Cultivate your French : Slow French, at the right pace.

CYF 077 — mercredi 9 juin 2021 — Mini-guide de survie

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. 

CYF 076 — mercredi 2 juin 2020 — Avec Hugo Borrin chez Projet Boussole

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

 

CYF 075 — mercredi 25 mai 2021 — Et si on parlait de Versailles? Promenade avec Lorena

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

 

CYF 074 — mercredi 19 mai 2021 — Une belle table pour un brunch entre amies

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

 

CYF 073 — mercredi 12 mai 2021 — En passant à la boulangerie Archibald

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

 

CYF 072 — mercredi 5 mai 2021 — Rencontre avec Djamel Cherigui

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

CYF 071 — mercredi 28 avril 2021 — dégustation de macaron

We have been on holidays for two weeks. We were supposed to go one week in Brittany, but because of the new lockdown rules we were not allowed to leave. Our new circle has a diameter of 10 kilometers. A big part of Paris is in our circle. 

Pietro, my husband, had to work so the girls and I took our holidays « in Paris ». We did some nice things : having lunch « à emporter », walking rue Réaumur to watch the nice early 20th century buildings, going to the Jardin des plantes, visiting nice bookshops, etc.

And we did a « macarons » afternoon. We did not baked some macarons, we went to by some in famous places in Paris : Ladurée, Carette and Dalloyau. A macaron costs between 2,10 and 2,20 euros. It’s an expensive little cake. We have been nicely welcomed in Ladurée and Carette. But Dalloyau was quite different. The lady literally through the macarons in a paper bag with no respect for their fragility.

Back home, we organized a serious tasting. This is what you are going to hear in today’s episode. 

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. 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

 

CYF 070 — mercredi 21 avril 2021 — Le matin, au petit-déjeuner

Sometimes, we get very good at understanding a language. It’s the beginning of something new, something very pleasant and rewarding. The ear catches whole sentences, we get good at understanding videos on the Internet, movies in French etc.  

But sometimes, we set aside how to improve our speaking of that language. And I don’t think this is a good plan.

So, as in last week’s episode, today the aim is that you train yourself to talk. I have recorded this dialogue between my friend Marilyne and I. She stayed for the night and we meet in the kitchen at breakfast time.

Then, to make things more practical, you will also hear only her lines. With the other part of the dialogue left blank,you will be able to act as if you were me welcoming Marilyne in the kitchen and asking her questions about what she eats for breakfast. The dialogue is rather long, so you will play this game until the lines about the confiture.

In the transcript, I also give you some specific sentences about the breakfast and I encourage you to leave me an audio message about your breakfast. 

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. 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

 

CYF069 — mercredi 14 avril 2021 — Acheter des macarons pour offrir

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. 

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. 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

 

CYF 068 — mercredi 7 avril 2021 — Chez Pauline, le bureau devient une chambre

Last week, I paid a visit to my friend Pauline. She’s expecting her third child. It means that her husband and her need to create a third room in their house. They are going to turn the room, that is now her private room with her desk and where she does Pilates, into a child room.
The first step that she told me about is to remove all the furnitures : a sofa, a desk, two bookcases. 

Pauline lives in a house built in the beginning of the twentieth century. So in the room that we are talking about there are mouldings on the walls and  a wooden floor. 
What are her projects for this room in terms of decoration? This is what you are going to hear in today’s episode. 

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. 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