In a small town near France’s southwest coast. The streets weren’t imbibed with the sultry heat of summer. It was grey and cool, and thin rain came down like spittle every now and again. The town was a beach town and all activity was the kind that was healthy, happened outdoors and filled the lungs with fresh air.
Maybe you should do a whole series about nudity around the globe! Northern Europe would definitely be an interesting chapter. I've read that public nudity has been on the decline throughout Europe for a number of years, so that could be an interesting angle of approach
Very interesting! I’ve heard the same. I would have probably hated the beaches back in the 70s, although who knows? Maybe sporadic nudity is worse than ubiquitous nudity. Food for thought…
It's a pretty considerable counterfactual, but this strikes me as perfectly encapsulating what my various reactions would be were I a woman in a similar situation.
Thanks muchly for commiserating! As mentioned, I can’t quite tell if I’m socially and morally justified, or just plain jealous of all that barenaked youth. I’m looking forward to not caring about this kind of stuff anymore!
I'm curious if you have any thoughts on nudity in German culture. I've heard Germans claim they can disassociate sexuality from nudity (presumably even in the young and attractive), in spite of the fact that they too, like the French, confine public nudity to certain designated venues.
It's interesting that you should bring this up. I had the opportunity in my mid-twenties to spend a day at a spa in Baden Baden where there wasn't a stitch of clothing in sight. The nudity was certainly not limited to the young and attractive - most people were in fact middle-aged or older. It certainly didn't carry the same erotic charge as the French beaches, and while I did notice people looking at me, the nature of the looks was hard to read. Curiosity? Mild interest? Disguised interest? I was simply obstructing the view? A (n English) friend of mine was amused to find himself attending a business meeting stark naked in a sauna with his Norwegian colleagues. I might have to write another piece on the disassociation of sexuality from nudity in German/Scandinavian culture. My North American bias tells me that this is a difficult exercise when it comes to the young and attractive, but I'd be very enthused to find out I'm wrong ! :)
Maybe you should do a whole series about nudity around the globe! Northern Europe would definitely be an interesting chapter. I've read that public nudity has been on the decline throughout Europe for a number of years, so that could be an interesting angle of approach
Very interesting! I’ve heard the same. I would have probably hated the beaches back in the 70s, although who knows? Maybe sporadic nudity is worse than ubiquitous nudity. Food for thought…
It's a pretty considerable counterfactual, but this strikes me as perfectly encapsulating what my various reactions would be were I a woman in a similar situation.
Thanks muchly for commiserating! As mentioned, I can’t quite tell if I’m socially and morally justified, or just plain jealous of all that barenaked youth. I’m looking forward to not caring about this kind of stuff anymore!
I'm curious if you have any thoughts on nudity in German culture. I've heard Germans claim they can disassociate sexuality from nudity (presumably even in the young and attractive), in spite of the fact that they too, like the French, confine public nudity to certain designated venues.
It's interesting that you should bring this up. I had the opportunity in my mid-twenties to spend a day at a spa in Baden Baden where there wasn't a stitch of clothing in sight. The nudity was certainly not limited to the young and attractive - most people were in fact middle-aged or older. It certainly didn't carry the same erotic charge as the French beaches, and while I did notice people looking at me, the nature of the looks was hard to read. Curiosity? Mild interest? Disguised interest? I was simply obstructing the view? A (n English) friend of mine was amused to find himself attending a business meeting stark naked in a sauna with his Norwegian colleagues. I might have to write another piece on the disassociation of sexuality from nudity in German/Scandinavian culture. My North American bias tells me that this is a difficult exercise when it comes to the young and attractive, but I'd be very enthused to find out I'm wrong ! :)