Phillip1969

Hi everyone, I have never really gotten on learning French and only know the most basic stuff. I'm interested in finding some sort of French course, in the UK, that is run intensively. I don't really want CDs or books, as I really need a teacher so that I can ask questions if I have them. It could be as short as a couple of days or could last as much as a week. Can anyone recommend anywhere? I also don't have a huge amount of money to spend. Probably £200 tops. Any suggestions?

Of course, I should mention that I haven't tried this with anyone French yet. I can, however, speak a fair level of German and have tried the same thing over there. Should be transferable, non?

This is an interesting phenomenon that I think affects a lot of people when talking to speakers of other languages. People do not expect to understand, particularly if they don't speak a second language themselves and particularly if they are not well travelled. This is all the truer when one uses sophisticated or idiomatic peech. If a native had said it, in exactly the same way, it would be understood but if, in this case, a non-French person says the same thing, it is assumed to be unintelligible. What I have found to help is to say everything with great confidence, both in the tone and with one's body language. Look at them as though they should understand and that, if they don't, there must be something wrong with them. I've found that it reduces the problem by about 80%.

Have you considered starting small and building up? Often, with the removal of the expenses of offices etc and the "avoidance" of red tape, a business like this in France can be far more profitable than any fully fledged enterprise.