Anyone here fluent in French and been to the South of France before?

[Mass_Liberal]

I'm living in a small village near Nime this summer, and I'm wondering if I'm going to be able to understand the local accent. I only have 3 years of crappy classes in Parisian French. Anyhoo... feel free to PM me, or reply whichever you want.


Thanks,

Dave

[MrScorpio]

1. I've been to the South of France, but my French is horrible

Go with the standard french and you'll be okay.

If they can't understand you, THEY WILL start speaking to you in English.

A little Italian won't hurt either

[Bossy Monkey]

2. You won't have a problem

I wasn't fluent, but was conversant enough to get by. Everyone is taught Parisian French in school, to the best of my knowledge. This was 20-odd years ago; presumably TV has lessened regional differences even further, like here.

[Tinoire]

3. Lol... You'll have no problem.

The accent there is lovelier than anything in the North and the food will curl your toes. It's less pointed than the Parisian accent but every bit as understandable.

I truly envy you! That's my favorite part of France.

[Lannes]

4. Used to vacation in Cannes as a kid

Every summer for 5 years.I was growing up in Paris at the time.I dont remember having problems with the locals as far as the dialect was concerned but that was a long time ago.Just tell them not to speak in machine gun french!

[LisaM]

5. Is Bonjour USA still around?

French DUer, who, I believe, lives in the south of France.

[Longgrain]

6. I know of at least one DUer who told me she speaks French.

If I see her around, I'll let you know. :thumbsup:

[Worst Username Ever]

7. I've been to Marseille, anyway.

It was pretty much the same.

[Parche]

8. french

wee wee!!!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. I've never been to southern France...and my French dates from 40 years

ago; however, saying all that: I've been to Paris, and after 2 or 3 days I find my French coming back. And this is without any refresher classes...I think you'll be fine. Most French people want to practice their English, and they also greatly appreciate anyone who even tries to speak their language! They will of course quickly figure out where you're from and they will most likely be very friendly. We only met a couple of the traditional snippy types in Paris; everyone else bent over backwards to help us, or to speak English.

Enjoy your summer! You should have a wonderful time!