Que nenni! A fun, useful new expression + a must-see beach along the French mediterranean!
Monday, June 25, 2018
Stone stairs leading down to the beach in Rayol-Candadel-sur-Mer
Que nenni? If you think today's expression has anything to do with the following travelogue...que nenni! (Not at all!) It's just an expression that jumped off the page as I sat reading an article on sardines, recently, chez le coiffeur. Speaking of fish, we ate a lot of this when Dad and Marsha visited. We also discovered magnificent places--de beaux endroits--I had never been to before--all a short distance from La Ciotat....
TODAY'S EXPRESSION: QUE NENNI
: not at all
Thanks, Jean-Marc, for your regular recordings, like the following:
(Click here to listen to the French expression "que nenni")
Décidément, cette presqu’île me réservera sans cesse des surprises. Je pensais la connaître par cœur, et pourtant… C’est par faute de l’avoir parcourue, par la mer ou par le sentier du littoral. Mais que nenni, j’y découvre toujours quelque chose.
Decidedly, this peninsula will never stop surprising me. I thought I knew it by heart, and yet ... It's not by fault of having traveled it, by the sea or by the coastal path. Not at all. I always discover something.
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE
by Kristi Espinasse
"Bad-wah," my belle-mère, Marsha, giggled, as we sipped l'eau gazeuse at a restaurant overlooking the sea at Rayol-Canadel-sur-Mer.
Bad-wah? Funny! I never saw it that way before. Eyeing the bottle of popular French fizzy water, I wondered did anyone else notice a small marketing flaw for Badoit? (Pronounced "bad-wah" as you may have guessed).
Good thing it's "good wah", a favorite of ours, as were the Mediterranean waters below us. We had swum all day in the little cove, one reminiscent of a beach in Italy.
De -- pronounced deuh ou der?
A hillside of beautiful stone stairs leads down to the sandy beach. You can see the last section of the escalier above, in the picture of Jean-Marc and my dad. As Marsha and I trailed behind, my belle-mère practiced her French, which sounded good...until it came to "de"....
"Der" she said, as per the pronunciation guidebook she had in her beach tote.
I've seen the pronunciation for "de" written that way, and I know anglophones who pronounce it comme ça, but for me... the French word "de" sounds like "deuh". But who am I to give lessons (I still can't pronounce dessus or dessous--or even truffe--some of The Most Difficult Words in French to Pronounce). Still, I stand by my pronunciation of de (it's deuh!). But let's not waste this travelogue on a debate (let's duke it out in the comments box, instead :-)
The sand at Le Rayol-Canadel beach sparkled and was covered with "agates,"as my belle-mère called them. Holding a palm-full of the amber or black or white stones, Marsha talked about the chance we had to find these pebbled beaches in France.
As we lie there on the sand, chatting, a couple in their 80's made their way toward us, lugging a kayake! Marsha and I looked up, to the mansion above us and realized we'd parked our foutas right before their private entrance!
To our surprise, the man and woman humbly excused themselves and encouraged us to stay put. As they tugged on the two-seater kayak, lifting it three feet, up to its storage spot, we were mesmerized. Gazing up at their white locks and athletic builds, Marsha and I must have had the same thought: I want to be paddling across the sea--in my bikini with my sweetie--when I'm an octogenarian!
Meantime, my dad, all of 76 years young, was swimming like a kid in the gulf. "I love this salty sea--I'm floating!" he smiled, as we joined him for a swim. I never thought about the buoying effect of l'eau de mer, and it felt great to finally let go and allow the sea to partly carry me.
Farther out, beyond the Gulf of St. Tropez, we could see les Iles d'Or (Porquerolles, Port Cros, and Le Levant), as well as the famous mauve hue, which announced the beginning of the sunset. As my dad and Marsha marveled at their chance to be in this magnificent place, their gratitude caused me to polish my own lenses, and see our part of the world...indeed life..."anew."
There is so much to look forward to...like my 80s, my sweetie, bikinis, and nouveaux défis (those bikinis?). And, most importantly, this growing sense of appreciation I have at 50.
At L'Escale restaurant, Dad loved this "aïoli with a twist" (sweet potatoes and beets replaced a few classic ingredients)
Jean-Marc returning from the beach
FRENCH VOCABULARY
que nenni = not at all
chez le coiffeur = at the hairdresser's
les beaux endroits = beautiful places
la belle-mère = stepmother (also means mother-in-law)
l'eau gazeuse = sparkling water
l'escalier = stairs
le foutas = popular towel on Mediterranean beaches (photo below)
le défi = challenge
l'escale = port of call, stopover, refueling stop
Me and my belle-mère. Readers of this journal associate belle-mère with another woman dear to my heart. Her story, here.
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Dessus - pucker up for the u
Dessous - round lips for the ou
The word with more letters goes under the table; the one with fewer letters above it!
De - in my opinion, should not have even the slightest r sound to it!
Love that you still have a Mas de Brun panier.
Posted by: Muriel | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 12:56 PM
Hi Kristi,
Love this post and the photos! We lived in Brussels, Belgium for three years and I know their French is a bit different, but they pronounced de as "deuh"
I looked back on the most difficult French words to pronounce and I noticed the word "l'ours" which I saw walking across our field checking out the peach trees yesterday morning!
Posted by: Eileen deCamp | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 01:55 PM
Kristi, keep exploring! That little cove looks divine.
I'm with you on the "deuh", although I still need a lot of practise.
Bises
Posted by: Patricia Sands | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 01:56 PM
I am with you Kristi....'deuh' for sure! I highly recommend jardin botanique du Rayol (Domaine du Rayol)
Posted by: Mary-James | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 02:12 PM
Love your blog...an observation: You are becoming truly French! The phrase about finding agates ("Marsha talked about the chance we had to find these pebbled beaches in France".)...you were obviously thinking in French because in English, we'd normally say "the luck we had." About the dreaded pronunciation of "u"..my long ago French teacher in Northern California said to pronounce the long "e"....eee....but round the lips. That's always worked!
Posted by: Joy Johnson | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 02:27 PM
What a beautiful beach!! Thank you for that and the inspiration of the octogenarians - A big word for survivor!! I love your writing and am currently rereading Essays.
Posted by: Nancy | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 03:07 PM
Oui, oui. Exactly as I have learned. Under and above the table is a cute reminder. And no "der' in 'de'.
Posted by: Hannah | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 03:18 PM
What a beautiful spot!
Oh the procunciation.... So challenging.
Sometimes in written English when someone pauses and has to think about something before they continue, it’s written out as “uh” but often times as “er” (is that maybe British English?) That’s my only guess as to the “der?”
How fun to have that new phrase, ”que nenni.”
Thanks for another enjoyable post!
Posted by: Indi | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 04:21 PM
Oh, it I need a Provence fix. It has been too long and Rayol-Canddel-sur-Mer looks like a new destination to visit. Hopefully we will make it in October after all of our renters (guests as we like to call them now) have stopped coming. Love your pictures.
Kathleen
Posted by: Kathleen from Connecticut | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 04:28 PM
Indeed de sounds like deuh. You are absolutely correct. We Americans need to develop new muscles to get dessus just right. I still believe it takes a lifetime of practice.
Posted by: Sherry | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 05:19 PM
Dear Kristi, to pronounce the "u" better in du, tu, dessus, place the tip of your tongue against the bottom of your lower front teeth when you say the "u". Keep your tongue relaxed. Not so easy at first, but gets very easy with practice. You will be surprised at the sound!
Posted by: Mary Ellen | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 05:22 PM
Our dear Kristi,
Today's post once again(as always!)wraps us in hugs!What a glorious place,a glorious day,and made even more so by sharing it with your loved ones.
Being in our 70's ourselves,there is so much inspiration(maybe I should make that determination!) to keep fit mentally and physically,as much as we can,as long as we can.As newlyweds, Rod and I used to tease each other about how we and married life would be at this age.Now we just keeping sending prayers of thanks for each day together.
Love today's word!It is fun to look at and fun to pronounce--also remember!
I laugh when you say you think twice about how to pronounce stuff;Robert Frost must've had my French in mind when he said there are miles to go before I sleep!
Love
Natalia XO
Posted by: Natalia | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 06:47 PM
I know your Dad and Marsha really enjoyed their visit with you and the family! Beautiful and fun places to go with them.... as for de, I was taught as you say 'deuh'.. never no never a der! I was also taught by 3 French teachers to use the tongue against the bottom teeth to try and emulate 'u' sound. Are you and JM soccer fans? We are glued to the TV for the World Cup every day that the teams play and France is in the running! Bonne semaine... Judi.
Posted by: Judith Dunn | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 06:56 PM
Dear Kristi,
Thank you for today's post. I think I detect a more relaxed feeling in this one, which supports your commitment to be less harried. Good for you. Your evocation of your father floating in the sea reminds me of a poem by Philip Booth which has comforted and buoyed me up when I have felt worried or directionless. Perhaps you will find it so, too.
FIRST LESSON
Lie back, daughter, let your head
be tipped back in the cup of my hand.
Gently, and I will hold you. Spread
your arms wide, lie out on the stream
and look high at the gulls. A dead-
man's float is face down. You will dive
and swim soon enough where this tidewater
ebbs to the sea. Daughter, believe
me, when you tire on the long thrash
to your island, lie up, and survive.
As you float now, where I held you
and let go, remember when fear
cramps your heart what I told you:
lie gently and wide to the light-year
stars, lie back, and the sea will hold you.
Posted by: Susan | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 07:06 PM
I bet the "der" guidebooks were written for British English speakers, who don't pronounce their "r"s. Instead, they say, "ah" or "euh," depending on the preceding vowel. Think of a proper Brit saying "her," "finger," "star." You don't hear the final "r"s. Instead, they sound like "euh" or "ah."
Your dad looks fantastic at 76, which bodes well for you!
Posted by: Teresa | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 07:36 PM
Grüss Gott, Kristi,
Drug, duh!
Guten abend from Vienna!
Posted by: Joanne | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 09:14 PM
Ooops, that should have been ´deuh’ not drug—my Apple update auto INcorrects creative words!
Posted by: Joanne | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 09:17 PM
Thank you, Susan, for this poem by Philip Booth. It is a treasure and, along with the sea and floating, reminds me of the wisdom my Dad also shared during his visit.
I will also use this space (I am commenting via email, which automatically posts to the comments box) to thank everyone for their thoughtful comments. I especially enjoyed your thoughts about *der*...geared towards British speakers. It now makes sense that so many phrase books use der in pronunciation guides!
Posted by: Kristin Espinasse | Monday, June 25, 2018 at 09:28 PM
I'm sensing you're in stride with the perfect summer pastimes! Love your account of a sweet, easy, beautiful day spent exploring, swimming, dining out and giggling alongside your loved ones. xoxo
Posted by: Stacy - Sweet Life Farm | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 12:20 AM
What a beautiful beach. Looks so peaceful and calm. And exploring with loved ones is always the best.
xoxo
Posted by: Karen Cafarella | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 02:46 AM
Bonsoir Kristi:
I was born in France and taught French for over 40 years. Your pronunciation of "deuh" is absolutely right. Thank you for the beautiful photos. I envy your beautiful town and surrounding region. Toutes mes amitiés,
Janine
Posted by: Janine Cortell | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 07:15 AM
Guess that means no overnight camping in your field. Hope that bear stays away from your gorgeous lavender!
Posted by: Chris Allin | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 02:49 PM
Dear Kristi,
This summer seems to have brought out prettiness everywhere, especially in your part of the world. Your photos are gorgeous!
As for the octogenarians, they seem to get younger and younger. I have a couple of friends in their eighties and can barely keep up with them! As long as one is sound of body, I believe age is a matter of one’s spirit...
Glad you and Jean-Marc had such a wonderful visit with your dad and Marsha!
Posted by: Chris Allin | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 03:09 PM
Hey Kristi, long time. I read the comments above and realized how blessed I am to have lived in France when I was very young (8) until 32. So when I speak French, even though I no longer have much opportunity to speak it, (except occasionally with one of my twins, Thibaut, who worked 5 years at Ralph Lauren in Paris and is once again fully bilingual as he was born in Pithiviers but left for the USA when he was 2) , I am told I still speak like a true French person. My twins are tentatively wanting to bless me next year (for my 70th) with a trip to Provence and I would love to come down to your neck of the woods so I can meet you finally. Maybe we could meet for lunch one day?
Posted by: Young Paciello | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 06:13 PM
Kristin, I was at a bookstore perusing travel magazines over the weekend and picked one up entirely on France. In the list of contributors I was excited to see your name. (I thought, "Wow! I know her.") So while my husband was loading up on football previews, I went through page by page to find out what you had submitted. On page 162 (the last and best page) Voila. There it was. Great article on "diminutifs." Always informational and fun to read, you did it again. Bravo! Hope to see your submittals to other literary works too. XO
Posted by: Diane Heinecke | Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 09:17 PM
Kristi, here's un petit truc pour prononcer "dessus" etc.:
Form your mouth/lips as if you were going to say "i" (ee in English). Then say "u" (ou in French) instead. Comes out just right: "uy"
Always eager to read your posts. We're off to Paris in septembre, but don't think we'll have time to divert all the way to La Ciotat and environs during our 2 week stay. Dommage!
Posted by: Naomi | Wednesday, June 27, 2018 at 12:56 AM
"der" sounds terribly wrong when pronounced at the typical cadence of American English, but when sped up to French pace it works very well.
Posted by: Bud Frawley | Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 11:06 AM
Interesting story about pronunciation and Badoit.. As a student at l'Universite de Nice in 1971, my parents visited and we went out to eat at "A la Ribote", a favorite restaurant of mine. My father had already had a cocktail and said he didn't want any wine with dinner. When the waiter returned, my Dad decided to try out his French, usually pretty bad, but in this case, he had practiced and sounded pretty good. "Je voudrais aussi un verre de vin blanc, s'il vous plait." The waiter, not expecting him to change his mind, brought him a glass of Badoit. Needless to say, that was my father's last attempt at French for a while!
Posted by: Janet Neckyfarow | Sunday, July 01, 2018 at 03:08 PM
Ah, I learned something new after looking up Badoit. Moi, je preferrez le vin!
Posted by: Jan Hersh | Friday, July 06, 2018 at 07:10 PM