It had to happen

[Pads]

I knew it had to happen ..... my first embrassing slip up with my french.... trying to ask an older woman if she enjoyed the dancing at the our local village fete in the summer .... I mixed up L'ete for Lit and ended up asking her if she enjoyed dancing with the village in bed .... Oh dear ... after the inital shocked look on her face ... I managed to back track and explain what I meant

 

Back to the books [Www]

[Clair]

[:D][:D][:D]

Well done for actually making the effort to converse. I am sure it is appreciated [:)]

[Pads]

Im lucky that most people I talk to have a good sense of humour......[:)]

[odile]

Pads - I can assure you this was a very mild case! You cannot believe the mistakes I made when I (French speaker) first came to the UK! OH has made quite a few linguistic faux pas 'tother way round too. Didn't know the difference between his throat and his bum in very distinguised company. And the first conversation I had with future father in law was about the art of farting (eg applying was to skis - thought it was the same word in English....).

There is only one way to learn a language - to get on with it- they will ALL LOVE YOU FOR TRYING- and love you even more for making funny mistakes - most of which happen to be somewhat rude. Fact is you will mot make the same mistake twice... bonne chance et bravo

[odile]

see    great translation booboos on p. 3 (that sounds rude too... ooops)

[cassis]

Shortly after we moved here the OH tried to ask the baker whether the bread contained any preservatives.  The baker was a little taken aback by this suggestion.

[odile]

not as bad as our French assistante who asked the butcher if he had a big .... chicken (a la French)

[dragonrouge]

Not as bad as my wife who was talking to a visitor from the local hunt who called whilst I was out.  She said to this elderly gentleman that her grandfather was out and was due back in about six years.  She was of course referring to me and things have not quite been the same since!

Here in the Vendee we go weekly to the local AVF conversational course and yesterday I had to start proceedings with a discourse on politics and coming from Wales and with forefathers steeped in socialism as it was then it was not so much of a challenge and fine apart from one or two passe compose and future tense problems until I then started to describe the present President of the Republique as being extreme right wing.   I was taken apart for that comment is apparently directly towards the party of Le Pen. What I was trying to say was that the rights politics would be considered extreme when compared to my forefathers in Wales in the 1850's.  However as long as I can get by be understood and make a contribution it I think will be ok.

Simply fun but necessary for to integrate into the system and it makes you feel better and part of the whole thing!

[odile]

spot on dragonrouge - bravo (not about your politics (although I am on your side!) - but about your attitude to learning and integration. Bonne annee et bonne chance

[cooperlola]

I echo all the sentiments on here.  I hope it never happens to anybody on here but I've now been - through no fault of my own - in a French "institution" of one sort or another for more than 4 months.  I therefore speak and am spoken to in French all day every day, except when the o/h is there, somebody phones from the UK, or I'm on the net.  Stuff it if I make the odd gaff.  At least I can chat to people, even if they giggle at my mistakes from time to time.  This whole business would have been far worse if I couldn't speak  French, or didn't feel confident enough to do so.  Give it a go - there is nothing to lose.

[powerdesal]

I work for a French Company so, oddly enough, there is a lot of French spoken around me !!!!

But some are from the 'sarf'' down near the Spanish border and the French they speak is nothing like the French I attempted (without much success) to learn at Alliance Francais. In fact, I think its a totally different language [8-)]

[bubbles]

Our French home is in the "sarf", near the Spanish border (Med side - not Atlantic)

I find the accent there so much easier to understand than, say, a Parisian one.

Perhaps I have just got used to it.

Mind you, it took a while to recognise whether they were saying "vent" or "vin" - they both come out more or less the same.

[Patf]

[quote user="dragonrouge"]

 

Here in the Vendee we go weekly to the local AVF conversational course and yesterday I had to start proceedings with a discourse on politics and coming from Wales and with forefathers steeped in socialism as it was then it was not so much of a challenge and fine apart from one or two passe compose and future tense problems until I then started to describe the present President of the Republique as being extreme right wing.   I was taken apart for that comment is apparently directly towards the party of Le Pen. What I was trying to say was that the rights politics would be considered extreme when compared to my forefathers in Wales in the 1850's.  However as long as I can get by be understood and make a contribution it I think will be ok.

 

[/quote]

You are brave, dragonrouge. I also have roots in socialism coming fom a mining area of the NE of England, and can't imagine how to introduce that into a conversation with my elderly farming neighbours. There's just no equivalent. Except that they are accustomed to a similar level of poverty, though not the physical danger.

And an example of embarassing mistakes in the french language: souris and cerises. A french friend said he had his first cerise today. Thinking he meant mouse, I said does he want to borrow one of our cats?  [:$]

[Sunday Driver]

My first visit to France was in the 1960's when I was invited to spend my summer holidays with my new French penfriend.  We were invited to her parents for dinner, and after a fantastic meal, I sat back and declared "Je suis plein".

They all fell about laughing - then explained I'd said I was pregnant (or drunk).

Afterwards, her father made me sit down and explain the British political system to him - in French of course....[:-))]

 

 

[odile]

you've just made the history books SD - je suis plein = pregnant - in the 60s definitely not possible

I take to take a UK girlfriend aside and explain about the birds and the bees, when she declared at a summer party 'Je suis tres chaude'

[NormanH]

[quote user="powerdesal"] In fact, I think its a totally different language [8-)]

[/quote]

Quite a lot of the locals speak 'patois' which is a version of Occitan,  (the original language of the area, and the language of the 'troubadours' ) and the accent is very touched by that.

For example  far 'loin' in French is 'luènh' in Occitan and pronounced a bit like 'lweng' in the local accent

You can hear someone singing in Occitan here

[odile]

on a ski trip with my school a few years ago - one of the younger girls got really upset as outside our chalet was a big bin with  'PET - recyclez ici'!

And they loved the 'Tunnel de fartage' - they all had to go through and well... yes.

[mint]

Odile, it's the way you tell them![:D]

[powerdesal]

[quote user="NormanH"][quote user="powerdesal"] In fact, I think its a totally different language [8-)]

[/quote]

Quite a lot of the locals speak 'patois' which is a version of Occitan,  (the original language of the area, and the language of the 'troubadours' ) and the accent is very touched by that.

For example  far 'loin' in French is 'luènh' in Occitan and pronounced a bit like 'lweng' in the local accent

You can hear someone singing in Occitan here

[/quote]

There is definitely a lot of 'eng' and 'ang' in his  French, but, as he has invited me to visit  I feel I should try to understand his 'patois'

[velcorin]

It could be Catalan. Is Huit pronounced with a pronounced b sound, like Buit?

[powerdesal]

[quote user="velcorin"]It could be Catalan. Is Huit pronounced with a pronounced b sound, like Buit?[/quote]

I will have to study.

I insist on (trying to) speak in French, Andre insists on English. It is a problem.  All his men speak English not french., as do my men (all philipino). But.... with nicknames like ' Bon jovi' and 'Vlad the impaler' and 'Albert the Spark' its difficult to get a 'sensible' common language!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been called 'The count of Normandy' whilst, in retaliation I have named Andre as the ' Hermit of the Pyrenees(sp)' due to his anti-social tendencies.

Life has its good points [:D]