French Language Blog

After a rather good performance in the match aller (first leg game) made against Barcelona, will the Paris Saint-Germain have what it takes to create la grande surprise tonight, by beating the Catalans in the Quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League?

The task of les Parisiens already seems like coming out of a “Mission:Impossible” movie.

Not only because they will be taking on one of the best European teams, if not the best, but also because Messi‘s coéquipiers (team-mates) will have the major advantage of having the so-called “douzième homme“ (twelfth man) on their side.

If you are not too familiar with the latter term, then you should know that it’s not meant to be understood literally.

Barcelona's maestro: Will "Monsieur Messi" be missing tonight?

In fact, the expression of the “12th Man” refers to les supporteurs (the supporters), since Barcelona will this time have the luxury of playing à la maison (at home)!

Mais tout n’est peut–être pas encore joué (but maybe not everything is already decided.)

Speaking of the devil: Lionel Messi, the Argentinian superstar of football, may very well be missing tonight.

Indeed, the four-time world player of the year is said to be suffering from a serious blessure (injury.)

PSG's superstar, le suédois (Swedish) Ibrahimović

This means potential bad news for Barcelona: Messi could miss une mi-temps (a half-time), at best, or even le match en entier (the whole game…)

Qui sait (who knows)?

Whether they have to deal with the Messi factor or not, Paris Saint-Germain will in any case be counting big-time on its own superstar, le suédois (the Swedish) Zlatan Ibrahimović, who became Parisian as of l’année dernière (last year.)

Adding Ibrahimović to the team proved to be a brilliant move by PSG sporting director Leonardo (a very talented player who “did his time” with Brazil) and the shrewd Qatari president of PSG, Nasser Al-Khelaifi (who could certainly afford to foot the bill for such a purchase!)

Ibrahimović was just what the PSG squad seemed to be needing the most.

In the match aller (remember, it means the “first leg“, i.e. “round one“, which took place in Paris), Ibrahimović scored the first goal of the PSG (likely an offside position, but it was allowed), and was behind the action that awarded his team a second “miracle goal”, completely “legit” this time, à la toute dernière minute (at the very last minute) of the game!

Qui s’en souvient? (Who remembers it?)

A little “taste” of what PSG vs. Barcelona was like “back in the day” (1995), with a remarkable set of players like David Ginola, George Weah, and Bernard Lama for the PSG, Ronald Koeman and Gheorghe Hagi for Barcelona

Here are some typical French football comments:

- “Oh-la-la-la!” (0:40)

- “Ça chauffe, ça chauffe, ça chauffe!” (“It’s getting hotter!”, meaning “it’s getting closer to scoring a goal”) (2:00)

“Un but fantastique” (“a fantastic goal”) (4:15)

At the foot of the proud Mont Blanc (in Italian “Monte Blanco“), often dubbed ”La Dame blanche“ (“the White Lady”), lies a valley famous for being the “hot spot” (well, pardon the pun) where flock from all over the world people whose “adrenaline” is the practice of les sports d’hiver (winter sports.)

Since more than a century now, this place offers an impeccable snow, and a unique breathtaking paysage (landscape)!

The best known Alpine skiing station of the Mont Blanc is undoubtedly Chamonix, famous for hosting the les premiers Jeux olympiques d’hiver (the first Winter Olympics ), back in 1924, and is today a member of the VIP club “Best of the Alps.”

Its touristy season does not merely end with the winter season. Loin de là (far from that)!

In fact, the station metamorphoses into a hub for all sorts of mountain randonneurs (hikers) who kickstart their journey from there, either be for climbing or going on glacier tours, for example.

In la saison d’été (the Summer season), the Chamonix valley offers hiking as well, in addition to golf, paragliding, mountaineering, etc.

And hikers don’t have to be seasoned athletes either: They can also choose to discover the valley à pied (by foot) through nice little promenades (strolls.)

Aiguille du Midi (3,842 m)

The Aiguille du Midi offers an exceptional view of the Mont-Blanc, so be sure not to miss it if you go there!

The heart of the Mont Blanc is the Mer de glace, and the heart of the Mer de glace is la Grotte de la Mer de glace!

Also, going to the Montenvers and Mer de glace (“Sea of Ice”) is an unforgettable sightseeing experience, throughout the railway that leads tourists all the way up to the “Sea of Ice” glacier.

In addition to the daredevil skiing fanatics, the Mont Blanc area attracts all sorts of special seminar members, businessmen, and spa guests who rather be on an original mountain village than any other place.

Those who enjoy a more “relaxed skiing vacation” can opt for other regions of the Mont Blanc: More “chill” skiing villages include les Parz, le Tour, and les Houches (the initial and finish point of the 7-day long Tour du Mont Blanc), whose countryside ambiance attracts mainly families and older couples.

Younger energy-driven visitors, however, typically prefer other spots like Argentière, which also features its own “needle”: the Aiguille d’Argentière!

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• Picture shared by danjeffayelles and h_saarikoski via Flickr

If someone ever quizzes you about the location of the tallest dune de sable (sand dune) in Europe, thanks to today’s French Blog post you will know it: It’s in the South of France, not too far from the city of Bordeaux!

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Well, sure, you won’t feel like you’ve somehow been teletransported to the Sahara, or to the wilderness of the Kilimanjaro desert. Yet, the view offered by this sand dune is still very impressive.

People there call it “La dune du Pyla“, (“The Dune of Pyla“), and sometimes spell its name with an “i” and a “t” in the end: “Pilat.”

The “t” in “Pilat“, as in many French names, is silent.

However, “Pilat” (or “Pyla”) is technically not “French”, per se, as it is originally from one of the six main Occitan dialects known as Gascon (the other five being le Languedocien, l’Auvergnat, le Limousin, le Provinçal, and le Vivaron-Alpin.)

In Gascon, the original word is “pilhar“, which means a “heap“, or a “pile.”

Therefore, le pyla (or pilat) is just a “pile of sand“!

The one thing that you’ll be sure to find visitors of the dune doing all over the place is LE PARAPENTE (PARAGLIDING)!

A little bit north to the dune, you can discover le Bassin d’Arcachon, where you will get across the very beautiful towns and villages of le Cap Ferret, Pyla-sur-Mer (a station balnéaire, meaning a seaside resort), Andernos-les-Bains, Claouey, Petit Piquey and Grand Piquey—to mention only these few, renown for their poissonneries (fisheries) and fermes d’huîtres (oyster farms.)

In the middle of the Bassin d’Arcachon lies L’Île aux Oiseaux, meaning “The Island of Birds.”

Many riverains (informal French word for “local residents”) like to compete with each other by swimming all the way from the coast of the Bassin to L’Île aux Oiseaux.

French singer Pacal Obispo confesses that he fell head over heels for her: Not the woman in the video, but rather l’Île aux Oiseaux.
His song “Tombé Pour Elle” (“Fell for Her“) is dedicated to the Island, as well as the Bassin d’Arcachon in general. 

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• Photos above shared by Ciedan47 (“Travail personnel“), and Flybrizio via Flickr

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