A peculiarly French phenomenon?

I'm sure we all have intellectual, if not experiential, knowledge of the following: french kissing, French films, french fries. For the sake of the intended humour of this blog, I am entering the mental territory of George Bush in the first and third instances, placing the origin (and therefore the post- 9-11, pre-invade-Iraq blame) on the French people for the creation of these abominations. We know better, though, don't we, that french fries aren't really exotic, dastardly French imports to be shunned in times of political discord? And I'm sure whoever the "French" were at whatever historical point in time that french kissing was first performed, that that particular tribe of hirsute peoples in the bog of pre-Europe weren't the first erotic geniuses to stick tongues in each others' mouths while mashing their lips together. So, for the moment we're left with French films, in this brief list of 2-word nouns that describe something uniquely French. (Actually, I just looked online and saw a list of 57 things, either items, phenomenon, or acts, that are termed as French, ranging from French braids in a girls hair, to the French roast of a coffee, down to The French Disease! Didn't Nietzsche have that?)

But in my short time in Paris (which admittedly is not France, no matter the local attitude), I have noticed what I submit as another 2-word phrase to add to the list, which may or may not in fact be particularly French. But it's fun, so here goes! I submit The French knot! Perhaps I will work up the nerve to get really really close to someone and take a picture so you see exactly what I am referring to. The French knot...it's everywhere here. On the metro, in the streets, in the cafes, the supermarkets, the patisseries, even the museums! The French knot is the most uniform fashion style I have ever seen, and consists of a simple, thick cotton scarf, tied snuggly around one's neck in a very exact, precise, and down-to-the-last-person uniform way. The French knot lies flat against ones chest, and though it protrudes out the top of ones neatly buttoned medium-length black coat, at its end, tucks inside the neck of the coat.

The first few days after my arrival, when sitting on the metro, I would scan people and mainly notice that, here, when I wear entirely black outfits, it is not in the slightest bit odd. Paris is swamped with dark clothes in a way that makes me feel like I have unwittingly stumbled upon my birth family.

The next thing I started noticing, right below peoples' curtained subway faces, were the scarves. It's cold out, and damp, and hellaciously windy. So yes, most people, women and men (do men wear scarves in the States?) wear scarves when they go out. Some of the women's scarves are stylish, but it is clear that most scarves are worn for utility's sake rather than fashion's. Then I started noticing that the majority of the scarves looked like the same scarf, with variations in color and design, but basically there is a standard type of scarf that most people wear. Cotton, and of a knit where the individual chords of fiber are visible running down the body of the scarf. And finally, with an aftertaste of insidiousness, I noticed that the scarves were all worn in exactly the same manner!!! My American sensibilities made me feel a bit like, rather than stumbling into my birth family, the family had turned out to be alien implants made to lull me into docility while they sucked out my life energy to recharge their machino-alienic batteries. Everyone, everywhere, wearing their scarves exactly alike?! The horror. Like ties, always tied in the same way. Sir, the scarves all seem to be doubled, then wrapped around themselves and pulled up snuggly against the neck, and then laid flat against the chest. Et voila, the French knot. Which is basically a scarf worn like a tie. No sir, the warp drive is broken. We can't get away. :)

This is one of the quirky little things I enjoy discovering, and perhaps cocreating a bit, when I travel. But seriously, is this a Parisian thing, a French thing, or perhaps a broader European, or at least, Western European phenomenon? A Quebecker friend of mine who has been living in Geneva for about 4 years now came to visit this past weekend, and he tied his scarf in the same manner. We met his sister, living in Paris for two years now, for "le brunch" last Sunday, and as we all stood up and rebundled ourselves as we were leaving the restaurant, they both simultaneously wrapped their scarves on in exactly the same way. (By the way, when the waiter served us our plates, he jokingly apologized to me that this was French brunch. Why the joke, I wondered, and then turned to my plate where I saw my one miniature pancake sticking up outside the edges of the BOWL. Pardon me, is that my pancake in A BOWL? God, I love traveling, just for the little things.)

But back to the knot. Every day when I go out, I search the streets and the metros, not for the perfect croissant or expresso, not for the absent smile as a stranger darts their eyes away from mine as I catch theirs, too quick for me to send them a smile, but for the anomalous scarf. I am looking for that thick cotton utilitarian scarf adorning someone's neck in a way that is just so, but not the same just so as all the other scarves. Or maybe the scarf won't even be just so, but will be rather casually strewn about the shoulders, an afterthought, or a windblown rebellion.

Maybe I'll spot one tonight, in the erstwhile boho neighborhood of Montmartre, the home of Moulin Rouge. I'll keep you posted.