Test yourself: French Verbs

Fill in the correct form/tense of the verbs listed below:

On va déménager lundi prochain.  Notre nouveau appartement ne 1_______ pas entièrement prêt avant la fin du mois, mais il faut quand même qu’on s’en 2_____.  Il y 3_____ un petit hôtel aux environs de Monpellier où nous 4_____ l’attendre.  Un entracte calme entre l’emballage et le déballage!  On veut visiter les vignobles tout autour et on 5_____ commander quelques bonnes bouteilles pour la crémaillère dont notre fille va nous “surprendre.”  Évidemment, il 6_____ que nous 7_____ pas mal de verres échantillons.  Tant mieux!

1. être

2. aller

3. avoir

4. aller

5. espérer

6. falloir

7. goûter

How did you do?  Learning a foreign language takes time and practice! 

(Answers: 1-sera/2-aille/3-a/4-irons/5-espère/6-faudra/7-goûtions)

Hotel Star Ratings and French B & B’s

It’s true – you do generally get what you pay for. I personally have preferred to stay at a B & B (directory link) while in France (chambre d’hôte), but these also require researching, to know what you’re getting for the price.  I have stayed at a few where they offered a “table d’hôte,” meaning you could also eat a home cooked, French dinner on site (extra cost, of course).  Many private manoirs and chateaux have been turned into tourist accommodations and can be an absolutely beautiful way to experience another side of French life!

"The European Hotel stars Union has created a profiling system based on the earlier German hotel stars system that had widely influenced the hotel classifications in central Europe. The main criteria are in quality management, wellness and sleeping accommodation.  In the catalogue of criteria each entry is associated with a number of points – each Hotel stars level requires a minimal sum of points besides some criteria being obligatory for the level.  The minimum requirement for the Superior flag requires the same sum of points as for the next Hotel stars level which however was not awarded due to at least one obligatory requirement being left out."

Hotelstar		Excerpt of the catalogue of criteria
	Tourist	100% of the rooms with shower/WC or bath tub/WC Daily room cleaning 100% of the rooms with colour-TV together with remote control Table and chair Soap or body wash Reception service Facsimile at the reception Publicly available telephone for guests Extended breakfast Beverage offer in the hotel Deposit possibility
	Superior Tourist	The Superior flag is provided when the additional service and accommodation provisions are not sufficient for the next Hotelstar. The bathroom facilities are usually at the same level as for two stars hotels but built from cheaper materials. The cost for regular inspection by independent associations is waived as well.
	Standard	In addition to the single star (*) hotels: Breakfast buffet Reading light next to the bed Bath essence or shower gel Bath towels Linen shelves Offer of sanitary products (e.g. toothbrush, toothpaste, shaving kit) Credit Cards
	Superior Standard	The Superior flag is provided when the additional service and accommodation provisions are not sufficient for the next Hotelstar. The Standard-Superior does usually offer the same service level as three-star hotels but the interiors of the hotel are smaller and cheaper so that the three stars were not to be awarded by the inspection body. A two-star superior does not require mystery guesting.
	Comfort	In addition to the standard star (**) hotels: Reception opened 14 hours, accessible by phone 24 hours from inside and outside, bilingual staff (e.g. German/English) Three piece suite at the reception, luggage service Beverage offer in the room Telephone in the room Internet access in the room or in the public area Heating facility in the bathroom, hair-dryer, cleansing tissue Dressing mirror, place to put the luggage/suitcase Sewing kit, shoe polish utensils, laundry and ironing service Additional pillow and additional blanket on demand Systematic complaint management system
	Superior Comfort	The Superior flag is provided when the additional service and accommodation provisions are not sufficient for the next Hotelstar. The accommodation facilities for a superior hotel need to be on a modern level and fully renovated which is checked regularly.
	First Class	In addition to the comfort star (***) hotels: Reception opened 18 hours, accessible by phone 24 hours from inside and outside Lobby with seats and beverage service Breakfast buffet or breakfast menu card via room service Minibar or 24 hours beverages via room service Upholstered chair/couch with side table Bath robe and slippers on demand Cosmetic products (e.g. shower cap, nail file, cotton swabs), vanity mirror, tray of a large scale in the bathroom) Internet access and internet terminal “À la carte”-restaurant
	First Class Superior	The Superior flag is provided when the first class hotel has a proven high quality not only in the rooms. The superior hotels provide for additional facilities in the hotel like a sauna or a workout room. The quality is checked regularly by mystery guesting of an external inspection service.
	Luxury	In addition to the first class (****) hotels: Reception opened 24 hours, multilingual staff Doorman-service or valet parking Concierge, page boy Spacious reception hall with several seats and beverage service Personalized greeting for each guest with fresh flowers or a present in the room Minibar and food and beverage offer via room service during 24 hours Personal care products in flacons Internet-PC in the room Safe in the room Ironing service (return within 1 hour), shoe polish service Turndown service in the evening Mystery guesting
	Superior Luxury	The Luxury star hotels need to attain high expectations of an international guest service. The Superior Luxury star is only awarded with a system of intensive guest care.

Source: Wikipedia

Renoir Museum – Closed for renovation

Source: renoir.chez.com

The Renoir Museum and the surrounding gardens are closed to the public until July 2013, due to restoration works. In respecting the domaine’s asthetics, a new reception area with parking will be added, Renoir’s house will be made accessible to handicapped visitors, and an audio-visual room added.

During the closure, Renoir’s collective works of art and other collectibles from the museum are being displayed at the Château-Musée Grimaldi in the medieval village of Haute-de-Cagnes (a free shuttle #44 from the Gare Routiere in Cagnes-sur-Mer up to the village circulates every 15 minutes.

 

Paris & New York City – a comparison!

Photos: Wikipedia

As an analogy for those who have never traveled to the States, I have always used the simile of Paris being like the city of New York. Of course, Paris isn’t France, and New York isn’t America; however, the two cities do provide a vivid image for comparison!
 
Having been to New York several times, and having lived in Paris, there are indeed many similarities:

• songs that are associated with & identify each city
• the constant movement of people rushing from point A to point B
• the continual buzz of activity and traffic
• public transportation (metro & subway)
• haute couture fashion/designers & luxurious lifestyles
• museums, cafes, & restaurants
• tourism & symbolic landmarks
• identity through the local cuisine
• descriptive taglines (City of Light & The Big Apple)
• rivers running through each city & green space areas/parks
• lights of the Eiffel Tower and lights in Time Square

I happen to come across a site that visually compares icons of these two great cities, “Paris versus New York City – A Tally of Two Cities” — the author visually exemplifies these two cities, through his maps and prints collection – cute, amusing, and a great tale of the two cities!

Since the Cannes Film Festival has ended and the crowds have dispersed, I decided to go to Cannes for lunch — Le Rendezvous restaurant, situated about 50 meters from the Croisette and 300 meters from the Palais des Festivals.
I was seated at the front window, so had a great vantage point to people watch and view strolling musiciens and tour buses passing by. Lunch was delicious: a three-course menu (appetizer, main dish, and dessert).

As I exited the restaurant, on my way to the Croisette, there were flower shops, flowered balconies, and flower baskets paving the way.

I decided to stroll past the iconic Film Festival building, with its red carpet stairs (would love to have bumped into Brad Pitt who had just been here), continued along rue d’Antibes to window shop, and then along a part of the world-famous Croisette! It was amusing that even the recycle bins had an artistic edge to their design — of course, in blending with the chic surroundings!

 

2012 All photos copyright France Forever

Les aperos (Before dinner drink)

C’est toujours l’heure de l’apero en France !      (It’s always happy hour in France !)

Here are some popular aperitifs (in France)  that you may not be familiar with:

Monaco – beer, carbonated drink like 7-Up or Sprite, and grenadine syrup, which makes it red in color (the main country color of the principality of Monaco)

Panaché – beer mixed with a carbonated drink like 7-Up or Sprite

Tango – beer and grenadine syrup

Le Perrouquet (parrot) – pastis (licorice flavored liqueur), water, mint syrup

La Tomate (tomato) – pastis, water, grenadine syrup

Kir  – white wine and creme de cassis (black currant syrup) / Kir Royal is made with champagne rather than wine

Technically, happy hour is around 17h00 – 19h00, but that being said, you will often see the locals sitting at a cafe having a glass of wine or a beer in the morning, while catching up on the local gossip or playing a friendly game of cards – it’s all about comraderie!

My personal favorite apero is a glass of Champagne or a Kir- what’s yours?

Nice Train Station Makeover

Beginning January, 2013, the main train station in Nice will be getting a makeover.  The approximately 60 million Euro, new futuristic/modern look will enhance the current station building, which was constructed in the 19th century.

Renovation Design Video

“Nice is connected to the rest of France via the SNCF train network. A direct TGV train from Paris to Nice takes about 6 hours, and on TGVs a reservation is obligatory. The train arrives in Nice at the central station, called simply “Gare Nice Ville” (not to be confused with the stations at the city limits, Nice Riquier and Nice St Augustin). A new service called “IdTGV” is now available: it offers low-cost TGV tickets (starting at just €19 for a single trip between Paris and Nice). These tickets have to be bought online, and are not refundable.” (source: Wikitravel)