I would like to rent a property far outside Lyon but my wife does not drive and can imagine the problems we are likely to have just getting from A to B.As far as commuting is concerned if you live in or outside London that could be a nightmare. It used to take me up to two hours to get to work and two hours back each da y . By the time I retired at 63 I was a nervous wreck. If they had not kicked me out I would have got myself the sack. I even have a dammaged leg to remind me of it ten years later. And by the way I don't live outside London and the journey to work was no further than forty kilometres.As you have suggested I should consult with Francoise before suggesting my plan to the others.I may take the one to one course with Francoise in May and would definitely need to find myself some digs in Lyon itself.
At the moment I am studying her French course at intermediate level and I cannot tell you how pleased I am with the software I have been provided with.I have taken a number of other courses from Linguaphone to the BBC course, Ma France. But this one tops the lot. And the graphics----Wow.!
Welcome to the Francoise fan club! It has many members! If you are going to Lyon for a one-to-one course course, Francoise will probably give you a list of places to stay. There are plenty of places in Lyon from about 50 to 500 euros per night.
Hi I read your topic and I have the course too but was intrested by what you mean with The grapics wouw! Because my course dosent have much graphic at all... Its old so mayby thats why.
And I do agree that we probably look for different objects but my husband would like a place in Normandie but I dont think its warm enough. Winters here in Sweden are not so fun. But we dont want a place with all Swedes or foreigners. A little village in the south could be nice. I study French every week now with a French lady here in Malmö.
I spent a couple of weeks in the south of France last year. What I found difficult to get uased to was the intense rays of the sun. After a few minutes in the sun during the afternoon you felt the suns rays penetrating right through you.On the plus side you did meet up with a lot of writers and artists and interlectuals who would provide you with stimulating conversation.Some came to the region for the summer only. They were mainly film directors and TV script writers. They lived in the nearby hills in expensiove villas and entertained lavishly. You could spend hours wandering around art galieries and talking to the painters, sculptures and potters who welcomed visiters to their studios.
Normandy on the other hand is beautiful, full of charm and with many historic places to visit. People who go there to settle down want to get away from life and meet farmers and country folk whose only goal in life after work in the fields is to get to the nearest bar and lull themselves to sleep. No harm in that and if that is what your husband wants to do send him to Normandy on a three month vacation in the middle of winter.
He will probably like it and invite you to join him there. But the South of France can be a nightmare during the holiday season. St Tropez was great, better than I expected but driving is, even by London standards a nightmare. However you can travel to a number of nearby islands by motor boat service which is quite frequent. I tended to walk a lot and enjoyed the market places in St Raphael, Juan Les Pins, Nice and Antibes. St Tropez and Cannes are really nice.I strongly advise taking a vacation there if you have not had one already.
I have only so far purchased the intermediate soft ware of Ecoute, that is the French course.I was sent two versions of it . One is the on-line version(which is a stop gap) and the other a downloaded version. I thought the online version was easier to operate . I am haviong problems with the sound of the download version. If Richard does not mind I woulld like to start exchanging information regarding grammar and pronounciation with other users of this site. Perhaps you can tell me how you feel.
A good example of graphics is on Page 40(on my software) when explaining the use of the verb etre in the passe compose. Graphics here are intended to provide a tool for helping the reader to learn the verbs using etre.The graphics here illustrate life's journey from birth to death and using the verb etre at each transation stage. Graphics are also used for making the text more interesting or for a temporary digression from the main topic.
Other examples of graphics are on online French courses such as in 'ma france' which is the (free) BBC course. They use a subway map to guide you to the various topics.
I wonder if it is too late to enter this lively discussion about French politics and the discussion of it. Little did we all expect that the political situation in France would enter a new and lively phase now that Mr Sarkozy has become president. It shows what a little scandal can do you retreive boredom. The British press were more interested in the reason why he removed his wedding ring a week before the French election than what he really stood for. But the fact that he hit the headlines was in itself a step in the right direction. After all yoiu can hardly blame our public for being so ignorant when even Mr Sarkozy does not know what he believes in. Importantly I dont think his wife really believes half of what he is saying either. So let us keep an open mind on this and let politics and politicans continue in their prime occupation which is entertaining.
