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'Paris Syndrome' Leaves Japanese Tourists in Shock

Amused

Elite Member
I searched for "paris" and found nothing.

'Paris Syndrome' Leaves Japanese Tourists in Shock

Reuters - PARIS (Oct. 24) - Around a dozen Japanese tourists a year need psychological treatment after visiting Paris as the reality of unfriendly locals and scruffy streets clashes with their expectations, a newspaper reported Sunday.

"A third of patients get better immediately, a third suffer relapses and the rest have psychoses," Yousef Mahmoudia, a psychologist at the Hotel-Dieu hospital, next to Notre Dame cathedral, told the newspaper Journal du Dimanche.

Already this year, Japan's embassy in Paris has had to repatriate at least four visitors -- including two women who believed their hotel room was being bugged and there was a plot against them.

Previous cases include a man convinced he was the French "Sun King," Louis XIV, and a woman who believed she was being attacked with microwaves, the paper cited Japanese embassy official Yoshikatsu Aoyagi as saying.

"Fragile travelers can lose their bearings. When the idea they have of the country meets the reality of what they discover it can provoke a crisis," psychologist Herve Benhamou told the paper.

The phenomenon, which the newspaper dubbed " Paris syndrome," was first detailed in the psychiatric journal Nervure in 2004.

Bernard Delage of Jeunes Japon, an association who helps Japanese families settle in France, said: "In Japanese shops, the customer is king, whereas here assistants hardly look at them...People using public transport all look stern, and handbag snatchers increase the ill feeling."

A Japanese woman, Aimi, told the paper: "For us, Paris is a dream city. All the French are beautiful and elegant...And then, when they arrive, the Japanese find the French character is the complete opposite of their own."

 
Yeah, I think French culture and Japanese culture are pretty much the opposite of each other... 🙂
 
How mentally fragile do you have to be to need therapy because of this? How do these people function normally? Are they allowed outside unsupervised?
 
Originally posted by: Feldenak
How mentally fragile do you have to be to need therapy because of this? How do these people function normally? Are they allowed outside unsupervised?

:laugh: that was my thought too...
 
I had a lot nicer time in Paris than I did in Rome. The italians in Rome treated me like sh*t while the french in paris treated me pretty nicely.
 
Originally posted by: Feldenak
How mentally fragile do you have to be to need therapy because of this? How do these people function normally? Are they allowed outside unsupervised?

You would be surprised. For as messed up as the Japanese people are sometimes, they are extremely sheltered.
 
Sorry, but French people are just as arrogant as Americans except they have less qualms about being rude. I guess you could say the same thing about New Yorkers (yet New Yorkers don't whine about other people all the time). I have heard good things about the countryside of France though, but people tend to be more hospitable in small towns in general.

Japanese culture is very respectful, but they have their own really weird quirks, too.
 
Originally posted by: Codewiz
I had a lot nicer time in Paris than I did in Rome. The italians in Rome treated me like sh*t while the french in paris treated me pretty nicely.

How much money did you have? That is the question.
 
Paris was the dirtiest place i ever had the missfortune of visiting, the people were arogant and they didnt have a problem letting you know they hated you...

do i need therapy now ?
 
I wonder which nation leads in the number of psychosis per capita (and this is people under their own cultural experience).
 
Originally posted by: DaShen
Originally posted by: Codewiz
I had a lot nicer time in Paris than I did in Rome. The italians in Rome treated me like sh*t while the french in paris treated me pretty nicely.

How much money did you have? That is the question.

I was a high school kid. I was on a trip with my high school orchestra where we toured all over europe. So in other words, I didn't have a lot of money.

 
Having visited France (mostly Paris) about a dozen times for work and pleasure, I can attest to the fact that French are the most unfriendly people on this planet. God forbid you drop your fork in cafe, or ask a question at a boutique, or request a late night drink at the hotel. All that and I have to go back there in January for a 3 day meeting. Argh.
 
Originally posted by: Feldenak
How mentally fragile do you have to be to need therapy because of this? How do these people function normally? Are they allowed outside unsupervised?

:thumbsup:

They weren't the nicest people I've ever met, but microwaves aren't attacking me either. Now the voice on the other hand.....
 
they have high expectations of france because of the eiffel tower, baguettes, and nice fancy french restaurants in japan.
 
Originally posted by: KDOG
So I guess its official now - France sucks.


Its funny how everyone says that. But then it seems to be the top destination for American tourists. Kind of a lame hypocrisy.
 
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