Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel Benchimol braves the freezing temperature to show us around the beautiful medieval town of Gisors in the Vexin region in the north of France. The highlight of the town is its eleventh-century castle, which is currently undergoing major restoration work. The castle was once surrounded by a moat, and some of its towers still remain, with imposing names like "Prisoner's Tower" and "Chilly Tower."
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Louane Emera (aka Anne Peichert), semi-finalist in the French talent competition "The Voice," released her second single "Avenir" (Future), which topped the official French Singles Chart in March 2015. She sings about overcoming a breakup and sends a hopeful message: although "it's all over," she still has a future.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
This nursery offers various species of Christmas trees to suit every taste and every budget. The traditional spruce tree of many French people's childhoods is still going strong, but the Nordmann fir has gained popularity. Species of trees with a bluish tinge or a nice pine tree fragrance are also available.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
La Roche-sur-Yon, a friendly town near Brittany, is abuzz with Christmas activities. Local children are busy decorating the town Christmas tree with their own personalized ornaments. Santa is there, of course, taking toy orders. The mayor is also involved and has the town hall organizing ten days of festivities.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Zaz sings a very catchy tune, "Comme ci comme ça," from her album Recto Verso. "Comme ci comme ça" usually means "so-so," but in her song, Zaz chooses to give it a more literal meaning, "like this, like that." She wants others to accept her as she is. And to press her point, she never actually appears as herself in the video!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
There's no better time to break out the bubbly than to celebrate the New Year. In this video, you will learn all about champagne, including how bubbles occur in a glass.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In the last part of his tour of the town of Gisors, Daniel shows us an interesting structure called a cabinet de verdure (greenery chamber) as well as a waterfall that served as the major driving force of the town's economy for centuries. Daniel also tells us the story of Philippe Auguste and the Golden Virgin, which you won't want to miss!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Lionel reads us the fairy tale, "The Frog King" (also known as "The Princess and the Frog"). The princess loses her precious gold ball in a pond. A frog appears, recovers it for her, and asks for a small favor in return. Will the princess honor her promise?
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
The Underwater Museum of Lorient might be a little hard to get to, given that it's literally underwater. Dedicated to shipwrecks and other sunken objects, the museum is made possible by a team of volunteers with a passion for documenting these lost treasures at the bottom of the ocean.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In the second episode of "The Frog King," the princess follows the frog's instructions, albeit reluctantly. And as you might guess, he turns into a handsome prince!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Take a stroll with Daniel Benchimol through Georges Brassens Park, built on the site of the former Vaugirard slaughterhouses. The park includes one of Paris's many jardins pédagogiques (educational gardens) run by local schoolchildren. It's also a few steps away from the famous artists' colony known as La Ruche (The Beehive).
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Enzo is convinced a man with a thorny rose tattoo is his father. He can't wait to share his discovery with his mother, but she claims it's not possible: because of his shady past, his father can't be in the country. But Enzo doesn't want to believe her....
Difficulty: Intermediate
Canada
Sally Folk is a young Québécois singer who released her first album "Heureux Infidèles" (Happy Unfaithful) in 2013. In the title song, she sings about an affair she is having. Although she feels a twinge of conscience, being unfaithful holds too much excitement for her to stop and confess.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
According to Lionel, we hear far too much about Charlie Hebdo and not enough about Le Canard Enchaîné, which is about to celebrate its centenary in 2016. This quality satirical newspaper is in a similar vein to Charlie Hebdo. Both papers even shared the same cartoonist, Cabu, who sadly did not survive the January attack on Charlie Hebdo. Le Canard Enchaîné was no stranger to extremist threats either.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Enzo's mother finally admits that she knew of his father's whereabouts and asks for Enzo's forgiveness for keeping it a secret. Enzo is still in shock and not ready to forgive her. He's following another lead, a young woman who may eventually take him to his real father.
Are you sure you want to delete this comment? You will not be able to recover it.