Speaking French vs. Understanding French

 Let's talk about language. 

I spent the better part of a year brushing up on my French using the Pimsleur app recommended to me by my grad school buddy Roberta (shout out to you, Roberta!). I learned a lot! So I actually feel pretty confident about speaking French. I'm also competent in reading French. Not to brag, but I used a French language resource in my dissertation! 😏 So I was really excited about coming to France and being able to speak the language.

My first real experience in conversing in French was with the caretaker at our Airbnb. I was encouraged when he showed us around the apartment and I was able to understand his instructions and explanations. French is not his first language, so he speaks a bit slower than native speakers. Furthermore, he was glad I spoke French because he doesn't speak English. So it all worked out.

Then I started going to grocery stores and pharmacies. Not so easy then. Once people realize I can't understand them, they often just start to speak in English. But with others I'm able to get by with some Franglais. But I'm still struggling to get an ear for the language. 

A colleague from Marian who is here in France recommended that I listen to The News in Facile Français (easy French). I've found that I can slow down the streaming and read along in French while I listen closely to the speech. Right now I'm not working too hard to understand; instead I'm concentrating on discerning sounds. 

I also had a brainstorm yesterday to ask the caretaker if he'd be willing to speak French with me. He's agreed to do so. I only wish I had thought of it sooner, as we're departing from this apartment a week from today to go to a different Airbnb. 

By the way, apparently I speak French with an English accent. Several people have asked if I'm English and when I tell them I'm American, they say I speak with an English accent. Must be those years in the Bahamas when I had an English French teacher!

So let me also share with you about this apartment. We have been so happy here. It's quite spacious and elegantly shabby. Honestly, it could do with a coat of paint, but we are delighted with it as it is. Here are some pictures of the living/dining room area (actually I just noticed Chris's foot and remember now that I posted these pictures before. Oh, well; here they are again):

Here's the outside, which is typical of Parisian apartment buildings:

Our apartment is the three windows to the left on the 2nd floor.

We have also greatly enjoyed the surrounding area. There are patisseries, boulangeries, pharmacies, hair salons, and lots of boutiques. It is a bustling area with plenty of public transportation. But most charming is the promenade that runs in between the lanes of the boulevard we're on. Right beneath our dining room is a playground, and we enjoy watching the families come and go. Further down the promenade there are rose bowers and the neighborhood interpretation of the green bridge at Monet's home in Giverny.

I've loved our location so much, I'm a little sad about leaving it next week. But I'm sure our next Airbnb will be lovely, too.

This week we've been to the Shakespeare and Company store (my one souvenir so far: a tote from the store); we saw Notre Dame under reconstruction and walked along the Seine; and today we went to Noglu, the gluten-free patisserie, and I had my pain au chocolat! Yesterday late afternoon we explored an area of the neighborhood we hadn't seen yet and found this beautiful church: St. Odile. St. Odile was from Alsace and is the patron saint of good eyesight.

That's all the news from here. I'll be back next week before we leave.