Ah my accent

[Battypuss]

Arriving here some 13 years ago, I thought I had a reasonable grasp of French. Huh. I didn't have a clue! Now I can understand Normandy-style French and the bangs and bongs from the south, but Canadian French leaves me speechless and incomprehending. Odd, all three kids can understand it fine!

[Lepoulailler]

I once tried to tell the vet that the dog had a bone stuck in it's throat and in fact said that it was stuck in it's ar*e!!!

Peta

Quote from my 4 year old completely bi-lingual daughter 'Maman tu casse mes oreilles'....

There is just no hope for some of us.

[Chrisb]

Yes, Peta, I've done that,too!! We had friends round for dinner the other evening and were discussing stereotypes - I mention Johnny Onions with the string of onions wrapped round his ar**e, instead of his neck!!

Chris

[Coco]

I've had experience of that one too!  About three years ago I had a really bad neck and had it in a collar during my Easter stay in France.  The guy in our local pizzeria had quite a sense of humour and when we were back again in the summer, in a full bar, he asked me how my bad arm was.  Then said, "it was your arm wasn't it?"  knowing full well that it was my neck and that I would stumble over the pronunciation of neck yet again, and make the locals roar with laughter when I told them I had a stiff a*se!

[Liz]

[quote]I'll never lose it, in spite of my best efforts. Today I had to go out and there was a woman in the waiting room with me and very bavarde she was too. I went in for my appointment and she was waitin...[/quote]

I met a woman from a neighbouring Department recently. She told me that although I had an English accent she also detected the accent of my Department. 'We speak quite differently' she said.

So, I wouldn't mind betting, TU, that you already have the Savoyarde accent yourself but the woman's accent was so strong she didn't recognise it.

Where, by the way, is the 'best' french spoken?

Liz (29)

[Tourangelle]

[quote]I met a woman from a neighbouring Department recently. She told me that although I had an English accent she also detected the accent of my Department. 'We speak quite differently' she said.So, I wou...[/quote]

Of course it is not just accent that marks you out as living in a particular region. In Lyon, people use the expression "j'ai des soucis de..." as a synonym for "j'ai des problèmes avec", which I have not come across elsewhere. For example, "j'ai des soucis de téléphone portable"

Liz,when I lived in Tours, people claimed that the purest French in France is spoken there.

[Mistral]

when I lived in Tours, people claimed that the purest French in France is spoken there.

Yes, I've been told that too.

I've lived in the south west, south east, normandy and the swiss border and my husband is from brittany so I have no trouble with those accents. But we were on holiday last year in very rural ardeche, and it took me a while to understand everything they said there (but my husband had the same problem which was reassuring)

We watched le declin de l'empire américain and invasions barbares the other day and after about 10 minutes I adapted to the quebecois accent, although the voabulary was harder.

There's an author called Henriette Walter who produced a map of France based on what different regions call the object they wash the floor with. It's one of those great conversation starters. You tell people that and then leave them to discuss mops (for hours) Then you ask them if they use a mop or a rag and broom and that starts them off again...

[Teamedup]

No Savoyarde sounds from me. In Paris someone asked if I was from 'provence' as they detected a little accent....... a couple of blokes from the group I was with nearly split their sides laughing.

[Miki]

[quote]when I lived in Tours, people claimed that the purest French in France is spoken there. Yes, I've been told that too. I've lived in the south west, south east, normandy and the swiss border and m...[/quote]

Of the hundreds of people that we get through the doors, the Tourraine French are certainly amongst the most clear and easy to quickly understand, rather like Surrey English I guess (whoops that could blow up a storm but hopefully you will get my drift) Hardest in our life here in France, was in Provence, terribly difficult with the older folk and even the young acquired the "twang" quite early.

Never had too much problem tuning the ear in to the people in the Dordogne but here in Brittany, again, the elder folk and their Breton accent or the patois they can sometimes break in to, can be difficult but in general after the 6 years down here, we are OK for the most part now.

My accent, as so often with us Brits, is either quickly guessed as anglais or if my French is going well (4 pastis, some vin rouge and some eau de vie to follow) then it becomes nord est possibly Alsace and Daughter even now, when we think she is pretty much French, can be mistaken, especially in Saint Malo, for a Canadian (Quebecois) or again, nord est.

What do I care, we all speak French but as Eric said, not neccessarily in the right order !