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Sleeping Better On A French Bed Posted by John Bauer on Mar 29, 2017
After le déménagement (moving) and changing mon adresse, it became clearer what new things I needed to buy for mon nouvel appartement (my new apartment). Getting through les cartons (the boxes) and arranging all mes affaires (my things) let me see how much space I have in mon nouveau logement (my new place). After seeing…
Invested In Vêtements – Winter Clothing In French Posted by John Bauer on Mar 22, 2017
After spending time in la Floride over the holidays, I had an interesting wardrobe problem when I flew back to France. I had to make sure I had access to mes vêtements d’hiver (my winter clothes) or I would freeze à Paris! My relationship with le froid (the cold) started when I first moved to…
Managing Le Déménagement – Moving In French Posted by John Bauer on Mar 15, 2017
After a few more longues layovers I’ve settled into mon nouvel appartement (my new apartment). The whole process of moving was stressful, but not nearly as much as ma soutenance (my thesis defense). After the holiday cheer died down and the sounds of Bonjour Noël were drowned out by the cries of “Bon Nouvel An…
La Vaisselle – Washing Dishes In French Posted by John Bauer on Mar 8, 2017
My early trips to l’épicerie were an interesting exercise in how much I trusted my French. I took gambles on whether the bottle I was buying was l’assouplissant (softener) or la lessive (detergent), hoping it wasn’t l’eau de Javel (bleach). I haven’t had the luxury of having an apartment with un lave-vaisselle (a dishwasher) since…
Going To L’Epicerie – Groceries In French Posted by John Bauer on Mar 1, 2017
I learn new things everyday by making mistakes. Whether I need to buy un chargeur or find un dentiste, there seems to be an endless vocabulary list of words I didn’t realize I didn’t know! Finding out you don’t know un mot (a word) can be quite the learning experience. Many mundane experiences hide the…
French Country Music: Baptiste W. Hamon Posted by John Bauer on Feb 22, 2017
When I’m walking around France the entire world is my textbook. The sounds of everyday life teach me new things like what exactly un tournevis is or how to buy batteries. I also get to hear de la musique française (French music) just by walking around, but sometimes I hear a song I really like…
Are French Fries French? Part 3 Posted by John Bauer on Feb 15, 2017
The history of how English words use French as an adjective can be surprising and interesting. We’ve already looked at quite a few words in part 1 and part 2, and in this final part we’re going to look into la polémique (the controversy) surrounding the French origin of les frites. D’où vient les pommes…