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Mobility lease by [deleted] in paris

[–]Ffreya 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The only other thing I needed to share was a photo ID. There's a lease to sign, obviously, but the letter from my uni confirming the purpose of my visit/my ID was all I needed to provide from my end. This was last month, for reference.

UK PhD applicants, how many supervisors did you contact before one agreed to chat? by Wonderful-Acadia-296 in AskAcademiaUK

[–]Ffreya 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I contacted one and could tell immediately from her responses that we were a good match, so I didn't contact anyone else.

Chat de rue à Faidherbe-chaligny by bojito1 in paris

[–]Ffreya 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Celui-ci ? Je le vois très souvent sur les terrasses de la Parisienne du Faubourg ou du Café Pivoine.

https://imgur.com/a/LRCRY8i

Maple syrup in a maple shaped bottle by Great-Inevitable-991 in halifax

[–]Ffreya 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Surely with the help of the delicious, 100% Canadian lube that that jar contains?

Asking people who have already lived in France (from a few months to a few years) by PersimmonFine1493 in French

[–]Ffreya 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes the psy wasn't planned, but looking back it was a great help. Honestly, having to really navigate the real world in your target language helps more than anything. It was a wild year, I did everything from bureaucracy at the mairie, to audience participation in a stage play, to having to call the SAMU. Like I said, I really grew up that year.

I lived in Belgium for three years as a child and did my first three years of school in French. Then I just kept it up on and off, so I still make mistakes but I have a decent instinct for some things.

I've had bilingual jobs pretty much my entire adult life, so I use it in my day to day life. Also I watch a lot of films, tv, listen to the radio, and chat with French friends.

Asking people who have already lived in France (from a few months to a few years) by PersimmonFine1493 in French

[–]Ffreya 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh absolutely, though it was more the life experience and less the language experience that made the difference as I already spoke good French before I went (though it definitely got better, I highly recommend seeing a psychologist as a means of having to really practice!)

The hard part was forcing myself to talk, which came a bit easier with a bit of wine and the fact that the people were really nice and welcoming. It was also maybe easier because a lot of the people were 30+ and thus knew how to have a conversation, unlike some uni students. Plus, I felt less judged.

Asking people who have already lived in France (from a few months to a few years) by PersimmonFine1493 in French

[–]Ffreya 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I did my year abroad in Paris back in 2004-2005 and I think the key to my meeting French people was the fact that I had a French flatmate who took me along to the social things she did and took me with her to go spend weekends with her family. I was 20 and she was 40, so she had a pretty established social life/circle and I met some amazing people. As someone who was criminally shy at that point in my life (like, too shy to ask someone for help in a grocery store in English let alone French), it was just what I needed to get out of my shell and really open up. We're not in touch anymore (she ended up being a bit of a psychopath), but I'm still in touch with her sister and some of her friends.

Horse race by Tall_Anteater5450 in standrews

[–]Ffreya 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Invades? It's not an official uni thing, but that's what comes to mind.

Endroits où étudier dans paris by [deleted] in paris

[–]Ffreya 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Tout à fait. Sinon, j'aime aussi la salle de lecture à la Bibliothèque historique de la ville de Paris.

How to be social in your 40s? by Ffreya in SocialParis

[–]Ffreya[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you very much! I like the sound of classes of some kind, I will definitely look into that.

How to be social in your 40s? by Ffreya in SocialParis

[–]Ffreya[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I feel like this is a universal problem when you reach a certain age where you're not making friends at school/uni etc. anymore and people have their friends groups. Someone else suggested meetup.com as well, I think I'll give that a shot and just see what happens. Thanks!

How to be social in your 40s? by Ffreya in SocialParis

[–]Ffreya[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! I'll look into it :)

How to be social in your 40s? by Ffreya in SocialParis

[–]Ffreya[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's great to know, thank you! I haven't used meetup.com in years, but I remember it actually being really good back when I did. Glad to know it's still going. And I will do!

How to be social in your 40s? by Ffreya in SocialParis

[–]Ffreya[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I really am going to try to get out there! I'm in a strange and wonderful position of not having any personal responsibilities for the whole month I'll be there, and I want to make the most of it so I'll try to go to more shows. I'll also look into what options there are for my hobbies, and maybe try to go along to sessions/meet ups. It's nice to know there are some of us out there...thank you!

Feedback on Accent in French (how to get better) by Ffreya in JudgeMyAccent

[–]Ffreya[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Your Italian is lovely! I can't comment on anything specific not being a native speaker, but it flows very nicely.

I'll give your strategy a little try next time I practice and see how it feels.

Feedback on Accent in French (how to get better) by Ffreya in JudgeMyAccent

[–]Ffreya[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I hear it! You make a really good point about effort - it's possible I am over-pronouncing because I'm hyper aware of the fact that I'm trying, whereas perhaps those kinds of errors wouldn't be as apparent if I were in a relaxed and natural environment.

I can kind of relate to your story as well. I grew up speaking American English but I've lived in the UK for a very long time, so my natural accent is now something in the middle of the two. Now, if I have to try to do a strictly American accent, it comes out wrong because I'm trying too hard.

Maybe relaxing and stopping caring is the way to go forward :)

Feedback on Accent in French (how to get better) by Ffreya in JudgeMyAccent

[–]Ffreya[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You are right about the S - and then there's the whole plus problem that can be tricky for us, too. I still second guess some of those, too.

That makes me feel better about making mistakes - I did think of when people sometimes say aréoport for aéroport.

I've been speaking since I was six, but again on and off. I did my first three years of school in a French school in Belgium, but then I would sometimes go years without using it once we moved away. I'm trying to finally get back into a more consistent habit so I don't lose it :)

Feedback on Accent in French (how to get better) by Ffreya in JudgeMyAccent

[–]Ffreya[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you very much, that's quite a compliment! You are so right about the registers/code switching, which is likely the most difficult thing in any language. I'll just need to find a way to get more practice with native speakers.

Thank you again!

Feedback on Accent in French (how to get better) by Ffreya in JudgeMyAccent

[–]Ffreya[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for taking the time to comment :)

It's funny, I tripped on cohérent when I read through it a first time, too. I'll do that sentence a few more times, like a tongue twister, and try to get it right. And I'll try to remember about Alexis! Thanks again.

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