My next adventure: French Fluency!!!

Although my 6 week whirlwind adventure in France ended, my desire to learn French continues.  Mostly because I want to be able to communicate with Benjamin in his native language.  I want to be as fluent in French as he is in English.  I know that it can be exhausting for him to speak in English all the time, and I want him to be able to take a break, relax in our conversations (although right now I think it takes more energy for him to understand me when I speak French than when I speak English)!  Therefore, my next 6 week adventure is going to be focused on learning as much French as I can before he arrives, and as language acquisition can often be it's own adventure, I'm going to share my journey!
To prepare for my trip to France, I endeavored to complete the Duolingo French course, and I succeeded!  Duolingo is a free language learning app, and a good tool.  It is gamification of learning - as their website advertises, it truly is fun and addictive.  You can only advance by completing each level, which automatically unlocks through completion of all the lessons in that series.  Each lesson  contains a series of phrases and vocabulary in a specific category, recorded and written. I really enjoyed the challenge aspect of this app, and this was a great way for me to jump into the French language!
I discovered Mango at my local library (which offers it for FREE)! This is a fantastic app that has some really cool features including a recording tool so you can compare your pronunciation to that of a native French speaker.  It also color-codes words and you can switch between the understood and literal translation of phrases.  I'm about half way through the first unit (several chapters in), but I'll keep going.
One of my favorite tools is FrenchPod101, a collection of leveled podcasts designed to help you learn french, no matter what your starting level - from absolute beginner to advanced and everything in between.  You can listen to some podcasts for free, but to access all the material you need to subscribe.  I chose to subscribe on the lowest tier, because I wanted to be able to listen to all their recordings - enjoy listening to the playful banter, vocabulary, and grammar explanations.  I play the podcasts several times and then make notes to help me learn the material better.
I would like to try the Mimic Method developed by Idahosa Ness, which is all about learning the sounds of the French language first, but his comprehensive program is a bit out of my budget, so I'll have to wait to try his until I've saved a bit.  I did take his free course, which was very helpful and I'll utilize his advice.
Wow, thanks for sticking with this blogpost.  It's a bit dry, but I'm hoping to share some funny French anecdotes along the way.  If YOU have a favorite language acquisition hint, tip, trick, or tool, please share it with me in a comment on this blog.  Thanks!!!

Week 6: Toulouse France Part 3

I went to the market solo again on Wednesday morning, as I wanted to purchase more fresh fruits and vegetables.  It is nearing the end of tomato season, and Benjamin enjoys them so much, I wanted to pick up a few for him while there were still some at the market.  I visited his favorite vegetable vendor, purchased two each of three different varieties, then went to my favorite cheese vendor to buy some chevrè and a bit more aged gouda (as it's one of my favorite snacks), as well as some eggs. I also bought some more apples, carrots, bell peppers and garlic. Benjamin was happy with these purchases, and made one of his favorite tomato and chevrè salads for lunch.  He wanted to keep it light, because he had big plans for dinner... Benjamin was determined to make sure that I experienced a variety of French foods, and one of the most interesting is that of the dried sausage.  On Tuesday evening we went to a restaurant in Toulouse that specializes in different types of sausage.  We ordered from a set menu, and then were promptly brought a selection of dried meats in a basket and a bowl of baguette pieces, as well as some pâté accompanied by tiny little pickles and onions.  Benjamin explained that I was able to eat as much of the dried meats as I wanted, and if we ran out, they would bring us more.  That is a daunting image, because the basket was FULL of meats.  There were six different types in the basket, from super dry cured to the velvety texture of blood sausage.  I dutifully tried them all.  My favorite ended up being the ash covered sausage, which at first was my least favorite - mainly because I didn't realize I needed to remove the casing and popped the bite into my mouth, only to be confronted with the flavor of fireplace.  Benjamin laughed at my expression and explained how to remove the casing, which I admit took a while to get the hang of.  My first attempts ended up in my dry sausage falling apart, because I was cutting too deep, past the casing and into the sausage itself.  With practice, I was able to manage liberating my sausage on my own (although Ben is still the master at this.  He's so quick!)  When we'd had our fill, he signaled the waiter for the main course.  I had ordered Spanish Sausages, which were slightly spicey, and Benjamin had ordered duck heart skewers.  Ever the gentlemen, he offered me the first one.  It had an... let's just say 'interesting' texture, but the flavor was rich.  Our meal came with large salads on the side, and I can honestly say I finished his food - after he had eaten the rest of the duck hearts, we traded plates; mine with 3 sausages left and no salad, his with his salad untouched.  I remark upon this, because our usual pattern is that I eat as much as I possibly can, and he finishes what I can't. For once I ate what he didn't! Our meal ended with a scoop of ice cream each, and a bonus aperitif - something with cinnamon, which I appreciated. I am glad he chose this restaurant for us, but it is definitely something for special occasions and not a regular venue for dinner.

I fell back into my regular routine again on Thursday, working to improve my French.  Benjamin had suggested a few language links, and one of them I found quite helpful. Benny Lewis, the Irish Polyglot speaks several different languages.  He has a blog, and his method for language acquisition is to speak it from day one.  I was impressed with the article I read, and decided to explore further.  One of the resources Benny recommends is Flow Theory with the Mimic Method, developed by Idahosa Ness, where the concept is to learn the sounds of a language first, and once you have the pattern of the sounds, work on putting them together with vocabulary. Idahosa emphasizes getting familiar with your speech organs to understand how to reproduce the specific sounds in a language. That led me back to the International Pronunciation Alphabet (IPA), which had been another resource Benjamin recommended. I also started listening to French rap, which has heavy repetition of syllables and can help me become familiar with those sounds (another suggestion bt Idahosa).  After a full day of study, I switched to an English  audiobook while I made fried rice for dinner.  It was tasty!  Then Benjamin and I played a few rounds of Splendor before bed.

I attempted my very first Spanish omelet on Friday afternoon, as well as my favorite spiced applesauce, both to take with us when we went to visit Benjamin's parents.  I LOVE the simplicity and flavor of a good Spanish omelet, and I was encouraged by a recipe I found online.  I was happy with the way it looked when it was finished, and packed it up, as well as my bag for the weekend, then carried both to the parking lot halfway between Benjamin's work and the flat, where we agreed to meet at 5:00pm.  He showed up right on time, and away we went, rocking out to metal music most of the way down, and engaging in interesting discussions for the rest of it.  We arrived just before dinner (which in France is shockingly late for me - 9:00pm!), meeting his mother Isabelle and father Gilles, followed by a tour of their large and lovely home.  My favorite was the great open fireplace in the kitchen, which had a fire going when we arrived!  As an appetizer, we tasted some of the Spanish omelet I'd made and I was pleased with how it turned out - I will use that recipe again!  Then Isabelle served dinner, a creamy pumpkin soup followed by rabbit and potatoes, paired with a rich red wine.  It was the first time I had ever eaten rabbit, and I liked it!  Dessert was a couple of delightful cheeses, then ice cream.  At times I struggled to follow the conversation; both Benjamin and his father would translate for me periodically, but I endeavored to understand the French they were speaking as well.  I'm happy to report that I was able to pick out quite a few words I recognized, and my confidence in speaking French grew a bit.  I still have a LONG way to go before fluency, but I'm making progress!

Everyone managed to sleep in on Saturday morning, but eventually we all woke up and headed down into the kitchen. Isabelle had thoughtfully purchased gluten free crackers for me, which I enjoyed with apricot jam and a bowl of tea.  I was encouraged to be quick, as Benjamin and I had planned to go wine tasting at the local castle.  He was a bit disappointed when we arrived in fog, but I didn't mind.  The misty morning gave an air of romance and mystery to the castle and surrounding vineyard, and caused the spider webs to dance and sparkle with dew - a perfect look with Halloween just around the corner!  The wine was a delicious treat, to balance out the trick the weather was playing on us.  We returned to the house for lunch, just as Benjamin's brother Gaspard arrived.  We enjoyed another hearty meal and conversation, and then said our goodbyes, as we were meeting Benjamin's friends in a different town for dinner.  As we drove, he kept making little detours through quaint towns, and I began to understand the charm people speak of when describing the French country side.  I have fallen in love, and am happy to admit it!  We arrived at Coucou and Aurélie's home, and quickly set off for Albi, where we planned to have dinner.  We visited the basilica, which has the most bricks of any church in the France.  It is a massive structure, and impressive in it's grandeur!  There was a choir concert taking place, thus closed to the public, so I will have to visit it again to see inside.  For dinner we went to a Basque restaurant.  Basque is half in France and half in Spain, and thus the food has a heavy Spanish influence.  We ordered beer for the boys while the ladies enjoyed sangria, and opted for the set menu.  Benjamin and I ate stout salads with meat and cheese, then he enjoyed steak and potatoes while I enjoyed fish and vegetables (I may have poached a few of his potatoes as well...).  For desert he had Sheep cheese and I was thrilled to have flan; Aurélie and Coucou ordered the caramelized pears which looked divine, but the crumble had gluten so I sadly abstained.  Then we played cards.  It was a fabulous evening!

Daylight savings time occurs in France nearly a week before it does in the united states, so we enjoyed an extra hour of sleep before having breakfast with our friends.  Again I did my best to follow the French conversation, and understood the gist of what was said, with Benjamin or Coucou translating periodically.  When I spoke, it was in French as often as possible, and everyone seemed to understand what I was trying to communicate.  We left just before noon to visit a weekend market before heading back to the flat.  We played games, laughed, and made the most of my last full day in Toulouse.  I was introduced one more French treat for dinner, aligot, which is basically cheese melted into potatoes and whipped until they have the elastic quality of melting mozzarella.  It tasted amazing!  Benjamin also harvested his radishes - they were cute and crunchy!

The next morning I had breakfast with Benjamin before he went to work and I packed.  I left with plenty of time to get to the airport, and good thing too, as I took the wrong bus - it eventually made it to the right destination, but took the long way.  I managed the metro just fine, but couldn't find the bus stop for the line that went to the airport.  I called Benjamin at work, he sent me the coordinates, and I understood why I couldn't find it - there was construction occurring at the location.  I had walked by an Air France travel center, so I popped in to express my confusion, and the woman who greeted me explained that the bus stop had been moved, and gave me new directions.  I found it, and arrived in time for my flight from Toulouse to Paris Orly airport, with 3 hours before my next flight on a different airline departing from Paris Charles de Galles Airpirt, on the other side of the city.  Fortunately, there is a metro line that runs between the two airports, and I again arrived in time for my flight.  Lots of time, in fact, as my flight from Paris to New York that day was cancelled.  We were put up in an airport hotel for the night, provided with dinner and breakfast vouchers, and informed that the check-in counter would open again the next morning at 7:00 am, with more information.  I arrived around 7:30 am, to find about a dozen other passengers waiting, and no one working at the counter.  We found an airport manager who informed us that the airline agents would arrive around 9:30am, so we settled in to wait it out in solidarity.  I shared that this was my third significant delay in three months, so it was possibly my fault, and we all laughed.  I met some pretty interesting people in line - a head writer for the DC Batman comics, a couple from Florida who actually saw the eye of the hurricane pass over their home, a young man who had surfed the south of France (he actually had his surf boards with him), and a recent college graduate who was literally seeing the world before his new job started - a fellow Western Alumni, in fact!  Such fascinating people helped ease the frustration and agitation that I would miss my flight back to Seattle.  The flight finally departed, and I am hoping to make a new connecting flight in New York.  By the time you read this, I'll know whether I made it in time... 

(Update: I did NOT make the flight that evening, but the airline did put me up in a hotel that night and I flew out the next morning.  I am finally back in Washington State!)