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The old secrets of authentic Colmar and Strasbourg
French Online Courses, French Vocabulary

The old secrets of authentic Colmar and Strasbourg

by Amelie Hurford
December 21, 2016

Colmar is probably not the most known city in France, but it is for sure one of the loveliest!

What does this place look like? And why should you definitely see it?

Besides this city, another, bigger, called Strasbourg is also a must-see for its similar medieval architecture, but also for its European importance… At French Lessons Brisbane, we will give you 5 good reasons to visit these 2 beautiful places!

Colmar Medieval towns

Colmar is situated in the Alsace region, in the North East of France, close to the German border. Well-known for its wines and its lovely streets that makes you feel like you were walking 500 years ago, Colmar is one of these cities that remain in your memory.

There are still houses that have been built during the Middles Ages, and many places such as a monastery make Colmar a cultural and historical town to visit.

A good climate

Colmar is also known for its charming climate. Indeed, it is one of the driest cities in France, and its weather in summer is mild and Clement. During the winter, it rarely snows, which is quite surprising regarding its localization on the map!

A long history

Colmar is as you may have understood a pretty old town. The first time we heard about it was during the 9th century. Obviously, multiple wars left traces on the town, but is also what makes its charm… Colmar was the last city to be freed after the Nazi occupation.

Since then, Colmar has focused on its historical beauties. A large part of its historic centre has become a protected sector, and its local musee: the Musee Unterlinden is the most visited provincial one in France!

half-timbered-houses-in-Colmar

 

Siege of the European Parliament

Strasbourg is located in the same region as Colmar but is bigger and popular for political matters as well as it is the official seat of the European Parliament since 1952! Strasbourg is the seat of several European institutions, such as the Council of Europe (with its European Court of Human Rights) and the Eurocorps. The city is also the seat of the International Institute of Human Rights. This political importance for the EU can be explained by its geographical position between the two first European leaders: France and Germany. In fact, Strasbourg has been for centuries the witness of the rivalry (and enmity) opposing these two great powers. Becoming a strategic city for the EU is therefore symbolic as well.

cathedrale strasbourg

 

A World heritage site

Strasbourg’s historic city centre is classed by the UNESCO as a world heritage site! The city’s gothic sandstone cathedral and its astronomic clock does have something magical, and medieval sights are all around the city centre.

Did you enjoy Colmar and Strasbourg? Or would you like to visit them but you would like to first start French? Don’t hesitate anymore longer and contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com  🙂

The Mont Saint-Michel
French Culture, French Online Courses

Visiting Mont Saint Michel in France

by Amelie Hurford
December 21, 2016

The Mont Saint-Michel (Mount St Michael) is located at around one kilometre off the north-western French coast, in the region called Normandie (Normandy). 

The building of the monastic establishment started in the 8th century and is, therefore, a typical representation of the feudal system with on top of the island the abbey and monastery (God), below the great halls, then the stores and middle-class housing, and then, outside the walls, the fishermen and farmers houses.

The legend says that the Archangel Michael appeared in 708 on the island to the bishop of Avranches, and demanded him to build a church there. Yet, the bishop ignored the archangel, and this latter then burned a hole in the bishop’s skull. The kind of story that gives you thrills and brings even more mystery to this mythic island.

The status of island of the Mont Saint-Michel has changed several times over the centuries.

Until the 19th century, the Mont was a semi-island: when the rising tide, the path connecting the Mont to the mainland was covered by the sea. It was a great advantage for the island’s defense, making it an impenetrable fortress. In fact, the Mont Saint Michel remained unconquered until the Hundred Years of war opposing the Great-Britain to France. After that, the Mont has also been used as a jail under Louis XI, valuing the geographical benefits of the island.

However, in 1879, the water was drained and the coastal flats converted into pasture land. The Mont became silted up and in 2006, a project started with the objectives to remove the silt and to make the Mont an island again.

Today, the Mont Saint-Michel is therefore officially an island, connected to the continent by a light bridge!

Did you like that post about the Mont Saint-Michel? Would you start Learning French, or just asking us more details about our personalised classes? Contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com !

 

How to say you in French?
French Online Courses, Learning New Language

How to say you in French?

by Amelie Hurford
December 15, 2016

There are two forms of “you” in French: “tu” and “vous”.

If modern English doesn’t have that difference anymore, it used to. Shakespeare uses “you” and “thou”.

tu = you

vous = thou

There are two rules regarding the usage of “tu” and “vous” in French.

1.Old English used “you” to refer to one person (singular) and “though” to refer to several people (plural). The same logic applies to French. Exemple: Pierre, tu regardes la télé ?– Pierre, are you watching TV? Exemple: Marie et Sophie, vous avez vu le nouveau James Bond ? Mary and Sophie, did you see the new James Bond?

2.The second rule refers to a certain number of social codes. – the use of “tu”: informality between friends an adult talking to a child – the use of “vous” formality to acknowledge hierarchy (an employee talking to his boss and vice versa) you can refer to someone by his or her first name and still you the “vous” form; however this is rather old-fashioned. Général Charles de Gaulle would use “vous” and her first name to talk to his wife.

 

If uncertain about “tutoyer” or “vouvoyer” someone, go with the latter.

Happy Learning Tips from your teacher

Have a great week!

Amelie

Your French Teacher

L’imparfait , French Grammar
French Grammar, French Online Courses

How do you form the imparfait in French?

by Amelie Hurford
December 15, 2016

The imperfect tense is a past tense, but in which cases is it used and how often do French people use it?

Join us in our French Grammar tour at French Lessons Australia and master the past in 5 minutes!

 

When to use it?

The imperfect tense is a past tense used to talk about descriptions. It definitely has a talent to describe things. Example: Henry was a tall, brilliant, and smart man -> Henry était un homme grand, brillant et intelligent.

In English, the Imperfect can also be represented by the Past Continuous. That to say to talk about a situation that was happening when another event interrupted it. For instance: She was playing on her computer when… -> Elle jouait sur son ordinateur quand…

The Imperfect generally expresses a situation that happened in the past for an indefinite period of time, without any link with today. Eg. Michael was unhappy with his grades when he was at school -> Michael était mécontent de ses points quand il était a l’école.

Finally, the Imperfect can be used to express a past habit or something you were used to do. Eg. When I was young, I used to work in a office -> Quand j’étais jeune, je travaillais dans un bureau.

How to use it?

The Imperfect tense is easy to learn!

All conjugations except for the verb ‘être’ are formed in the same way!

You know how to conjugate verbs at the present form. So all you need to do to conjugate at the imperfect form is to take the first person of plural (-nous-) at the present form, to drop the “ons” at the end, and to replace it by the correct Imperfect ending.

Example: the verb “chanter” (to sing). The first person of plural in Present is “Nous chantons”. Drop the “ons”. Which gives “chant-” and add the correct ending which are shown below. The Imperfect form will therefore be: je chantais, tu chantais, il chantait, nous chantions, vous chantiez, ils chantaient.

Je -ais

Tu -ais

Il/Elle -ait

Nous -ions

Vous -iez

Ils/Elles -aient

Examples:

  • We used to like -> Nous aimions
  • I danced a lot when I was young -> Je dansais beaucoup quand j’étais jeune.

The only exception is the verb ‘être’ that will be conjugated like this: j’étais, tu étais, il était, nous étions, vous étiez, ils étaient.

Seems a bit vague? Want to have more precise information about the use of tenses? Or just more information on French in general? Easy! Contact us at info@frenchlessons-australia.com.au

The verb faire and its expressions
French Online Courses, French Vocabulary

Faire conjugaison verb of this important french verb

by Amelie Hurford
December 14, 2016

The verb faire, is one of the most used verbs in the French language.

You can translate it in English by “to do” or “to make”, but there are also countless expressions using it with a different meaning. Let’s jump on the French Lessons Brisbane train and learn how to understand this word better…

 

To do/to make

While in English, people make a distinction between two types of actions using either “to make” or “to do”, French people make it perhaps more simple and only use one verb: Faire.

For instance, to say that your friend makes you smile, you will say ‘mon ami me fait sourire’. Besides, if you want to say that you do your homework every weekend, then you’ll say ‘je fais mes devoirs tous les week-ends’.

In a general way, everytime you want to translate the verbs to do or to make, you can use the verb faire.

Expressions using ”faire”

French people really like this verb and tend to use it quite a lot. It

would be too long (and possibly too boring) to list here all the expressions using ”faire” so French Lessons Australia  will only provide you here with the most useful ones:

Talking about the weather: whether it is cold or warm outside, French will say ‘Il fait froid’ (it is cold) or ‘Il fait chaud’ (it is warm). If the weather is nice, you can say ‘Il fait bon’ (it is good), and if the weather is bad you can say ‘Il fait mauvais’ (it is bad).

Talking about the chores: various expressions about chores or sport also use the verb ”faire”. Doing the dishes will be translated by ‘faire la vaisselle’. Doing housework will be ‘faire le menage’. Cooking could be translated by ‘cuisiner’ or ”faire la cuisine’ (to do the kitchen, literally). Going out to buy food will be ‘faire les courses’. If you do a sport, you can always use the verb ”faire” as well: ‘faire du sport’. In this way, swimming can either be translated by ‘nager’ or ‘faire de la natation’. Doing some fitness will be ‘faire du fitness’. Doing bicycle will be ‘faire du velo’, etc…

Some random expressions: when you ask someone to pay attention, you will say ”fais attention” to this person. If you hurt yourself, we use the expression ‘se faire mal’, so in this case you will say ‘je me suis fait mal’. Then, you can also express the fact of becoming very rich: ‘faire fortune’. To explain that something doesn’t matter, you can just say ”ca ne fait rien”. And if you trust someone, you can tell him ‘je te fais confiance’.>

How to conjugate the verb ”faire”

Unfortunately, the verb ”faire”, as most of the very used verbs in French, is an irregular verb. That means that you will need to know its conjugation by heart, but don’t worry it’s pretty easy!

Unfortunately, the verb ”faire”, as most of the very used verbs in French, is an irregular verb.

That means that you will need to know its conjugation by heart, but don’t worry it’s pretty easy!

Je fais = I do, make

Tu fais = You do, make

Il/Elle fait = She does, makes

Nous faisons = We do, make

Vous faites = You do, make

Ils/Elles font = They do, make

This post has been provided by French Lessons Australia, don’t hesitate to contact us via email at info@frenchlessons-australia.com.au

Discover charming Sarlat like a local
French Online Courses

Time to discover Sarlat in France

by Amelie Hurford
December 13, 2016

Traveling is the most enriching experience that unravels a world of wonders and beauty!

Every corner of the world is full of magnificent natural beauty, rich culture and local tales and flavors that make them unique and significant.

France is a country that has so much to offer to every traveller! History, nature, food, wine, crafts and arts and innumerable exotic discoveries are waiting to be explored!

Sarlat, or Sarlat-la-Caneda

It’s  a small but significant commune in south western France. It’s a medieval town that has been left unchanged and offers the ‘old world charm’ that many travellers desire. Walking through this commune is a mystical walk down 14th century France in all its preserved and flourishing ways.

The old town displays restored stone buildings and the quaint streets offer a peek into what was!

This preserved medieval town has become a ‘must visit’ place for the wonderful opportunities and sights it has in store. Let’s take a look at some of the ‘must do’ and ‘must see’ in Sarlat.

  • There are several small villages within Sarlat; each unique and beautiful. The market at Cenac Village, the view across the Dordogne from Domme Village, the castle and riverside peace at La RoqueGageac, the church and market at Perigeaux, the ancient castle and serenity of Bourdeilles, the village built by monks- Brantome, and the quaint St. Jeam de Cole. A visit to each and every village will leave you spellbound!
  • Place des Oies, a former Goose market, is now home to the best Foie Gras, a French speciality. Bronze geese at the square add to the charm!
  • Cathedral Saint Sacerdos is a marvel! It was built in the 12th century and has been reworked upon since then. The varying architectural styles give it a spectacular look.
  • Jardin public du Plantier, formerly the flower garden of the Bishop, today it is a public garden that offers peace and relaxation amongst beautiful nature.

These are just a handful of the numerous jewels you can discover in Sarlat!

A major problem most travellers face is a language barrier. French Lessons Australia helps you get over that hurdle with specially designed online French lessons that can make you an expert at French in no time! Learn French and discover the local essence of Sarlat.

Our online French lessons will help you make your visit to Sarlat more meaningful and memorable! Don’t hesitate and contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com

The ‘conditionnel’ is the English equivalent of the conditional tense. Yet, they are not built the same way and that’s why French Lessons Sydney offers you this extra lesson!
French Online Courses

Can You Speak Conditional? No More Secret After This Article

by Amelie Hurford
December 13, 2016

The ‘conditionnel’ is the English equivalent of the conditional tense. Yet, they are not built the same way and that’s why French Lessons Sydney offers you this extra lesson! 

Can you speak conditionally? No more secret after this article!

<< Me, if I was very very rich. I would give away my money until I am only very rich. Very rich is enough for me.>>

Formation of French conditional

Whereas in English, the conditional is a compound verb (would + the infinitive), in French it is a one-verb form. To determine the tense of the verb, we should therefore look at its ending.

For the -ir and -er groups of verbs, we only need to add the right ending at the end of the infinitive.

For the -re group, the last ‘e’ is removed and replaced by the correct ending.

Look at this table:

The endings are the same as the ones from the imparfait. However they are not added to the radical of the verb, but to its infinitive (or explained on the table above, to the stem of the future which is really the verb infinitive).

What about verbs with spelling changes and irregular stems?

In fact, if you already know the future tense, you just have to use the irregular stems from the future and add to them the ending provided by the conditional.

Eg. the verb ”vouloir” (to want)

  • Je voudrais
  • Tuvoudrais
  • Il voudrait
  • Nous voudrions
  • Vousvoudriez
  • Ilsvoudraient

Use of the Conditionnel

As in English, the conditional describes an action that would happen in certain circumstances.

Eg. I would eat French food more often, if there was a French restaurant nearby. ->Je mangerais de la nourriturefrancaise plus souvent, s’il y avaitun restaurant francaispres de chez moi.

Do you want to know more about French grammar, or more about what we do at French Lessons Brisbane? Don’t hesitate anymore longer and contact us at info@frenchlessonssydney.net.au !

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