Learn French with Dalida

Dalida (17 January 1933 – 3 May 1987), born with the Italian name Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti, was a famous singer and actress born in Egypt to Italian parents but naturalised French with the name Yolanda Gigliotti. She spent her early years in Egypt amongst the Italian Egyptian community, but she lived most of her adult life in France. She received 55 gold records and was the first singer to receive a diamond disc. Dalida performed and recorded in more than 10 languages including: French, Arabic, Italian, Greek, German, English, Japanese, Hebrew, Dutch and Spanish.

Renowned for the changes she wrought to the French and global music industry with her powerful and colourful performances, she is today still remembered by aficionados throughout the world. A 30-year career (she debuted in 1956 and recorded her last album in 1986, a few months before her death) and her death led to an iconic image as a tragic diva and renowned singer. For the 25th anniversary of her tragic death, re discover her repertoire and improve your vocabulary with some of her greatest songs :

Discover Cecile Corbel 2

Cecile Corbel is now going through a serie of concert all around France and her tour will soon take her to Germany and even Malaysia!

For all her news and tourdates visit her official site

This is her last video takenfrom her last album Songbook Vol.3




Thanks to Cecile for being such a genuine person and artist and for the great afternoon of the 1st of March

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Discover Juliette Sobanet

This month Talk this way! offers you to discover a great promising writer and a true Francophile.

Juliette Sobanet writes sassy, fun's women fiction with a French twist. She is also a French teacher.
Her debut novel "Sleeping with Paris " is now available on Amazon!

We asked Juliette a few questions about her books and her sincere love of France and French. Here are her answers.

1. Concerning your love of French and France, when did it all start? What was the starting point?

After taking French during my freshman year of high school, I traveled on a school trip to France and, for lack of a more beautiful phrase in English, je suis tombée amoureuse. I loved how charming and old everything was. I loved the cheese, the chocolate, the bread, the cafés.  And I especially loved trying to communicate in French with the natives. I knew immediately that I wanted to study in France one day, become fluent and teach the language to others. So I continued my language studies by majoring in French in college, studying abroad in Lyon, and then completing my master’s degree in Paris. And now I base my books in France. I just can’t seem to get enough!

2. Your main characters are mostly women who are attracted by or to France  (more precisely Paris). Do you think women are more sensitive to the charm of France or of the French language?

 Yes, I definitely think France, and more specifically Paris, holds a certain charm that many women simply cannot resist. Paris is one of the most romantic cities in the world. It’s the perfect place to be swept off your feet, to fall in love, to eat decadent food and not think twice about the calories. What woman wouldn’t give up a day in their normal, day-to-day grind to stroll along the cobblestone streets of France, eat a crêpe smothered in Nutella, drink the best glass of red wine they’ve ever tasted, and chat in French with a handsome, charming French man?

3. How much personal experience do you include in your novels?

 In all three of my novels I’ve only taken the characters to cities or towns I’ve actually visited in France so that I can describe the setting as authentically as possible. In my first novel, Sleeping with Paris, the main character Charlotte goes through a horrible break-up and then tries to mend her broken heart by going wild in Paris and not falling in love. Like Charlotte and most other women, I’ve also been through some pretty bad break-ups and have also been ready to denounce relationships (that was before I met my husband:). I hoped to make her reactions and emotions relatable, while still being a bit exaggerated, because of course, this is fiction. Charlotte’s adventures in Paris are completely fictional, but some of the hilarious mishaps are inspired by true events that actually happened to me or my girlfriends while studying abroad.
My next two novels, Kissed in Paris and Dancing with Paris, have much more action-packed, mystery plots, so those two don’t include much of my personal experience (thank God:), but I do share some traits with my heroines as I think most authors do.

4. What do you like the most about France?

Besides the obvious answers—the wine, pastries, beautiful scenery, gorgeous language, and the list goes on—what I love most about France is the way I feel when I’m there. I feel completely alive and free, as if anything is possible and I’m right where I’m meant to be. I have such a strong connection to and love for France, I can’t imagine what my life would be like had I not had the amazing opportunity to live and study over there. In fact, I can’t wait to take my next trip back!

 5. What is your favorite French word and why?

 My favorite French word is “pamplemousse,” which means “grapefruit.” That one always makes me giggle. I also love the word “chocolat” for obvious reasons:)

 6. The French person you admire the most?

The French person I most admire isn’t a famous actor or actress (although I do love French films). She is a warm, hardworking mother who I had the privilege of living with during my study abroad in Lyon. My French host-mom made the most delicious home-cooked meals every single night, then invited the entire family over for the traditional Sunday dinner (which she cooked from scratch every week, and was nothing short of phenomenal). She kept a beautiful French apartment for her four grown children, and she welcomed me into her home as if I was one of her own. She was the first smiling face who greeted me when I arrived at the train station in Lyon, nervous and unsure if I would be able to handle life in a foreign country. I still keep in touch with her and the family, and she still welcomes me into her home as if not a day has passed since I left France.

 7. Have you got any favorite places in France?

 My absolute favorite city in France is Lyon. It’s about two hours south of Paris by train, and it’s simply fantastic. It’s beautiful, clean, walkable, charming, and the food is to die for. Lyon is like a mini version of Paris, but much more manageable, and since there aren’t as many Americans there, you have the opportunity to speak French with everyone, which is one of my favorite things to do:)

 8. Will we soon be able to find your books in French?

I hope so! I would love to have them translated into French, and will keep you posted if it comes to pass in the near future!

 9. Tell us more about your new novel "Dancing with Paris."

Dancing with Paris is my third novel, and it’s a cross between the films “Moulin Rouge” and “Midnight in Paris.” It’s a murder mystery set in 1950’s Paris with a little bit of magic and a lot of romance. That’s all I can say for now, but I’ll be releasing more details about the book in the coming months of my blog, Chocolate for Writers.

 10. You're also a French teacher. Why do you think people should learn French?

French is a difficult, but extremely rewarding language to learn. It took me many years of study to feel completely fluent, and even now as a French teacher, I am always adding new expressions to my vocabulary and I can never get enough practice. In my experience though, it has been more than worth it to put years of time and energy into learning this gorgeous language, and I think that if anyone is even remotely interested in learning French, there is no better time than the present.
French is spoken in many countries throughout the world and can lead you to careers that may not have been open to you otherwise. Learning French can open up your eyes to new cultures, new ways of life, and can lead you to opportunities and places you never would’ve dreamed of before. Plus, you’ll be able to communicate in one of the most beautiful languages on earth, and that can never be a bad thing:)  

Links:

Juliette's blog, Chocolate for Writers: 
 http://www.juliettesobanet.com/

Sleeping with Paris on Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Sleeping-with-Paris-ebook/dp/B005TNM736/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top


Sleeping with Paris on Amazon.fr :
http://www.amazon.fr/Sleeping-with-Paris-ebook/dp/B005TNM736/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1325456208&sr=8-1

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Discover Cecile Corbel

For our special Brittany month, discover one of the most extraordinary artist Brittany has to offer: Cécile Corbel

Musician, singer and songwriter, Cécile was born at the west end of Brittany. This is where she discovered the celtic harp, as a teenager. Since then, she has kept a strong link with her native region - an everlasting source of creativity. Inspired by Celtic traditional music from Brittany and abroad, she discovers composition, mainly focused on harp and vocals.
Cécile is inspired by tales, ancient melodies and fairy moods – which are the bases of her musical world.
In 2010 she wrote and recorded the original soundtrack for the movie "Arrietty", which was a big success in Japan and in other countries. This soundtrack earned the "Soundtrack Album of the year" award and a "Golden Disc Award" in Japan.

In May 2011, she releases "Songbook vol. 3 - Renaissance", a more acoustic album, going back to her sources of inspiration, in a continued exploration of her pop-folk musical world, always inspired by the celtic culture, somewhat with an Oriental touch.

Be Breizh!

Discover Brittany, one of the most charming region of France.




Brittany (French: Bretagne [bʁətaɲ]; Breton: Breizh, pronounced [brɛjs]; Gallo: Bertaèyn) is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. It is characterized as one of the six Celtic nations.

Brittany occupies a large peninsula in the north west of France, lying between the English Channel to the north and the Bay of Biscay to the south. The historical province of Brittany is divided into five departments
: Finistère in the west, Côtes-d'Armor in the north, Ille-et-Vilaine in the north east, the Loire-Atlantique in the south east and Morbihan in the south on the Bay of Biscay.



In 1956, French Regions were created by gathering Departements between them.[5] The Region of Brittany comprises, since then, four of the five Breton départements (80% of historical Brittany), while the remaining area of the old Brittany, the Loire-Atlantique département, around Nantes, forms part of the Pays de la Loire region. This territorial organisation is regularly contested.

Brittany is home to many megalithic monuments which are scattered across the peninsula.
Brittany is also known for its calvary sculptures, elaborately carved crucifixion scenes found at crossroads in villages and small towns, especially in Western Brittany.


Besides its numerous intact manors and châteaux, Brittany also has several old fortified towns. The walled city of Saint-Malo (Sant-Maloù), a popular tourist attraction, is also an important port linking Brittany with England and the Channel Islands. It was the birthplace of the historian Louis Duchesne, the acclaimed author Chateaubriand, the corsair Surcouf and the explorer Jacques Cartier. The town of Roscoff (Rosko) is served by ferry links with England and Ireland


The coast at Brittany is unusual due to its colouring. The Côte de Granit Rose (pink granite coast) is located in the Côtes d'Armor department of Brittany. It stretches for more than 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Plestin-les-Greves to Louannec and is one of the outstanding coastlines of Europe. This special pink rock is very rare and can be found in only three other places in the world, Ontario, Canada, Corsica and China.




French, the only official language of the French Republic, is today spoken throughout Brittany. The two regional languages are supported by the regional authorities within the constitutional limits: Breton, strongest in the west but to be seen all over Brittany, is a Celtic language most closely related to Cornish and Welsh. Gallo, which is spoken in the east, is one of the romance Langues d'oïl.
Since the 13th century, long before the union of Brittany and France, the main administrative language of the Duchy of Brittany was French, and previously it was Latin. Breton (in the West) and Gallo (in the East) remained the two languages of the rural population of Brittany, but since the Middle Ages the bourgeoisie, the nobility, and the higher clergy spoke French. Government policies in the 19th and 20th centuries, which forbade the speaking of Breton in schools, along with the demands of education, pushed many non-French speakers into adopting the French language. Nevertheless, until the 1960s Breton was spoken and understood by most of the inhabitants of western Brittany.


In the Middle Ages, Gallo gradually expanded into formerly Breton-speaking areas. Now restricted to a much reduced territory in the east of Brittany, Gallo finds itself under pressure from the dominant Francophone culture. It is also felt by some to be threatened by the Breton language revival, which is gaining ground in territories that were not previously part of the main Breton-speaking area.


Diwan ("seed") schools, where classes are taught in Breton by the immersion method, play an important part in the revival of the Breton language. These schools are privately funded, as they receive no French central government support. The issue of whether they should be funded by the State has long been, and remains, controversial. Some bilingual classes are also provided in ordinary schools.[citation needed]

Bilingual (Breton and French) road signs may be seen in some areas, especially in the traditional Breton-speaking area of Lower Brittany.


Be Breizh: Breizh is the Breton word for Brittany and given that the Bretons are particularly proud of their roots, you will see the word – or simply the letters BZH – in evidence throughout the region. Along with the black and white Breton flag (the Gwenn Ha Du) and the triskell, you will see these symbols of Breton identity on cars, t-shirts and shop fronts.

In 2011, the regional tourist board adopted the phrase ‘Be Breizh’ to sum up this unique Breton spirit.

Visit http://www.tourismebretagne.com/
And if you are already a fan
http://www.fans-de-bretagne.com/


BREIZH DA VIKEN!!!