So far, in our continuing saga about the Mild Honeymoon, yours truly discovered the joys of a winter coat, people were extremely generous with the champagne, and we managed to drink too much sake. Through it all, one of the recurring themes was that we didn't speak nearly enough French to really understand everyone around us. I'm pretty sure that sake order would've gone a lot differently had it been conducted in French, for example. Still, it was an ongoing source of amusement and occasional consternation.
Now, the Mild Wife and I both tried to learn as much French as we could while we were there. We paid attention when people spoke to us, we tried to repeat back little phrases we knew, and we made liberal use of our friend Google while we were in town. We didn't want to be completely helpless if the situation ever called for some basic French, and it just seemed like the right thing to do. No one wants to be labeled that stereotypical ugly Americans on holiday.
Besides that, it's just kind of fun to have a few words or phrases in your back pocket and to pick up a little bit of culture while you're at it. Sometimes, it's just a better way to describe the situation (the phrase "je ne sais quois" comes to mind as a perfect example of this phenomenon). People are even nicer to you if you at least attempt to learn the language (and eat the food). It doesn't matter if you speak terribly or with the worst accent ever; people tend to appreciate the effort, and the experience tends to be more pleasant for all involved.
So, one afternoon when it was a tad too cold outside for our tastes, we stayed in and perused the television channels. There were many of the usual suspects: movies, sports, political commentary, and cartoons. That last one immediately caught our attention, for a couple of reasons. For one, we're both kids at heart to a degree. Secondly, it was perfect for our level of language. We were, effectively, speaking like little kids, so a cartoon aimed at young children was just up our alley. Once we realized this, we gleefully watched some cartoons in French, all the while giggling like mad.
First up, we managed to find the Care Bears. I don't really remember what the episode was about, to be honest, but I remember the Mild Wife being so amused that she took a picture of the TV.
The Care Bears did their thing, we laughed and perhaps learned a word or two in French, and all was right in the world. However, that was only the beginning.
The real learnings came as a result of my friend Daniel Tiger. Actually, they came from mon ami Dany le Tigre. If you've never watched the show, Dany does all sorts of activities around the house and with his parents. There are some sings mixed in, too, so as not to lose the attention of the target audience. That was perfect. I now know how to say that someone is allergic to peaches as a result of Dany. I'm not kidding. That was the storyline for one of the episodes, so I ended up hearing the word for "peach" ("pêche") enough times that I figured out what it meant.
The best part, though, was that the Mild Wife ended up with a sing-song lilt to her French as a result of how we learned it. Think about it: we watched a TV show aimed at toddlers and young children. The characters speak slowly and joyfully, and they sing something like once every episode. There's a lot of bounce to the words. The Mild Wife simply imitated that, however subconsciously. Heck, she later mentioned that she thought in sing-song French while we were there.
Sure, we learned more practical French while we were in town, but I'm pretty sure I'm never going to forget the word for peach. I'm not sure I'm ever going to keep a straight face when I hear that word, either.
Now, the Mild Wife and I both tried to learn as much French as we could while we were there. We paid attention when people spoke to us, we tried to repeat back little phrases we knew, and we made liberal use of our friend Google while we were in town. We didn't want to be completely helpless if the situation ever called for some basic French, and it just seemed like the right thing to do. No one wants to be labeled that stereotypical ugly Americans on holiday.
Besides that, it's just kind of fun to have a few words or phrases in your back pocket and to pick up a little bit of culture while you're at it. Sometimes, it's just a better way to describe the situation (the phrase "je ne sais quois" comes to mind as a perfect example of this phenomenon). People are even nicer to you if you at least attempt to learn the language (and eat the food). It doesn't matter if you speak terribly or with the worst accent ever; people tend to appreciate the effort, and the experience tends to be more pleasant for all involved.
So, one afternoon when it was a tad too cold outside for our tastes, we stayed in and perused the television channels. There were many of the usual suspects: movies, sports, political commentary, and cartoons. That last one immediately caught our attention, for a couple of reasons. For one, we're both kids at heart to a degree. Secondly, it was perfect for our level of language. We were, effectively, speaking like little kids, so a cartoon aimed at young children was just up our alley. Once we realized this, we gleefully watched some cartoons in French, all the while giggling like mad.
First up, we managed to find the Care Bears. I don't really remember what the episode was about, to be honest, but I remember the Mild Wife being so amused that she took a picture of the TV.
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The real learnings came as a result of my friend Daniel Tiger. Actually, they came from mon ami Dany le Tigre. If you've never watched the show, Dany does all sorts of activities around the house and with his parents. There are some sings mixed in, too, so as not to lose the attention of the target audience. That was perfect. I now know how to say that someone is allergic to peaches as a result of Dany. I'm not kidding. That was the storyline for one of the episodes, so I ended up hearing the word for "peach" ("pêche") enough times that I figured out what it meant.
The best part, though, was that the Mild Wife ended up with a sing-song lilt to her French as a result of how we learned it. Think about it: we watched a TV show aimed at toddlers and young children. The characters speak slowly and joyfully, and they sing something like once every episode. There's a lot of bounce to the words. The Mild Wife simply imitated that, however subconsciously. Heck, she later mentioned that she thought in sing-song French while we were there.
Sure, we learned more practical French while we were in town, but I'm pretty sure I'm never going to forget the word for peach. I'm not sure I'm ever going to keep a straight face when I hear that word, either.
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