My French Alphabet

In my course on Provence through Literature and Film, one of our semester-long assignments includes writing an ABCdaire of our personal vision of the region, a bit in the style of Peter Mayle, if you're familiar. I'm excited to work more on the project, and especially to create such a detailed account of my lessons and sentiments from my sejour. For the course, there are lots of precisions, quotas, and requirements for certain words and topics. In the meantime, I'll strip myself of all restrictions and leave you with a simple yet comprehensive list of various places, words, or people who define my experience in France thus far: Note- this post is a work-in-progress! Check back as I continue to fill in the definitions.

A: Amy. For a three-letter name, you'd be surprised how difficult it is for the French to pronounce! I've learned to respond to AhMEE, AimAY, Emmy, or as Josette says, AimEEEE. Talk about an identity crisis! I suppose it could be worse: if your name has a "th" in it, forget about it!... zat eez joost zee whoorst.

B: bises. (B)  This traditional French greeting signifies much more than a polite « bonjour » or « au revoir ». I've learned that it's also a reference point for relationships and affections. At the end of a phone conversation with her close friends, for example, I hear Josette saying: « Allez, bisous ! » but this sentiment is only reserved for good friends ; les bises designate a proximity attained only through friendship. In the same way, I've noticed that the method for giving bises develops along with the depth of the relationship. At first, you just touch cheeks. Later, you add a hand to the other's arm, then both hands, and finally, you really kiss the cheek. (Check out Anotine de Saint Exupery's chapter with the Little Prince and the fox for more details!) I recognize that this process isn't the same for everyone, but I get the impression all the same that French gestures evolve in tandem with the relationship.
     Why? While the French of Provence love rapid conversations, vibrant and intellectual, I think that they prefer to share deeper sentiments without words. For them, verbal consolations aren't always sufficient, and they find an authenticity with les bises that would otherwise be unattainable. Even when I leave for an ordinary night out, Josette gives me warm bises as if to say : be safe, and profites bien ! If it were up to these words alone, her advice would lose all its charm- through physical touch, though, it's like I'm hearing a secret for the first time, every time. C’est ça, en partie, la magie de la Provence !

C: cours
D: douche
E: exercise
F: Frederic Mistral
G: Godot
H: hostels
I: imitation
J: Josette
K: karaoke
L: La Croix Rouge
M: messe
N: Non.
O: Oui.
P: Perdue
Q: Quiproquo
R: Rock (danse de)
S: Sarkozy
T: temps
U: Ugolin
V: Valentin (Saint)
W: WoHoo!
X: Aix
Y: Yelle
Z: Zola (Emile)