News report on Shopping in France http://www.pluzz.fr/c-est-notre-affaire-2011-07-20-22h00.html Pluzz.fr is a great resource for practicing French because it offers online streaming of a variety of French tv stations, organized by station and category. This specific episode comes from a show called “c’est notre affaire” which does research into the daily lives of people, mini documentaires, sorry, documentaries, sometimes my French slips into my English. This episode is about how to save money when buying things. But the interesting part as at 10min28 seconds because they begin to compare shopping in markets (marchés couverts) versus super markets (supermarchés) 78% of people interviewed said they were “très attachés” to their local markets. However 1 in 2 of these markets are disappearing in the countryside! Ahhh.  This was especially interesting to me because it seems that in America, these markets are making a comeback in the form of “farmers markets.” For example in my town south of Boston, we have a weekly farmers market where 5 or 6 farms come to sell their products during the growing season.  When I told a French friend that this was a really nice and special way of shopping, they basically laughed because that is nothing new or special for them. Although these markets are disappearing in the countryside, “la campagne,” the existing markets are doing better because supermarkets are becoming more expensive when these “marchés couverts” are not. Also there the benefit of getting to know specific vendors because each market, like the farmers market I mentioned, has a variety of vendors selling similar products. This means that you can go around, comparing prices yourself, talking to the vendors and even getting to know them. How many of you are on a first name basis with your local butcher or vegetable guy? I’m guessing not many. But in France it is more common to have this and I think its because the markets are divided into individual vendors with whom you form you “allegiances” haha. Also, in these markets, you’re much more likely to get free samples, and even discuss how to prepare the products.  For example I was going to a market “marché ouvert” which sets up every Sunday morning around the corner from me, and the salesman will say things like “ca fait longetemps on s’est pas vu” “Haven’t seen you for a while” (yeah, he was on to me, I’d been going shopping in super markets! Woops) or he’ll explain each apple tastes. Then next to his stand is the poissonière, the Fish guy, not only told me which fish to buy and how to cook it, but gave me some parsley to use. He is my BOY! So for those of you who have heard these kinds of rumors about open markets in France, yes, they’re quite true.

News report on Shopping in France

http://www.pluzz.fr/c-est-notre-affaire-2011-07-20-22h00.html

Pluzz.fr is a great resource for practicing French because it offers online streaming of a variety of French tv stations, organized by station and category. This specific episode comes from a show called “c’est notre affaire” which does research into the daily lives of people, mini documentaires, sorry, documentaries, sometimes my French slips into my English.

This episode is about how to save money when buying things. But the interesting part as at 10min28 seconds because they begin to compare shopping in markets (marchés couverts) versus super markets (supermarchés)

78% of people interviewed said they were “très attachés” to their local markets. However 1 in 2 of these markets are disappearing in the countryside! Ahhh.  This was especially interesting to me because it seems that in America, these markets are making a comeback in the form of “farmers markets.” For example in my town south of Boston, we have a weekly farmers market where 5 or 6 farms come to sell their products during the growing season.  When I told a French friend that this was a really nice and special way of shopping, they basically laughed because that is nothing new or special for them.

Although these markets are disappearing in the countryside, “la campagne,” the existing markets are doing better because supermarkets are becoming more expensive when these “marchés couverts” are not. Also there the benefit of getting to know specific vendors because each market, like the farmers market I mentioned, has a variety of vendors selling similar products. This means that you can go around, comparing prices yourself, talking to the vendors and even getting to know them. How many of you are on a first name basis with your local butcher or vegetable guy? I’m guessing not many. But in France it is more common to have this and I think its because the markets are divided into individual vendors with whom you form you “allegiances” haha. Also, in these markets, you’re much more likely to get free samples, and even discuss how to prepare the products.  For example I was going to a market “marché ouvert” which sets up every Sunday morning around the corner from me, and the salesman will say things like “ca fait longetemps on s’est pas vu” “Haven’t seen you for a while” (yeah, he was on to me, I’d been going shopping in super markets! Woops) or he’ll explain each apple tastes. Then next to his stand is the poissonière, the Fish guy, not only told me which fish to buy and how to cook it, but gave me some parsley to use. He is my BOY! So for those of you who have heard these kinds of rumors about open markets in France, yes, they’re quite true.

Music. Slang and Culture

This kid is probably 19, lives in Paris, and apparently LOVES smoking Hookah, or as he calls it, Shisha, a flavored Tobacco which is very common in the middle east and north Africa.  This isn’t exactly the kind of music I listen to but it is certainly the kind that kids here like. rap hip hop, t-pain voice style. I generally understand it but there is a LOT of slang. After spending the past year here, talkin to my students aged 18-24, I have come to understand that the slang used by 16 year olds and 20 year olds can be quite different. I always encourage students learning French to learn common slang words so that they understand the kind of French spoken in the streets, but MAN there is so much, it can be overwhelming.  I remember when I first taught French, my priority was to teach the French spoken today rather than written French.  I still stand by this goal, however I realize that some common slang words used by one age group will not necessarily be understood by another. Do you normally tell your dad that the movie you saw last night was “Sick”? does he understand you? well hear, a high school kid might say that the movie was ’ TROP DARD!’ which means awesome or cool. however I was told by my 25 year old friends that its not a cool word to use… unless you are under 18.

Also, at one point he makes a reference to Magreb people.

“C’est pour tous mes Algériens, Marocains et Tunisiens
Chicha toute la nuit.”

This is interesting because he himself is probably Magreb himself, (meaning from north africa) and he is making a shout out to all “his” Algerians, Morrocans and Tunisians. The Maghreb community is a very large minority group in France, a minority group that we Americans know nothing about. However to help you guys understand what their place in France is like, you can kind of compare them to the Latino community in the US, except many of the Maghreb people speak Arab and practice islam, which separates them lingustically, religiously and culturally. Perhaps the Maghreb people are more different from the French than the Latino people to the Americans.

Anyway. hope you enjoy the  video. and here is the link to the lyrics.

http://www.parolesmania.com/paroles_zifou_69475/paroles_chicha_toute_la_nuit_1191462.html

Free Self Guided Tours of Paris

The city of Paris website offers dozens of walking itineraries with historical descriptions of the walk. Either print it out or open it up on your smartphone and boom, free self guided tour of any neighborhood of Paris, organized by area or theme.

How to choose your tour?

open up the link http://www.paris.fr/marches then select the grey tab “Paris Loisirs.”  Then you have 3 options. Balades culturelles, Balades au vert (green walks), Balades dans les quartiers (by neighborhood) et Promenades au bord de l’eau (Strolls along water.)


if you click on balades culturelles for example, (http://www.paris.fr/loisirs/se-promener-a-paris/balades-culturelles/p9661) You will find a range of options such as

Montmartre: what I’ve learned so far

Basics aka what we all know: Montmartre is a hill in Paris with Sacre coeur on top the beautiful white basilica.  There are many people who paint at montmartre and has some historical connection to art. at the base of montmartre is the moulin rouge, a windmill where girls did the can can. Amelie has many scenes filmed here.

What I’ve learned:

The artistic past: Montmartre was a haven for artists.  It became this way because it was a beautiful town outside of Paris back in the mid 1800s, where rent was cheap yet close enough to the city.  Countless painters and musicians started here. At a small venue called the “Lapin Agile” George Brassens and Nougaro got their starts. gettings sleepy more will follow.

-GHT (J’ai acheté)

I was speaking with a French friend about learning English and what’s hard, what’s easy.  She mentioned (J’ai acheté) which means “I bought”.  This didn’t make any sense to me. I said, “J’ai acheté, what does that have to do with learning english.”

She said, well its the letters that are at the end of words which are extremely hard to spell. G H T. (Jay -Ash - Tay) G H T. so liGHT, fiGHT eiGHT.

Ooooh Ok. I get it. I rarely think about what in english is illogical. words ending in -GHT would be strange. I bouGHT some coffee yesterday.  I “BOT” some coffee.. but a French person, or a foreigner from any other country learned to pronounce the letters as they are. so I bouGHT becomes I “Bog-huh-t” which isn’t exactly how it sounds in correct english.

So she mentioned that the GHT words are grouped into a category called “J’ai acheté” which is just a memory technique for memorizing all the words that like Fight and eight, are not pronounced logically.

Also I found that this example of GHT was helpful for me to remember the difference betweent G and J in English and in French. the letters by themselves G and J are essentially reversed when you pronounce the in French.

G H I J K L …. sounds different in French. its:

jay - ach - eee- jee - kah

that’s right. G in French is pronounced like our J. and their J is pronounced like our. G. quite confusing. but not that I know that G H T sounds like the phrase “J’ai acheté” I think finally, FINALLY, I may have a way to memorize the difference.

I know that last year when I was teaching French to the 7th graders in Worcester, I sometimes would confuse J and G and  my students corrected me! well at least they learned it correctly!

Why France is the Best Place to Live

I came across this article while googling for a French version of CNN. The article discusses France’s number one position, (5 years in a row) as the best country in the world.  They mention health care, maternity leave, retirement but also culture, leisure and and other less financial components of life. “No surprise its (France’s) tiresome bureaucracy and high taxes are outweighed by an unsurpassed quality of life, including the world’s best health care.”- international living magazine

I can absolutely attest to this comment. Because I’ve been in France 6 months and still am waiting for my carte de sejour (immigration identity card) and carte  vitality (the golden pass that allows me to benefit from the national health care system). So yes, the long bureaucratic process characteristic of France, I feel it, and it is HEAVY.  I am planning on having my wisdom teach removed and was worried about the cost.  In the States, this operation probably cost over a thousand dollars, depending on what kind of insurance you have. However here, simply by being a legal resident, this process will cost about 50 euros all together. If I purchase a “Mutuel” which is essentially an additional level of insurance that French people can purchase or receive from their employers for  free (which I think is often the case) then this 50 euro investment is reduced to 20 euros, the co payment of going to see the dentist, twice.

So yes, it’s a long process perhaps to have the benefits, and even for the French natives, they also experience inconveniences with the administrative processes of life, but the payoff is huge.

Back home in America, I am on my family’s health insurance which is a pretty comfortable plan.  However here, once I have my carte Vitale, I will pay even less for doctor visits, medicine and operations if needed.

here’s the link to the full length article.

http://internationalliving.com/2009/01/qofl2009/

I’ve never seen notre dame from this side of the island. it’s lovely. I much prefer it in combination with other buildings. and the mask, ma  cagoule, love that word. well it was a gift from my brother that I think would add some spice to my pics of Paris.

I’ve never seen notre dame from this side of the island. it’s lovely. I much prefer it in combination with other buildings. and the mask, ma  cagoule, love that word. well it was a gift from my brother that I think would add some spice to my pics of Paris.

Goes with link below.

# 18 on one of France's Music lists.

I’m a little ashamed that this video is what motivated me to break the 2 month dry spell but it is just such a perfect thing to send to my students back in Worcester. Yes I”m thinking of you all and yes I’m sorry for those of you who were waiting for posts since I saw you in January.

So on this link you can watch the video and read the lyrics. Thanks to the simplicity of the song I think you guys can get the main idea without going to google translator as I KNOW YOU DO! arrete ca! il vaut mieux utiliser wordreference.com. Comme ça vous allez beaucoup plus apprendre. Avec Wordreference vous allez rester comme des zombies. (Reference to Connor W, who seemed to include zombies in everyone of his french sentences.)

please send me an email to know if you’re reading, that way I will start updating more. I have tons of stories and photos to post but I just need to know that people are reading.

take care everyone.

Jake

Sports in France As the picture says, “On est tous handballers”. which sounds awesome because its like we are all  ballers. But no, it is that we are all HAND-ballers. on joue au handball. C’est un sport! C’est un sport qu’on ne connait pas tres bien aux Etats Unis. Peut être on ne le connait pas du tout. Moi, je le connaissais pas.  Anyway, It was a funny picture because clearly they don’t play in high heels but I’m not surprised if it helps them advertise. But speaking of sports. I had a discussion with my students about playing sports in America versus France. According to a book I’m reading about the US, written by a French person, we play a LOT of sports.  So I asked my students if they played growing up.  Most of them did have sports that they played but it doesn’t seem to be as important to them. They generally don’t play for their schools. They do have town teams for a variety of sports but it’s nothing like the American scholastic sports system. They don’t have games where the whole highschool goes and cheers, waving signs. That is totally american in their point of view. When I mentioned that sports can be important as we apply for college they all smirked. Apparently it sounds ridiculous to them.  I explained that it’s not about physical fitness but determination and commitment, you know, personal traits, but I suppose it does sound funny if I think about it from their view.

Sports in France

As the picture says, “On est tous handballers”. which sounds awesome because its like we are all  ballers. But no, it is that we are all HAND-ballers. on joue au handball. C’est un sport! C’est un sport qu’on ne connait pas tres bien aux Etats Unis. Peut être on ne le connait pas du tout. Moi, je le connaissais pas.  Anyway, It was a funny picture because clearly they don’t play in high heels but I’m not surprised if it helps them advertise.

But speaking of sports. I had a discussion with my students about playing sports in America versus France. According to a book I’m reading about the US, written by a French person, we play a LOT of sports.  So I asked my students if they played growing up.  Most of them did have sports that they played but it doesn’t seem to be as important to them. They generally don’t play for their schools. They do have town teams for a variety of sports but it’s nothing like the American scholastic sports system. They don’t have games where the whole highschool goes and cheers, waving signs. That is totally american in their point of view. When I mentioned that sports can be important as we apply for college they all smirked. Apparently it sounds ridiculous to them.  I explained that it’s not about physical fitness but determination and commitment, you know, personal traits, but I suppose it does sound funny if I think about it from their view.