I'm also a bit lazy.
This is the first country I've studied abroad in where I've been familiar enough with the local language to notice certain quirks, and to make observations beyond stuff like "Ooh, look at that cool alphabet". I've been collecting some observations on French culture and language- little interesting things that I've noticed- and while this list will probably continue to grow, I thought I'd share what I have so far.
- French doesn't seem to have a verb that means "to hurt". Instead, they say "faire mal"- "to do badly". My host mom is a nanny, so I hear this phrase several hundred times per week.
- My host mom likes to cook, and she often asks me the English names of foods. We've discovered that an incredible number of food-related words are cognates (the same in both languages), though there are, of course, exceptions.
- la pâtes = "pasta", and la patte (pronounced the same) = "paw", thus demonstrating the importance of context.
- un avocat = "avocado" and "lawyer". There's a joke in there somewhere.
- pamplemousse ("grapefruit") is one of the greatest words ever.
- French has different words for different types of yogurt-like substances. I'd tell you what the differences between these substances are, but I honestly have no idea. They all taste like yogurt to me.
- French also has different words for different types of tea.
- Teaching English vocabulary to my host mom has prompted me to think more about the words we use, and how they might have originated, and how silly some of them are. Like "headphones". Head. Phones. Who comes up with these things? I also spent maybe ten minutes trying to explain the etymology of the word "hitchhike".
- Here it is. The most awkward word in the French language for English-speakers. Yes, it's pronounced the way you're thinking.
I just try to avoid talking about seals.
- "Ooh la la" is actually something people say. It seems to be an all-purpose exclamation.
- I was taught in school that the word billet meant "ticket". But it turns out that it's a bit more complicated than that, and some things are billets and some things are tickets. Like a tram ticket is a ticket, but I think a plane ticket is a billet. And billet also means "bill" (as in paper money).
I'd be annoyed about this, if I didn't know that English was just as obnoxious.
- Gâteau means "cake". It also apparently means "cookie", "cracker", "biscuit"... etc... etc...
This has led to me being disappointed on several occasions.
- This is true.
In fact, most superhero names don't seem to have been translated. One exception is Hawkeye, who is "Oeil de Faucon" in French.
- In French, the word with the most significance is placed firmly at either the very end or the very beginning of a sentence (instead of just wherever, like in English) for added emphasis. For instance, "I miss you" in French is Tu me manque- literally "you I miss- because you, the person who is being missed, is the most significant word in the sentence. The emphasis it gets by being at the beginning of the sentence strengthens the message.
Another example is Tu fait quoi? ("What are you doing?") -literally "You are doing what?", with the emphasis placed on the interrogative.
Ils sont fous, ces Romains. "They're crazy, these Romans." (And if you get that reference, I'm giving you a big thumbs-up).
- In France, people say "ai" instead of "ow" when they get hurt.
- Du pain, bread, is very important in French culture, and is eaten with almost every meal. There are patisseries (bakeries) on what seems like every other street, so the quality of the bread that people tend to eat here is much better than the packaged store-bought stuff we have in the US. It's not uncommon to see people walking down the street carrying baguettes.
- They have a specific kind of sandwich here called an "Americaine". It's a baguette filled with meat, cheese, and french fries. Gee, thanks, France.
- Cheese is also a big deal here, and there are a ton of different types. I've always considered myself a big cheese fan, but I'm starting to realize that I'm actually not, since I really only like cheddar. Most of the cheese that people eat in France is much stronger than what I'm accustomed to, and I haven't been able to stand any of the types I've tried. In fact, my host mom tried to find me some cheddar, but the grocery store didn't have any. It's just too bland to be popular here.
I have a friend who is Chinese, and she mentioned once that she doesn't really like cheese, because it's not used much in Chinese cuisine, so she never developed a taste for it. And I realize now that this really is true- cheese is something you need to be exposed to a lot in order to like it. People in France spend their whole lives eating really strong, varied cheeses that I, since I'm not used to them, find absolutely disgusting.
I will never look at cheese the same way again.
- Completing the French cuisine triumverate, we have wine. France is big on wine. In fact, my host mom's boyfriend travels all over the world as a wine consultant. Yes, that's apparently a job. I think I horrified him a bit when I told him that I don't drink alcohol.
- The one aspect of French culture that I was really dreading was the kissing. In France, people generally greet each other by exchanging kisses on both cheeks. The number of kisses varies from region to region. It's called faire les bises. As someone who abhors physical contact, particularly from strangers, I was not looking forward to this. But so far, it hasn't been that bad. Not everyone I meet has kissed me, and when they do, I just kind of stand there awkwardly and let them do their thing, and wait for it to be over. I've gotten a lot of bises from little kids, some family friends, and (most awkwardly) my host sister's boyfriend.
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