Bienvenue !
Bienvenue !
Make yourself at home. My name is Chris Tracey, that's me pictured above at an award ceremony many years ago. More about that in a bit, but just so you know, I'm a retired seventy-something who has spent an entire working life in education.
As an enthusiastic Francophile, I started this blog nearly 15 years ago as a place to collect and share posts about France. Around the same time I began an Instagram account devoted to finding examples of France turning up in my native Belfast. One of my enduring pleasures is discovering those unexpected traces of France and filing them here and on Instagram as Found in Belfast.
I wonder, since you’ve landed here and are reading this, whether you too are on the lookout for Francophile material. If so, then I trust that you’ll find something here to while away a pleasant moment or two. And hopefully that you will look around your area and see where France turns up for you.
So, what can you expect?
You’ll find that I love books. Our local Cercle français has occasional readings and discussions, and I love taking part in those. I read a lot in the original French but also in translation – often simultaneously. I have a great admiration for translators, and yet rarely do they get the attention and praise they so richly deserve. Inevitably, there will be plenty of stuff on Books and Reading.
I am also a bit of a “bon vivant”. Well, it’s hard to reach this ripe old age and not pick up some vices along the way. So another aspect of this blog will be posts about Food and Wine. I will be aiming though to go further than the tastes and explore the culture and traditions that lie beneath and beyond. That means that another key theme of the blog is Culture in its many expressions.
Right now, a confession.
Although I was a teacher of French for many years and kept up my association with France and French, I have fallen foul of that age old problem of lifelong learning – The Use it or Lose it principle. Yes, a lot of my French has fallen into disrepair and much of what remains lacks currency. The good news? I aim to put that right and intend to share posts about developing French Language skills.
Okay then. How long and how often?
As an enthusiastic Francophile, I started this blog nearly 15 years ago as a place to collect and share posts about France. Around the same time I began an Instagram account devoted to finding examples of France turning up in my native Belfast. One of my enduring pleasures is discovering those unexpected traces of France and filing them here and on Instagram as Found in Belfast.
I wonder, since you’ve landed here and are reading this, whether you too are on the lookout for Francophile material. If so, then I trust that you’ll find something here to while away a pleasant moment or two. And hopefully that you will look around your area and see where France turns up for you.
So, what can you expect?
You’ll find that I love books. Our local Cercle français has occasional readings and discussions, and I love taking part in those. I read a lot in the original French but also in translation – often simultaneously. I have a great admiration for translators, and yet rarely do they get the attention and praise they so richly deserve. Inevitably, there will be plenty of stuff on Books and Reading.
I am also a bit of a “bon vivant”. Well, it’s hard to reach this ripe old age and not pick up some vices along the way. So another aspect of this blog will be posts about Food and Wine. I will be aiming though to go further than the tastes and explore the culture and traditions that lie beneath and beyond. That means that another key theme of the blog is Culture in its many expressions.
Right now, a confession.
Although I was a teacher of French for many years and kept up my association with France and French, I have fallen foul of that age old problem of lifelong learning – The Use it or Lose it principle. Yes, a lot of my French has fallen into disrepair and much of what remains lacks currency. The good news? I aim to put that right and intend to share posts about developing French Language skills.
Okay then. How long and how often?
Generally I would like to focus on 2-to-3-minute reads, although I want to get back into researching material for more substantive pieces which will take around 5 minutes. If you become a regular visitor then I won't trespass too much on your goodwill as my intention is to post once a week for the time being.
Finally
If you're new here, I suggest starting with the Evergreen posts, where you'll find some of my personal favourites. Look for them under the 3-line hamburger icon top-left.
More about that photo then?
It comes from the linked post below. It’s one of my Evergreen posts and may help explain my enduring appreciation for France and things French.
Here’s the link: https://www.francofiled.org/2010/07/palmes-academiques-french-ambassadors.html
That’s all for now. Hope to see you here.
And by the way...if France shows up where you live, I'd love to hear about it.
Bien à toi
Chris
Comments
Post a Comment