Awkward Metro Moments pt. 2

In my French Culture and Civilization class, almost the first thing that my professor discussed was the problem of "male aggression" in France. Apparently, French men tend to be constantly harassing women on the street, trying to talk to them, etc. As a result, French women have developed a defense mechanism known as the "bitch face," (you will not find this term in the Encyclopedia) which they wear whenever they are walking alone in public. This face says simply, "talk to me, and I will cut you." I'd noticed the women here and how they generally walk fast, looking at the ground, scowling. However, I hadn't yet experienced any extreme acts of this so-called male aggression.

My bitch face is not at all good. It's not like I walk around smiling all the time, but I tend to look around a lot, observing my surroundings, and apparently this means I'm very vulnerable to preying sorts like the kiosk people in the mall who shout at you "MISS! DO YOU KEEP YOUR NAILS NATURAL??!!" They always seem to know that unless someone is there to drag me away, I'm absolutely helpless and will end up letting them give me a complete manicure and buying the stupid Magic Nail Buffer.

Today, it became apparent that this issue of mine is also present in France. I was going home on the metro, which can be quite crowded in the evenings, and stepped aside to let people in at a stop. A guy came in, and said a short phrase to me that I didn't understand, not in a creepy way, but in a "oh look at this situation that we're both in, let's make conversation to pass the time" kind of way. At least that's what it seemed like. I really had no idea what he'd said, and asked him, "comment?" the french version of "what?" He said it again, and I just blankly stared at him, not really knowing what to do. He then proceeded to kiss each of my cheeks, the typical french greeting between friends (although I had never seen him before) while asking me, "Bonsoir, ça va?" Which directly translated means "Good evening, how are you?" but can be said in a number of situations and is generally a typical greeting between two friends. Out of habit, I mumbled, "Oui, ça va..." and he then walked away. It was quite odd. I wasn't freaked out or upset, just extremely perplexed as to what this guy had gotten out of the interaction that had just occurred. He wasn't bad looking, either, so no problem there. I had a little laugh to myself on the rest of the way back. I don't know if I will ever understand this place. However, if the worst thing that happens to me is strange men kissing me in public transit, I think I can live with that. Although, I really need to work on my bitch face.