"Neighbors" (Les Voisins) Read about neighborliness, or les rapports de bon voisinage, in today's story column, written by one of my favorite in-laws, Tante Marie-Françoise. Enjoy! Book recommendation: Eiffel's Tower: And the World's Fair Where Buffalo Bill Beguiled Paris, the Artists Quarreled, and Thomas Edison Became a CountNote: if the book's delightful sub-title didn't win you over, then how about the enthusiastic response of both … Continue reading bonhomie

All photos © Kristin Espinasse Come harvest time, this old wagon is an important part of la routine for a certain Cécilién* farmer. (*Cécilien, Cécilienne: resident of the village of Sainte Cécile-les-Vignes) Jean-Marc's USA Wine Tour: If you are near Tampa on March 24th, you are very welcome to join Jean-Marc for one of his wine tastings. Have a look here for the list of cities … Continue reading la routine

Today's story continues from Châteauneuf-du-Pape ("New Castle of the Pope"), the ruins are pictured here. . Bestselling books on/about France: 1. The Ultimate French Verb Review and Practice  2. Buying a Piece of Paris: A Memoir  3. Exercises in French Phonics en-tête (on-tet) noun, masculine    1. heading    2. headline Audio File & Example sentence Example, taken from the French version of today's story, listen here: Download … Continue reading en-tête

photos © Kristin Espinasse. The view of Mont Ventoux ("le Mont Chauve") as seen from the village of Sainte Cécile. "See it" from the village of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, in today's new story column! RemerciementsTalk about flower power! The combined strength of your sympathies–via lilies, rosemary, snow drops… pansies–has put a smile in our hearts as my family and I continue to read each and every one … Continue reading rubrique

The ancient walls of Gigondas (Vaucluse) where genêt gilds the countryside. faner (fa-nay) verb    : to wither La gloire soudaine se fane très vite.Sudden glory quickly withers. –Proverb Hear the French word "faner" and today's quote, read by my son, Max: Download faner.mp3 .Download faner.wav *     *     * Is it too late to talk about sweet-scented French broom? "Le genêt," as it is called in … Continue reading faner

In Gigondas: watching for intruders… or maybe a new pal or two to play with. Read about another dog in today's story column. Smart French : learn French from real French people: guetter (geh-tay) verb  to watch, to guard  to watch for, to lie in wait for, to be on the lookout for  to threaten; to ambush Listen to today's word, "guetter": Download guetter.mp3 . … Continue reading guetter

Love the ones you're with. "Braise-The-Dog, pensive." I tried to capture Coco-The-Cat, too, but he flew out of Braise's lap so fast you'd think I was set to feed him a spoonful of cod liver oil. On second thought, what was he thinking? Certainly not "COD!" Learn the language with Painless French: includes grammar, pronunciation, idioms, idiocies (culture) and more! seuil (suhy) noun, masculine  : … Continue reading seuil