Cultivate your French - Slow French: Recent Episodes
Laetitia Perraut
Do you want to improve your listening skills and comprehension of the French as it is spoken in France? With Cultivate Your French podcast, things go smoothly. This is slow French podcast. But it's also a podcast in which you hear about everyday life in France, in which you hear stories and meet French people.
Last Tuesday, I went with Micaela to an acrobatics class at a Chinese circus school in Montreuil. She was keen to try out the class with a view to improving her kung fu. Montreuil is a large, popular town to the east of Paris. Artists love it because you can still find unusual buildings to set up your studio. It's a very lively town, a ‘ Ville-monde ’ as Gilles Soufi would have said, even if it is in the process of becoming gentrified.
In the notes that accompany the text of this episode, we'll look at three natural turns of phrase in French. We'll also look at one sentence in particular, which is an application of a grammar lesson.
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FrenchListening #LearnFrenchPodcast #FrenchCulture #ParisSurroundings #FrenchConversation #AdvancedFrench #FrenchImmersion #FrenchStory #RealFrenchLife #FrenchLanguageLearning
Last week, I walked through the doors of the Sorbonne, the famous university, the oldest in France, which has been in existence since the 13th century. I was there to meet linguist Gilles Siouffi, who has just written a book on the linguistic history of Paris. His book is called ‘Paris Babel’. I loved this book, which reads like a novel and allows us to take a closer look at the history of French as it has never been told before.
The seventeenth century is a very important century in the history of French. People fight over who has the best French. That's what Gilles Siouffi will be explaining in today's episode. He'll also talk about pronunciation patterns.
The interview with Gilles Siouffi will be available in full on One Thing In A French Day, so be sure to tune in.
In the notes that accompany the podcast, we'll look at three natural turns of phrase in French. We'll also develop a strategy for learning a verb quoted in the text, which is very useful in everyday French.
So, to cultivate your ‘bon’ French, I invite you to subscribe to the podcast notes.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
frenchcourtlanguage #versaillesfrench #17thcenturyfrench #frenchpronunciationhistory #sociallanguagetrendsfrance #frenchclassdistinctions #parisvsversailles #frenchlanguagefashions #historicalfrenchspeech #frenchlinguisticsorbonne
I don't know about you, but I don't write letters any more, at least not handwritten ones, because you could say that some emails are letters. So I was delighted to discover the café Pli in Paris, a letter café. My friend Lorena and I went there a few days ago. The café is located in an area of Paris that I know well, not far from the Place de la République.
The formula is simple: you order a drink and they give you an envelope, a card and some paper to write a letter that will be sent in one, five or twenty years' time. Once your letter is ready, you place it in the rack that corresponds to the date it will be sent. The wall of racks is impressive, full of letters.
What was it like for Lorena and me? That's what we tell you in this episode, recorded as we left the Café Pli.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll be looking at the words ‘ambiance’ and ‘moment’ to see how we like to describe them in French. There will also, of course, be a conjugation strategy around a particularly useful verb, because just because a verb is useful doesn't mean it's useful to know all its tenses. You need a strategy.
So if you want to cultivate your French in a letter or with a strategy, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
FrenchWriting #LetterWritingFrench #FrenchCafe #ParisCafeLife #FrenchLanguageLearning #ParisHiddenGems #FrenchConversation #FrenchCulture #LearnFrenchPodcast #AuthenticFrench
Last week we had lunch with Pauline at Coda. As we live in the same neighbourhood, she offered me a lift in her new car. And this car isn't just any car, it's the new favourite of the French: the electric R5. The R5 is an old model brought up to date, an iconic car from the 80s. We recorded our journey through Paris. Pauline really enjoys driving around town in her new R5. But what about the power? I become a motoring journalist in this episode.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we're going to highlight the typical turns of speech in our conversation. We'll also look at the best strategy for learning the conjugation of two verbs used in this episode and very common in French. What is an optimal strategy? Well, the minimum amount of learning for the maximum amount of use in real life.
So, to cultivate your French in the optimum way, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe to transcpript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
FrenchPodcast #LearnFrench #ElectricCar #RenaultR5 #ParisLife #FrenchConversation #CarVocabulary #ModernFrench #DailyFrench #FrenchListening
Cette semaine, nous allons à nouveau au restaurant, mais cette fois avec mon amie Pauline. Après le bouillon, c’est le bistrot qui nous attend. Le bistrot parisien a beaucoup évolué depuis les années 2000, du restaurant de quartier un peu désuet aux nappes à carreaux rouges, on est passé à un restaurant de quartier, toutjours, mais tenu par des jeunes chefs avides de créativité, d’amitié, de vins naturels et de produits locaux. C’est ce qu’on appelle « la bistronomie » qui est un mot valise composé de « bistrot » et « gastronomie ». Dans cet épisode, Pauline va nous raconter son déjeuner : ce qu’elle a mangé, mais aussi ce qui lui a plu dans ce restaurant.
Dans les notes qui accompagnent le transcript, vous trouverez des notes culturelles sur ce type de restaurant, des photos de nos plats, et nous allons nous pencher sur les mots et les trournures de prhases que Pauline emploie pour partager avec nous son expérience.
This week we're going to the restaurant again, but this time with my friend Pauline. After the bouillon, it's the bistrot that awaits us. The Parisian bistrot has come a long way since the 2000s, going from being a slightly old-fashioned neighbourhood restaurant with red-checked tablecloths to being a neighbourhood restaurant, run by young chefs eager for creativity, friendship, natural wines and local produce. This is what's known as ‘ bistronomie ’, a word made up of ‘ bistrot ’ and ‘ gastronomie ’. In this episode, Pauline tells us about her lunch: what she ate, but also what she liked about the restaurant.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, you'll find cultural notes on this type of restaurant, photos, and we'll be looking at the words and phrases Pauline uses to share her experience with us.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
FrenchPodcast #FrenchCuisine #BistronomyParis #LearnFrenchVocabulary #FrenchFoodCulture #ParisRestaurants #FrenchListeningPractice #AuthenticFrench #FrenchGastronomy #FrenchConversation
Last week, I saw my friend Caroline. We'd booked tickets to see a play at the Théâtre des Abbesses in Montmartre. We'd arranged to meet at the Place de Clichy. As we had time for a little dinner, Caroline suggested the Bouillon Pigalle, a typically Parisian and inexpensive restaurant. That's the dinner I'm telling you about in this episode.
In the accompanying notes, we'll take a look at the history of bouillons, as well as the typical restaurant vocabulary developed in this episode. Then you'll be ready to order!
So if you want to cultivate your French “bouillonnant”, the Slow Way, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Join me in today's episode as I share how my daughter Felicia's school presentation on nuclear energy unexpectedly connected with the morning news! Discover how this mirrors information from Felicia's research on nuclear energy production costs compared to other energy sources. I'll also share some thoughts on France's historical dependency on nuclear energy
Perfect for learners looking to improve their listening skills with authentic French content!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
FrenchPodcast #LearnFrenchOnline #DailyFrenchListener #FrenchComprehension #NuclearEnergy #EnvironmentalFrench #FrenchListening #EasyFrenchPractice #ParisianLife #FrenchWithTranscript #SlowFrench
In this episode of "Cultivate Your French," I share a family anecdote about the famous "Le Jeu des Mille Euros" radio game and our discovery of France's tallest skyscraper.
This episode follows the "right pace" method with both slow and normal versions of the same content in sequence - designed to build your listening comprehension progressively.
First, you'll hear the story at a gentle pace to understand vocabulary and structure, then at natural speed to develop real-world listening skills.
Subscribers receive the complete transcript, vocabulary notes, and cultural insights to fully support your French learning journey!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
SlowFrench #FrenchComprehension #LearnFrenchMethodically #FrenchListeningPractice #TwoSpeedFrench #FrenchProgressionMethod #FrenchPodcastWithTranscript #RightPaceFrench #FrenchRadioShow #AuthenticFrenchLearning
In today's episode of "Cultivate Your French," Lisa and I take you on a delicious French pastry tasting adventure! We compare strawberry tarts and other desserts from several renowned pastry shops in our neighborhood, including the famous Lola tart from Arnaud Larher and creations from award-winning pastry chef Stéphane Glacier. Join us for this unscripted conversation as we discuss textures, flavours, and what makes the perfect French pastry.
Perfect for French learners who want to improve their listening skills with authentic conversation about French culinary culture.
Subscribe for the full transcript and cultural notes!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
FrenchTasteTest #FrenchPastryTour #LearnFrenchWithFood #FrenchStrawberryTart #ParisianPastries #DailyFrenchPractice #AuthenticFrenchConversation #FrenchListeningPractice #FrenchCulturalImmersion #FrenchFoodVocabulary
Join me and my daughter Lisa on our search for the perfect strawberry tart! We explore Asnières, a town near Paris, visiting a comic book store and a famous pastry shop.
Discover the town hall where I got married years ago, and follow our quest for seasonal treats as spring begins.
This mother-daughter conversation provides natural French vocabulary about books, pastries, and seasonal specialties - perfect for improving your listening skills!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
LearnFrenchBaking #FrenchPastry #FrenchListeningPractice #ParisianBakeries #StrawberryTart #FrenchDesserts #EverydayFrench #AuthenticFrench #FrenchFoodVocabulary #FrenchCulture
Last Saturday, on a warm and sunny afternoon, I met Emilie from the Instagram account @shotdecafeine. It was Micaela who introduced me to her account, because Emilie has a rather creative way of running in Paris. You'll find out how in this episode. We've reached the point in the conversation where Emilie tells me that she had the idea of running along the metro lines after running with a colleague from La Défense, where they work, to his home near the Château de Vincennes for an aperitif and cheese.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll be looking at the patisseries that Emilie has mentioned thanks to her journeys. I'll tell you what's special about these pastries and whether they've already been mentioned in the podcast. You're in for a real treat.
So if you'd like to cultivate your French in the Slow way and in a creative way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
FrenchRunning #ParisRunning #FrenchPastries #LearnFrench #FrenchPodcast #RunningInParis #MarathonDeParis #FrenchVocabulary #FrenchListening #PracticalFrench
In this episode, I take you on a journey to Argenteuil, a suburb of Paris made famous by Impressionist painters like Claude Monet.
Join me as I travel on bus 164 to a kung-fu competition, while discovering the charming neighborhoods where Monet lived and painted for five years. I share my observations of the Seine river, the historic Argenteuil bridge that appears in many famous paintings, and my plans to visit Monet's house with its recreated boat-studio.
This episode also offers practical French vocabulary about transportation and movement with a focus on the versatile verb "passer" and the pronoun "y". Perfect for intermediate French learners who want to improve their comprehension while discovering French art history and daily life outside Paris.
www.cultivateyourfrench.co
LearnFrenchWithPodcast #ImpressionistArtists #ClaudeMonet #Argenteuil #FrenchCulture #FrenchListening #ParisSuburbs #FrenchJourney #PracticalFrench #DailyFrenchLife
Do two and two make five? Yes, sometimes on certain artificial intelligence platforms. So can we say that AIs are stupid? I had a conversation with Olivier, a computer scientist friend who has been passionately following developments in AI for his work for many years. He's going to give us his answer from a professional's point of view. This will be an opportunity to discover the vocabulary of AI in French.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll focus on Olivier's way of speaking. Olivier is a professional who is used to explaining complicated things, adding nuance or asserting facts. How does he do this in French? We're going to take a look at the subtleties of his speech. And then, perhaps you'll share with us your uses of artificial intelligence?
So, to cultivate your French, subtly and the Slow Way, with or without AI, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
ArtificialIntelligence #FrenchTech #LearnFrench #FrenchPodcast #AIExplained #FrenchConversation #ChatGPT #TechVocabulary #FrenchListening #FrenchTechnology
In the notes that accompany the transcript, you'll find the 2020 notes: a list of vocabulary to read before listening to the episode, so that you understand it better the first time, cultural references and three useful expressions to remember, with examples of how to apply them.
So if you want to cultivate your French, the slow way version 2020, I invite you to subscribe to cultivateyourfrench.com
We had Lisa's Italian exchange student with us for a week. She left yesterday and in 10 days' time it will be Lisa's turn to go to Italy. Lisa's Italian friend did a lot of visiting with her class, but at the weekend she was with us, so we prepared a programme for her: the department stores, a view of Paris from the terrace of Galeries Lafayettes, a play in a small theatre near the Moulin Rouge, dinner at a crêperie and a trip to the Eiffel Tower in the evening. In the morning, we'd also done a bit of shopping in our neighbourhood. It was Saturday 8 March and we stopped to have a look at the window of the bookshop, which had women's rights as its theme.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, you'll find some cultural notes and we'll look at three useful expressions in French with examples. I often choose expressions that may seem simple, but are in fact typical of natural French.
So, to cultivate your French, the Slow way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript, a very useful tool in lots of good ways.
www.onethinginafrenchday.com
Every winter vacation, we take the girls away for a few days. The destination is kept secret until the last minute. This year, it was Mont Saint-Michel. Micaela found our destination when I gave the following clue: it's a controversial place. Indeed, we like to play around in France with the geographical location of Mont Saint-Michel. The Bretons like to say that it's in Brittany, whereas it's in Normandy, because the bay of Mont Saint-Michel lies between the two regions. When you arrive by car, you have to walk three-quarters of an hour to get to the Mont via a footbridge. It's a lovely walk. Then you have to climb a lot of steps to reach the abbey, where we had booked a visit.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we'll take a look at the pronunciation of the difficult words in this episode. There will also be three natural French expressions with examples and, of course, photos of our visit!
To cultivate your French, and take the bridge with us, the Slow way, I invite you to subscribe!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
This week, I invite you to discover or rediscover an episode recorded in February 2020. It was after a period of strikes in the Paris transport system and a month before the start of the lockdown. Lisa was ten at the time. We were both taking Bollywood dance classes on Saturday mornings.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, you'll find cultural explanations, but also three expressions that are natural in French, with examples of how they're used.
So, to improve your French, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
So last week we went to the Opéra Garnier to see Castor et Pollux, a lyrical tragedy by Jean-Philippe Rameau, directed by Peter Sellars. I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy the show. But what did it turn out to be? That's what I tell you in this episode.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we're going to make a list of practical phrases for giving your opinion of a show, rather enthusiastically, and discover a range of formulations that may be useful to you in other circumstances too. Of course, there will also be photos of this unforgettable evening! So you'll discover, as I did, that the Opera is a place where you like to take your time, the Slow Way. I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
A few months ago, Pietro and I were offered a ‘box’, a gift box, to go to the Opera. We chose to go and see Jean-Philippe Rameau's lyrical tragedy Castor et Pollux, directed by Peter Sellars. The orchestra is the Utopia Ensemble, led by the Greek-Russian conductor Teodor Currentzis.
Before going to this exceptional evening, tomorrow Thursday 13 February, I did some research on the composer, but I also read some reviews of this new staging. I don't know if it was a good idea.
By the way, when I say ‘the opera’, do I mean ‘the Opéra Garnier’ in central Paris, built by Charles Garnier in the 19th century, or ‘the Opéra Bastille’, inaugurated a hundred years later?
You'll find out in this episode.
The transcript is a very practical and effective tool for improving your understanding. It has a number of advantages, which I describe in detail on www.cultivateyourfrench.comThat's where you can subscribe to receive it and cultivate your French, the Slow Way.
This week, in the notes accompanying the transcript, you'll find a list of very natural expressions from this text and we'll be focusing on two words in particular with examples of their natural use in French.
Lisa had a French assignment due on Sunday evening. She had to choose a poem from Book IV of Victor Hugo's Contemplations and then send in a ten-minute audio file in which she presented the poem, explained her choice, read the poem and finally suggested a parallel with a painting. All the poems in the collection deal with the same subject: the disappearance of Victor Hugo's daughter, Léopoldine, and how sad this death made him. The poem Lisa chose was entitled ‘A quoi songeaient les deux cavaliers dans la forêt’ (‘What were the two horsemen thinking about in the forest’).
It was Sunday afternoon and I wanted to take a nap after my Nordic walking session, but Lisa wanted to read me her assignment before recording it. She was annoyed because she hadn't found a painting, but a piece of music to go with it.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we're going to look at liaisons in French. When do we do them? When don't we? And so on. Liaisons are particularly important in poetry, because they sometimes make it possible to obtain the required number of feet, for example to form an alexandrine. But what about in everyday life? We'll be comparing the liaisons in today's text and in Victor Hugo's poem.
So to improve your French liaisons, the Slow way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, I visited the offices of the newspaper Le Monde. I had an appointment with Nabil Wakim, the journalist who runs the podcast Chaleur humaine. It's a podcast that takes an expert but relaxed look at the various issues surrounding climate change, with expert guests. Each episode takes the form of a question. For example, the last episode was entitled ‘How can we save the Mediterranean Sea?
I met Nabil Wakim at the Human Heat Ideas festival last December. I was there with my daughter Micaela, who is particularly interested in the subject of climate change. We had a chance to talk to him and he agreed to be interviewed. So we met last week. I chose a passage in which he talks about the French approach to climate change.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll look at the way Nabil Wakim constructs his answer to make it clear: he makes oppositions, he uses adjectives of different intensities, and so on.
So, to cultivate your French, the Slow way, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
I hadn't really followed the story. Of course, I knew that transport fares were going to change in the Ile-de-France, that the price of a ticket outside Paris was going to be a single rate of 2.50 euros. I imagined some sort of magic ticket that would allow me to go further than Bécon if I suddenly changed my plans.
Then, one day when we were coming back from Nordic walking, Thierry mentioned the Navigo Liberté. The Navigo is a pass, with a photo, that allows you to travel throughout the Ile-de-France region for a single monthly or weekly rate. It's a season ticket. Until now, I didn't move around enough to take it. But we're going to talk about this in this episode.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll look together at three expressions or turns of phrase that are natural in French. We'll also notice which tense I use and how I compose my sentence when I give Pietro some advice in this episode.
So, to improve your French and learn how to give advice, I invite you (‘advice from a friend’) to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, I told you about our trip to the bakery before going to the theatre. We arrived at the theatre half an hour before the play was due to start. It was very busy, and the play was a great success. We showed our tickets and settled in. You could say that there was a performance before the performance when you take the time to watch or listen to what's going on around you. That's what this episode is about.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we'll look at three natural turns of phrase in French and we'll also look at a series of practical phrases for talking about theatre.
I'll also suggest that you send me a booking for an upcoming play at the Théâtre Saint-Martin by leaving me a message on the podcast answering machine.
So, to cultivate your French for cultural life, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
On Friday 27 December, Pietro and I went to see La serva amorosa at the Porte Saint-Martin theatre. The theatre was built in two months on the orders of Marie-Antoinette. It is magnificent. The play is a very beautiful play by the Italian author Goldoni. It was performed by great actors, including Isabelle Carré in the lead role, that of Coraline. Before going to the theatre, we took a walk along the Canal Saint-Martin and stopped to buy a bite to eat at Du pain et des idées, one of the most famous bakeries in Paris. They make Pain des amis, a sourdough bread. It was almost closing time, but there was still a bit of choice.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we'll note all the interesting expressions in this ‘bakery scene’. We're going to have fun varying them a little to discover new ones and get ready to buy bread at the boulangerie in French.
To practise your boulangerie French the slow way, Slow does not only mean slow pace, but also mindful learning, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Dear listeners, I wish you all une très belle et heureuse année 2025. I wish you a wonderful year filled with the joy of learning another language, opening up to another culture and meeting new people thanks to French! And, of course, good health.
In today's episode, we take a look back at our New Year's Eve party. We were invited to dinner at the house of our friends Isabelle and Thierry, who live in a house in Colombes.In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll be trying to make resolutions to find our way around French in 2025, we'll also be getting curious by taking a closer look at the wine mentioned in this episode and finally, there'll be a phrase to repeat out loud! On ne perd pas les bonnes habitudes !
So, to cultivate you French in 2025, I invite you to subcribe to the transcript and get all the positive effects all the full experience. www.cultivateyourfrench.com
There's a giveaway with the podcast at the moment to win books, you'll find all the details in the latest podcast blog post.
I invite you to take part!
By the way, I'd like to thank you for all the messages I've already received, it's so exciting to read you and find out what you like about the podcast.
This year, as usual, we celebrated Christmas: Christmas Eve on the 24th, opening presents on the 25th in the morning and lunch with a beautiful poultry, a lovely cheese platter and a bûche!
We like to prepare a home-made bûche. It's always a bit stressful because from one year to the next I can never remember which recipe I used for the biscuit.
This time, I used the Savoie biscuit recipe and everything seemed to go well.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, I'll suggest a routine to improve your listening comprehension based on the podcast. I'll also be inviting you to share yours!
Of course, there will be a few Christmas photos and we'll take a look at three very natural French expressions.
To cultivate your French, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Today we're back with French cheesemonger Augustin Denous. He's the author of a fascinating little book about cheese, which I recommend you get if you want to understand all the different aspects of cheese. Last week, Augustin gave us his definition of a good cheese. In his book, he explains that cheeses have seasons, so I asked him what his favourites were for late autumn. That's the subject of this episode.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we'll see how Ausgustin talks about Comté in particular. I'll also suggest a sentence for you to repeat, as it's a very powerful exercise for improving your spoken French. You can send me your phrase on the podcast answering machine.
So to cultivate your French for cheese, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
On my way back from the Jura, in a shop in Beaune, I came across a little yellow book that caught my eye: Le bon fromage. I looked through it and was immediately won over. Above all, I thought of you, dear listeners. At last, a simple, interesting book that opens up new perspectives and explains a whole host of things: from the importance of the meadow, to the composition of a cheese platter, not forgetting how it's made, the different regions of France, and so on. All in very accessible, yet enriching, French.
The author of this book runs two shops in Boulogne-Billancourt, near Paris. His name is Augustin Denous, and he's a very nice man who likes to share his knowledge and experience, so he agreed to talk to us about good cheese.
Today's episode is an extract from that interview, in which Augustin gives us his definition of ‘good cheese’, after specifying that a good cheese is one that brings us emotion, whether it's an industrial or artisan cheese.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we'll look at how Augustin constructs this definition and how this construction can be useful in other circumstances. A link will also give you access to the whole episode and its transcript published on One Thing In A French Day.
So, to Cultivate your cheese knowledge, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
— We should go and meet our MP. I think your listeners would be interested!
Pierre had an excellent idea.
After contacting our MP, his parliamentary assistant, Shéri Diop, suggested that we meet at the Assemblée Nationale for an interview.
It was very impressive to have an appointment in such a beautiful building and to be welcomed so warmly.
Mr Juvin was mayor of La Garenne-Colombes for many years before being elected as a Member of Parliament. He has been an MP since 2022. His electoral district covers Bois-Colombes, La Garenne-Colombes and Courbevoie. In civilian life, he is a professor of medicine and is currently head of the emergency department at Georges Pompidou Hospital in Paris.
He welcomed us to his office. In this episode, I invite you to listen to the part of the interview in which Philippe Juvin explains his role as an MP.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we will look at how Mr Juvin constructs a very clear speech and how he goes about it.
You will also find a link to the audio and full transcript of this part of the interview, in which he goes on to explain the differences and similarities between the role of mayor and that of MP.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The house was silent and I wondered what Lisa was doing that Sunday afternoon. I could already see her laughing at a Squizzie video on YouTube. Now that I know what she was doing, I think she was sighing, but it wouldn't be long before she was laughing. Lisa was reading for her French class.
In the notes that go with the transcript, I'll give you a quick introduction to the author of the text she was reading and some very famous lines. We'll also look at Lisa's sentence construction when she tells me the story of the play and we'll see how to use this construction to talk about a character by explaining its intentions. This will be applicable in everyday life, of course!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Are you familiar with the Vendée Globe race? It's a solo round-the-world yacht race on a small boat, a monohull. A race without assistance! It's what we call a ‘sick race’. Every four years, the participants set off from Les Sables d'Olonne, in Vendée, and arrive in Le Sable d'Olonne after sailing around the world from west to east.
Pietro is very fond of this race, and has been taking part virtually for several years. What exactly do I mean by ‘virtually’, that's what you're going to find out in this episode, among other slightly wacky things.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, you'll find three useful and natural expressions in French, with examples. We'll also take a closer look at what the little word ‘bien’ can change in a sentence. Especially when you're investigating, my dear Watson.
So, if you want to cultivate your French, not virtually, but the Slow and at the right pace way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
On Friday, I met up with my friend Anne-Laure for lunch at a cute little restaurant in La Garenne-Colombes. To warm us up, we ordered tea. ‘Let it steep for two minutes’, said the lady in the restaurant. Everything changed when I removed the tea bag. Fortunately, as they say in French, ‘le ridicule ne tue pas’.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we're going to play around with switching certain sentences from indirect speech to direct speech, because it's very useful to know how to do that when you're telling someone something, a little adventure that's happened to you, for example. We're also going to identify some pronouns to see how they're used in the sentences in the episode. It's a good opportunity to pick up some automatic patterns, both when you're listening and when you need to express yourself.
So if you want to cultivate your French, the Slow Way, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
As I prepare this episode, we still don't know the result of the US elections. I hope this episode will give you a break from the stress of the election campaign.
Last week, we were in the Jura mountains. We went for a walk with Eric Wolff, a naturalist guide, around the village of Etival. After climbing ‘Le Mont Paradis’, where we were able to observe a number of different plant species, we went back down a wooded path to look for animal tracks - there were traces of wild boar.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, there will be photos of the walk, but we're also going to look at a word that occurs three times in the text, but in different contexts. If you have time, I'll suggest that you send me a mini-story about the wolf or a phrase to repeat on the podcast answering machine.
So, to cultivate your French, the slow way, I invite you to follow in the footsteps of the wolf, er, of the other subscribers.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
After going to the bakery, in last week episode, two days later, I went back to Bécon, this time to withdraw money from the ATM. Lisa was with me. Perhaps she'll tell us about her cinnamon roll?
In the notes that accompany the transcript, you'll find an assortment of super-practical phrases about withdrawing money from an ATM. Yes, yes, you also need to know how to speak ATM French!
So if you want to cultivate your French and have a nice assortment of words about withdrawing money, I invite you to subscribe.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Today's episode is a live recording. I recorded it on Monday morning on my way to do an errand. The recording starts outside my building. It's a chance for you to hear some totally natural French, as well as a real dialogue at the bakery.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll look at all the expressions that are typical in this dialogue and how you can use them.
So, to cultivate and improve your French at the boulangerie, the slow way, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
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On Saturday nights, we eat a slice of homemade pizza in front of the TV. But not on Sunday evenings. this Sunday, Lisa suggested we watch something. By the time we'd agreed, Pietro's soup was ready. We watched a live political debate on France 5. The subject of the debate was the importance of ecology in the new government. There were a few sighs at the beginning of the programme, but by the end we were all hooked.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll make a list of practical phrases for debating or expressing your opinion. It's always useful in a discussion.
So if you want to improve your French, the slow way, and debate in French, I invite you to subscribe.
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When Micaela was a baby, one of my favourite walks was to the Pont de Levallois. If I saw a barge, I thought I'd won the barge game. If I didn't see one, I'd lost. Sometimes I'd see two or even three barges. It was a real party.
Since then, playing the game of barges has become a sort of reflex whenever a member of the family passes over the bridge or on a train over the Seine.
In this episode, I tell you about a new version of the game that my father and I are developing.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll look at three natural French expressions that come from the text and we'll focus on the phrase in the text that contains the locution ‘en train de’, which means « in the process of », and we'll see how it's very important when we're talking about something.
So, if you're ‘in the process of’ cultivating your French, the slow way, at the right pace, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
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Today we're not going to talk about choux, but about sous (money). Cultural differences are sometimes also differences in financial culture, as my friend Pierre explained to me about mortgages. It's his job, and he knows the French banking industry very well. He's going to compare a few aspects of mortgages in France and the United States. The first difference is that there is no credit score in France. In this episode, Pierre will tell us about a second difference, and then a third.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll look at three useful expressions and then you'll find a list of simple phrases for talking about rates that go up, down and up.
If you'd like to improve your French, the slow way, also about finance culture, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
On Saturday morning, I had tea near the station with Anne-Laure. We were sitting on the café terrace, slightly in the sun. It was lovely!
- So what are you doing this weekend?’ asked Anne-Laure.
I explained that I had to go to Paris, to a luthier in the 11th arrondissement, to get Felicia's viola da gamba fixed. The luthier's workshop was located in a typical passageway in this district.
Perhaps you remember a flânerie with Anne-Laure in that area two years ago? It reminded me that the luthier was not far from a patisserie whose speciality we had discovered, le chou à la flouve, a plant that gives a taste of vanilla and caramel when infused in a crème pâtissière. I offered to bring Anne-Laure some choux.
Did I find any? You'll find out when you listen to this episode in French.
In the notes that accompany the transcript of the episode, I'll focus on three typical French expressions and we'll play with questions, questions to awaken our curiosity and take the time to wander with the language.
So to cultivate your French, the Slow way, but also your curiosity, I invite you to subscribe. www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last Thursday, Géraldine and I headed off to Normandy to spend the day. We arrived early in Trouville, by the sea, to see an exhibition dedicated to the painter Augustin Rouart. On the train home, I asked Géraldine how she liked the exhibition. You'll hear our conversation in this episode.
In the notes that accompany the transcript, we'll take a look at three natural French expressions used in this episode, as well as suggestions for grammar lessons to brush up on and a link to the whole interview with Géraldine and its transcript, of course!
So to make the most of this escapade in Normandy, Slow style, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
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Just before the start of the new school year, I received a text message from my friend Géraldine. She asked me to come with her for a day to Normandy, to see two exhibitions, one of which was on the painter Augustin Rouart, as part of the Normandie Impressioniste festival, which takes place every four years. The name Rouart sounded familiar, but I wasn't really sure why. I said ‘yes’ to her proposal and we decided on a date.
In this episode, you'll find out why the name Rouart rang a bell and also what day we leave for Normandy.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we'll look at three expressions that are natural in French. There will also be some interesting links on the painter Augustin Rouart, suggestions of grammar points to review (these are only suggestions) and also an episode of the One Thing In A French Day archives to listen to!
So if you want to learn French the ‘slow’ way, I invite you to subscribe.
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You've probably seen it on TV, or perhaps in Paris, the atmosphere at the Olympic Games was extraordinary! Last week we went to a para-swimming event at La Défense and the girls, Pietro and I loved the atmosphere, watching the athletes and seeing their performances.
Over at the kung fu club, Alistair got the chance to work for the Olympics thanks to a partnership between his school and OBS (Olympic Broadcast Service). He is a student sound engineer. He accompanied a team of Indian journalists who were feeding the Olympickehl Instagram page. It was a fantastic experience for him. Today, in Cultivate Your French, I'm showing you an extract from the interview we had last week.
In the transcript with notes, we'll take a close look at what makes this speech typical of spoken French, we'll also notice the tense changes and of course we'll have three expressions to note down because they're very natural in French. You'll also have the link to the whole episode of the interview with Alistair, with the transcript, of course!
So, to cultivate the Olympics atmosphere with the podcast, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript.
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Last Thursday, Micaela and Anna (Micaela's best friend) returned from their Interrail trip. The trip was part of their plans for this summer. They were away for ten days, visiting Vienna and Munich.
We had planned for them to tell us about their trip over dinner on Saturday with Anna's parents, Hélène and Olivier.
It's this dinner that we're talking about in today's episode.
In the notes that go with the transcript, you'll find the sentence to repeat, of course, but also three expressions that are very natural in French. I'll also give you three suggestions of little things you can do for your French, depending on the time you have.
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On Wednesday 24 July, we loaded up the car and left Paris with a twinge of regret.
- I'm a bit sad we won't be here for the Olympics,’ said Micaela. I have a feeling that the atmosphere is going to be really great.
Two days later, we arrived in the Marche region of Italy, after a stopover in Aix-les-Bains and another in Pavia.
Our hosts, Kirsten and Massimo, were waiting for us at their house in Barchi, from which we had rented the first-floor flat. We were very excited to be spending more than two weeks in this eco-friendly house in the middle of a hilly landscape.
In this episode, I'm going to tell you all about it. In the notes that go with the transcript, we're going to focus on three sentences in the text that contain the conjunction ‘mais’.
So, to Cultivate Your French, ‘’mais aussi‘’ your turns of phrase, I invite you to subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com.
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Micaela and I are at Gare Saint-Lazare for a summer stroll.
Since the last renovation, the station has become a real shopping centre. There are numerous stores selling clothes, shoes and beauty products, as well as fast-food outlets and fine restaurants such as chef Eric Frechon's Lazare. I'm dying to try his Paris-Deauville dessert.
But our program was more geared towards sweets.
There's plenty to choose from at Saint-Lazare! We bought macarons at Ladurée, we also bought some at Dalloyau and finally, we stopped off at Les Merveilleux de Fred. Do you know this meringue and cream dessert? They're a big hit in Paris.
So to cultivate your French, your palate, but also to discover this area of Paris and benefit from all the positive effects of the exact text and cultural notes, I invite you to subscribe.
One last thing: the podcast will be on hiatus next week, the week of August 15. I look forward to seeing you on Wednesday August 21.
So if you'd like to improve your French, discover this part of Paris and benefit from all the positive effects of the exact text, as well as the cultural notes, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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Micaela and I are at Gare Saint-Lazare for a summer stroll.
Gare Saint-Lazare is the oldest station in Paris, having been renovated for the 1889 Universal Exhibition, the same year the Eiffel Tower was built. After going up rue de Rome to the Pont de l'Europe, the site of two famous paintings: Edouard Manet's Le chemin de fer and Gustave Caillebotte's Pont de l'Europe, we'll head back down to the station via rue d'Amsterdam. Can you follow us?
So if you'd like to improve your French comprehension, discover this part of Paris and benefit from all the positive effects of the exact text, as well as the cultural notes, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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We're at Gare Saint-Lazare, in the Europe district, whose streets bear the names of capital cities. This summer, I'd like to invite you on a four-part historical, cultural and gourmet summer stroll!
Where were we? Ah yes, Micaela and I were walking up Rue de Rome, the street that runs alongside the train station from the Cour de Rome up towards the Batignolles district. We're going to talk about painting today.
So if you'd like to improve your French comprehension, discover this part of Paris and benefit from all the positive effects of the exact text, as well as the cultural notes, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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Gare Saint-Lazare is a star! What is it? A station that doesn't even have a TGV? A star? But why?
Well, there are several reasons.
First of all, in terms of passenger traffic, it's the second busiest station in France (after the Gare du Nord). The station serves the western suburbs of Paris, as well as Normandy.
It's also the oldest station in Paris. It opened in 1837. It has been painted by some very famous artists. Would you like some names? Gustave Caillebotte, Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, Camille Pissaro, among others.
These are all 19th-century artists. The Saint-Lazare station was fascinating because it embodied modernity and technical progress. These were themes dear to the artists who settled in the new Europe district.
Micaela swiped her Navigo, I swiped my ticket, and you could hear the automatic gate open. We're at Gare Saint-Lazare, in the Europe district, whose streets bear the names of capitals. I'd like to invite you on a four-part summer stroll through history, culture and food!
So if you'd like to improve your French, discover this part of Paris and benefit from all the positive effects of the exact text, as well as the cultural notes, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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This episode is a re-run of an episode from 2020, at the end of the lockdown when we started to be able to move around. But it's also a very summery episode!
This week, I'm on a kung fu course in Reims, the Champagne region!
In the notes that come with the transcript,I give you a list of words from this episode that I find interesting to know. We'll also take a look at three turns of phrase and you'll see how to use them with examples.
So if you want tobenefit from all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
We have some major political news in France with the legislative elections since the President, Emmanuel Macron, dissolved the National Assembly. We therefore have to elect new deputies. There is a rise in the far right in France, certainly because people feel misunderstood more than out of racism. Still, it makes everyone a bit nervous. This rise is mainly affecting rural areas. The second round of legislative elections takes place on Sunday 7 July.
My daughter Micaela is eighteen, so she voted in this year's European elections, the results of which prompted the head of state to dissolve the assembly.
She took part in the counting of the ballot papers, as the municipality had too many problems with the electronic machines used instead of paper ballots.
In the notes accompanying the transcript, we'll take a look at a few expressions. You’ll also find the election vocabulary and some sample sentences. This is very useful for following what's happening in France on TV, radio or in the press.
So if you want to get your French right up to the ballot box and benefit from all the positive effects of having the exact text of the transcript, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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For the Olympic Games, which start in Paris in a few weeks' time, we have a beautiful poster. It was designed by the artist Ugo Gattoni, who studied art after a spell in the sports and swimming studies section. The poster took two thousand hours of work, and was produced on a graphics tablet, but entirely by hand. Anne-Laure and I got together to talk to you about this poster.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I invite you to try your hand at collecting adjectives based on the last blog post on the podcast. You can share your harvest with me, either orally or in writing.
So if you want to cultivate your French and harvest a good crop and benefit from all the positive effects of having the exact text of the transcript, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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Last week, on Thursday to be precise, our friends Isabelle and Thierry, Pietro and I, got on our bikes for a trip to Paris. Our destination? The Centre Pompidou, also known as Beaubourg. Until 1 July, the museum is showing an exceptional retrospective of the sculptor Brancusi. It's an extraordinary museum, with one of the best views of Paris. On the way back, we took the rue de Rivoli, which is now reserved for bicycles (but still has a lane for buses and taxis) and runs alongside the Louvre and the Tuileries gardens. We turned off towards the Madeleine, then the Gare Saint-Lazare, the 17th arrondissement, Neuilly, the Levallois bridge and we were back home. We left at 1.30pm. So it was a nice ride, which of course also included a gourmet break, as you'll discover in this episode recorded on the spot!
In the notes accompanying the transcript, I'm going to suggest three sentences for you to repeat! Yes, three because I find them interesting. I'll explain my choice for each one, pointing out a few things along the way, but I can already tell you that the idea behind these choices is to practise speaking French as you would in everyday life.
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There was a change in the weather at the start of the week, with the sun that had finally returned giving way once again to rain. It's in keeping with the gloomy mood I've been in since the elections. I don't feel like listening to the news or the radio any more, so to take my mind off things I listened again to the concert by Lea Dessandre, Thomas Dunford and the Jupiter Ensemble, who played pieces by John Dowland and Henry Purcell last Tuesday at the Maison de la Radio. Felicia and I attended the concert, the theme of which was melancholy in love. I'd had the tickets for a long time, hoping that she would be able to come. Everything becomes uncertain as the end of the year approaches.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we'll look at three very natural expressions in French that I want to tell you about. I'll also share with you some practical phrases relating to culture: going to the theatre, a concert, etc.
So to cultivate your French without melancholy and benefit from all the positive effects of having the exact text of the transcript, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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Last week, I dropped by the station in the early evening to drop off a book at the book box. I noticed that a florist had set up a stall there. The station is the focal point of the neighbourhood. It's on the border between Courbevoie, Asnières and Bois-Colombes. The railway line divides the Bécon district into two areas, the one on the Courbevoie side being the most commercial. But with the arrival of a new bakery and a new pastry chef, the area on the Asnières side is coming back to life. The florist was also on the Asnières side.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we'll focus on practical phrases for talking about prices in shops and three typical expressions of natural French and also three expressions that are interesting to notice.
So if you want to cultivate your French and benefit from all the positive effects of having the exact text of the transcript, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com. The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
A few days ago, my friend Caroline asked me to go with her to see a play at the Comédie Française: Les Démons, adapted from a novel by Dostoyevsky. The Comédie Française is our national theatre. It's a very prestigious place. Being part of the Comédie Française company is a great honour for actors. I accepted straight away, because I'd never been there before. Caroline had got the tickets from neighbours who couldn't make it to the show. I'm going to tell you about that evening at the theatre.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we'll look at three expressions that are typical of everyday French and I'll show you how to use them with examples.
You'll also have a sentence to repeat. A single sentence that I've chosen for you and I'll explain why I chose this particular sentence. Getting into the habit of repeating sentences is an excellent way of improving your pronunciation, but also of naturally constructing sentences in spoken French.
So, to benefit from all the positive effects of having the exact text of the transcript and and to enjoy the notes, I invite you to subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
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When I need to get from one place to another in Paris, I have an itinerary in my head by metro or on foot. I can find my way around the city quite well. I could walk from one place to another without taking too many detours. Well, it depends on the area, of course. But on Thursday morning, my phone suggested a fairly simple route that I decided to follow. I was in Place Saint-Michel and had to go to Rue Yves Toudic to pick up an order. If I had decided to follow my route, I would have got off at République.
In the notes that come with the transcript of this episode, we're going to imagine that we enter each of the shops mentioned in this episode and say a sentence or two. Simple phrases, but very useful if you decide to go to du Cha^teau d'eau or elsewhere.
Of course, I'll also point out a particularly interesting phrase for you to repeat in a loud voice, explaining why I chose it.
So, if you want to improve your French, learn the right phrase, and enjoy all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, I invite you to subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com. The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
Last week, American star Taylor Swift performed at La Défense Arena, Europe's largest indoor concert venue. She had four concert dates, the last of which was this Sunday. La Défense is a four-minute train journey from our house. Lisa and I made the trip to meet some of the singer's fans.
We met two very nice young women who agreed to share their impressions on the podcast. Lucie who had been to the concert the day before and Céleste who was going to attend the concert.
You'll hear them in today's episode.
And in the notes that come with the transcript, we'll focus on certain details of these conversations that are typical of natural French as it is spoken today.
Of course, there will also be a sentence to repeat. The power of this exercise is the subject of my last article on the podcast blog. Have you read it yet?
So, if you want to add a natural touch to your conversations in French, and enjoy all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, I invite you to subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
I had a dream that came back often at night, a recurring dream: I was driving a car and I was afraid of being caught by the police because I didn't have a licence. ‘I've got to stop driving without a licence’, I said to myself every time in this dream. But I couldn't stop myself and I regularly found myself driving illegally.
Now the recurring dream has disappeared and I think I've understood why, thanks to Ami.
In this episode, you'll find out who Ami is.
And in the transcript that comes with the notes, we're going to look at two verbs that come up several times in this episode, two verbs that we use a thousand times a day. What strategy should we adopt to learn how to conjugate them? That's what we're going to look at together. We'll also look at a sentence to repeat out loud, and I'll explain why I chose it.
So if you want to improve your French a thousand times over, and enjoy all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
Little by little, I began to hate our sofa. I used to dream of a Habitat sofa, which I tried out in the Avenue de Wagram shop in Paris. But at the end of 2023, the Habitat shops closed, taking my dream of a white sofa with curl fabric with them.
I recently had the idea of looking for a Habitat sofa on Le Bon Coin. You can find anything on Le bon coin: furniture, tools, clothes, a job or even a home. Well, I found a Habitat sofa that might suit me, only the seller wasn't at home in Saint-Ouen on the date. I still had the old Saint-Ouen in mind, but I discovered something completely different, but did I get my sofa? You'll soon find out.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we're going to dwell on the elements of the text that speak of time and duration, because we always need to situate in time what we're talking about. Of course, we'll also take a look at three expressions or turns of phrase that may go unnoticed, but which are actually worth noticing.
So, to take the time to cultivate your French at your own pace and enjoy all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
Last week we were on holiday. We needed the perfect destination for this school holiday: to be in the countryside for a change of scenery, but not too far from a big city and other tourist attractions. I didn't know whether the girls would have a lot of work or not. So I thought about the Strasbourg area. I really liked the city last year when I went there for the kung fu competition. So I found a gîte in a village half an hour from Strasbourg.
We were warmly welcomed by the owners.
The lady had prepared an Easter speciality for us: a kind of sponge cake with a slight lemon flavour in the shape of a lamb.
In this episode, I tell you about our holiday in Alsace.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we'll take a look at three very natural expressions in French. These are words or turns of phrase that you don't necessarily notice, but which are typical in French.
I'll also share with you my collection of photos of blue houses and we'll talk about colours: what are the most common colours in French, what are their shades, how do we talk about colours, how do adjectives agree.
So if you want to colour up your French and improve it at the same time, and enjoy all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, you could subscribe to the Cultivate Your French transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com. The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes.
The big question these days that young people ask each other is : when do you go back to school? Going back to school after summer holidays is what we call in French la rentrée ! La rentrée is when you discover your new classmates, new teachers, or new school. This is what this episode is about regarding my daughters Micaela and Felicia.
As usual, in the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are natural in French with some examples, so you too could use them in your own French conversations,
The transcript is a very useful tool to work on your French. Here are a few examples of what you can do : you can read what I say, obviously, you can see how the sentences are built, how the verbs are conjugated and you can also use it to repeat the text on your own.
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com
The subscription costs 4 euros a month. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released and each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes.
Summer holidays are over for us and I’m happy to be back with you dear listeners. I hope those of you who are subscribers have enjoyed the special episodes during the holidays about being at a French café.
Now, before going back to France, let me share with you a few words about our Summer trip to Italy. We were staying in Puglia, in the deep South of Italy were my husband Pietro has family.
During the Ferragosto period, around the 15th of August, beaches were crouded with people a 8 in the morning, so we stopped going to the sea and decided to visit Bari, Puglia’s capital. This is what this episode is about.
As usual, in the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are natural in French with some examples, so you too could use them in your own French conversations, and, of course, I will share some photos.
The transcript is a very useful tool to work on your French. Here are a few examples of what you can do : you can read what I say, obviously, you can see how the sentences are built, and you can also use it to repeat the text on your own.
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com
The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
To cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com The transcript is a very powerful tool because you can read what is said, you can see how the sentences are built, you can see how verbs are conjugated, how words are written. You can also use it to repeat aloud some parts of the texts and improve your spoken French. You can also read the text before to hear it, so you’ll understand it better. The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
For the third year, Felicia took part in a course of baroque music. During 10 days, she trained with orthers to play in an orchestra for a concert. The theme this year was the German musician Haendel. The course took place in Brittany in Ploërmel a small town between Rennes and Vannes. The four of us went to see her, so we drove to Brittany on Friday the 21st of July. We spent the night in a lovely guesthouse, a former flour mill by the river. Our hosts were lovely and the breakfast was incredible. Saturday was the concert day. We had to get to the place in early afternon, to attend the groups concerts : little pieces each group had studied. Then at 5 p.m. was the big concert. But Felicia sent me an SMS the Saturday morning. This SMS led to a little adventure. This is what this episode is about.
Before to hear it, I have to tell you about the podcast summer pause. The podcast will be on pause for the next 3 weeks because my family and I are on holidays abroad. But, if you subscrided to the transcript, you will receive 3 episodes to keep on working your French comprehension. There is a theme for those 3 episodes. Should I tell you? It’s au café !
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Last week, we listened to Bryce Bianconi talking about His job as an artisan. Have you guessed his does for a living? He works with glass, he makes stained glass, vitraux in French. France has the largest surface of stained glass in the world, mainly because of our cathedrals, but stained glass was also à la mode in the 19 th century, in nice houses, building or hotels. Bryce restores stained glass but also creates some for home interiors. Today we are going to hear him talking about the part of his job that he likes the most. My friend Pauline, who was with me when we met with Bryce, asked him the question.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will stop on 3 expressions that are very natural in French that Bryce uses when he speaks, and that you too could use in your own French conversations.
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
This episode is a little bit different than the others, I won’t tell you something. In this episode, you will try to guess what is my guest’s job. He is an artisan, his name is Bryce, but what does he do exactly? You will get some clues in this small interview. Then if you wish to tell me what you think Bryce’s job is, then send me an email at frenchday @ gmail.com Next week, you will listen to Bryce talking about his job, a very interesing one.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we will stop on 3 subjects that appear in the text : telling about your job, talking about a period of history and telling where is located a specific builing. I will share with you some natural sentences that you could use or ear in your own French conversations.
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, Micaela and I were attending a kung-fu week with our team and our teacher in Poitiers. We were staying in a regional sport resort; The place was lovely and had a nice Renaissance castle.
Xie Han our teacher was also taking care of a Taiji group and had a particular eye on Josepha’s training as she is going to participate to the Kung-fu Word Championships in China this summer.
On Thursday, Xie Han asked us to be cautious with ourselves, to not get hurt because we were getting tired. That day we had a running session in the woods at 6 in the morning and a first training at 9h45. I took three naps that day.
This episode starts after lunch on Thursday.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very useful in French. Also, we are going to notice the use of imparfait and passé composé in this text. So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
A few weeks ago, my friend Pauline showed me a book that she got for Christmas, a book about nice table settings, Chez eux. this book gave us the idea to build a podcast episode about setting a table. If we were to set a table, we might as well have a lunch or a brunch on it! We took our agenda and decided about a date. Then we imagined our menu : something simple but nice, with flowers on the table. That day, we first did some shopping. We bought some gariguetes (early strawberries), we bought some renoncules (buttercups in English says the dictionary) and a cherry tree branch. At the bakery, we bought a few croissants because you can’t imagine a brunch without any. For this episode, Pauline and I are in her kitchen. Everything is almost ready, it’s time to choose what plates to put on the table. Follow me in her cupboard!
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So there we are : the baccalauréat is over for Micaela. She doesn’t have the result yet, but she took the latest exam last Tuesday. It was « le grand oral » : you must speak for 5 minutes on a subject that you have prepared.
And since the beginning of June, she also knows what she’s going to do next year. But before that she had to choose between the different universities where she was accepted. Suddenly, choosing seems so difficult and you only have 3 days to make your choice. This is what the episode is about.
In the notes that comes with the transcript, I will highlight for you those typical expressions that Micaela uses when she speaks. It’s very interesting because it’s very natural for us, though it may seems wrong when you learn to speak French. Noticing those expressions is also very useful to understand modern French.
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript. The subscription costs 4 euros a month. www.cultivateyourfrench.com
My friend Pauline is taking drawing classes and she is starting a new technique : watercolour, aquarelle in French ! Her teacher suggested that she could buy her own watercolour set. She gave her the name of a famous shop in Paris where you can buy art supplies : Sennelier. Sennelier is located Quai Voltaire, just in front of le Louvre, on the over side of La Seine. The shop was created in 1887 by French colour passionnate and chimist Gustave Sennelier who devoted his life to creating paintings for artists. Cezanne or Gauguin were among his customers. Guillaume works at Sennelier and greeted us in the shop. He gave some advices to Pauline regarding watercolours, the choice of a sketchbook and finally the choice of paintbrushes. In today’s episode you will hear Guillaume’s advices regarding a watercolour set.
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Last Friday, I travelled to Strasbourg with my kung-fu team. Sixteen of us were participating to the National Kung-fu open of Schiltigheim. I arrived a little bit earlier than the others to visit the beautiful city of Strasbourg. The competion was on Saturday the 10th. It was a great moment for all of us and we were so happy to spend this day together. It’s different when you meet for breakfast with your sleepy eyes ! In this episode I will tell you about both my performances and about Micaela’s first competition. In the notes that come with the transcript, you will get some photos taken in Strasbourg (it was a hot and very sunny day). Of course, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very natural in French and that you could use in your own French conversations. Oh, and I will tell you if we had or not some flammekueche, one of the good Alsacian specialities. Suspens !
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Yesterday evening, I went for a walk in my neighbourhood, There is a one hour walk that I particularly enjoy, but last night I took a different direction. I passed Micaela and Felicia’s highschool, the building is under construction. But there was something to notice on the new building that is about to be finished. This what this episode is about.
In the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very natural in French and that you could use in your own French conversations. I will also give you a list of useful sentences to talk about a book that you have read.
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The end of the year is close now for my 3 daughters. In France, students have long days at school, a lot of holidays during the year (2 weeks every 7 weeks) and long summer holidays. My daughters wished they had less holidays and shorter days at school. They often start at 8 in the morning and finish at 5 in the afternoon. On Thurdays, Micaela starts at 8 and finishes school at 6 in the evening. This represents 9 hours of class during the day. Then, at home, they have to do their homework and learn their lessons. But as I said, the end is close for this year. This is what the episode is about.
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It was a rainy day, two weeks ago, my friend Pauline and I were having a walk in the center of Paris, near Les halles, la bourse du commerce (now the Parisian exhibition site of François Pinault’s modern art collection) and l’église Saint-Eustache.
Place Margurite de Navarre, there is a modern building : the Novotel Les Halles. In the center of the hotel, there is an unexpected hidden garden : a patio full of plants. There you can have a very nice experience : the Tea time of the cheffe pâtissière Emilie Gerardi. She created a modern and plant and flower-based version of the tea time. I was very lucky to meet her for the podcast. Pauline and I were so happy to discover such a personal and cheering pâtisserie.
In today’s episode you are going to hear Emilie Gerardi talking about the compositon her tea-time.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that Emilie Gerardi uses to describe her cakes. You will also have the photos of the tea-time, this way you will be able to imagine yourself in the patio, tasting wonderful pâtisseries. As Emilie Gerardi says, in such a place you don’t come only to eat a cake, you come to live a precious moment.
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Last week, my friend Caroline invited me to go with her to see a marvelous show at the Opéra Bastille : three chorégraphies by Maurice Béjart. It was a such a moment. The Opera Bastille is the modern opéra of Paris. It was inaugurated in 1989 for the bicentenary of the French Revolution. It’s a very nice place and going to the Opera is really a special moment. I guess that it’s not as charming as in the 19th Century at the Opera Garnier, but something happens when you are there.
The last of the ballets that we saw was Le boléro de Ravel. This is what I share with you in this episode.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very natural in French and show you how to use them in your own French conversations with examples.
I will also give you a list of basic mouvements that we do with our body.
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
My friend Claire works as a librarian, archivist at the Institut National de Jeunes Sourds in Paris. This institute is a school for deaf people created by l’Abbé de l’Epée en the 18th century.
On the podcast, we have known Claire for a few years now. We first met her as an history student at La Sorbonne, then at l’Ecole des Chartes a prestigious Parisian school specialising in historical sciences. She shared with us a promenade in the Quartier Latin in 2020, then last year she told us about the discovery of an incunable (a book printed in Europe before 1501).
In today’s episode, she shares with us the strange request of a researcher that contacted the institute and was looking for a rather big painting of the 19th century specially created for the choir of the Institute’s chapelle by a famous painter.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we will stop together on the different expressions that Claire uses that give so much life to what she tells us. This is also a way to understand and to see that French is largely made of fixed expressions. A better way to speak French is to learn how to use all those expressions. This is what we’ll see today with examples.
To cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
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On Saturdays, we usually make pizzas and watch a movie, the 5 of us.
Last Saturday, we chose to watch a film by Eric Rohmer a famous French director part of the French New Wave. T
his movie is Conte de Printemps. It was timed in 1990, a time where there was no mobile phone, though the phone is often used in this movie.
This episode tells you about the story of the movie and what was Micaela and Lisa’s reaction to this type of movie.
It will also be the occasion to imagine what could have said some of the characters, based on what I tell you in the text using the indirect speech.
Of course, I will also highlight for you 3 expressions that you could use in your own French conversations and show you how to use them.
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com.
The subscription cost 4 euros a month.
Ah, before we start, for the next 2 weeks, the podcast will be on pause, but if you are a subscriber you will receive episodes as usual.
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Have you ever heard of K-Pop bands like The Boyz, the Stray Kids or Mamamoo?
Felicia is a K-pop fan, so last Saturday, I went with her to Music Bank Paris, a festival of K-Pop bands in the largest concert stadium in Europe : La Défense Arena, very close to where we live.
This stadium is so big, it can held a rugby field in its center.
This event was expected with great impatience by the thousands of fans all over Europe and the atmosphere was absolutely crazy : people were shouting their joy so loud !
But it was a great experience. This is what this episode is about!
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very natural in French. We will also focus on all the verbs conjugated with « ils » as the subject. This will be the occasion to ask ourselves if we know the conjugation of the most commun French verbs with ils or elles.
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript to receive the texts and notes by email each time an episode is released. The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
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We had a guest this week at home : an Italian exchange student. She arrived last Thursday in Paris with her classmates and left yesterday. All of them were staying in French families of Felicia’s class. This five days with us has been the occasion to visit Paris as tourist for Felicia and I. But it has also been the occasion to make or buy some French specialities for the Italien student. So what have we cooked or bought for her?
This is what you are going to discover in this episode.
As usual, in the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very natural in French. I will also make a list of sentences to say that you like to eat something and what you had for a particular meal.
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last saturday, I went to Paris. Well, I tried because the tickets I was using were not working. Something was wrong with the whole pack. Of course, I went to buy some new tickets. But I wasn’t the only one involved in what became a little adventure.
We are still using the paper tickets because we get a 50% discount on tickets with La carte famille nombreuse. You can get this card when you get at least 3 children. When Micaela is going to turn 18, the card won’t work anymore.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highly for you 3 expression that are typical in French.
You will also find some « transport" related sentences that listeners and I gathered up 2 years ago for Le guide de survie.
You will also find some photos of our station Bécon-les-bruyères !
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
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Last week, we heard Alexandre Juvin talking about la crème de champignons. Miam.
This week, it’s another experience that expects us. I had the chance to meet Marc Chinchole. He’s a young man passionate about chocolate that makes is own cocoa, in Paris. Have you heard the expression « bean-to-bar »? This is what he does : he selects beans from different places in the world and loves to reveals the best of each origin in making nice chocolates or bars. Yes, he toasts the beans himself and does conching in his own premises. This is quite unusual in Paris, but very interesting. Marc has 16 different single origin bars in his shop and nice little chocolats. You can also buy a homemade hot chocolate or chocolate mousses made of single origin cocoa, the origin changes every week. The one I tasted was from Indonesia and it was really perfumed.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are typical when you speak French. You will also find some sentences to help you choose the best chocolate from L’instant cacao. But, this will work in any other boutique, of course.
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com.
The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
There is something you must absolutely try next time you come to Paris. It’s Les sauces Papillon ! They are Parisian sauces made by 2 young men who had the idea to create vegetable based sauces. Their sauces are made from vegetables in accordance with the seasons. They are tasty and fresh. They can be used to eat with pastas or rice, but at home we prefer to eat them with bread in nice sandwiches. When I recorded the interview, it was in the middle of winter. One of the sauce was la crème de champignons. What are going to be the spring sauces? We don’t know yet, but today you are going to hear Alexandre Juvin talking about they created the recipe of la crème de champignons.
In the notes that come with the transcript, this episode is the occasion to notice the use of the subjonctive and to understand when to automatically use it. We will also focus on the part of vocabulary that describes the different ways that ingredients can be cooked. So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.comThe subscription costs 4 euros a month.
The holidays ended last sunday. How were those holidays for us? You have a clue if you are a subscriber and if you listened to the episodes posted during the last 2 weeks. It’s also during the holidays that we got the weblinks to order our seats for the J.O. , les Jeux Olympiques.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are very natural in French and that you could use or hear in your own conversations in French. You will also find a vocabulary section on how to say that something is cheap to really expensive.
To cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com (4 €/ month)
On Sundays, in the morning, I join a group of walkers. We do nordic walking with Philippe a coach from the Club d’athlétisme de Courbevoie. I usually meet with Philippe at the stadium, and there Isabelle and Thierry give me a ride. This Sunday, Philippe told me about an experience and Isabelle too. Both of them linked to pâtisserie. This is what this episode is about.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are natural in French and that you could use in your own conversations. We will also focus on a particular sentence that requires the use of the subjonctive.
So to cultivate your French and read what is said, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The transcript has an immediate effect on your listening comprehension of the spoken French.
The subscription costs 4 euros a month and the transcript is sent by email.
Yesterday evening, Micaela, Felicia and I had dinner with some friends of the kung-fu club. We wanted to try an asian restaurant in our neighbourhood. The place was nice and quiet. We had a nice conversation. We came to speak about the Arte TV channel. Julien thought it was mainly historical documentaries on this channel. But I said that we were enjoying the great TV series too, as The newsreader that takes place in 1986, in Australia. In this series, the Halley’s comet is mentioned because it was visible in 1986. I said that I had seen it. As I had also seen the solar eclipse that occurred in 1999. This is what this episode is about and about some strange coincidence too.
In the notes that come with the transcript I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are typical in French. We will also focus on a particular sentence that is typical of spoken French.
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
On Saturday evening ten days ago, my friend Caroline and I met at Saint-Lazare. We had dinner in a nice pizzeria near the trendy and lively rue Oberkampf, in the eleventh arrondissement, in the east of Paris. But, did we really go that far to have pizza? Not really. We had a plan ! This is what you are going to hear in this episode. Caroline and I have known each other since our daughters Micaela and Juliette were only a few months old. We were leaving in the same Résidence. Do you think we started by saying « tu » or « vous » to each other the first time we met? We are almost the same age. Is it difficult to guess? Well, the answer is also in this episode.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that you could use in your own French conversations, they are simple but efficient expressions. I will also tell you how we use vous or tu in different everyday life circumstances. So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
It was December the 30th 2022, I had an appointment with Nathalie Iris from the bookshop Mots en marge, in La Garenne-Colombes.
Nathalie is a famous bookseller in France, you can see her on the TV show Télématin. We met during the confinement, during which Nathalie chose some books for my three daughters, Micaela, Felicia and Lisa.
She also became a regular guest to talk about books on the podcast One Thing In A French Day that I run beside Cultivate Your French.
That day, in December, Nathalie presented a book that I totally fell in love with : On va déguster Paris. It’s a book written by François-Régy Gaudry a journalist that runs a radio show about food and good products on France Inter. He’s very famous in France. I love his voice and his way of saying things. With his friends from the radio show, François-Régis Gaudry has already written different books about France, Italy, etc. But this particular book about Paris is really good. It’s full of addresses, recipes, historical stories, pictures and drawings. In this episode, you are going to hear Nathalie Iris talking about it.You can order this beautiful book from the website Decritre.fr at a fair price. I don’t have any commercial link with them, but I know their service is very good.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we will have an eye on those questions asked at the negative form, on the expression « il y a » that teachers often ask us to avoid and we will see all the different vocabulary about a book page.
So, to cultivate your French, and enjoy the transcript by reading what is said and enjoy the notes that come with the text, you could subscribe at
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The weather is very bad these days in Paris, but it doesn’t stop me when I have the possibility to have a walk in Paris. Justement, I had an order to collect rue du Four. This led me to a strange encounter.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for your those expressions or words that are typical in French and that you could use in your own conversation. We will also focus on the vocabulary that I use in this text to talk about my itinerary . And I will select a particular sentence that you could repeat again and again to improve your pronunciation and your spoken French.
So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript and receive it by email. The subscription costs 4 euros a month. Rendez-vous at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
During the holidays, we had the visit of an unexpected visitor : the flue ! Micaela and Felicia and me where its victims, so it ruined the joy of being on holidays. But we had some nice moments and we were the 3 of us well enough to enjoy the traditional Christmas meal with my parents. Pintade aux marrons, plateau de fromages, bûche au chocolat and Clairette de Die are what we enjoyed the most. But, there where also some nice and positive moments, this is what this episode is about.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will give you all the information on who is who and what is what in this list. We will also notice the tenses used in this list of moments. Eventually, we will focus on this sentence that starts with « Saviez-vous que… » and see how you could use it in your own French conversations.
So to cultivate your French and improve your listening comprehension, I invite you to subscribe to the transcript, so you can get the text of the podcast by email with the notes and photos. The subscription costs 4 euros a month. You can subscribe at cultivateyourfrench.com
It was cold on that day, when my friend Pauline and I went to Paris for a day.
We went to Saint-Germain-des-prés to walk in the nice streets, enjoy the Christmas shop windows like the ones of Alix D.Reynis, Ladurée or Officine Bully. We also visited the very nice Eglise Saint-Germain-des-prés whose ceilings are as nice as the ones of La Sainte-Chapelle. We had tea at Le café des deux magots. And, we went to la Place Furstemberg, one of the most beautiful places in Paris.
This episode takes you to this nice little place.
This is a double episode, it’s twice longer than usual because next week and the week after the podcast will on holidays.
In the notes that come with the transcripts, you will find photos with comments of the different places Pauline and I went to.
So, to cultivate your French, and improve your listening comprehension, you could subscribe to the transcript and receive the text, notes and photos by email. The subscription costs 4 euros a month.
You can subscribe at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
There were a lot of anniversaries in 2022 : the 4th centenary of Molière’s birth, the 2nd centenary of the deciphering of the hieroglyphes by Jean-Francois Champollion, the centenary of Marcel Proust’s death and the centenary of the publication of Ulysses by James Joyce, in Paris.
Yes, in Paris ! It was the American owner of the bookshop Shakespeare and Company, Sylvia Beach, that published the famous book in 1922. With my friend Françoise, a reader of Ulysses in English, we went to different places related to James Joyce in Paris. A little odissey of our own.
The bookshop Shakespeare and Company owned by Sylvia Beach doesn’t exist anymore, though I’m sure you have heard about a famous bookshop, named Shakespeare and Company, near Notre-Dame. Haven’t you?
What is the story of this bookshop? This is what this episode is about. You can imagine Françoise and I in Paris on a cloudy day. In the notes that come with the transcript, we will focus on all the numbers and dates that this episodes contains.
So, are you ready to cultivate your French? Then, you could subscribe to the transcripts and notes of this podcast at www.cultivateyourfrench.com.
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Last Saturday, there was a Kung-fu completion near Paris. La coupe de France de Kung-fu. It’s opened to anyone belonging to a club. There was 4 of us from my club : Alistair, Julien, Paul (12) and me. Preparing a competition requires a lot of energy and in my case I have to deal with stress. I presented a routine without weapon (mains nues) and one with a sabre. What is the aim of going to a competition? This question might occur at some point. This is what this episode is about. In a way, I think we can make a link between this question and learning French. Learning French has the reputation of being difficult. Yes, it is. But step by step you can make progress and be proud of yourself ! I’m proud of you, my dear listeners. In the notes that come with the transcript, we will focus on natural French sentences and expression. Of course, there will be a special focus on a sentence I have chosen for you « j’aurais pu sans doute faire mieux ».
So to cultivate your French and improve your listening comprehension by reading the text, you can subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Many famous paintings became famous because they were scandalous. This is the case of Le Radeau de la Méduse by Théodore Géricault. The young painter, aged 27 years old, painted about the wreck of the Medusa near the cost of today’s Mauritania. 147 persons were left on a big raft on which most of them died. Only 15 people survived the 13 days before their rescue. The wreck happened in 1816 and it was scandalous because the French captain was incompetent. Géricault gets passionate about the subject; He meets two survivors, study dead bodies in the hospital, study how to paint to sea, etc. The painting was first shown at the Salon in 1819, only 3 years after the wreck of the Medusa. The Salon is the official art exhibition at that time. My friend Anne-Laure will tell you how the painting had been received at that time.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we will focus on the vocabulary and expressions that Anne-Laure uses to describe what people felt about the painting.
So to cultivate your French and boost your listening comprehension, subscribe to the transcript at cultivateyourfrench.com. The subscription costs 4 euros a month. When you subscribe you get the 10 latest transcripts for free.
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This Monday, I had the chance to visit with a class the Assemblée nationale. The visit was absolutely thrilling. The official seat of the Assemblée nationale is the Palais Bourbon. This palais was build in front of the place de la Concorde, on the left bank of the Seine. It was built in the 18th century for one of Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan’ daughter. There are a lot of nice rooms and nice paintings to see but what we all enjoyed the most was the opportunity to watch the debates going on for 5 minutes. This was really an experience and this is what this episode is about.
In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you the expressions and sentences that you might use when you talk about a speech. We will also study a specific sentence, the last one because it contains all the elements to understand the used of the passé composé and the imparfait.
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A few weeks ago, my friend Anne-Laure and I spent a day in the 11th arrondissement, le quartier du faubourg Saint-Antoine. This neighbourhood in the East part of Paris has a special identity that comes from the Middle Ages. There was a major trading center related to wood and a lot of cabinet-makers had their worshop there. This is the reason why it is organised with courtyard sand passages : when you make furnitures you need space and air. Then, in the 19th century there were a lot of factories. The Seine was not far away, so it was easy to have that type of business there. Before visiting two different passages, Anne-Laure and I had to find a place to have lunch. Let’s start with this !
In the notes that come with the transcript, we will focus on a specific sentence that uses the gérondif, a form that comes from Latin ! Yes, thrilling ! As usual, I will also highlight for you
Voilà, to cultivate your French and work on your listening comprehension you can subscribe to receive the transcript by email at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
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Last week, we had a good week, we spent a week in Jura. The girls were eager to go to the Jura sud equestrian centre, for them it’s the best place in the world. They would usually spend the whole week there, but as November the 1st was a bank holiday, it was planned that they would start going on Wednesday. We have a ritual to end those beautiful days, we go to the Crêperie in Pont-de-Poitte.
In this episode, I will tell you about the equestrian centre and the crêperie. And, in the transcript, I will highlight for you the sentences or expressions that are very natural in French and the you could use in your own conversations.
We will also focus on a short sentence of the text because it contains a verb at tense that could be surprising !
To cultivate your French and receive the transcript by email, please subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyourfrench.com the subscription costs 4 euros a month !
On a Saturday afternoon, last September, I took my bike and met with Emilie Renard. We had ten kilometres to ride together to go to Issy-les-Moulineaux where Emily runs something tipically French : un théâtre de marionnettes, a puppet show, in the parc behind the mairie.
On weekends, there are two performances. One at 4.30 pm and, the other one, one hour later. For the first one, I stood in the public to watch the show. It was a very funny story. Emilie has written all of the 12 stories that she performs (one each week). The main character of her stories is the famous Polichinelle, but in this story Polichinelle was only presenting the show. Then, I had the chance to watch the story from behind the scenes. It’s really a permformance to manipulate the puppies with the hands, to have them move in the small scene and to have to speak in the voice of the different characters : there were 6 different characters in this story.
In this episode, you will hear Emilie Renard talking about her work, about the story that I saw and where to go to watch her show. In the transcript, I will highlight for your some very natural French sentences or expressions that you could use in your own conversations. Because, this podcast is about improving your French comprehension, but also cultivating your French !
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com Next week, the podcast will be on holidays, but if you are a subscriber, you will receive a link to keep working on your French.
Le théâtre de Polichinelle, Issy-les-Moulineaux : https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100054410202970
Last Saturday morning, I received a phone call from Claire, Lisa’s viola da gamba teacher. Se was offering to take Lisa and her son to the Comédie Française. The Comédie Française, France’s famous national theater, the house of Molière? Lisa was excited ! The play was La vie de Galilée (Galileo’s Life) by Bertold Brecht. She didn’t understand much, but really enjoyed the moment, and the macaron Claire offered her when they got out.
That same day, Micaela had an appointment with her best friend, Anna. Does it have a link with what I have just said? Yes, you are going to discover it in this episode.
In this episode, you may notice that there are many questions. For example : Quelle pièce allez-vous voir? This gave me the idea to write a list of questions, in the transcript that goes with this episode, that you could be asked about a play. I have also recorded those questions in an audio file, so you can play with me and answer my questions as if we were having a conversation.
Cultivate Your French at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
My daughter Lisa had to read a book for school. The French teacher gave her students the choice between different books; There was some rather modern books, classics and easy to read or more difficult ones. The test was due yesterday.
Lisa had chosen a book, but she forgot to take it at the library, then she was supposed to borrow one from a friend. Finally, one week before the test she hadn’t read any book. So, I took the list and we chose to buy Une Amazone from Alexandre Dumas. Yes, Alexandre Dumas who wrote Les trois mousquetaires !
In this short story, the story takes place in Paris, in the years 1850. Edouard fells in love with a young woman at a ball a the Opera. This young woman dictates to Edouard some rules : not to mention that he knows her to anyone (or she will kill him, she’s very talented at using an épée), to break up with is friend Marie and to use a board to meet each other. When Lisa told me about the board, I couldn’t understand. But, the courtyard where Edouard lives is just in frond of the young woman’s home. She asks him to put a board between the two windows and to cross from one place to another on this board below the emptiness. In this episode, Lisa tells me about the outcome of this story.
In the notes that go with the transcript, we will have a close look at what tenses are used by Lisa and I to tell the story.
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This is the last year of lycée for Micaela. Last June she took the French baccalaureate, which is the 1st part of the bac. This year, she is taking the bac for good. Two of the subjects are coefficient 16. For her, it’s mathematics and physics. But she also has to choose what she is going to study next year and where. This is what this episode is about. In the notes, I will also talk about how to express a choice in French ! As usual, I will also highlight for you expressions that are natural in French and some words to remember.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
200 years ago, in Septembre 1822, Jean-François Champollion writes a letter to his friend of L’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles, Monsieur Dacier. In his letter, he reveals that he has deciphered the Egyptian writing, the hieroglyphs. 200 years later, the Collège de France, in which Jean-François Champollion gave a few lessons in 1831, organises a special event : the reading of his first lesson.
In the notes that go with the transcript, I will highlight for you the sentences or expressions that are interesting to understand and to remember. I will also show you a few words to learn because they are useful.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Flâner is typically a Parisian activity. You just let yourself drift from a place to another. You can wander while you visit the Grands magasins, for example. This is what we did my friend Marilyne and I at the Printemps and at the Galeries Lafayette. These two Grands magasins are close to the Opéra Garnier and to the Gare Saint-Lazare. They were both created in the XIXth century, the Printemps first, then a few years later the Galeries Lafayette. What is the difference between these two department shops? This what you are going to hear in today’s episode. In the notes that go with the transcript, I will highlight for you some typical expressions and tell you in a few words how those stores were created.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
How to bring a little bit of Paris in your suitcase? It’s not easy to find those little souvenirs that will make someone happy. For me it’s becoming a game to see them for you. Maybe because I met Lila this summer to whom I offered a key ring from Brittany years ago when she was around ten years old. More than ten years later, she was still using it and loved it. Donc, in this episode here is a first harvest of a few objects that you might bring back with you. As you listen to French you work on your listening comprehension. When you read and listen at the same time you boost your comprehension and you see the language, you see how it works. Soon, you will soon listen for what is being said rather than for the language ! In the notes that go with the trasncript, I highlight for you those expressions that are natural in French and that you could use in your own conversations. You can subscribe to the transcript at cultivateyourfrench.com
After, the detour to Italy last week, this week we are going to end our Promenade de l’été.
Do you remember? We were in the quartier de l’Europe. We had met the painters from Le groupe des Batignolles, Manet, Monet, Caillebote to quote a few names. At Saint-Lazare, or right above the station, at Europe, you can take the metro line 3 to Pont de Levallois, Bécon.
There you can have a walk to the Seine and to the Ile de la Jatte, where Seurat painted Dimanche après-midi à l’Ile de la Grande Jatte. Maybe a peniche will pass by. La Défense is visbile from there. It’s another world there.
Well, now, it’s time to go to the rue du Parc and look for a small green shop. This is where Claire Heitzler has established her pâtisserie. No cakes in the window. No. This place is different. You can order on her Internet website cr discover the cakes at her boutique. They will be showed to you. Claire Heitzler is so famous among pâtissiers, she has an examplary career, won so many prizes. She has chosen to open a shop that is in harmony with what she values most : authenticity.
Let’s listen to her now.
In the notes, that go with the transcript Claire Heitzler will describe to you one of her cakes in a bonus audio file. I will also highlight for you some very natural expressions in French.
www.cutlivateyourfrench.com
We are back from holidays ! We were in Italy, near Bari in the Puglia region where Pietro still has a lot of family. We really enjoyed our stay, the region is beautiful and so different from France. Micaela arrived twelve days before us and stayed with Pietro’s aunt, Ada. So when we went to the beach, she had fun understunding what people where talking about on the beach. This is how this episode starts, but it will quickly takes you to another place, the town of Altamura and the town of Monopoli.
In the notes that go with the transcript, I will highlight for you those typical expressions that we use in everyday French. And, of course, with the notes, there are photos of the places that I go to.
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This is the third episode of our summer serie, La promenade de l’été. It’s a walk in Paris that takes us, episode by episode, to the heart of the 17th arrondissement. Last week, my friend Anne-Laure and I were in the Quartier de l’Europe. This is where a group of young painters, including Monet, Pissaro, Bazille, Renoir, Degas and the writer Emile Zola, in the years 1875, gathered around Manet, the scandalous Manet painter of Le déjeuner sur l’herbe and L’Olympia.
Today, Anne-Laure and I located where some famous paintings were painted. It’s an adventure that gave me so much happiness ! The podcast will be on pause for the next 3 weeks because my family and I are on holidays abroad. But, if you subscrided to the transcript, you will receive 3 episodes to keep on working your French comprehension. There is a theme for those 3 episodes. Should I tell you? It’s ice-cream !
But, for now, this is Summer French ! in the notes that go with the transcript, I will highlight for you those typical expressions that we use in conversations. It’s a bit different that what I usually do in the notes. The idea behing Summer French is to notice how French is spoken in everyday conversations. And, of course, with the notes, there are photos of the places that I go to.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
This is the second episode of our summer serie, La promenade de l’été. It’s a walk in Paris that will take us, episode by episode, to the heart of the 17th arrondissement. Last week, we went to the Square des Epinettes where you can find the statue of a very interesting woman of the 19th century, Maria Deraismes.
Today, my friend Anne-Laure and I are in the Quartier de l’Europe. This is where a group of young painters, including Monet, Pissaro, Renoir, Degas and the writer Emile Zola, in the years 1875, gathered around Manet, the scandalous Manet painter of Le déjeuner sur l’herbe and L’Olympia. They where gathering at the Café Guerbois, avenue de Clichy. In this episode, Anne-Laure and I imagine what could be the subject of their meeting. Art, of course.
This is Summer French ! in the notes that go with the transcript, I will highlight for you those typical expressions that we use in conversations. It’s a bit different that what I usually do in the notes. The idea behing Summer French is to notice how French is spoken in everyday conversations. And, of course, with the notes, there are photos of the places that I go to.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
This week, on the podcast, starts La promenade de l’été, a walk in Paris that will take us, episode by episode, to the heart of the 17th arrondissement. It all started with a statue when my friend Anne-Laure and I visited the Petit Palais, last October. I noticed this statue of an impressive woman, Maria Deraismes. The sculptor was Ernest Barrias, and the statue was just behind another one : La Defense statue, also by Barrias. La Defense statue gave its name to the district of La Défense in the west of Paris. They were both reproductions. You can see the statue of La Défense in La Défense and the statue of Marias Deraismes in the square des Epinettes in the 17th arrondissement. This is where we were, Anne-Laure and I, to record this episode and to discover who was this woman of the 19th century, Maria Deraismes.
This is Summer French ! in the notes that go with the transcript, I will highlight for you those typical expressions that we use in conversations. It’s a bit different that what I usually do in the notes. The idea behing Summer French is to notice how French is spoken in everyday conversations. And, of course, with the notes, there are photos of the places that I go to.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
My friend Sylvie and I went to London last week, on Wednesday the 6th, the day before Boris Johnson announced his resignation. We had to wait one hour in Gare du Nord before being able to show our passports. The train was delayed because all passengers could not get on board at the departure time. I think this was due to the lack of staff in the station, and I must admit, poor organization. But we did it and it’s still something very special to arrive in London. This episode almost starts in Euston road !
In the transcript that goes with this episode I will highlight for you all the expressions and sentences that are very natural in French. I will also give you a selection of sentences that say that you had a wonderful time in … let’s say… France !
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
It’s a great thing to improve your understanding skills, you feel more confident and it’s almost the basic of a language. You understand what people tell you in French. Sometimes, we are so focused on understanding that we almost forget to improve our speaking. When you understand enough, you have to prepare yourself for the next step which is « talking in French ». Yes, talking! Never forget to talk, it’s important ! But, you have to be ready. To train yourself to your next visit to France, today’s episode and next week’s episode are about talking in French. Today, you will buy some macarons. Yes, don’t you remember that you have to offer a box for your friend’s birthday? There is so much choice in the shop, which flavours are you going to choose? Are you ready? You are in Paris, the pâtisserie is lovely, the window is full of colourful macarons. First you are going to hear the dialogue between my friend Marilyne, who plays the seller, and myself, the customer. Then, to make things more practical, you will also hear only the seller lines. With the other part of the dialogue left blank,you will be able to act as if you were the customer at the macaron shop!
In the transcript, we study some sentences particularities and I challenge you to leave me an audio message, you ordering by phone in French some lovely macarons.
This is a repeat broadcast !
All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
In France, beer, craft beer, is becoming more and more popular. There is a thing about beer in Paris also. I was very curious about the subject so I met a very nice guy: Alexis. He runs a beer shop in Pigalle, in rue de Douai, not very far from the Moulin Rouge. In his shop you can find beers from around the world, but also from the best French breweries. He only sells craft beers, so you have to be ready for the experience ! In this episode, you will hear Alexis talking about how beer is made and what are his favourite adjectives to talk about beer. I’m sure there is one that you will remember for ever !
In the transcript that goes with this episode, I will highlight for you some sentences or expressions that are very natural in French and that you could use in your own conversations !
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
https://www.laptitemousse.eu/
Last week-end, there was the Elections législative, we elected our deputies. And maybe that you have heard that president Emmanuel Macron has lost the majority. But last week-end, there was also the European Archaeology Days ! Lisa, Micaela, a friend and I headed to the Institut de paleontology humaine for a short conference about palaeontology and a visit of the institute’s collections. Yes, there was a lot of bones and skulls!
In the notes that go with the transcript, I will show you the different tenses that I use to tell you this story. This way you can almost feel the difference between imparfait and passé composé. Of course, as usual, I will highlight for you sentences or expressions that are very natural in French and that you can use in your own conversations.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
In today’s episode, my friend Pauline and I take you to the 16th arrondissement of Paris. This arrondissement is located between the Bois de Boulogne and the Tour Eiffel. There you can visit the Maison de Balzac, as we did, where the famous writer worked on La comédie humaine, a series of 90 novels representing all the aspects of life in the 19th century. Balzac lived there between 1840 and 1847, hiding from his creditors. Visiting the house is very moving, first because the place is unexpected in Paris : an ancient house with a lovely garden. Then because it’s strange to imagine that he lived and worked there. Then Pauline and I did some shopping in the neighboorhoud and will tell you about it.
Talking about shopping, in the notes that go with this episode, you will find the mini survival French guide written last year. It contains the basic sentences that you might need when you are staying in France. Of course, as usual, I will highlight for you the expressions or sentences that are very natural in French. And, as this episode is recorded on the spot, it contains a lot of typical expressions.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Summer is coming, of course that we need new shoes. Especially Lisa who as a bigger feet than last year and who needs new shoes to go to Versailles with her class. Micaela needs white sneakers to wear with her skirts or dresses. Felicia doesn’t feel the need to change her shoes for now. And I? Yes, I would like to find as good shoes as my old Clarks sandals.
By chance, we found the street for us in Asnières. Lisa and I stopped into a shop with shoes for children. In the shop, there was a little girl otherwhelmed by choice and a mother who couldn’t help her. Chosing something can be so difficult sometimes. Things were going to be different for Lisa. This is how starts the story that you are going to hear today. We are in the shop with Lisa.
With the notes that go with the transcript, you will find a typical dialogue for buying shoes in French. Yes, this may happen for you in France ! I will also highlight for you the sentences or expressions that are very natural in French. The title of this episode says that there are 3 stories. The 3rd one will be released on Friday on One Thing In A French Day podcast. There is no slow version, but sometimes it’s nice to dare listening to something more difficult.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, I spent an afternoon in Paris. The weather was very nice, it was almost summer. It’s much cooler this week. I had to buy 2 copies of the book Lisière (Border in English) written by the Bulgarian writer Kapka Kassakova. This book is the story of the writer’s trip to the borders of her country where she meets people who share with her their stories. Cold War is not that far. This book si very well written. I had seen on the website librairiesindependantes.com that the book was available at Galignani. This bookshop is one of the oldest bookshops in Paris and it’s located under the arcades of the rue de Rivoli, next to Angelina salon de thé in front of the jardin des Tuileries. I recorded myself in the garden right after I bought the book. This is what you are going to hear today.
In the notes that go with the transcript, I share with you some photos of this afternoon in Paris and I highlight for you some expressions and sentences that are very natural in French. And remember that reading the transcript is an accelerator to your comprehension.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Today, you are going to hear an interview that I had with Alice Chance. This very nice young woman is a music composer, she’s in France for her studies and she has a YouTube Channel. This is how I’ve discovered her. She uses her channel to talk about her French studies. She started it in 2019 as she was at home, in Australia. I like it because it’s real life studies, because she has nice solutions (I love the one about creating your own French family) and because she has a poetic mind.
And we met in real life by chance, because Alice and I leave in the same neighbourhood. I saw her once on the Pont de Levallois. I couldn’t believe my eyes, so I decided to contact her. Yes, she was the one I saw ! And she agreed to meet and talk about her YouTube channel for the podcast ! In this episode you are going to hear Alice talking in French, I think her pace is rather good for you so there won’t be 2 versions as usual. In the notes that go with the transcript, you will find 3 tips that were useful for Alice. And I will also give you a conjugation routine. Because, les conjugaisons, c’est la liberté !
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
When you have been living in the same neighborhood for a long time, there are people that you know. You might say hello to some of them. But some you are just familiar with their face. I have been living in Bécon-les-bruyères for more than 20 years. There is a couple that I see from time to time. There are quite intriguing.
In today’s notes, I highlight for you some sentences or expressions that are very natural in French. I also provide a special section with useful sentences when you are going to the checkout. À la caisse. And there are photos of my neighborhood. Bécon-les-bruyères.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
We spent last week week in Brittany, near Paimpol. We had a lovely week. We didn’t move too much as the girls had a lot of homework to do, but we had a long walks by the sea every afternoon. The house we rented was a the end of the big garden of the owner, a sweet old lady. On Sunday the 1st of May, we headed to Paimpol to buy some Lily of the valley as it is the tradition in France.
In the notes with the transcript of this episode, I highlight for you some sentences or expressions that are very natural in French. There are also some photos taken during our stay in Brittany.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Yes, the French finally chose Emmanuel Macron as our President, what a relief ! Sunday has been such a long day. I went to the bureau de vote early in the morning, then to the icerink in the afternoon with Felicia, I did accountancy, but time went so slowly. At the end, it was seven ! Pietro and I had decided to watch a TV fiction on Arte… A special one !
All the information about the transcript and notes : www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, we had a wonderful weather in Paris. On Thursday, when I left my friend Lorena with whom I had a coworking session, I decided to walk. I had to go to Notre-Dame de Lorette. We were in a Coffee Shop in rue du Château d’eau, in the 10th arrondissement. This neighbourhood near La Porte Saint-Martin is becoming so trendy. It’s different than la rue des Martyrs. La rue des Martyrs is more about food.
In the notes with the transcript of this episode, we study the importance of the adjectives. How do you learn new adjectives? Where do you place them, etc. In this particular episode, which is the 3rd one and the latest about the adjectives, we ask ourselves how to say something different than « c’est interessant » or « c’est bon ».
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last Sunday was the first round of the Presidential Election in France. The campaing was very different from the latest ones, it was almost invisible. The Russian invasion of Ukraine had taken all the media coverage. And between us, in my family for example, or with friends, we almost didn’t talk about it. In this episode, I tell you about first round of the election.
In the notes that goes with the transcript of this episode, this week we will study the importance of the adjectives.
How do you learn new adjectives? Where do you place them ?
How to say something else than « c’est interessant » or « c’est bon ».
The adjectives study will take us 3 episodes and this is the 2nd episode of our study.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, my friend Anne-Laure and I visited the Marcel Proust exhibition at the Musée Carnavalet in Paris : Marcel Proust, un roman parisien.
The Musée Carnavalet is the museum of the History of Paris. The museum re-opened last year after several years of works. It’s a wonderful museum that tells the story of Paris from the Neolithic ages to nowadays. There, you can see the famous portrait of Madame de Sévigné (by the way, she used to live in the Hotel particulier that hosts the museum), a shoe that belonged to Marie-Antoinette or Marcel Proust’s bedroom.
I really enjoyed the exhibition ! In this episode, I tell you about a specific painting, a big painting in front of which Anne-Laure and I stayed a long time to study it. It’s typical of the Belle Époque, when Marcel Proust lived in Paris.
In the notes that goes with the transcript of this episode, this week we will study the importance of the adjectives. How do you learn new adjectives? Where do you place them, etc. Or how to say something else than « c’est interessant » or « c’est bon ». The adjectives study will take us 3 episodes.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Two weeks ago, I had the chance to meet Margaux Aycard, the cheffe that created and runs the Bar à Brioche, a place in Paris dedicated to the brioche. There you could meet the cheffe, and have either sweet or savory brioches for a quick lunch or for breakfast. The Bar à brioches is close to La Gare Saint-Lazare and a few stops away from Les Champs Elysées.
In this episode, Margaux Aycard tells us at what time she bakes her brioches and what could be the ideal breakfast of a listener visiting her place. Miam, miam !
In the notes with the transcript of the podcast, I highlight for you the expressions that are very natural and useful in French. Now, you can tell anybody about your ideal breakfast in French ! !
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Today’s episode is both a podcast and a video on YouTube ! Micaela and her little sister Lisa have filmed Micaela’s morning routine, all the actions that she does before going to school. It has been a lot of fun for them. Then, we recorded the audio version with useful sentences.
Do you know what a « grille-pain » or a « penderie » is? Thanks to this video, you will be relieved to know that Micaela brushes her teeth after breakfast !
With the transcript of this episode, I will highlight for you all the expressions that are very naturel and useful in French.
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Our life changed last Monday! We don’t have to wear the mask anymore. The girls are a little bit nervous about it. And what about the teachers? Or the people at the café where I was writing this episode? This is what we are going to talk about. With the transcript of this episode, I’m going to highlight for you very natural French sentences and expressions of the text. Those are the ones that you need to identify and that you might use when you speak French.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
It was a surprise for our girls. As my husband could not take some holidays, we decided to go to Normandy for the week-end. It was last week. The weather was incredible, sunny and just the right quantity of wind. We had booked a sand yachting session for them ! Have you noticed the colour of the sails? Blue and yellow. It was only a few days after the beginning of war in Ukraine.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Today brings us to Rochechouart! This is where we spent our holiday in March 2020 (before lockdown!) Rochechouart is a small town but with a lot of History! and nice people to meet.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
You know that 2022 is "L'année Molière" because Molière was born 400 years ago.
This is the perfect opportunity to listen to one of the first Cultivate Your French episodes!
www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Going to the theater in Paris. Being an audience member like anyone else. Though it’s obvious when you go to Broadway or London. I’m sure this is not obvious when you plan a visit to France. Why? Because of the language barrier. This episode starts with a few lines from L’Avare, one of Molière’s famous plays. Then, we’ll speak French ! Nowadays’s French. And I’m sure that at the end of this episode you will feel the urge to go to the theater in Paris.
https://www.theatreinparis.com/
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
2022 is a special year for us in France, because we are going to choose a new President of France! How is the election held? How does it work? Who are the main candidates? This what you are going to discover in this episode.
And in today’s notes there will be a special focus on dates and on the elections’ vocabulary.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last Saturday afternoon, we had a few things to do in Paris before Micaela’s trip to Italy with her school. The first thing and maybe the most important was a Covid test. Heureusement, she was negative. We got the result as Micaela and I were about to go into the Bo&Mie, one of the very good bakeries in Paris.
In today’s notes, there is a special focus on buying breads and viennoiseries at the bakery.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
In less than two weeks time, on the 7 and the 8 of February, Felica has to take an exam : a mock test of the Brevet des collèges. The Brevet des collèges is like the baccalauréat but for younger students. It ends the college time. She needs to revise the lessons done from September to now. The real exam will take place in June. But no worries, if you fail at the stage, you still can access the lycée.
With the transcript of this episode, you get photos, explanations and today a special focus on the learning vocabulary !
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Be prepared, today Cultivate Your French takes you to a journey into the past. My friend Claire is an historian. She works at the INJS, a school for deaf people. Well the first school in the word for deaf young people, created in the 17th century by l’abbé de l’Epée. Her job at the INJS school is archivist of the ancient library. Recently, one of her colleagues asked her to find the oldest book of the library. It appeared to be a book published in 1514. Claire was really curious about this book so she looked on the BNF catalogue (National Library of France) and found a similar copy. She asked for an appointment and went to the BNF to have a look and compare the two copies, hers and the BNF one. They appeared to be the same. One detail though was different : the date of publication. The BNF copy had been published on March the 14th of 1500. This date means something. But what ? This is what you are going to discover in today’s episode.
With the transcript of this episode, you get photos, explanations and today a special focus on the pronoun « en ».
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week was a long week! Our girls went back to school, they had tests in many subjects as math, geography, Italian, etc. I went back to kung-fu class 3 times a week because there will be a competition on January the 22nd. When the week-end started, I had the feeling that the Christmas holidays were a long time ago. But, the beginning of January is the time for the galette, the most comforting moment.
In the notes of this episode I give you the vocabulary and useful sentences to celebrate La galette des Rois in French. 👑
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Bonne année à tous! Je vous souhaite une très belle et heureuse année 2022! I wish you to keep that sparkle of French in your life and to live nice French moments in 2022.
On the 2nd of January, my friend Isabelle invited me to have a walk with her husband and her in Meudon. This is where we usually go with our nordic walk group. Thierry had the idea to walk in a part of the forest where we don’t usually go with our coach. It was a nice day. We took some nice pictures, we saw a young woman on a golden horse and we suddenly landed on a road.
In today’s notes : special focus on indirect object pronouns.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The week was rather calm for us because the girls had a lot of homework to do. Pietro was supposed to be on holidays, but he had to go to work because one of his colleague had a sprain. But on Tuesday evening I found myself alone at home. What did I do? Something I haven’t done for years!
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
I hope you are well and happy.
Tonight, it’s the réveillon de Noël, Christmas Eve Dinner. The day is very busy for us : there are many things to prepare for tonight and tomorrow.
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast, ONE slow french episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
On Monday, Micaela and I went to the Mairie de quartier where we had an appointment to renew her identity card. Micaela should go to Italy with her class at the end of January and her identity card should end at least 6 month before the travel. That what not the case, so we took this appointment. She should get her new card in 2 or 3 weeks.
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week-end, I attended my first Kung-fu competition, the Open de France de Wushu. It was a long day. I arrived there, in the 13th arrondissement, at 8 o’clock and I put on my routine at almost 3 o’clock in the afternoon. In this episode, I tell you about my first routine, the bare hands one. Pietro and our 3 girls, some friends and the other club members were there to support me. It was a great moment!
All the information about the transcript is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The episode you are about to hear invites you to take a piece of paper and a pen to draw. My friend Estelle, who is a drawing teacher, is doing this exercice with her students, at the beginning of her sessions. In consist in taking a pen, closing the eyes and follow her voice to draw a portrait à l’aveugle. Once you have started, you cannot put the pen in the air. It stays on the paper. The result is always abstract and it is out of the « good drawing » standards. This exercice is not to look for perfection and it doesn’t require be a specialist, it only requires to allow yourself be surprised and open-minded. It also allows you to do something different in French and to learn the vocabulary related to the face.
To record this episode, we went to Chez Ninon a nice salon de thé in Paris, rue du Cardinal Lemoine. Their patisseries mix French style and Japanese ingredients. It’s lovely!
All the information about the transcript, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
My friend Anne-Laure told me about the nice leather cover for notebooks that she had bought at Louise Carmen.When I saw it, I found it very nice, practical and above all well designed. It had all the details that notebooks lovers are looking for. I contacted Nathalie Valmary, who created Louise Carmen, and she agreed to talk about her notebooks for the podcast. This is a section of the interview. I’ve chosen specifically this part because Nathalie Valmary tells the story of her first leather cover. She had the idea during the trip around the world she did with her husband and their two daughters. It’s important to know how to tell a story in French, it’s part of the conversation. You can imagine Anne-Laure and I on the first floor of the boutique located in one of the famous passages parisiens, le passage du Grand-Cerf, where time is slightly different and the atmosphere so unique.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last Friday, I met with Françoise, a friend of mine. We are part of the same nordic walk group. We had planned to visit the latest exhibition of David Hockney’s work : A Year In Normandie at the musée de l’Orangerie. David Hockney painted a big fresque inspired by the change of seasons in his property in Normandy. He has also been inspired by the medieval work : la tapisserie de Bayeux that he found marvelous. I have also read that he had also been inspired by Claude Monnet’s Nymphéas which are right upstairs in the same musée. Today, you are going to hear Françoise talking about how she met with David Hockney’s work. We were having lunch at the WH Smith café, in front of the Jardin des Tuileries.
All the information about the transcript, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast, ONE slow french episode every week. I hope you are well and happy.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
As many students, my three girls have homework to do during the holidays. Sometimes it’s hard to find the motivation when there are so many things you wish to do. But what will they remember from these holidays? I hope it will be the good moments.
We are on holidays in Jura. Last sunday, as you may know, it was Halloween. It’s becoming popular in France. And, I think, this year, a lot of people were expecting the children to knock at their door. Our three daughters were invited to join the two children of our owners for the Halloween walk in the village at night. First, Micaela didn’t want to go, but we convinced her to go : « Allez, Micaela, vas-y! ». I recorded the girls as they came back.
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
The episode that you are going to hear today was written in September 2013. I read a few days ago, as I was searching for conjugation examples for the advanced French podcast One Thing In A French Day. I didn’t remember that little adventure and found it funny. That day, I was searching for a big one litter bottle at Le vieux campeur. This is a famous shop for camping equipment. In Paris. It’s also famous because, it’s not one shop but a maybe 5 or 6 different shops in the same neighbor hood. Each shop has its speciality, backpack, tents, ustensils, etc. Unfortunately, we lost the bottle last year.
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
When we were travelling to Brittany, I heard on the radio Gaspard Koening. This philosopher was talking about his trip from Bordeaux to Rome with his horse Destinada. He followed the steps of a colleague from an other time : Michel de Montaigne.
As Montaigne did, he kept a travel diary then he published a book out of it. Later that same day, we entered a nice bookshop in Paimpol where I found that very book « Notre vagabonde liberté ». I bought it and started to read it almost right away. I’m still reading it and as I was reading it, I met an acquaintance. Yes !
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
A long time ago, I used to tell you about our Wednesdays. The girls didn’t go to school on Wednesday mornings at that time. We used to go shopping at our local organic shop, La Biocoop. I remember Micaela walking and holding at the same time the double stroller in which Felicia and Lisa were sitting. Our Wednesdays are very different now. They are more school and music related!
Pietro and I went to Brittany last week-end. We were invited to one of my kung-fu friend’s wedding, Ophélie. In the morning, there was the « mariage civil » at the mairie; Then, later in the afternoon we arrived at the party that was taken place in a typical breton manoir. It was a rainy day, the photos with the family and friends were often interrupted by the rain. Finally, Ophelie threw her bride’s bouquet. Threw, well not exactly…
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
A few weeks ago, during the summer, my friend Lorena and I went to Versailles. We were given the permission to record for the podcast in the gardens. Maybe one day, we will get it to record in the castle itself. We went to Versailles by train, it’s 30 minutes away from Gare Saint-Lazare. Did Louis XIV make the most of the gardens? This is the question I asked Lorena.
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Have you heard about the Arc de triomphe being wrapped in silvery blue fabric? It’s a temporary artwork from the artists (now dead) Christo and Jeanne-Claude. The Arc de triomphe as we usually see it disappeared under pleated fabric and red ropes. The artwork will be dismantled on October 3rd. On a sunny afternoon, I went there to have a look at this artwork. It’s strange. I don’t know yet what to think about it. The Arc de triomphe is a monument mainly related to wars, so maybe it’s like a pause in its history and the chance to see it differently. This episode is recorded on the spot! You can hear the furious traffic of this enormous roundabout that is La place Charles de Gaulle where is located the Arc de triomphe. I also tell you about how the press reacted in France about this wrapping!
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
This week, I answer to the following question : how to work your French with Cultivate Your French podcast? The podcast is not a class or a lesson, it’s like an audio blog in French. I share with you a small slice of my Life in France. The aim is to keep up with your comprehension of the French language or to simply improve it.
Cultivate Your French is half way through your textbook and France!
But the podcast can also be a very good tool to work on your French.
In this episode I share with you 5 tips to work on your French with the podcast. This episode is longer than usual and is dense on the subject of learning. I will read the text to you slowly, one time.
Yes, this is La rentrée. My three girls are back to school, but as they are in lycée and collège their timetable changes from day to day. When they leave in the morning, they say « A tout à l’heure Maman! ». I have to quickly ask « A quelle heure? ». Sometimes it’s one hour later, sometimes 3 hours later, etc. Or they might not leave at all in the morning. For example, Lisa doesn’t go to the collège on Monday mornings. So, last Monday, she came with me to do some shopping at Monoprix. This is where we met La vieille dame qui faisait ses courses. You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, I went to Nathalie Iris’s bookshop in La Garenne-Colombes. This is close to where we live. Nathalie also regularly presents books on TV in the show Télématin. She’s also very active in her bookshop where there are often book signatures with famous authors. We met during the first confinement and since then, to our delight, she talks about books on the podcast One Thing In A French Day. We met last week to talk about « la rentrée littéraire ». This is a big event in France and this is the subject of today’s podcast. I’m sure you are going to enjoy meeting with Nathalie in this episode. Don’t you think that we can hear her smiling in her voice.
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France.
All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
La Défense is a big business district located west of Paris. It’s not far from where I live. It’s only 4 minutes by train. And this is where I was on Monday afternoon. I had taken the girls to the cinema inside the enormous shopping centre. I had two hours to spare so I decided to record this episode right at the foot of the Grande Arche, the building that ends the « axe historique » of Paris. Then I walked and took photos of the different works of art that I had just mentioned in the episode. Including the statue of La Défense by Barrias which gave its name to the district. It was erected in 1883 to the glory of the French soldiers of the 1870 war with Prussia.
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast One Slow French episode every week. My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week-end, the weather was beautiful and I felt the urge to go to Dieppe’s market to buy some good things to eat and spend a nice day by the sea. The five of us woke up early, took a quick breakfast and took our place into the car.
But before telling you more about this, here is the answer to the riddle. We were looking for a person, someone who was very serious and dark, but with an intense expression. Probably a woman. Someone who I mentioned in a previous podcast who became owner of a place by the river Cher. Ah, the place could be the Château de Chenonceau. Then, Diane de Poitiers or Catherine de Medicis? Well, Catherine de Medicis painted by François Clouet in her dark clothes. The painting is taking you by surprise on a narrow wall when you turn to enter a small corridor in one the of the Carnavalet’ rooms. No, she’s not smilling, not even looking at us, but I think there is a kind of pride in her face. Don’t you think?
My daughters, Micaela, Felicia and I are recording this episode in Paris. We are at the Musée Carnavalet for a visit. Have you ever heard of this Museum? It’s the museum of the History of Paris. it belongs to the city of Paris and it’s free to visit. It has a wonderful collection of paintings and objects from the very old times of Paris to nowadays. It’s located in the heart of the Marais in two hôtels particiuliers. One of them belonged to the famous writer of letters, Madame de Sévigné. I have been to this museum several times before its renovation. It reopened in May 2021, we are very happy to visit it today. Today’s text is a riddle. Yes, you have to find something that can be seen in the Musée de Carnavalet. You can send me your answer to the riddle by Instagram, by email or by SpeakPipe. https://www.speakpipe.com/OneThingInAFrenchDay
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have. All the information about the transcript,notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, on Thursday, the weather was perfect for a day trip to Les Rousses, the largest ski resort of the Jura. Have you ever heard of the Jura? This region is situated above the Alps, going North. It gave its name to the Jurassic period. It was a tropical region a long long time ago, with palm trees and warm seas. This is where we are spending our holidays. We love this region. Maybe have you heard of its famous cheeses : Comté, Morbier, bleu de Gex? Well, you might hear some cows in this episode! As I did last week, I record this episode in the garden of the house we’ve rented for two weeks. I hope it won’t rain.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Since last week, we are on holidays and the podcast takes you with us. I’m recording this episode in the garden of our new home for two weeks. Our holidays started in the Loire Valley where we had a walk in the the gardens of the castle of Chenonceau by night. This is what I told you last week. A few days later, we came back to Chenonceau to visit both the castle, where every room is outstanding, and the gardens . Our week in the Loire Valley ended with the visit of the castle of Montpoupon. A Renaissance castle where the owners (since 300 years) are still living. We loved it because the rooms are largely decorated with many objects of everyday life from the 16th century to the early 20th century. By the end of the week, it was time to go to Felicia’s concert in Pontlevoy where she was staying for a baroque music camp.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
We are on holidays! And I’m happy to share a few moments with you. I’m recording this episode in the garden of the house we’ve rented. This week we are in the Loire Valley region. I was dreaming to go back to Chenonceau, one the beautiful Loire Valley castles, since 2013. Chenonceau is a small Renaissance castle mainly built in the sixteenth century that the king Henri II offered to his very good friend Diane de Poitiers. When he died, his wife Catherine de Medicis took it back for herself and managed France from there. Mary Stuart was married to one of his son, Henri III and also lived in Chenonceau. This place is full of history! Micaela was surprised because she’s reading La princesse de Clèves written in the 17th century by Madame de La Fayette. The story takes places at Henri II’s court and Diane de Poitiers, Catherine de Medicis are part of the story. I’ve seen in the Castle shop that there is an English version of this book published by Penguin Books. Have you read it?
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
These few weeks in Paris before going back to school were very intense. I felt an urge to visit as many places as we could. We visited Le Louvre, we went to La Sainte-Chapelle as Claire told us that it was wonderful to see the light through the stained glass windows, we visited the Musée Bourdelle (a very nice place for a calm moment in Paris) and one morning I suggested that we could go to the Tour Eiffel. The girls were a little bit tired of this Paris craziness, but Alice, Lisa’s friend who was we us for the day, was on my side. Be ready for an escape, today’s episode takes you to the Tour Eiffel!
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last saturday, I went to Paris with Micaela. She was invited to her best friend’s end of the year music exam, Anna. Anna was playing piano and singing. The audition took place in the cité internationale universitaire in the 14th arrondissement. The cité was built in the 1920s to accomodate foreign students. It’s a lovely place with big buildings. I left Micaela, I went to Saint-Michel for a walk and came back home. The train I took was crouded because there are works on the line and fewer trains. Near to me, two young women were talking very loud. I couldn’t do anything else than listen to them. What were they talking about ? This what you are going to hear in this episode. I promise I will try not to talk as loud as them.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Maybe you need a reason to go to Dehillerin and maybe you could find this reason in Hélène Luzin’s latest book : 50 gâteaux de grands pâtissiers qu’il faut avoir goûté une fois dans sa vie. Nathalie Iris, the bookseller at La Garenne-Colombes, invited Hélène Luzin for a signing session. When I read the news, I went to buy a copy at the bookshop. The book is very clever. Each chef pâtissiers gives the recipe of it’s best cake, but there is also an interview with the chef. This is the part that I find very interesting because it gives you the story of each pâtissier and of his recipe, it tells you about his personality and it’s easy to read. At the end of the book, there are two pages to collect the signature of each chef. Nicolas Bernardé is a Meilleur Ouvrier de France and his shop is very close to Nathalie’s bookshop. He is also in Hélène Luzin’s book for his famous « Gâteau du samedi ». So the day Hélène Luzin was invited, he came to the bookshop and offered us some chocolates. In this episode, you are going to hear Hélène Luzin talking about what she enjoyed when she wrote the book.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006.
All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
One sunny morning of June, Claire, the viola da gamba player, and I headed to Paris and went to Dehillerin. She thought that it would be nice for you, listeners, to discover this very unique shop in Paris.
The shop was founded two hundred years ago by Eugene Dehillerin and it provides cookware to professional cooks or to anyone who enjoys cooking. The shop is still in the family, Eric Dehillerin is now the manager and I had the opportunity to talk with him. The shop is in Les Halles neighbourhood because this is where, before 1970, that the restaurant owners would buy their fresh food at the central market, Les Halles, and their cookware . When the market of Les Halles moved to Rungis in the south of Paris, the Dehillerin family elected to stay in the centre of Paris.
The shop has its own website, but they intonially kept the old style wood racks so you might be a little bit confused : have you time travelled?
In today’s episode you are going to hear a section of the recording with Eric Dehillerin. And in the notes available with the transcript, I give you some useful sentences to use in a shop.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, I read you some useful sentences when you arrive in France or in Paris. Today, is a special episode about buying some bread at the boulangerie. It has been recorded in a parisian bakery Painâme, in the 11th arrondissement, rue Oberkampf with Camila and Pierre, the charming owners. A big merci to them for taking the time do record this dialogue.
In their bakery you will find very good bread of course, viennoiseries and some increadible sandwiches with home made mayonnaise, roasted mushrooms, caramelized onions and nicely baked bread. Do not hesitate to say hello if you come. Camila and Pierre will be very happy to take your order in French.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006
All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
You know that Cultivate Your French is the younger brother of One Thing In A French Day. Well, this older brother is celebrating this week 2000 episodes. The podcast will be a live podcast on Saturday June 12 th. There is a theme for this celebration, a listener gave me the idea to create a Survival French guide. Listeners sent me many suggestions of situations to develop in the podcast. I thought that you might be interested too. So today’s episode is a mini survival French guide. Do not hesitate to repeat the sentences aloud! If you wish to attend the live podcast, you are warmly welcome. All the information is on the blog of the podcast at www.onethinginafrenchday.com
Please, it would be very sympa if you could rate this podcast on your podcast app. Un grand merci.
A few weeks ago, we bought a new bike for Micaela, a second hand bike that was sold by Projet Boussole an online shop created in September 2020 by Hugo Borrin. Hugo is 30 years old, he created the shop after he met Francçois a bicycle mechanic. He had previously worked in a start up after a management school. The shop is in Clichy, a few kilometers away from our home. So we decided that we would collect the bike. When Micaeal and I visited him Hugo Borrin accepted to answer a few questions for the podcast. You will hear him talk about his love for bikes and his best promenade around Paris. The shop of course is a success, nowadays many people want to go to work riding a bike rather than taking the metro.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
You are listening to Cultivate Your French podcast, ONE slow french episode every week.
Last year, I discovered that my friend Lorena, from the dance class, is a real passionate about the Château de Versailles. I asked her if she would go with me to the castle and tell us about her passion. She agreed to my great joy! But the bad automnal weather conditions, then lockdown thwarted our plans. This Spring I asked Lorena if she would talk about what she likes at the Château, like an introduction to these future episodes. So we recorded ourselves walking in Paris, as Louis XIV would walk in Versailles to have a conversation. In this episode, I asked Lorena about her favourite figures in Versailles’s history. I’m sure you are going to enjoy the way Lorena talks, how she builds her sentences, her reasoning. This episode is a really good training for understanding and building more complex sentences.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006
All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
A few weeks ago, my friend Pauline showed me a book that she got for Christmas, a book about nice table settings, Chez eux. this book gave us the idea to build a podcast episode about setting a table.
If we were to set a table, we might as well have a lunch or a brunch on it! We took our agenda and decided about a date. Then we imagined our menu : something simple but nice, with flowers on the table.
That day, we first did some shopping. We bought some gariguetes (early strawberries), we bought some renoncules (buttercups in English says the dictionary) and a cherry tree branch. At the bakery, we bought a few croissants because you can’t imagine a brunch without any.
For this episode, Pauline and I are in her kitchen. Everything is almost ready, it’s time to choose what plates to put on the table. Follow me in her cupboard!
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last week, on Friday, the weather was nice in Paris. My friend Anne-Laure and I had planned to have lunch in the Jardin des Plantes.
We also had an appointment with Matthias, the baker at Boulangerie Archibald, in the fifth arrondissement. I needed to take a picture of one of his bread for my next book. Matthias does not run a typical parisian bakery with croissants and baguettes. He only sells artisan breads and his bakery is open only in the afternoon. He’s successful in the neighbourhood and very well known now in Paris.
This episode starts as Anne-Laure and I are at the bakery. Then, you will follow us on the boulevard Saint-Germain.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com
Last Saturday, I went to Nathalie Iris’s bookshop, Mots en marge, in La Garenne-Colombes. Nathalie suggests books to read on my other podcast One Thing In A French Day.
She’s a very active bookseller and she’s well-known in the neighbourhood. Her bookshop is located on the place de Liberté which is also the place du marché.
She often organises « dédicaces », book signatures, and in June « la nuit blanche du livre » a book fair that finishes late at night and where you can meet famous authors.
There was a book signature last Saturday and it was also the market day. I had bought and partially read the book of Djamel Cherigui, Sainte Touche, so I was happy to go to the signature. The style of the author is clearly too hard to read for someone who is learning French, but I think meeting an author is always interesting.
I had my mic with me that day, and Djamel Cherigui agreed to talk about his work for the podcast.
I was very pleased to talk to him because he’s a very nice man, and a true passionate of literature. He’s a kind of media hit in France because he’s very talented and because he runs a grocery in the North of France. It’s unexpected for a writer.
So, today You are going to hear a short version of the interview with Djamel Cherigui.
My name is Laetitia, I’m French, I live just outside Paris and I share with you a small slice of my daily life here in France. I have also been running the podcast One Thing In A French Day since 2006 All the information about the transcripts, notes and photos is available at www.cultivateyourfrench.com