Touring - French

I am planning another, hopefully longer, trip to France in 2007. I have been in a university French course since last September, and will be taking the second year starting next September, so I will be considerably more prepared to converse this time than I was last time.

However, I will not be in classes over the summer ,and I would like to maintain my French.

So my question is this .... if you have purchased "Learn to Speak French" CDs recently for a cycletouring trip to France, is there one you would recommend?

Don't know about French (wish I spoke it), but I have studied Italian via the Pimsleur method, and it has been helpful. It's a bit pricey, but there are rental options. Here's a link to get you started. Click around to find what you want:

http://www.recordedbooks.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=rb.show_prod&book_id=73535&prod_id=P1185

Also you might want to check out this penpal site:
http://www.mylanguageexchange.com/

Good luck!

if you're just maintaining, what i like to do is just read foreign online newspapers in whichever language i need to practice. it's free and keeps you up to date on the areas you will be visiting.

if you're just maintaining, what i like to do is just read foreign online newspapers in whichever language i need to practice. it's free and keeps you up to date on the areas you will be visiting.


That's a good idea. Maybe I'll see if the library has some novels in French too. I'd really like to get some speaking practice too, but I live in a province where French isn't a big thing.

If you use itunes, you'll find a couple of podcasts dedicated to teaching French... as well as paying audio books.

If you are a film buff, French cinema produced some of the best films ever. Your library system may be able to get some of them for you. You get the body language and there are usually subtitles to help with translations. Sometimes you get a peek at a younger France which can be interesting.
Pimsleur CDs are good, and you can resell almost any language CDs on ebay when you are done.

I'm trying to learn Spanish and I think having a bunch of different CDs helps so you hear a variety of accents, voices and different ways to say the same thing. My experience learning Spanish may have some similarities to learning French

There seems to be two diferent approaches: one is give you phrases to memorize (best way to start and get you up and running fast) and the other is to learn the grammer, verbs, subjects (takes a lot, lot longer but ultimately is the best way to go).

I've tried Berlitz which is the first "phrases" method, it's ok, cheap and comes with a phrase book, but you probably will hardly ever understand the reply you get with Berlitz knowledge (unless the reply is exactly the same as on the CD). I'm also using the Rosetta Stone which is an interactive computer program. It is very expensive (unless you have a friend you can borrow it from) but it's the best I've used.

I think you have to immerse yourself in the culture: Play French music, listen to the CD's in the car or while cooking or doing chores, watch French movies, etc. Even if it's just in the background, I think it helps get your sub-conscious tuned in to the language.

I vote for the public libary as well--- mine has a set of *learn Spanish in 30 days* tapes. A buddy rented them and said they weren't the greatest, but they were.....free! Books-movies-music and check if you have a local Fench club or something. Maybe the local highschool needs help?

I took a non-credit course at the local "Alliance Française," and it was fairly good.

Some universities, especially in English-speaking Canada, have French-speaking clubs. How about finding out whether a college or university near you has such a club, and whether it is open to the public.

and what's the french for "eh"

Ducking and covering
Steve W

I highly recommend the Rosetta Stone learning CD's. Excellent. And I am a professional language teacher. :)

I hear Rosetta Stone is very good but also very expensive.

I have Italian from Micheal Thomas. I'm sure he makes a French CD. He is pretty good and the CDs are not very expensive. One thing I do not like about the CDs is he has students that he teaches along with you and his accent makes the English words a bit hard to understand.

A couple of tips from my Italian teacher:

Get foreign magazines from your local library.
Listen to foreign music.
Name things in your foreign language when you see them.
Name numbers in the foreign language when you see them.


How far are you from Montreal? I had problems with people not speaking English at all and me speaking very little French. I was in a bar with a co-worker. A man started talking to my co-worker using French. My co-worker not knowing a word of French, just nodded. I said to the man "Il ne parle pas francais". Next thing you no he started babbling at me! I had to tell him I don't speak French either. :)

Good luck in using your French in Paris. Chance are they will refuse to speak to you. I had a French Canadian friend that went tot Paris on a regular basis and they would refuse to talk to him in French.

How far are you from Montreal? I had problems with people not speaking English at all and me speaking very little French. I was in a bar with a co-worker. A man started talking to my co-worker using French. My co-worker not knowing a word of French, just nodded. I said to the man "Il ne parle pas francais". Next thing you no he started babbling at me! I had to tell him I don't speak French either. :)

Good luck in using your French in Paris. Chance are they will refuse to speak to you. I had a French Canadian friend that went tot Paris on a regular basis and they would refuse to talk to him in French.


I'm approx. 3500 kms away from Montreal. Actually, I'm going to Montreal (briefly) in August, but it definitely isn't close by.

I've been to France (and Paris) and had very little problem communicating with the people there with my limited French. All but one person were very helpful and friendly. I would get as far as I could with my French, then they would start guessing what I meant, and eventually we'd reach an understanding. A couple times I resorted to pointing at words in a dictionary, and a few times people who spoke both French and English would suddenly appear on the scene and translate. It was a very positive experience. :)

I should add that I was once fluent in French (France French, not French-Canadian French - they are different), about 20 years ago, but until I went to France in 2003, I hadn't used it, so I had lost most of it. The interesting thing was that during my approx. 10 days there, French phrases and words kept coming back to me, so by the end of the 10 days, I was communicating a lot better than I was in the beginning!!

Some universities, especially in English-speaking Canada, have French-speaking clubs. How about finding out whether a college or university near you has such a club, and whether it is open to the public.


The University I am attending (where I am currently taking my French courses) has clubs like that, but they don't run over the summer ... and it is summer maintenance I'm after.

I took a non-credit course at the local "Alliance Française," and it was fairly good.

Some universities, especially in English-speaking Canada, have French-speaking clubs. How about finding out whether a college or university near you has such a club, and whether it is open to the public.

+1. Classes at theAlliance Française (http://www.alliancefr.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=131) are exclusively tought by native speakers so if practice is what you need most, this is the place to go. They tend to be in the largest cities however.

I taught French for several years, my favorite method/book was the BBC series beginning with "A vous la France" etc(forgot the titles), because of the real life situations, different accents, background noises etc. You may find these in libraries. Though I never used these alone but instead as a support material for classes, I even edited some of the tapes and made my own.

I would not recommend spending a lot of money in expensive methods and books/CDs, especially if you are already following a curriculum ; but if you find a free method at your library, use it. If you can get French radio, TV and/or listen to music, all the better.

What you need is practice with native speakers or non-natives with excellent level of fluency. Sometime you will find students or temporary residents who may be interested in trading French against English conversation or simply need a relief from speaking English all the time.

Try any potential point of contact from the university where you take the course, to the Alliance, or the web like craigslist or equivalent, here in Boston the French community have their own site with a forum, they organize social events where non-native speakers are welcome to join and practice their French, you may find this in your area.

Bonne chance!

The interesting thing was that during my approx. 10 days there, French phrases and words kept coming back to me, so by the end of the 10 days, I was communicating a lot better than I was in the
beginning!!


I am finding the same thing trying to learn Italian. I seem to not be able to remember a number of things then all of a sudden words will just pop into my head. Very strange. :) I hope it means I am learning. :)

What about taking a ride to Quebec every week-end? :)

Also I would think you could pick up a number of radio stations from Montreal. I get them here is Pittsburgh on a good night and no problem when I am up in Erie.

I'm sure on line stations can be had also.

If anyone knows of any online Italian stations, please let me know.

What about taking a ride to Quebec every week-end? :)

Yeah ... no problem ... I'll use those trips as training rides. :D

Also I would think you could pick up a number of radio stations from Montreal. I get them here is Pittsburgh on a good night and no problem when I am up in Erie.

I'm sure on line stations can be had also.

If anyone knows of any online Italian stations, please let me know.


Up here in Canada, there is always a French radio station and television channel available. CBC!! I'm watching the movie "Splash" in French right now. :) I watched the Olympics in French too.

If you could get a summer job in a french environment, that would make a big difference. I am french and went to an English university, UNB. I am from a small bilingual town and do not remember learning english. At my first year at university I would read my engineering assignments in English but reason out the problems in french. By my second year, I would reason things out in english. I had friends from PEI and Quebec and we would change from french to english and english to french in the same sentence without noticing. That would drive our english friends up the wall but most of them would agree that after a few beers, they would all understand french. Getting a summer job in Quebec or on the Acadian Peninsula would solve your problem.

André

This is a one link for radio stations all over the world (http://mikesradioworld.com/)



and what's the french for "eh"
Actually, there is a "word", of sorts. The French often will add "hein" (pronounced like a very nasal short "a" english vowel sound) at the end of sentences. Its usage is not exactly like the Canadian "eh", but it's similar.

Good luck in using your French in Paris. Chance are they will refuse to speak to you. I had a French Canadian friend that went tot Paris on a regular basis and they would refuse to talk to him in French.
I have heard that many times, but I have never found it to be true, and I have spent a lot of time in Paris. However, my french is quite good, and I'm told my accent is slight and unidentifiable.

I improved my French dramatically in an unusual way many years ago. I met a German cyclist in a youth hostel in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. We were both alone and on bikes and headed toward France, so we rode together. He spoke French much better than English (he had been an exchange student in France), and I spoke French much better than German. We hit it off and went on several subsequent trips together. The first two trips we did together were almost entirely in France, so I was speaking nothing but French for several weeks on each trip. I became very fluent and comfortable speaking French during those wonderful trips together. We're still in touch (we spoke just last week) and we still speak only in French. We were once in Ireland and Wales together and everybody assumed we were both French.

If you could get a summer job in a french environment, that would make a big difference. I am french and went to an English university, UNB. I am from a small bilingual town and do not remember learning english. At my first year at university I would read my engineering assignments in English but reason out the problems in french. By my second year, I would reason things out in english. I had friends from PEI and Quebec and we would change from french to english and english to french in the same sentence without noticing. That would drive our english friends up the wall but most of them would agree that after a few beers, they would all understand french. Getting a summer job in Quebec or on the Acadian Peninsula would solve your problem.

André

Bonsoir André

I second your opinion... about the beer, I learnt English in Ireland, so I know what you mean :beer:
Serious, I agree with the reasoning/speaking learning curve, but with a complete immersion in 100% [French in Machka's case], with good bases, this process can take less than a couple of months, not to fluency, but to a point where you no longer need to speak in your native language.
And speak Franglais on the way home :)

André, t'étais aux iles de la madeleine il y 2 ans en septembre, par hasard?

il y a 2 ans. désolé.

I am actually hoping to get into a French immersion program in France, as a part of my University education, for at least one semester. But that probably won't happen until 2008 ... after my next trip to France.


Meanwhile, however, I think I will pay a visit to my local library and see what they've got. My University library should have something too ... I'm not sure if they'd let me have it over the summer, but I'll check. As a student, I don't have a lot of money, so the library option sounds really good. :)

Just dial the 800 number for a company located in Quebec. They have to answer in French. Ask a few questions and be on your way!

Surprisingly, if you spoke a foreign language rather well before, it usually does not take long to get back into the swing of the language.
I left Europe in 1947 and English was my 5th language (I was 14 at that time).
Did not go back to Europe 'til 1985 for a vacation. All languages came flooding back. . . except was told when I spoke my native tongue in my birthtown that I spoke excelent Flemish, albeit with an American accent!
Would not worry too much. Even attempting to speak a local language brings a smile to peoples faces; at least you are trying instead of just talking English.
A short wave radio can tune you in to French (or other languages) rather quickly.
Agreed the Quebec French is not like Parisian, but it is still a form of French with some variables like 'des patates' instead of 'pomme de terre.'
And "n'est pas?" is the French equivalent of the Canadian "eh?"

Machka, like you I learned French in school but hadn't used it in ages. I spent a week in Paris last spring and, Voila! My French was _right_ there. I was amazed. You will find it comes back to you in no time.

Listening to CBC is the simplest was to gear up, I reckon.

Bonne chance!

Oh, and for the record, I didn't notice any prejudice in Paris against "Canadian (School) French". I think that is a bunch of propaganda.

As for vocabulary, the only word where our nomenclature was different was "chausseurs" versus "souliers".

I'm curious if any of the quebecois cyclists on this forum have spoken with any francophones who still survive in a couple of isolated places in Nova Scotia. While I find the French language in Quebec harder to understand than in France, I still can understand it usually. I couldn't understand any of the French I heard in Nova Scotia. I haven't been in New Brunswick, and I wonder if the Acadian French there is as hard to understand as in NS. I've been on the Madeleine islands, which although part of Quebec province, have an Acadian population. The Madelinots were harder for me to understand than most mainland Quebecois, but far easiers than the Acadians of NS. BTW, there are a couple of pockets of English-speakers in the Madeleines, one group of which speaks a really funky English.

If anyone wants to hear an especially easy-to-understand variety of French, go to Switzerland. The French make jokes about how slowly the Swiss-French speak (which is why it's easier for us non-natives to understand it).

Excuse me for going slightly off topic here, but there's something I've been wondering about for a long time about Canadian French.

I watched a documentary about some blind French Canadian girl a couple of years ago, and her French was quite different from "French French". In particular, her French was, as far as I could tell, fully rhotic! Is this true in general for Canadian French, or just for a specific dialect? Or did she have some form of speech imperfection/impediment? :)

I watched a documentary about some blind French Canadian girl a couple of years ago, and her French was quite different from "French French". In particular, her French was, as far as I could tell, fully rhotic! Is this true in general for Canadian French, or just for a specific dialect?


I don't know anything about rhotic dialects -- I looked up the word "rhotic," and still don't understand what it means! -- but yes, the French spoken in Quebec is different from the French spoken in France. There are pronunciation differences as well as vocabulary differences. Like in France, there are regional accents in Quebec that vary significantly.

I learned "Parisian French" in high school. I find it a bit challenging to communicate when I first start my Quebec trips, but after a few days, my ears acclimatize and I am fine. I would say there are more overlaps than differences between the two Frenches.

I forgot about the other bit - she trilled her Rs as well...

Excuse me for going slightly off topic here, but there's something I've been wondering about for a long time about Canadian French.

I watched a documentary about some blind French Canadian girl a couple of years ago, and her French was quite different from "French French". In particular, her French was, as far as I could tell, fully rhotic! Is this true in general for Canadian French, or just for a specific dialect? Or did she have some form of speech imperfection/impediment? :)


Rhotic: pronouncing r: pronouncing the letter "r" when it occurs after a vowel or at the end of a syllable

Is this what you mean? If so, it isn't something I've particularly noticed among the few French Canadians I've met.



Just in general, a few things things about Canadian French:

1. Here in Canada (outside of Quebec) we are taught France French in schools. If I'm not mistaken, the French used on CBC for the news, or documentaries, or whatever, is France French.

2. Within Canada, however, there are pockets of French speaking people each with a slightly different dialect.
----- In Quebec, their French is full of English terms ... it is actually fairly easy to get an idea of what they are talking about.
----- There is a group of French speaking people in the Maritimes, and they've got a completely different dialect from Quebec, or other parts of the country. From what I understand, they are closer to France French than Quebec, but it is still distinct from the France French.
----- In Manitoba, there is another group of French speaking people, and that's actually the French I'm most familiar with because I heard it fairly frequently at work. The Manitoba French seems to be a lot more "staccato" than France French. In France, they tend to blend their words together a lot (liaison), whereas in Manitoba, they don't as much ... it sounds more choppy. However, that makes it quite easy to follow and understand!

There may be other pockets of French here too which I'm not aware of.

3. There is a big difference between a French Canadian and a French-speaking Canadian. A French Canadian is a Canadian descended from early French settlers and whose native language is French. A French-speaking Canadian could come from any heritage. There is a lot of culture and so on that is distinctly French Canadian, and a lot of pride associated with being a French Canadian ... they trace their ancestry back etc.

Although I am Canadian, and although I speak French, I am not a French Canadian.

Excuse me for going slightly off topic here, but there's something I've been wondering about for a long time about Canadian French.

I watched a documentary about some blind French Canadian girl a couple of years ago, and her French was quite different from "French French". In particular, her French was, as far as I could tell, fully rhotic! Is this true in general for Canadian French, or just for a specific dialect? Or did she have some form of speech imperfection/impediment? :)

Most people who first immigrated from France to the Louisianas and Quebec did not speak the same French language that is tought and spoken in France. In France, the French language has evolved over time and has been "standardized" across the country to a language close to the "langue d'oïl" (pronounced "oy", meaning "oui/yes"), spoken in North Western France, where most settlers of Quebec originated from.

The French language as we know it today is an administrative form that was imposed on the people and rendered popular through litterature. Dialects were mostly spoken throughout France until around WWI and can still be heard in some rural areas, spoken by older people.

I am no expert in Quebec and Acadian French and some member here may give us a better input, particularly around differences in French tought in schools which I don't know much other than I believe it is a standardized version similar to French ; but this is basically why it may be difficult to understand some dialects around these provinces. Nothing improper, quite the contrary, dialects have rich cultural significance.

Rhotic consonants like rolled "R" can be heard in many southern areas of France and are remaining signs of dialects spoken at home while growing up. Could be Spanish or Italian origin too.

I lived in a border town for years. Where I worked was in Ontario but most of our customers were French. It would be funny to watch 2 Quebecois speaking the same language but not understanding eachother. Of course I ran into many anglos' who spoke English so bad you could barely understand them.

For me the only way I learn a new language is by speaking it. French classes never worked, even when I wanted to go. When I get to speak it I learn it pretty fast.

I would never be able to get be in France with my squarehead French. They would get a good laugh at me though.

3. There is a big difference between a French Canadian and a French-speaking Canadian. A French Canadian is a Canadian descended from early French settlers and whose native language is French. A French-speaking Canadian could come from any heritage. There is a lot of culture and so on that is distinctly French Canadian, and a lot of pride associated with being a French Canadian ... they trace their ancestry back etc.

I thought it was obvious that "French" in this context (the thread topic and my posts) should be interpreted as being related to language, not heritage...

Ok I've had enough with these comparision between France's French and Quebec's French. What people are thought in school today is exactly the same language. People with a poor education in France speak a terrible French and so do people with a poor education in Quebec... and this is where you will see the major regional differences. Otherwise, it is the same language.

There are, of course, a few other regional differences but they are quite minor. In France, for instance, people would use the english word 'shopping' while in Quebec we'll use the word 'magasinage'... And when we, in Quebec sometimes use native words like 'boucane' French people generally don't... And new words can also differ, at least for a time, hence when we want to say email, we use the word 'courriel' in Quebec while in France there was an attempt made at using the word 'émel'... with the kind of international contact Quebecois and French have developed through the years however these simple are more and more understood and end up crossing the Atlantic one way or another.

At the end, Quebec French is to France French what American English is to Brittish English.

Machka, maybe a tape or a CD is not such a bad idea after all :rolleyes: ;)

Just in general, a few things things about Canadian French:

1. Here in Canada (outside of Quebec) we are taught France French in schools. If I'm not mistaken, the French used on CBC for the news, or documentaries, or whatever, is France French..

The French you are thought in English Canada is what we like to call an international French. It makes good use of various words and expressions from a variety of French speaking community in a standardized French grammar. Radio-Canada's French, to my ears, is much more Canadian than French but people are careful not to makes grammatical and lexical mistakes.. it is the state TV and radio after all!



2. Within Canada, however, there are pockets of French speaking people each with a slightly different dialect.
----- In Quebec, their French is full of English terms ... it is actually fairly easy to get an idea of what they are talking about.
----- There is a group of French speaking people in the Maritimes, and they've got a completely different dialect from Quebec, or other parts of the country. From what I understand, they are closer to France French than Quebec, but it is still distinct from the France French.
----- In Manitoba, there is another group of French speaking people, and that's actually the French I'm most familiar with because I heard it fairly frequently at work. The Manitoba French seems to be a lot more "staccato" than France French. In France, they tend to blend their words together a lot (liaison), whereas in Manitoba, they don't as much ... it sounds more choppy. However, that makes it quite easy to follow and understand!..

I don't like the use of the word dialect here... it is the same language but there are slight regional variations (which unfortunately tend to disapear). The difference in accents is much stronger though. As for the use of English words... I would say that the French spoken in Quebec has very few of them as compared to the Frenchg spoken in France or elsewhere in Canada. On the other hand, many French Canadians use direct translation from English in some cases and incorporate English grammatical structures in the French they are speaking. These are, of crouse, linguistic mistakes.



3. There is a big difference between a French Canadian and a French-speaking Canadian. A French Canadian is a Canadian descended from early French settlers and whose native language is French. A French-speaking Canadian could come from any heritage. There is a lot of culture and so on that is distinctly French Canadian, and a lot of pride associated with being a French Canadian ... they trace their ancestry back etc.

Although I am Canadian, and although I speak French, I am not a French Canadian.

I see where you are going there but it is a distinction that get lost these days for obvious reasons. There is a French Canadian culture and anyone who identify with it would be considered French Canadian by the great majority of French Canadians. And even then, what i am calling a French Canadian culture is not a static entity... it evolves through time and is more the result of a certain hybridization process than anything else.

I am taking French classes because Federal civil servants are supposed to be able to serve the public in both official languages. I dont find the reading and speaking too bad but I can only understand spoken French, when it is an English person speaking. CBC Radio-Canada is a great help for listening to French - they must have a station broadcasting in Calgary.

Magictofu:

Well said. :)

Bien fait. ;)

Thanks Magictofu ... good points! And actually, my French teacher recently played a song for us by a Quebec artist more or less poking fun at the France French for letting so much English slip into their language.
.




I see where you are going there but it is a distinction that get lost these days for obvious reasons. There is a French Canadian culture and anyone who identify with it would be considered French Canadian by the great majority of French Canadians. And even then, what i am calling a French Canadian culture is not a static entity... it evolves through time and is more the result of a certain hybridization process than anything else.

That topic hadn't really come up here (yet) but I just wanted to "head it off at the pass" with my comments there. In the past, I have had people (Americans in particular for some reason) assume that I am French Canadian because I know some French ... and that's not the case. :)

I am taking French classes because Federal civil servants are supposed to be able to serve the public in both official languages. I dont find the reading and speaking too bad but I can only understand spoken French, when it is an English person speaking. CBC Radio-Canada is a great help for listening to French - they must have a station broadcasting in Calgary.


That's interesting because I can read French quite well, I can write it, although my spelling is horrible (just like it is in English), and I can understand spoken French fairly well ..... but I have trouble speaking it.

I can mange short, basic sentences in the present tense reasonably well, but the moment I have to talk in the past or future tenses, or if what I want to say gets complicated ... I struggle.

I can manage short, basic sentences in the present tense reasonably well, but the moment I have to talk in the past or future tenses, or if what I want to say gets complicated ... I struggle.

Just use the compound verbs like "j' ai parlé" or "je vais parler", dont ever bother with constructing the endings on other tenses like imperfect and subjunctive. Do you know how to do the subjunctive in English.

Just use the compound verbs like "j' ai parlé" or "je vais parler", dont ever bother with constructing the endings on other tenses like imperfect and subjunctive. Do you know how to do the subjunctive in English.

This is a very good trick... your French won't be perfect but most will understand you. I do the same with spanish and it works fine too.

Just use the compound verbs like "j' ai parlé" or "je vais parler", dont ever bother with constructing the endings on other tenses like imperfect and subjunctive. Do you know how to do the subjunctive in English.

Isn't the subjuctive a way to express something that is not happening, and will not likely happen soon, but would be very nice to happen?

For example: The way the weather has been going here, I am dispairing of summer ever happening, so to express my desire for summer, in the subjuctive, I would say: "I wish it were summer." (NOT "I wish it was summer".)


I'm learning the imperfect in French right now. And as usual, I am fine seeing it in print or writing it myself ... but to think of what to say fast enough to actually make conversation ..... :(

Oh... and about subjunctive... I know instinctively how and when to use it in French but I just can't explain it! So I'd say it's for very advance learners!

Isn't the subjuctive a way to express something that is not happening, and will not likely happen soon, but would be very nice to happen?

For example: The way the weather has been going here, I am dispairing of summer ever happening, so to express my desire for summer, in the subjuctive, I would say: "I wish it were summer." (NOT "I wish it was summer".)


I'm learning the imperfect in French right now. And as usual, I am fine seeing it in print or writing it myself ... but to think of what to say fast enough to actually make conversation ..... :(

Yes, but in French you also have: "If faut que je fasse ceci ou cela..." ("I have to do this or that.."), which makes the subjunctive a rather difficult tense to learn when compared to English. But I wouldn't worry too much about this. Most French people do not master the subjunctive. I think if I remember well, the Academie Francaise abolished the subjunctive imperfect ("Il eut fallut que je fasse") because of lack of use, so here you go, one less to learn before you even knew it existed! ;)

The compound past / future was a good advice but you sound like you may have passed this stage and should be able to use the basic three past and future tenses (je fis, je faisais, je ferai) in addition to the compound ones. Beyond that is also beyond what most French people can speak :) .

Overall, the most important when learning is to never be afraid of making a fool of yourself and to avoid literally translating from your own language to the other, in other words try thinking in the other language rather than your own. It's not as hard as many people may think. And as someone mentioned earlier, beer helps (or wine) :)