Franglais

Not the sort espoused by Miles Kington some years ago but something almost quintessentially French yet English!

About two years ago my wife and I were invited to join a local French/English conversation group to help improve our French language skills. This little gathering has inevitably known as 'La Groupe Franglais' in the village. The idea is that a roughly evenly mixed number of French and English like minded souls get together once a week for a sort of gently guided natter. Perhaps I should say British rather than English as there are now several folk from other parts of the UK sub-continent with us.

We went along somewhat apprehensively for the first time only knowing just a few of the group members. Unsurprisingly we were made to feel very welcome by everyone and slowly began to relax. The usual format is for pairs of either nation to sit at tables and discuss a given topic for about forty minutes or so, twenty minutes in one language then the next twenty minutes in the other. Generally the discussion is about non-serious and non-contentious things, for example what and where your next summer holiday will be or plans for the Christmas festivities.

Even such simple matters often reveal quite a difference in our two cultures and lifestyles which often ccan be quite surprising. One French lady, mid thirties, mum of two told that a favourite day out was to go shopping with a friend to either Villeneuve-sur-Lot or Bergerac; the nearest towns with any semblance of shopping facilities. They shop in the morning, have a leisurely lunch at a restaurant followed by a visit to a hypermarket and thence home. Nothing unusual in that you may think until she revealed that until a couple of years previously she, husband and offspring had holidayed in Turkey that was the farthest away from home that she had ever been! We have since discovered that is not uncommon amongst many local people.

There are many other differences to be found in so many aspects of everyday life. French people are very family oriented with often large, local extended families and love to share times together as well as obviously helping each other. The French lunchtime of at least two hours, or preferably three, is sacrosanct, nothing can, must or will disturb that daily ritual. The main meal of the day is invariably taken then rather than in the evening and all of the family will be there if at all possible. Shops and businesses close, our local village is deserted during that time. If ever France was to be invaded, heaven forfend, it could be achieved quickly, quietly and almost certainly bloodlessly during the daily lunch break!

Bedtime for most folk apart from the the energetic young is usually around 10 pm but getting up in the morning usually about 6 am. Essential shopping is done daily rather than a huge trip every other week to the out of town shopping centre. Bars serve alcohol whenever they are open and it is not rare to see someone enjoying a small pastis mid-morning. What is rare, however, is to see a drunken French person. Since we have lived here, now almost six years, we have never seen an inebriated French person. Drunks yes, but never French!

One year ago I was asked if I would take over organising the group as the then guvnor was due for major surgery shortly and would be incapacitated for several months. One deciding factor was that the group was no longer a disparate collection of folk but had turned in that last year into a truly cohesive social one, everyone knew everyone else well and were friends apart from all else. Somewhat reluctantly I agreed and have not looked back since - I just love what I do and what I am able to get people to do for themselves. Naively at the first session last year I asked what expectations might be and almost unanimously said that homework would advantageous! Oh dear, thought I. The last part of my working life was as a lecturer, the one thing I hated most was marking work. But before the evening was over I was very happy to have found an obvious solution, why not get them to mark and correct each others work? What's more the system works very well!

Well, back to our little group in a few days time and I'm really looking forward to it.