Time for me to go to rehab
For almost 30 years I’ve been grappling with the French language. Since starting in high school at age 12 I’ve studied on an off over the years through evening courses and half-hearted attempts to teach myself from a book. With a month-long stay in Paris coming up panic began to set in. Through lack of practice and no formal lessons in five years things had come off the rails.
My conjugations were forgotten, my vocabulary too small and my accent terrible. It was time to admit I need professional help. It was time for a stint in French ‘rehab’. I checked myself in for a two-week stay at Ecole Des Trois Ponts, a residential French school set in a lovely villa at Roanne, in south-east France; just a two-hour train ride from Lyon.
Ecole Des Trois Ponts offers a range of small-group (maximum six students) or private French courses. Students can also opt to combine French language lessons with French cooking lessons, baking or even chocolate making. I’m told that the Chocolatier in charge of this course purchases a whopping 20 kilograms of chocolate for use in the classes. There’s something here for everyone with all levels catered for.
For me it was a simple need to revise what I knew that I knew but had forgotten and hopefully progress a bit further on my learning pathway. I signed up for two weeks of General French classes, which kept most afternoons free to explore or relax.
In my first week I shared my classes with an amazing 84-year-old Scottish woman from Aberdeen; a retired doctor and musician. Still travelling and learning new things at her age, she certainly reinforced my belief in life-long learning. What an inspiration.
In my second week I was joined by a group of students undertaking the French language and cooking course. Although I was not enrolled in the cooking program I did get to sample many of the delicious treats prepared by the cooking group.
The style of the lessons was conversation-based. We revised grammar and corrected gaps in knowledge or errors along the way. I’m afraid in my case there were quite a few errors and gaps; some leading to cringe worthy moments.
Sometimes when you take a word you use in English and use it in the same context in French, things can go horribly wrong. Take for example our use of the verb ‘to take’ (prendre in French). In English take is a useful multi-purpose verb. We can take the kids to school, take a friend to the airport, take the rubbish out on bin night or take a drive in the country side. However take in French cannot be used with such abandon. We learned that you mustn’t use take ever when referring to people or animals as it has an ugly sexual connotation. So don’t even think about telling someone in French that you took your dog to the park if you get what I mean. Instead we much use emmener or amener or to describe either accompanying or delivering someone somewhere. I’m sure I must have committed this faux pas many times and wondered why nobody told me this sooner. I’m sure I’ll remember that one from now.
Having morning French classes left most of my afternoons free to explore the area around Roanne and there was plenty to do. I was able to go hiking on nearby trails, explore Roanne town and laze away sunny afternoons in the school’s charming garden while diving into my first attempt to read a novel in French. One afternoon I joined an optional excursion by car with one of our teachers to visit three nearby medieval villages, while other students took part in a wine tasting class.
During the weekend between courses one of my very nice teachers took me for a hike around the area of St Alban Des Eaux . This was a real treat because I got some extra French practice and enjoyed the beautiful French countryside.
Learning continued through informal practice at meal times. Each evening students are served a four course dinner; entrée, main, cheese and dessert with wines all prepared by the resident chef. He presented each dish to us with a talk about what it is and where it comes from. All meals were restaurant quality. There was veal, duck, fois gras, smoked salmon, lamb encased in brioche and gorgeous desserts.
One of our teachers would share the meal to help us practice speaking French. We also had a small presentation each evening about a cheese from the region before trying it. Another lesson I learned through these presentations is the etiquette of cheese cutting. All cheeses that are round in or triangular must be cut from the inside out as if cutting a cake. To cut the point off a wedge of cheese is considered very poor form. This is because traditionally the cheese course of a meal was the most expensive and the need to share more important. In the case of a round cheese the best part tends to be in the middle with the not so nice parts on the outside. So if you cut the point of a cheese and take it for yourself you are ensuring you get all the good stuff and leave the not so good stuff for your hosts and other guests. How rude! By cutting a cheese from the inside out everyone gets a fair share of the good bits and not so good bits. Something else I didn’t know before I came to Ecole Des Trois Ponts.
After two weeks at Ecole Des Trois Ponts I had revised grammar and vocabulary I had forgotten and learned some new things. Perhaps just as importantly I had a fabulous time and I learned to love this beautiful language and the countryside and people of France all over again. I certainly felt ‘rehabilitated’ by my stint here and hope to return.