{"id":33874,"date":"2021-07-06T05:30:29","date_gmt":"2021-07-06T03:30:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=33874"},"modified":"2021-07-04T18:36:12","modified_gmt":"2021-07-04T16:36:12","slug":"a-french-geography-lesson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/a-french-geography-lesson\/","title":{"rendered":"A French Geography Lesson"},"content":{"rendered":"

As vacation season arrives – in this very strange (almost, hopefully!) post-Covid world – it seemed like a good to time to trot out some useful vocabulary. So this week it’s time for a French geography lesson.<\/p>\n

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Photo by\u00a0Ylanite Koppens<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0from\u00a0Pexels<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

A French Geography Lesson<\/h3>\n

With apologies to anyone who associates geography lessons with school, the common terms below are as useful for geography as a science as they are for geography as a tool for deciding where to spend\u00a0les vacances<\/strong>1<\/a><\/sup>vacation, holidays;<\/em> remember vacances<\/em> is always plural in French.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
La\u00a0<\/strong>g\u00e9ographie<\/b><\/td>\nGeography<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
L\u2019oc\u00e9an<\/strong><\/td>\nThe ocean<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La mer<\/strong><\/td>\nThe sea<\/em>2<\/a><\/sup>What’s the difference between an ocean<\/em> and a sea<\/em>? By most accounts, it’s a question of scale<\/a>.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La c\u00f4te<\/strong>3<\/a><\/sup>This is a good example of a word where the accent matters (as Bridgette discussed last week<\/a>). La cote<\/em> means ratings<\/em> or odds<\/em>. The expression avoir la cote<\/em> means to be trending, be popular<\/em>.<\/span><\/td>\nThe coast<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le lac<\/strong><\/td>\nThe lake<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le fleuve<\/strong>4<\/a><\/sup>France has 5 main <\/a>fleuves<\/a>: la Seine, la Loire, la Garonne, le Rh\u00f4ne, <\/em>and le Rhin.<\/em><\/span><\/td>\nThe river <\/em>(one that flows to the ocean\/sea)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La\u00a0<\/strong>rivi\u00e8re<\/b><\/td>\nThe river <\/em>(one that flows into another river)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le ruisseau<\/strong><\/td>\nThe stream<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Les berges<\/strong><\/td>\nThe shore <\/em>(of a lake); the banks <\/em>(of a river)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le continent<\/strong><\/td>\nThe continent<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le pays<\/strong><\/td>\nThe country<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
L\u2019\u00e9tat<\/strong><\/td>\nThe state<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
L\u2019\u00eele<\/strong><\/td>\nThe island<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le for\u00eat<\/strong><\/td>\nThe forest<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La montagne<\/strong>5<\/a><\/sup>The major mountain ranges in<\/a> France include: les Alpes, les Pyr\u00e9n\u00e9es, le Massif Central, le Jura, <\/em>and les Vosges.<\/em><\/span><\/td>\nThe mountain<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Le d\u00e9sert<\/strong><\/td>\nThe desert<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La plage<\/strong><\/td>\nThe beach<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Les vacances 2021<\/h3>\n

Summer is here and like many around the world,\u00a0les\u00a0<\/strong>Fran\u00e7ais<\/b> are ready to get out and enjoy life. While August is traditionally\u00a0la p\u00e9riode des grandes vacances<\/b>6<\/a><\/sup>the main vacation period<\/em><\/span>, people are already on the move<\/a> across France.<\/p>\n

And this year, whether its\u00a0un camping dans les montagnes<\/strong>7<\/a><\/sup>a camp site in the mountains<\/em><\/span> or quelques semaines au soleil \u00e0 la plage<\/strong>8<\/a><\/sup>a few weeks of sun at the beach<\/em><\/span>,\u00a0les Fran\u00e7ais\u00a0<\/b>are choosing to spend their vacations closer to home and choosing\u00a0l’Hexagone<\/strong><\/a> for their\u00a0vacances 2021<\/strong>. “Avec la crise sanitaire, 83% des Fran\u00e7ais envisagent de privil\u00e9gier la France durant l’\u00e9t\u00e9 2021<\/a>“<\/strong>9<\/a><\/sup>With the current health situation, 83% of French people are planning to prioritize France\/French destinations for summer 2021<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n

La Seine \u00e0 la nage?!!<\/h3>\n

According to a recent IFOP survey<\/a>, while a majority of French view the Seine\u00a0“comme embl\u00e9matique de la capitale”<\/b>10<\/a><\/sup>as emblematic of the capital<\/em><\/span>, 70% also have “une mauvaise image de la Seine”<\/strong>11<\/a><\/sup>an unfavorable (bad) image of the Seine<\/em><\/span>. For many, la Seine is “pollu\u00e9e, sale, malodorante, et<\/b> dangereuse”<\/strong>12<\/a><\/sup>polluted, dirty, smelly, and dangerous<\/em><\/span> and only 12% “des Fran\u00e7ais aimeraient s’y baigner”<\/b>13<\/a><\/sup>of French would like to swim in it<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n

This week I saw an interesting story about the Seine<\/a>. In an attempt to “sensibiliser [les gens] \u00e0 la cause environnementale<\/strong>“14<\/a><\/sup>make people aware of environmentalism<\/em><\/span>, 19-year old adventurer Arthur Germain15<\/a><\/sup>who is the son of Anne Hildago, the mayor of Paris<\/span>, is swimming la Seine “de sa source \u00e0 son embouchure, soit 775 kilom\u00e8tres<\/strong>“16<\/a><\/sup>from its source to its mouth, so 775 km<\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n

French Vocabulary – Town and Country<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n