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

CYF 189 — Le couple doubleur — mercredi 22 novembre 2023

Last Thursday was a very rainy day in Paris. My friend Anne-Laure and I spent the day under the rain to record some episodes to come on the podcast. Our feet were wet, we were tired and cold when we started the queue at the museum. I won’t tell you which one not to reveal the subject of the coming episodes. The exhibit that we had planned to visit was supposed to be the best moment of our day, but an incident happened in the queue. This is what this episode is about. 

In the notes that come with the transcript, I will highlight for you some little expressions that come naturally in French, we will also stop on a specific sentence to repeat aloud, I will tell you why this one, and you will have to guess the infinitive of a verb. 

So to Cultivate Your French, receive the text by email each time an episode is release, and enjoy all the positive effects of having the exact text of the episode, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com. The subscription costs 4 euros a month and each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes. 

www.cultivateyourfrench.com

 

CYF 188 — La Frasnée — mercredi 15 novembre 2023

We were in the Jura during the Toussaint holidays, during one week. We love that region that is on the road to the Alps. Its foothills and woods are very nice when you like walking. And there are also lakes and waterfalls. 

There is a crêperie in Pont-de-Poitte where we love to have an early dinner or lunch : it’s a warm place and the owner Laurence has a wonderful voice. There is something special about that place. We were having lunch there when we met another family : the grands-parents, their daughter, her husband and their little boy. They were from the region and suggested that we go to La Frasnée where there is a wonderful waterfall. 
This episode is about us going there. 

Do you know that the transcript is a very powerful tool to improve your comprehension?  And also to see things that are not obvious when you only listen to the text. Things like : 
— how the verbs are conjugated : it’s easier then to identify a tense, notice an agreement, etc,
— you can see how the words are written and get used to the French spelling,
— you can take the time to understand how the sentences are built,
— you can take notes,
— you can make the link between the text of the episode and a grammar lesson from your textbook.
In the notes that come with the transcript, we will focus on how we talk about the rain in French, also I will highlight for you a specific sentence to repeat aloud and tell you why I have chosen this one in particular. 

So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript and receive it by email each time an episode is released . The subscription costs 4 euros a month. Each new subscriber receives the 10 latest episodes. 
www.cultivateyourfrench.com

 

CYF 187 — Avec Micaela dans les transports — mercredi 8 novembre 2023

Since September, Micaela, my eldest daughter, takes the train every day to go to Paris. She has classes either near Cité Universitaire or near Luxembourg. Both stations are on the  line of the RER B. 
One morning, I took the train with her and ask her about her journey and what was going to be her day. 

In the notes that come with the transcript, you will find some info about the text, but also 2 very natural French expressions that are very interesting to focus on. I will also give you a list of useful sentences to use when you take the train. 

So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript. The transcript is a very useful tool to enjoy many ways of working with the text and this way improve your listening skills. 

The subscription is available at cultivateyourfrench.com, it costs 4 euros a moth. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released. Last but not least, each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes.

www.cultivateyourfrench.com

 

2291 — La crêperie électorale (avril 2012) — mercredi 25 octobre 2023

This episode comes from the past : it was written  and recorded  in April 2012 for One Thing In A French Day poscast, Cultivate Your French’s big brother. 
My grils were little girls at that time. That day, we had invited a friend  of ours to have lunch  with us at a crêperie. She was a nice woman, always keen on joking with the grils as you will see. 

In the notes that come with the transcript of this episode, I will give you the crêpes recipe and also show you a very commun word that we don’t write the same way nowadays than when I was a teenager. 

So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript and receive the transcript  by email each time an episode  is released. The subscription  costs 4 euros a month and when you subscribe, you receive  the 10 latest transcript. 
To discover why the transcript is as good as a French lesson, please  have a look at the website www.cultivateyoufrench.com

 

CYF 185 — Un petit goûter à Paris chez Leonie Bakery — mercredi 18 octobre 2023

After spending the afternoon at the hammam, my friend Geraldine and I did not feel like taking the metro back to Saint-Lazare. The weather was nice so we decided to walk instead. It was a nice walk because Paris is a city that changes a lot, and as you walk, you can really feel the change from one neighborhood to another. 
We stopped to eat a little something in a boulangerie. 

In the notes that come with  the transcript, we will study how to talk about a place, un endroit in French. 

So to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript, enjoy the written text, read it in your mind or aloud and discover what I wished to higltit for you. . The subscription costs four euros a month. When you subscribe, you receive the transcript of the 10 latest  episodes. 

www.cultivateyourfrench.com

 

CYF 184 — Tu connais Hans Zimmer? — mercredi 11 octobre 2023

On Friday evenings, after the kung fu class, we often stay longer together just talking, the kung fu team.  Of course, we talk about kung fu, but not always. There are different ages in our group, sometimes it leads to funny conversations. For example, we had a talk about famous movie soundtracks. 

In the notes that come with the transcript, we will take a close look at specific verbs, how they are used and conjugated, though they are very frequently used verbs. 

So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to  the transcript. The subscription is available at cultivateyourfrench.com, it costs 4 euros a moth. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released. Last but not least, each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes.

www.cultivateyourfrench.com

CYF 183 — Rencontre à la marche nordique — mercredi 4 octobre 2023

Every week-end, on Sunday morning, I join a group of nordic walkers. 
The walk takes place in Rueil Malmaison’s wood : le bois de Saint-Cucufa, supervised by our coach Philippe. 
Last Sunday, at the end of our walk, Philippe decided to challenge  us a little bit. He wanted us to climb a slope in different stages. It means going down each time you reach a stage. After this intense effort, we stayed a moment down the slope. And we met someone. You are going to discover who in this episode. 

In the notes that come with the transcript, this week I will highlight for you 3 sentences that you could add to your  collection of fRench sentences. I will aslo give you some examples of how you can play with them. 
So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to  the transcript. The subscription is available at cultivateyourfrench.com, it costs 4 euros a moth. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released. Last but not least, each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes. 

www.cultivateyourfrench.com

 

CYF 182 — Si j’étais une œuvre d’art, je serais — mercredi 27 septembre 2023

Micaela is going to have a penfriend from an American University. It’s part of her English course at University. 

To present herself she had to publish a short text, on an online board, startiting with this sentence : Si j’étais une œuvre d’art, je serais. 
The answer is in today’s episode, of course. But, have you noticed in this sentence the use of the conditionnel?  

In the notes that come with the transcript, I share with you a short study of how we use the conditionnel in everyday life. Because, we don’t only use it in sentences starting with « Si ». There are different uses that can be very helpful to sound French. 

So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript. The transcript is a very useful tool to enjoy many ways of working with the text and this way improve your listening skills. 
The subscription is available at cultivateyourfrench.com, it costs 4 euros a moth. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released. Last but not least, each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes. 

CYF 181 — Une journée à Londres, Islington — mercredi 20 septembre 2023

Do you know that London is only two hours from Paris by train? My friend Sylvie and I went to London for a day, two weeks ago. The temperatures were very high that day. But it was nice to enjoy London under the sun. We had planned our day : a lunch at Pophams, a bakery that is also a restaurant (I was very curious about it), then a visit to the Bank of England museum’s and then, the inevitable Foyles. 

But we were a little bit early for lunch, so we decided to enter the little church of Saint James  that was very close to the bakery.  And we had an adventure there as would say Eleanor Lavish in A room with a view.

This is what this episode is about. 

In the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are vey natural in French. Those expressions might not seem noticeable, but there are part of the way we speak French. It’s those expressions that make a sentence sounds French. 

The transcript is also a very useful tool to work on French, with the text you can do so many things : you can read what I say, obviously, you can see how the sentences are built, how the verbs are conjugated and you can also use it to repeat the text on your own. 

So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com

The subscription costs 4 euros a month. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released and each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes. 

CYF 180 — La rentrée des filles : université et lycée — mercredi 13 septembre 2023

The big question these days that young people ask each other is : when do you go back to school? 
Going back to school after summer holidays is what we call in French  la rentrée ! 
La rentrée is when you discover your new classmates, new teachers, or new school. This is what this episode is about regarding my daughters Micaela and Felicia. 

As usual, in the transcript, I will highlight for you 3 expressions that are natural in French with some examples, so you too could use them in your own French conversations, 

The transcript is a very useful tool to work on your French. Here are a few examples of what you can do : you can read what I say, obviously, you can see how the sentences are built, how the verbs are conjugated and you can also use it to repeat the text on your own. 

So, to cultivate your French, you could subscribe to the transcript at www.cultivateyoufrench.com

The subscription costs 4 euros a month. The transcript is sent by email each time an episode is released and each new subscriber receives the transcript of the 10 latest episodes.