Transform the way you speak, think and feel French

Bonjour,

I hope you and yours are well.

Here in France, my efforts to learn to speak French better are, I think, starting to pay off. A couple of weeks ago I did my first radio interview in French, talking about why Provence, (where I was at the time), is a great place to visit in autumn, discovering the colourful vineyards, meeting the producers and learning about the provenance of Rhone Valley wines, the lovely warm days even in October, fabulous restaurants and gorgeous little villages (I’ll be writing about it in the magazine soon – as well as updating you on my recent visits to Grasse, the perfume capital of France, and the French Riviera).

Many will tell you that the French get a bit peeved if you muddle the words and strangle the grammar, but that’s not true, generally they’re impressed if you even try. My French wasn’t perfect in the interview, but I did my best.

My advice is, if you come to France, and you’re not au fait with French, try to speak a little bit of French, even if it’s just s’il vous plait (please), and merci (thank you), it will make a big impact. And my top tip is to stock your memory up on the bon (good) words and use them a lot – bonjour (to everyone you meet, the most important word in the French language, probably), bon appétit (whenever you eat), bonne journée, bon après-midi, bon soirée, bon dimanche, bon anniversaire, bonnes vacances and bon courage – use these liberally, and you’ll do just fine. Chuck in a few shoulder shrugs, eye rolls and sighs to help to make yourself understood. Add in a few ‘houp-là’s’ (whoops), ‘pfff’s’ (sigh), ‘oula’ (wow in a good way) and oh la la’s (wow in a negative way) and that should be enough to get you through almost any situation!

In April I’m going a step further in my French language learning quest, I’m heading to one of my favourite places in France, lovely Aix-en-Provence, to spend a week immersing myself in the lifestyle of the sunny city, combining class-based French lessons in the morning and excursions in the afternoon – enjoying the culture of Aix from wine tasting to Cezanne’s workshop and much more. It’s a small group programme and there’s room for a few more people – so if you’re interested in improving your French, discovering Aix (I will be sharing all my favourite places!), enjoying fabulous food and wine and getting deep into the French lifestyle, come spend a week that will transform the way you speak, think, and feel French, you can find details here: slimmersion.com

Wishing you a very bon weekend – wherever you are!
Bisous from France,
Janine
Editor

PS Top photo: Autumn in Provence, looking over the tiny village of Suzette, Vaucluse

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