Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Patrice and Sophie reminisce about playing ombres chinoises (shadow puppets) when they were little. Patrice makes some interesting observations about Eisenstein's Ivan the Terrible and Coppola's Dracula, two films that incorporate shadow puppetry.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Patrice is not getting enough sleep and looks a little worse for wear, but he's very philosophical about it. As Simone de Beauvoir said, "A successful life is living like an adolescent at sixty-five."
Difficulty: Advanced
France
Sophie loves plants so much that she isn't averse to snipping a cutting or two from a public garden. Her interest in plants comes from her grandmother, who spent endless hours tending to her plants and even climbed trees at 95 years old!
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Sophie and Patrice discuss the meaning of expressions involving colors, such as vert de rage and une peur bleue. They have their own theories about their origins.
Difficulty: Advanced
France
Sophie and Patrice discuss the pollution problem in Paris. Although efforts have been made to keep cars out of the city center, there's still much to improve. Cars still clog the freeways outside Paris.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Patrice and Sophie are in the Belleville-Jourdain neighborhood around the nineteenth arrondissement. This quiet neighborhood is benefitting from the city officials' committment to bring back pedestrians areas to the city.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Sophie and Patrice discuss the evolution of the word "handicap," from its origins as a horce racing term to its current usage in French. Rather than les handicapés (the handicapped), the French now say les personnes en situation de handicap (persons with disabilities).
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Sophie shares her grandmother's crêpe recipe with us. If you're game, you can make the crêpes by feel, without measuring anything, just like her ancestors used to do. Good luck and bon appétit!
Difficulty: Advanced
France
Sophie and Patrice have different breakfast habits. Patrice only has a cup of coffee for breakfast, whereas Sophie doesn't drink coffee at all.
Difficulty: Advanced
France
In the Porte des Lilas neighborhood, Sophie and Patrice discuss a relatively new form of transportation in Paris: the tram. It's clean and green, though according to Sophie, it could use a bit more charm. Still, it's a great way to get around Paris.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Sophie and Patrice will teach you the names of colors, from basic ones to the more unusual ones. For example, do you know what grège is?
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patrice and Sophie explain the use of the twenty-four-hour clock in French. It's more widely used in France than in English-speaking countries, and it's very helpful for making sure you don't miss your plane or an important appointment!
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patrice is not feeling well and thinks he might have eaten something that didn't agree with him. Sophie tries to help with some good advice.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Sophie and Patrice introduce the months of the year and the days of the week. They also show us a trick to remember which months have 30 days and which have 31.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patrice and Sophie exchange their views on artificial intelligence, its advances, its dangers, and its advantages.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Sophie and Patrice talk about kitchen utensils, and Patrice shares a few tips on how to avoid burning your food.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patrice and Sophie discuss the various candidates in the 2022 French presidential election. Patrice predicts the second round could be between Macron and Pécresse. Time will tell!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patrice and Sophie discuss the recent coup that took place in Mali. As always, people suffer in the hands of the army and the oppressors.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patrice and Sophie discuss the war in Ukraine and the consequences of the sanctions and trade embargo for the Russian people.
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Patrice and Sophie discuss astrology. You will learn the twelve zodiac signs in French, and even a forgotten thirteenth one!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Sophie and Patrice discuss the legislative elections in June 2022. The left-wing parties have reunited for the first time since the Popular Front in 1936. How long will they be able to set aside their differences to form a solid and lasting coalition?
Difficulty: Newbie
France
Patrice and Sophie discuss what's in store for la rentrée, or the return from the summer holiday. So far it's not looking too promising to Sophie. There's a shortage of staff in schools and hospitals, and also a shortage of hairdressers and barbers, apparently....
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Why has Patrice suddenly sprouted a mustache? It's all because of Marcel Proust...
Difficulty: Beginner
France
Zelensky and Putin, although at war with each other, came up with the same new word: macroner. What could that mean? Here is a clue: It comes from the name of the French president.
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