French Kissing
How did I find myself “French kissing” an Italian man I had just met in Rome?
I knew that would get your attention.
I was in my early sixties (so a few years ago) and no one was more surprised than me because I had not been kissed in a very long time, let alone French kissed.
I had just arrived in Rome to attend and present at a forum for global female entrepreneurs. My driver had not shown up to take me from the airport to my hotel.
So a driver from another company quickly offered to step in. He was a very handsome 50-something Italian gentleman who showed his credentials, and too weary to look any further, I accepted.
Not him. Looked like him.
Our conversation en route went deep quickly. We found we shared a similar interest in world affairs, European politics, and travel.
Long story short, we hit it off somewhat, and when he finally arrived at my hotel, he rushed around to open the door. I stepped out and he asked, “I don’t usually do this, but may I kiss you?”
I don’t usually do this but I thought life is too short. Go for it.
I was expecting a peck on the lips at most but my Italian gentleman dove right in.
You are probably hoping for magic and fireworks, right?
Nope.
It was bad.
Awful. Really terrible.
Enough said.
I captured these two lovers embracing in French kissing while we were dining a few tables away in a Paris bistro/French Kissing
Not a Good Kisser? The French Kiss Is Very Telling!
I don’t know about you but the “French kiss” has always been my barometer for cementing sexual attraction.
No fireworks. No way.
Because I so remember my first French kiss. I was 14. He was 17. It was a beautiful sunny day at the beach and this blond blue-eyed boy leaned in, parted his lips, and well, the earth moved.
Never saw him again, didn’t care, but what a great memory. Whatever his name was set the bar very high and from then on, everyone else would be measured by that lusty passionate first French kiss.
French kissing at the Eiffel Tower. On my bucket list!
Origin of French Kissing
So why it is called the “French kiss?”
You might be surprised to learn that it is not a French term. It was coined by British and American soldiers who learned this adventurous form of smooching from the French Mademoiselles they met during World War II.
In fact, French kissing for the French is normal kissing so there was no official word for it until 2014. That’s when the dictionary, Le Petit Robert, formally recognized the slang “galocher” to mean kissing with one’s tongue. No idea why. “Une galoche” is an overshoe in French.
French kissing IS fun like sloshing around in the rain in galoshes.
Ok, I just made that up!
There is “French Kissing” and Then, there is the other way the French kiss called “La Bise”
NOTE: Check out my Blog on the other way the French kiss by CLICKING HERE!
Brought to you by www.womanofacertainageinparis.com
Diana Bishop the founder of The Success Story Program and A Woman of a Certain Age in Paris as well as a well-known correspondent with over 25 years working for CTV, CBC News, and NBC News. She loves travel, writing, and all things Parisienne.
I don’t really have a comment, it was so long ago!
Oh Doris.. I bet you do! Tell us about your best kiss then? (Comment 2 of 3 for the Giveaway)
I my first French kiss….age 14 at camp! Remember it like yesterday. And yes, my earth moved and the barometer for love was set. Still friends with my “barometer” 45 years later.
Love all these stories. (Comment 2 of 3)
Seventh Grade. Gary and I were dance partners in the after school cotillion class. We spent the semester learning the waltz, and fox trot, and cha cha, and the rhumba. That summer, he started coming over to my house for visits. On one particular afternoon, he asked to see something (no idea what) in our garage. He kept the overhead light off, and right next to the 1964 Mercury Comet sedan I had my first French kiss. I melted. I will remember him for always. Thank you, Gary. PS…We took First Place in the finals for our Cha Cha.
Just love this story Bonnie!
My first French kiss was at 15 or 16 with a tall gorgeous man. We were at a friends grad party and I knew he was eyeing me….so being the brash forward person I am, I promptly went to the bathroom and stayed there for ages. I noticed that someone was pacing outside the door but since they didn’t knock I continued to stay there . I was nervous , I knew it was HIM!
Finally he said..” Renee would you please get out of there?” I came out and he said that we should go to the park. We walked for a few minutes and then he said that he loved me and
Bingo Bangor bongo….he ” galoushed ” me!!!! I married him! and here we are …38 years later,
galoshing!!!
Best story so far… Maybe we should call it “glossing” from now on. I like it. And I have seen that handsome husband of yours — how lucky you were to be kissed by him!
(Comment #2 of 3 to qualify for the Chanel Perfume Giveaway!) Thanks Renee!
Ok BF…. mine was dreadful ?
It was as a result of a spin the bottle game in Grade 7 played at a friend’s house. The bottle stopped , pointed at me and I had to go onto a dark closet with a boy I actually really liked. He grabbed me and slurped , hitting my teeth and practically choking me. Yuck yuck yuck. !???
Oh Yucky indeed. But so funny!!! I do remember a guy kissing me when I was 16. He just pressed his lips really hard
against mine — for too long! I think he thought that was French kissing!
U wont believe this as i cannot, but my story is EXACTLY the same as Shardie Stevensen. . I remember saying to myself, “so this is it? “. I was sooo disappointed. The Only difference was that the boy was not so much of an interest of mine but was one of the “popular” boys which made it even more disappointing for me. It got better as my life experiences went on…..
Luci, Ha ha! I would believe it! And why was it that the popular guys at school were not great kissers? Too taken with themselves?
Thanks for sharing. (Comment 2 of 3 for the Giveaway)
I wore galoshes as a kid. Everyone else seemed to have been upgraded to pull-on boots with zippers.
I figured they had passed 1st base-the French kiss.
Me? Well I had less than most in lovers luck so the “”kiss” was usually a step in the wrong direction. Quite naive, I preferred someone holding my hand. The chance that would happen wearing galoches was nil.
Twink — you are hilarious! Folks — if you are reading this comment. It is from my sweet adorable cousin, the baby of our family with
a quirky sense of humour that always makes me laugh! (Comment 2 of 3 for the Giveaway Draw)
Oh my, this takes me back! I think I was 13 and was snuggling up with my older brother’s friend, Robert (as in Robeeeer, he was french) and he leaned in! Wow was I surprised! But it was a bit much for me and that was the end of that! It did set the stage for future ‘french’ kissing though.
My father bought me my first grown up perfume and it was Chanel no. 5. I felt so elegant!
It was memorial, the earth moved, and left me utterly breathless. He was my first boyfriend at 17 and after a year, we parted to follow our separate life paths. Forward 58 years, we have found each other and rekindled our love and French kisses.
Dianne, I want to hear this story.
(As a new subscriber you are automatically entered to win in the draw for
the Chanel perfume. Bonne Chance!)
Same here, spin the bottle, and a messy surprise, I was not impressed… maybe because he wasn’t French…?
Eileen, Yeah spin the bottle. You are kinda stuck perhaps kissing someone you don’t want to kiss! Thanks for you comment Eileen. You are now resisted with Comment 1 of 3 to qualify for the Chanel Perfume Giveaway!
Oh I well remember my first French kiss! It was delicious and set the bar very high for many years. 16 and snuggled under a tree on a sunny summer afternoon with a man of 18 who already knew how to seduce with dreamy eyes and well timed kisses. A lovely memory!
Sound delicious! Love this story. Thanks Betty. (Comment 2 of 3 for the Perfume Giveaway!)
Well, I obviously out of sheer excitement for winning Channel Perfume, read the rules wrong last week- meh 🙁 I thought I needed to write three comments per post and three comments per upcoming posts for this contest. The reasoning for my three comments in the last post, so ridiculous. I thought “I am so in for this perfume, these ladies with one comment only -are trailing way behind me, I am going to be the winner, easily” YIKES!!! After writing 3 comments I re-read the rules, GULP, ok so I am the loser who wrote three comments on one post…
The FRENCH KISS!!! It was a boy we were bf and gf, for maybe a couple of weeks, which was a long time being about 13. He french kissed me while at a close by friends house. I do remember it was a nice kiss, I thought so anyways. Then later that day he came by my house to offer me a box of chocolates, I thought…”Oh, I must be something special, he is so into me”. Then he continued to dump me, (that is what we use to call it), yeah he dumped me, and said “I bought you these chocolates (Turtles) so you wouldn’t be hurt after me dumping you.” HUH? Apparently when I left my friends house she kissed him and he decided he liked her french kisses more then mine, and gave me chocolate to sooth my pain. I ate them in one sitting. I wasn’t friends with her neither, anymore…lol
Tamara–you are kidding me! I will never trust anyone who gives me chocolates again but like you, I will eat them anyway!
And don’t worry about the 3 Comments. You now have 2 out of 3 to qualify for the Chanel Perfume! Well done!
My first French kiss, well I’ll never forget. It was my second date with this fella that I was smitten with. He brought my roses ?. Well it was bingo bango bing. The rest is history. Fell over heels with him and we have been married for 34 years.
Lynn, Does that mean you have only French kissed one man in your whole life?
It must have been good. Thank you so much for your comment. Love hearing all of these stories! (Comment 2 of 3)
Awe, my first Frenchie! His name is permanently etched into my brain. And, his sumptuous lips! My mum loved him because he brought flowers to me after he worked his shift at a local restaurant. A single red rose every time. There was a permanent vase on our kitchen table that summer filled with roses he brought me. My dad was not amused. He rarely bought my mom flowers, she would bemoan to me often. So, immediately after my love interest would leave, I gifted my the rose to my mum. I was more interested in going out with him and, well, parking. We would take long, romantic rides through the canyons where we lived. Horsetooth Reservoir was a popular spot for local teens to stop. It had a view out over the city. I hear that the small town where we lived was a model for Downtown Disney. Even today, the view is quite pretty with twinkling lights spread across the horizon for miles. The town is equally quaint as it was 30 plus years ago with trees and turn of the century shops and houses. My beau would drive up the windy road and around the reservoir as fast as he could with me holding on to his muscular waist for dear life! He was a state qualified swimmer and I loved those firm abes! The best part was his soft kisses, though. For hours we would kiss and his tongue would …well, you know! It was the best. I felt so tingly afterward as one could imagine. We were on a motorcycle, so not much more than kissing every happened in case you were wondering. About ten or eleven o’clock the police would make their rounds and tell everyone parked along the reservoir to go home. Several summers later, a girl at the bridal shop I worked at was telling me her friend had a boyfriend that she claimed was the best kisser ever! When she told me his name I politely smiled an agreed! Oh, my. The heart is racing still today just thinking about it. I’ll never forget his french kisses. Ever. XXOO
Timmithea — my heart was racing reading this story. Oh my goodness, you could write romantic novels. So well written.
Please tell us, so you know what ever happened to this young man?
(You have qualified with 1 of 3 comments needed to be eligible for my Summer Giveaway — a bottle of Chanel Perfume).
And thank you so much for sharing this story. I hope you will keep reading my blog. Diana
Thanks for the compliment and what a great topic! Better than reading the news today! Since you asked…I did a little sleuthing. I knew my old beau had gone into the Air Force right after high school. He swam for the AF and was Valedictorian. Then, he owned his own company for a while- he was an engineer. As of 7 years ago, he still hadn’t married. But, now I see he had children. He waited until his late forties to find the right lady! He is a very successful CEO. He doesn’t have much of a presence on the internet, but I did find his picture on his company’s website. His big blue eyes and huge white teeth smile were a dead give away. He isn’t as thin anymore, but retained his pretty dark hair. I can still hear his laugh. We laughed and french kissed a lot that one summer long ago. Lovely man. Lovely memories. XXOO.
Thanks for the compliment and what a great topic! Better than reading the news today! Since you asked…I did a little sleuthing. I knew my old beau had gone into the Air Force right after high school. He swam for the AF and was Valedictorian. Then, he owned his own company for a while- he was an engineer. As of 7 years ago, he still hadn’t married. But, now I see he has children. He waited until his late forties to find the right lady! He is a very successful CEO. He doesn’t have much of a presence on the internet, but I did find his picture on his company’s website. His big blue eyes and huge white teeth smile were a dead give away. He isn’t as thin anymore, but retained his pretty dark, thick hair. I can still hear his laugh. We laughed and french kissed a lot that one summer long ago. Lovely man. Lovely memories. XXOO.
It is so cool that you have some idea of what happened to him. I never met or saw the boy that I French kissed again. I would have to even to think hard to remember his name. But the kiss I will never forget.
How fun. Thanks Timmithea!
Aaahhhh… so sweet, so innocent… so naive. Walking across the football field after a day at high school, my tall, dark and handsome “man” grabbed my hand and then my heart, completely wrapping me with his arms. I looked up into his eyes and melted. With great passion our lips met, our tongues timid and exploring each other. It could have been for a minute, it could have been an hour. I have no idea… and like you Diana at age fourteen. For us it was the beginning of a four year relationship of rainbows and fireworks. We were so in love, young love ??? My feet never touched the earth…. funny though, he had braces and I had a shredded tongue…. without pain‼️
I was fifteen, we had been “dating” for about five months. “Dating” was Saturdau nights at the local arena with a group of guys and gals then back to my house after for hot chocolate and cookies and walks home from school with him carrying my books. We had walked one of the single girls home one Saturday night after skating and treats and after we dropped her off he asked me what I would do if he kissed me. I figured if he had to ask he really wasn’t interested so I told him I would get my Dad after him. That’s why it took five months. When it finally happened I was caught, hook, line, and sinker! Ah, young love. Great memories.
I so remember the skating thing. I couldn’t wait to go to the local rink on Saturday nights and
hope that the boy I liked would ask me to skate around and around the rink.. holding my hand. Swooon!
Young love indeed. Thanks Margaret Ann! (Comment 3 of 3.. you are now fully qualified to win in the Chanel Perfume Draw!)
Yes, like you, I think I was 14ish. Not impressed then and still not really impressed now.?
Ha ha… I do hope you experience one soon that meets your approval Cathy! (Comment 2 of 3)
I am Just catching up……….reading back blogs is like binging on Netfix…WHAT FUN…
My first real kiss …….REAL KISS……was soft and gentle and grew in intensity rather like a beautiful piece of music….it was amazing…. made my toes curl. I guess I was about 16 or 17…..and he was a much older man of 19 or 20………You don’t forget first experiences.
Hmmmmmmmmm
It sounds so much like my experience Patricia — Love your description of it. Better than mine. Thank you so much for reading my blog. (And you now have 2 Comments registered to be entered into the draw to win the Chanel Perfume!)
I don’t usually kiss and tell! But this time I will make an exception. My first French kiss was a bit of a disappointment 😘 All the hype! It was wet and sloppy and there was absolutely no chemistry! But I was 13 and he was 15 so we were still on the learning curve! Have had many fantastic one since!
Ha ha! I would suspect most people’s first kiss was a lot like that. My first French kiss was a real adventure and in fact, at age 15, I wrote a whole story about it…guess that tells you where my career was going…will be in my book! Best to you! Diana
I just love your newsletters! You have a cute and interest provoking style! I am amazed at how you pick your topics each week!
Hehe French Kissing- the french men! Adorable and fun!
Thank you Ilona.. I love hearing from you. Diana
Love the topic!!!
I live in a small town in Southern California
I’ve started learning french two years ago thanks to your newsletters!
I also have the cutest neighbor named Gael who is from Paris!! His wife is American and also learning french! Très bon
Merci beaucoup for your inspirations xo
Good for you for taking on the French language! I find even a few words here and there on your travels to France makes a world of difference
to French people. And it is such a fun discipline … good for the brain. Bravo! Diana