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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 Slow French doesn’t just mean speaking slowly and it’s not about quick progress. It’s a nice learning approach.
Episodes
Wednesday Jun 15, 2022
Wednesday Jun 15, 2022
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.
Wednesday Jun 08, 2022
Wednesday Jun 08, 2022
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.
Wednesday Jun 01, 2022
Wednesday Jun 01, 2022
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.
Wednesday May 25, 2022
Wednesday May 25, 2022
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 !
Wednesday May 18, 2022
Wednesday May 18, 2022
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.
Wednesday May 11, 2022
Wednesday May 11, 2022
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.
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
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
Wednesday Apr 20, 2022
Wednesday Apr 20, 2022
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 ».
Wednesday Apr 13, 2022
Wednesday Apr 13, 2022
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.
Wednesday Apr 06, 2022
Wednesday Apr 06, 2022
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.