Aug 162011
 

  (asked by Jennifer from the US) I have been to Paris several times and I make an attempt to speak French whenever possible. Apparently, my pronunciation is very good; they are invariably surprised that I am American. However, I am terrible at comprehending anything beyond a simple response, for example “ça coûte 25€” or “les w.c. sont là.” So what happens is that I will say something, they will respond in rapid-fire French, and I freeze, because I’m not [Read the rest]

Aug 012011
 
How do the French view Canadians? Can they tell the difference between Canadians and Americans?

(asked by Katie from… I guess Canada)   I’d be interested to know how the French view Canadians…and if they can they tell the difference between Canadians and Americans?   Well Katie, First of all, click on the link to get a little reminder about what the French think of Québécois (that’s “French Canadian” in English, even though they’re not French, they just speak the language). Now concerning “English-speaking Canadians” or Canadians as they’re called in English, it’s going to [Read the rest]