The Good Life France

If you are like me, you never tire of seeing beautiful photos of France and reading about French culture, charming villages to visit, cuisine, markets, and all the other delightful aspects of the country we love—and that is the most visited country in the world. For a feast of enticing images, articles and information on France, I want to highly recommend one of my favorite web addresses. The website is hosted by Janine Marsh, a lovely British woman who has settled in France. She also publishes a delightful online magazine and sends out a weekly newsletter—all absolutely FREE! Janine is a professional travel writer and has a heart full of love—not only for France but for her large collection of cats, dogs, chickens, ducks, geese and any critter who finds its way to her door. The link below will take you to the website where you will find a very nice article that she wrote about me and my work. The whole operation of The Good Life France has Janine's warm and friendly touch to it. I am really glad I found her, and you will be, too.

The Good Life France.com

HARD WORDS IN FRENCH #13

#13 "serrurerie" This one is the hardest word that expats listed as most difficult in an article from TheLocal.fr, “10 hardest words in French”. In our series “Hard Words” we have covered them all (lesson 2-13). And “serrurerie” really is a challenge to pronounce. All those r's! In this lesson you will learn the secret to overcoming the difficulties of this pesky word as we break it down and make it a bit more pronounceable!

Who doesn't love a baguette?

This article, written from an expat's point of view says that any difficulties around moving to France are worth it when you consider the food! Even the flour is special for baguettes, which is why I often am disappointed in versions made here in the U.S. So take a look at this interesting blog and let your mouth water. And while you are on the website, check out under “courses” to learn more about my video course which will have you speaking like the French, so when you do go into that boulangerie for your morning baguette or croissant, you will sound like a local. Bon appétit!

READ THE ARTICLE HERE

Hard Words in French #8 "pneu"

 This new video series on Hard Words in French has been a lot of fun to teach. One of the interesting things I have noticed is that in most cases it is not that the word is particularly hard to pronounce but the spelling makes it look hard. I started the series around the time of Christmas, so the first of this series was “meilleurs voeux”. But from then on I have been focused on the “10 hardest words in French”, a list that appeared in an online news magazine called The Local. Fr. I am assuming that these were words expats in France submitted to the magazine and got the idea for the series. The word this week, “pneu” is not really all that hard but it has a couple of interesting features. One is the pronunciation of the eu spelling, which in this case we call the closed eu. Its phonetic symbol is /ø/ and it is one of the foundations of my course, Mastering French Pronunciation. What is so important about this vowel? It contains all the important characteristics of what I call “The French mouth”. Since I am an English speaker, I have had to learn how to sound French and that is the specialty of what I offer. These little video lessons give you a sample of the content of my teaching, but the course also gives the opportunity to practice what is taught by repeating exercises after me, and also by seeing a native French speaker say the words on video. If correcting your Anglo/American accent and sounding more authentically French interests you, I invite you to look into Mastering French Pronunciation.

Experience France with Geri: Ile de la Cité Part 1

Way back in 1973 I was the director of the French student teacher program at UC Santa Barbara and visited the local high schools to evaluate and guide the young interns. Along the way the students in their classes got to know me and asked if I would take them to France. And so began a delightful career that lasted until 2005. I always tried to give my participants the most authentic “France Experience” (the original name of my tours) possible-- from the teenagers who were my first and longest fellow-travelers, to the adult wine tours I led in the late 1990's. I thought it would be fun to share these travels on this blog site, and for the first in this series, will begin with my favorite tour day in Paris. This is the day we visit Ile de la Cité, literally from one tip of the island to the other. 

At around 9:30 in the morning, we go to the open air market at the Maubert-Mutualité métro stop at Place Maubert, ( 5e arrondissement) to buy provisions for a picnic we will have later. Don't forget your shopping bag or filet, and be sure to have some utensils with you, like a knife for spreading and cutting, a corkscrew and a small cup for drinking if you have wine. This market is open every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of the year and is a real cultural experience. There is even a little section for “bio”, organic produce. And if you don't find what you want at the market, there are several permanent stores at the same location for bread (la boulangerie), cheese (la fromagerie) and wine (of course). 

 After gathering all the delicious breads, cheeses, and charcuterie, we will cross Bd. St-Germain and walk down the little street rue de Bièvre, just opposite the market. A little anecdote: for years this street was closed to automobile traffic and two policemen were always on duty as French President Mitterand lived in an apartment on this street. The street is named after a creek (la Bièvre) still active underground and running to the Seine. You arrive at the Seine and cross the river on Pont de l'Archevêché. This brings you to one of the best photo ops of Notre Dame Cathedral so don't hesitate to spend a little time here with perhaps boats gliding past below or moored along the banks. The next stop on this tour will be looked at in the next blog as we actually start our day on Ile de la Cité. This spot is practically unknown and more rarely visited but it will touch you in many ways. Don't miss the next installment!

My love for France doesn't stop with its physical attractions. I am also passionate about the sound of the language. I came out of retirement to share with the world my particular take on how to correct our English language accents so we sound more authentically French. I think I have something to offer to the non-native French speakers of the world and a gift to give to the propogation of the purity and the beauty of this language we all love. Please look at my website (pronouncingfrench.com) for more information on myself and the course being released on January 31, 2016, Mastering French Pronunciation. Dedicated to French teachers, students, expats living in France, those doing business with France, and all who would like to sound more authentic when speaking the beautiful French language! Merci!.