, yes, but generally not unfriendly. But then, it takes all sorts to make a world and you can probably find most of them in London.

As for the weather, we hit a record 100F a few summers ago, but the weather's pretty unpredictable, so your son should pack accordingly.

Hope he has fun, anyway!

[Guest]

Lo.Com.Demon: thanks, kinda what I thought. No real question, though his comment re: sandals, passed on from his professor struck me as, well, odd. (somebody call the grammar police!) Just don't want him to do something stupid. He has been outside WV but he is young. Thanks, guys!
Bob

PS: By the way, that is WV, not VW.

[Lo.Com.Denom]

Sorry WV -- it was late.

[Iain]

I've never heard the sandals thing either. Sandals and socks together is generally considered a fashion crime, but I doubt that it will cause offense.

We might be on a parallel with Newfoundland, but we've got that Gulfstream thing working for us. But yes, it's not that warm here right now, and I'm suffering badly because I've just come back from a relatively sunny and warm Barcelona.

London and Paris might have bad reputations, and so does Barcelona. Generally these things are partly based on truth (truths that seem to come from the 'bad areas' of town) and myth. Behave as you would in any major metropolis and you'll more than likely be fine.

Don't think there is any need to downplay any Americanisms. Yes there is plenty of fun to be had by us Europeans playing 'spot the American', but then the Spanish had that same fun with me. Not one person initiating a conversation (want a table? what is the time?) attempted to speak to me in Spanish.