Swiss Miss » French

French words I’ll never be able to say…

Amanda — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 08:34:05 +0000

Anything with a “R”
Any time someone says “oh, just use the back of your throat.” really?
au revoir – I swear it’s not as easy as it sounds….

French foibles: Creme fraiche

Amanda — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:42:32 +0000

Creme fraiche from flit (http://www.flickr.com/photos/flit/)

For some reason, I assumed that “creme fraiche” was just a fresher, French-er way of saying “sour cream.” Nope. Apparently, it’s akin to “heart attack upon delivery.”

I used it to finish up a yum vegetable and tofu dish last night only to discover this health advisory this a.m.

And I’m no longer feeling *quite* so smug about my healthy cooking.

Next, I’m going to learn that “lardon” doesn’t mean “healthy ham pieces.”

Oh, Paris…

Amanda — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:30:38 +0000

Eating lunch in the Louvre

Favorite things in the city of lights…

Sugared lemon crepes
Whipped cream crepes
Buttered crepes
People assuming that I could only speak English (no, really, I liked this)
A man puking on the sidewalk without breaking stride while climbing up a huge hill in an, umm, interesting area
Cezanne
Monet
Degas
The scam where people pretend to find a “gold” ring on the sidewalk in front of you and then try to give it to you (apparently, Tony looks like their kinda guy)
Tony’s umbrella exploding in front of the Arc de Triomphe (as in *literally* every piece of his umbrella separated and jumped in front of the insane traffic roundabout — I don’t think it could handle the shock either)
Shoes
Marais neighborhood
Macaroons

Eiffel Tower at night

Least favorite things…

Fixed menus (onion soup, farm chicken, tarte)
Tourist traps
Lines (actually, we skipped them all, but still…)
Traveling via plane (yes, we were advised to take the train….)
Latin Quarter restaurants (sorry!!)
The price of macaroons (kid you not…. 3 euros for each little morsel)

French foibles #12: How much does that cost?

Amanda — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:03:00 +0000

While I mostly mime things and point and say “s’il vous plait,” I am trying to leap over the hurdle of one-word phrases. Thus instead of saying “combien” (or “how much”) and pointing, I’ll say “How much does that cost, please?”

FRENCH: Combien ca coute, s’il vous plait?

French foibles #11: I’m out of patience

Amanda — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:51:41 +0000

Based on my French experiences to date, I don’t think this phrase needs an explanation. “I’m out of patience.”

FRENCH: J’ai plus de patience.

French foibles #10: Do you have other sizes?

Amanda — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:19:26 +0000

photo credit: clemmac

To date, I’ve never dared ask a sales person for help. I tend to ruffle around the racks until I find something and say “I’m OK” if they offer to help. Thus, a new phrase: Do you have other sizes?

FRENCH: Est-ce que vous avez une autre taille?

French foibles #9: This is not correct

Amanda — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:36:41 +0000

I’ve had this string of bad luck where the cashier rings an item up twice or charges me $22 for one pear, etc. My midwestern roots tug at me and I, of course, go back to fix the error, which is discovered after I’ve paid.

Normally, I point at the receipt and point at my items in the bag, but today, I’ll try something new. “This is not correct.”

FRENCH: Ce n’est pas exact.

French foibles #8: I have no fricking clue

Amanda — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:56:48 +0000

Today, I’m looking *very* French. I can’t help it. It oozes out of my pores when I’m not throwing off waves of Americanism.

Or I’m looking very helpful.

Or I’m sitting too quietly so they can’t know that I occasionally still take the wrong bus and just last week forgot my stop and ended up by the airport.

Either way, people keep asking me questions today. In French. About directions.

So, appropriately, I now know how to say: I don’t know.

FRENCH: Je ne sais pas.

French foibles #7: Yep, I’m in line

Amanda — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 14:40:24 +0000

photo credit: RachelH

I’m not sure of queuing protocol yet in Switzerland. I mean this is an efficient country and it seems that they’re fairly orderly with little numbers from machines (ala government buildings in the US). But I run into the odd situation where I’m waiting outside of a restaurant or similar and someone asks me if I’m in line. THUS, I will say…

FRENCH: Oui, je fais la queue.

Which I *think* means, “yes, I’m in line.” But it could also mean “I make the line.” Seriously, French, why do you hate me?

[16:32:53] Amanda Mark: [16:29] Timo Luege: Oui, je fais la queue.

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French Foibles #6: work plug (warning)

Amanda — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:01:45 +0000

So let’s pretend you work on a global campaign urging people to protect themselves from H1N1. Let’s say it’s called “Your best defence is you.” How do you say it in French?

FRENCH: Votre meilleure défense, c’est vous