FRENCH WORD-A-DAY

A giant arbre (a Banyan tree?) in the market square of Beaulieu-sur-Mer, near Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat

Today's Word: le rivage

    : shore, bank, coastline

Click to listen to Jean-Marc read the French example sentence:

Tu ne traversera jamais l'océan si tu as peur de perdre de vue le rivage.
You will never cross the ocean if you are afraid of losing sight of the shore.

A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE by Kristi Espinasse
At a sandy cove in Beaulieu-sur-Mer, my daughter and I left our rented transats to wade out through the warm waters of La Baie des Fourmis. Noticing the sea was murky and the views (a thick curtain of yachts) were moyenne….I began to have doubts about our mother-daughter getaway.

We could have had this same beachy experience in our own seaside town--where the Mediterranean is clearer and there are fewer ships. This negative voice was quickly muffled by splashing. "So happy to be here with you," Jackie said, swimming beside me. "Now if only we could meet up with Crevette!"

"Petite Crevette" is Jackie's friend from fashion school. Incredibly, PC was here too, in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat! Only it would be a little tricky getting to her...given she was employed on a private yacht far out in the bay.

I admit I wanted my daughter (briefly with us in France from Florida) all to myself--and had gone to certain lengths (traveling two hours down the coast) to be alone with her, juste nous deux! But when I put myself into Jackie’s shoes, I knew we had to do whatever it took to reunite with her copine.

Scanning the horizon, we wondered which luxury craft PC worked on? And what were the various means we could employ to get there? Swimming? Paddleboard? Kayak? That Woman Over There's raft? Jackie became so desperate she was about to hitchhike a passing boat. The little garbage-collection vessel was currently navigating very close to the sandy rive. I feared my daughter would hop right on!

As the boat puttered past, a giant sign along the shore came into view: LOCATION DE JET SKI. Having lived in Miami for the past year, Jackie had a few opportunities to ride a scooter des mers and felt confident she could make it out to the yacht, reaching Petite Crevette in style!

(Ouf! What a relief when the rental guy said all the jet skis had been taken.) “That leaves paddle boats!” Jackie hinted…

Several concerns came to mind:
Cost (40 euros--you could fly Marseilles-Rome via a lowcost carrier!)
Sun (worst time of day for exposure)
Hydration (see note below…)
And just how far? Well, we’d soon find out!


I didn't get a photo of our pédalo, so here's a picture of a typical paddle boat on the river in Quinson.

“Mom, will you help me pedal the boat?” Hearing my daughter’s voice erased my fears, replacing them with a rare taste for adventure! Now was the chance to make this weekend stand out in our memories forever! To turn our trip around from its murky-watered beginnings to a dazzling ending. 

Yikes, I hoped this wouldn’t be the end! Securing our lifejackets we stepped onto the little two-seater boat. Next, we set our menthes à l'eau's (drinks ordered before our last-minute plan) in the drink holders, hoping they'd keep us hydrated for the two hour aller-retour.

Allez, full speed ahead! After 15 minutes pedaling the two-man pédalo we were soaked and exhausted. No wonder our own town doesn't rent out paddle boats--because they are not easy to pedal on the sea! 

Just as we began to slow down, another pédalo came into view when a couple of Italians started racing beside us…. Jackie sped up, accepting the challenge! Our smiling and laughing adversaires--a grandfather/grandson duo--distracted us from our pain and we advanced another ten minutes in time to wave ciao! to the winning team.

LA LIGNE D’ARRIVEE
We were three-quarters of the way, now, and Jackie could just barely see her friend, Petite Crevette (who did indeed look like a tiny shrimp from this distance). Soon we recognized PC’s long, strawberry blond hair and heard her familiar voice cheering us on. It was just the push we needed to make it over the finish line!

On second thought, we weren’t fini yet, only half-way through our sea adventure. But for the time being, before pedaling all the way back to shore, we were having a very good rest--and one spectacular reunion (see video below)! Jackie and Petite Crevette, having jumped into the water to meet half-way and embrace, were now swimming beside the little paddle boat, chatting a million kilometers a minute.  

QUAND ON VEUT, ON PEUT
Where there's a will there's a way. Merci, ma fille. Thanks to you I lounged in our boat, sipping my menthe à l'eau, enjoying the scene that would forever be etched in our memories--all because we got up off those sunchairs and ventured out beyond murky waters.

P.S.: As for the 40 euros? Worth. Every. Centime. Mais bien sûr!
 

FRENCH VOCABULARY

un arbre = tree
le rivage= shore
le transat = sunbed
La Baie des Fourmis = bay of ants
moyen = average
petite crevette = little shrimp
juste nous deux = just the two of us
un copain/une copine = friend, pal
la rive = shore
scooter des mers = personal watercraft, jetski
ouf! = phew!
aller-retour = roundtrip
menthe  l'eau = a drink made of water and mint syrup
le pédalo = paddle boat
Allez = let’s go
la ligne d'arrivée = the finish line

un centime = cent, penny

mais bien sûr = but of course

PRACTICE FRENCH LISTENING SKILLS
I leave you with a short clip of Jackie and Petite Crevette's reunion. (Warning: this is every day street French, somewhat colorful...) Can you hear what the girls are saying? Here are some of the phrases:

Oh! C'est énorme!
(Oh, This is incredible!)

Comment ça va grosse folle?!
(How are you, you crazy girl!)

Putain! Ca fait combien de temps depuis qu'on s'est vu!
(&#%!@?! How long's it been since we've seen each other?)

I admit, the next words I have difficulty hearing/understanding, no matter how many times I liste to the clip. Here are some possibilities:

On se retrouve (or en se retrouvant) là..avec le pédalo le bateau...
We find ourselves here... with the paddle boat and the boat....

Help understanding French at FluentListener.com - if you, like me, have any difficulty hearing/understanding spoken French, give David Tolman's French listening program a try. David has taught French online for 20 years, from his office here in France. Click here to access one of David's lessons and be sure to sign up for his helpful emails.


To read about a previous trip to Beaulieu--and learn the French word for dreamcatcher, click here.

Villa in Beaulieu sur Mer / St Jean Cap Ferrat area


Architecture along the sea in Beaulieu sur Mer

Nightime in Beaulieu