Oh my God - How difficult is French - the more I know the more I realise I don't know....
My goals for my trip have been to learn French in France and Spanish in South America, so here I am...after being with the family I realised I needed a more formal fench lesson so enrolled in one of the cheaper language schools - in Antibes.
I actually knew I needed brushing up on my french but I didn't think I needed a total workover like I do now....I realised when the teacher today asked me to repeat the word "rue" with a rolling of the "rrrrrs" like the french do (about 3 times) - that maybe it may not come so naturally to me - hahaha, I think for an Australian it is difficult....it's easier for Italians and those that already have the lilt of the language....perhaps...
Even the vocab - the word coup is often said and when I looked up the dictionary, there are about 50 meanings for the same word depending on what you want to say
coup means knock or blow or shock but also a shot with a firearm; also a golf stroke or tennis or du premier coup means - the first time and du meme coup - at the same time; apres coup is afterwards and un coup de main to someone is to give someone a hand with something, coup de chance is a stroke of luck etc etc
OMG, how hard is this !!!!
I am in a homestay with a french family and, at the moment 3 Italians and a Chek guy....it's very humbling....the Czek guy speaks really good english, the Italians speak very good french and I speak very good english and only can aspire to speak as well as they do.....for all of them it is their 2nd language....
The "parents" who own the home are lovely and speak to us (only in french of course) so often I don't say anything because, by the time I have formulated a sentence in my head, they are on to other conversations....maybe next week I'll be better....
My goals for my trip have been to learn French in France and Spanish in South America, so here I am...after being with the family I realised I needed a more formal fench lesson so enrolled in one of the cheaper language schools - in Antibes.
I actually knew I needed brushing up on my french but I didn't think I needed a total workover like I do now....I realised when the teacher today asked me to repeat the word "rue" with a rolling of the "rrrrrs" like the french do (about 3 times) - that maybe it may not come so naturally to me - hahaha, I think for an Australian it is difficult....it's easier for Italians and those that already have the lilt of the language....perhaps...
Even the vocab - the word coup is often said and when I looked up the dictionary, there are about 50 meanings for the same word depending on what you want to say
coup means knock or blow or shock but also a shot with a firearm; also a golf stroke or tennis or du premier coup means - the first time and du meme coup - at the same time; apres coup is afterwards and un coup de main to someone is to give someone a hand with something, coup de chance is a stroke of luck etc etc
OMG, how hard is this !!!!
I am in a homestay with a french family and, at the moment 3 Italians and a Chek guy....it's very humbling....the Czek guy speaks really good english, the Italians speak very good french and I speak very good english and only can aspire to speak as well as they do.....for all of them it is their 2nd language....
The "parents" who own the home are lovely and speak to us (only in french of course) so often I don't say anything because, by the time I have formulated a sentence in my head, they are on to other conversations....maybe next week I'll be better....
I am enjoying being here - it really is a beautiful place - the yachts are amazing - some are 4 storeys high - the largest in the harbour is the Eclipse - it is owned by a Russian of Ill-repute - here is a site about it - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/16/roman-abramovichs-eclipse_n_540947.html this is real - it's in the harbour now and looks just like the photos - how many full-time staff must they have...doesn't even bear thinking about...
One of the fellows on the course told me that when it was being built it was ordered at 164m long but while it was being built, someone built a boat 165m long so the owner changed the plans to 166m - cost - $400 Million. Can you believe it??? It is another world here - the boat are enormous - I will take photos tomorrow and send them....
The beaches are not like ours - some pebbly and others with course sand but I am very close to Juan-les-Pins - like the song that Peter Sarstedt sang - "you go to Juan-les- Pins ...... with your carefully designed topless swimsuit, you get an even sun tan on your back and on your legs...."
I went here and it's a nightmare with wall-to-wall or should I say people to people on the beach often not room enough to even put a towel and the sand is course and not that attractive but it is the Riviera so....who cares!!!???? I suppose...
I went here and it's a nightmare with wall-to-wall or should I say people to people on the beach often not room enough to even put a towel and the sand is course and not that attractive but it is the Riviera so....who cares!!!???? I suppose...
As a traveler, you realise that you are at the mercy of the people of that town/country because you come with a little knowledge of the country and city and a want to become part of it - you have a place to stay (often) but directions and real knowledge of the place are only attained with time....and often you don't have long enough to discover that....you really know nothing of the place or the people by the time you leave....
That's me for now and as they say here....a bientot - see you soon (although I'm missing the accents on my keyboard).
That's me for now and as they say here....a bientot - see you soon (although I'm missing the accents on my keyboard).
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