lost in translation

by Lena Hampton

Simple Confusion

I pulled out my video camera and l looked in my lens to see a woman staring back at me. Her face intensified with astonishment and horror. If there was ever a moment that I wished I’d freshened up on my French more… it was now. I was confused… she was confused and we were lost in translation. I tried to dissect her every word picking out the ones that sounded familiar. She took a moment to calm down when I gave up and said “Parlez-vous Anglais?” She sighed and sharply said you can’t tape here! It’s insulting to videotape in public! This was just the start of my quest to understand French culture.

In this amazing city filled with couture and Chanel, I expected the stone pebbled streets to be an everyday runway. Even though I would love to rock Versace from head to toe, I can’t afford it … and I know I’m not alone. So I wondered where locals shop to save money and look just as fabulous.

Forks

I asked people on the street where I should go and as soon as I brought out my camera I got the samehorrified look as before. Maybe there was some truth to what the woman was saying earlier. But I had to get the footage for my story. I was finally able to set up a few interviews and they next stop was Paris Sabron. I finally got off the metro and I was suppose to meet them at a café around the corner. The only thing… there was a café on every corner and I was facing a 6-way intersection. I didn’t have a cell phone, map, or even a contact number. All I had was a name. A lot of lefts and far too many rights later … I reach café across the street from where I started! Go figure.