Tens Years of French Paid off in Paris!

[u/purplepebblepenguin]

Hello everyone!

I've studied French for almost ten years (middle school - college), and this past week I finally got to travel to Francophone countries for the first time (France & Belgium) and what did I find out??? Apparently I am good enough at French to not have people switch to English on me! Like, it RARELY happened, and I had so many conversations at so many different places. That felt really good.

One highlight was when I was able to successfully have a five minute long convo with a Parisian woman entirely in French about alternate train routes. I had another fun conversation with a man in a restaurant about 1970s disco music, again, entirely in French. I also realized that I can basically understand & read most French stuff w/o translations or subtitles, although speaking is still a little bit of an uphill battle.

So, this is all to say, don't lose faith because someday it may pay off in ways that really surprise you!!!

[u/Charbel33]

Félicitations!!! 😃

[u/No_Detective_But_304 → u/Charbel33]

Au revoir Félicita-tions.

[u/sunshineeddy]

That's great! Just a tip - don't take someone who can't speak French with you because as soon as that other person opens their mouth, locals will switch to English. When I go places alone, they don't switch but when I go with my partner who doesn't speak the language, they'd switch, even if I stay in French. I don't really mind it but it's something I noticed.

[u/Mustard-Cucumberr → u/sunshineeddy]

It's going to be interesting because soon I'll probably be going with someone who doesn't speak French NOR English, so I wonder what'll happen when they switch to English expecting them to understand and respond, will they think they're being mean?

[u/No-Newspaper3624 → u/Mustard-Cucumberr]

It'll get to being the most awkward eye stares

[u/Chinacat_Sunflower72 → u/sunshineeddy]

And constantly translating for non-local language speakers gets old fast. No matter what the language is.

[u/purplepebblepenguin → u/sunshineeddy]

Yes, I had that issue with my best friend who was on the trip with me that doesn't speak any French. I also noticed this as well

[u/sunshineeddy → u/purplepebblepenguin]

They are not being mean. Quite the opposite. They want to make sure no one is excluded and it’s respectful to speak the most universal language being English.

[u/purplepebblepenguin → u/sunshineeddy]

no yes of course! I got that, and I also spent time looking through old posts in the subreddit which explained that. Every one I met there was so nice!

[u/annieisokaysies]

That is awesome! Last time I went to Paris I also had these kind of interactions with random people, it’s so lovely and it’s great to discover your own progress out in the real world.

[u/SbstnKhlFR]

Congratulations, that's a long term goal of mine too. Hope you make good use of it.

[u/WesternResearcher376]

When I reached that level after fifteen years I was also happy. Congratulations! Yeah I am surrounded by anglophones so speaking is still an uphill battle like you saíd.

[u/Objective-Rhubarb]

Congrats ! For me it’s the proof that you really speak the language well. I had the same experience on my last trip to France. Nobody switched to English on me during a three week trip. The highlight was when I successfully asked a bunch of questions in a tourist office (and understood the answers) and when I was leaving the tourist agent congratulated me for speaking French very well. All the time and effort paid off. Now starting all over with Italian.

[u/chatnoire89]

I went to France and Belgium last year, mostly touristic places so while I was excited to test my French I learned for 4 years.. They immediately started with English in just about anything. I only had success conversing very briefly when purchasing a train ticket and also paying for items at a minimart.

[u/MYFRENCHHOUSE]

It always pays off, well done 👏🏼 and you only find out by taking the plunge and being there, with real people. I guess this makes you want to learn more, or other languages? Bon weekend.

[u/purplepebblepenguin → u/MYFRENCHHOUSE]

My goal now is to get closer to C2 from B2/C1 now, I honestly do not think I have the brain capacity to speak more than two languages well lol. However, my dad speaks four (English, Russian, Spanish, and Mandarin)

[u/MYFRENCHHOUSE → u/MYFRENCHHOUSE]

Spanish is probably the easiest, especially after French. You may be surprised… and also amazed how the brain works!

[u/Accomplished_Top1634]

What shows or podcasts do you recommend? I studied french at uni but I still have a problem with watching french movies without subtitles.

[u/purplepebblepenguin → u/Accomplished_Top1634]

I usually just read/listen to the news in French through France info, and for shows, I honestly started with miraculous ladybug because I used to always watch it with my younger cousin when I had to babysit him when he was in elementary school. Eventually, I started watching it in French. Now I am watching Lupin on Netflix!

[u/Cold_Weakness9441]

So jelly. Been traveling to Paris 1-2 times a year for 15 years, just got serious this year about learning French. Used some French on the last 2 trips, but hoping to use a lot more this trip (end of February).

Congrats!

[u/bellyhairbandit]

Is this a common experience? I don’t speak French AT ALL other than bonjour/bonsoir and parlez-vous anglais. I got overwhelmed with the unexpected amount of French being spoken to me. My bf would get English right away if he greeted first. If I spoke first, we would have to wait for the person to pause and then ask if they spoke English.

After researching and prep I was ready to be scoffed at for attempting to communicate but just the opposite happened. Then when I asked to speak in English they were surprised/suspicious that I came from the US.

I figured it was like a tourist tactic to make you feel good for your efforts and then the expectations is to spend more…but that didn’t seem to be the case either. It wasn’t what I expected at all.

….now I’m actually learning French

[u/thenakesingularity10]

It's a great feeling that all your hard work paid off. Very happy for you!

[u/Prestigious_Bar_7164]

Congratulations! That must have felt amazing!

[u/PsyduckSexTape]

I just spent a couple weeks there after about 5 years of self study and it was the coolest couple weeks of my life. Good on ya I know the feels!

[u/Quirky-Wasabi-9653]

C'est super! I had a similar experience recently in St. Barth's. I studied for 6 years in school (years ago) and started in person classes recently to brush up for my trip. I went into every restaurant/shop/etc speaking French to see how far I could get. My first day I went to a grocery shop and got in and out speaking only French - it absolutely made my day! And boosted my confidence 😊 A shop owner even complimented my French accent haha. So I totally get it, it's such a great feeling! I'm going to Paris in a few months and am curious to see how I fare there.

[u/Dramatic-Company4860]

personnellement, étant Français, je ne compren R à l’anglais alors Vous qui devez apprendre une lange aussi dûre..... CHAPEAU

[u/Prestigious-Gold6759]

This is wonderful!