Halloween in France

Does France celebrate Halloween? While the influence of American sitcoms and culture means that in some big cities some children might go from door to door to ask for sweets (des bonbons) there will be no tricks (pas de mauvais tours), and the majority of children...
To Kiss or not to Kiss Hello

To Kiss or not to Kiss Hello

Some of our teachers in our French classes have been teaching their students about greetings in France. It’s a complicated business (c’est compliqué). One of the way we greet others is called “faire la bise” and it happens among men (although...
Un Homme Ideal – a French Thriller

Un Homme Ideal – a French Thriller

Fancy a French thriller? At our next cineclub on Sunday 16th October at the Lansdown pub in Clifton, we will be watching Un homme idéal (a perfect man). A young writer (un jeune écrivain) is struggling to have his first book published. He finds the diary (le journal...

The Autumn Leaves…

Autumn has crept up on me (je ne l’ai pas vu venir), but spotting the first of the yellow leaves (les feuilles mortes) I’m not surprised its colours are the themes of so many songs and poems. One of the most famous ones is by Paul Verlaine, published in...