When you think of Paris, you probably imagine cafés, the Eiffel Tower, or croissants. But did you know the city also has its very own wine harvest festival?

Every October, the charming neighborhood of Montmartre, famous for Sacré-Cœur and its bohemian history, celebrates les Vendanges de Montmartre, a quirky and joyful event that brings Parisians together around wine, food, and music.

If you love France, this is one Parisian tradition you’ll want to know about!

🍇 A Vineyard in the Heart of Paris

Tucked behind Sacré-Cœur is the Clos Montmartre, a small but historic vineyard planted in the 1930s. Most people don't know that the vineyard still produces a few hundred bottles of wine each year.

It may not rival Bordeaux or Burgundy, but the charm lies in its story, a reminder that Paris has always been a place of community, creativity, and celebration.

🎉 The Festival Atmosphere

During les Vendanges de Montmartre, the streets of Montmartre transform into a giant party. You’ll fi...

It's already been 3 months since I was in France. I wish we were a little closer and I could just pop in for few days or the long weekend.

One of my favourite things about Paris is noticing the little quirks of everyday life. They’re the habits that I kind of forget about leaving in Australia but hit me as soon as I land and are such a part of the French scene. 

Here are 5 quirky French habits you’ll spot in Paris from day 1.

😀 1. Saying Bonjour Everywhere

Bonjour isn’t optional.  it’s the secret code for politeness. Step into a shop, greet the bus driver, or order a coffee… always start with Bonjour !

🥖 2. The Daily Baguette Ritual

Yes, it’s true — Parisians really do walk home with a baguette under their arm. Usually bought fresh in the afternoon, because bread here is meant to be enjoyed the same day. 

Phrase to try: Une baguette, s’il vous plaît. (One baguette, please.) *ps. Make sure you ask for une baguette tradition, it's the best.

☕ 3. Coffee at the Counter

Lo...

What is the key to speaking French? 

Some might say passion, some might say hard work, some might say immersion....

What do you actually need to get by in French? 

We are not talking about fluency here, just some good old fashioned basic French that will be good enough to get you through your next trip and will allow you to enjoy the amazing gratification that connecting with the locals can be.

You can do it, I promise. 

Here are what you truly really need to get there...I promise it's not that bad.

1) Master the sounds

Do not worry about your accent but work right away on your pronunciation. Listen, say it, repeat, and then do it again.

Speak from day 1. Do not wait until you're better, until you know more vocabulary, until you have been to classes.  

2) Basic tenses

Learn and understand the most important 5 tenses and some common verbs.

4 or 5 tenses will allow you to speak of any situation. The present, the futur proche, the passé composé, and a few bits and pieces...

Struggling to work out which books you need?

You are not alone, the challenge often faced when buying books or resources to learn French is not that there isn’t enough available.

The problem is that there’s so much out there that it can be overwhelming to decide what’s good and what is not.

At the end of the day, French is French and you will mostly find the same content or same approach packaged up and presented a little differently. While some are good,  some are bad and a lot is simply awful and more confusing than helpful.

So how do I know?

If it claim to be able to teach or help you learn a language in a few days, weeks or months or it promises you fast fluency, save your money. 

Anything promising you a way to ‘get fluent quickly’ is no different to an add promising you six-pack abs without effort even if I truly understand the tempatation! 

Languages take time, a lot of effort, a few fails, trials and errors, fun moments where everything seems to fall into place followed ...

Is French Style attainable?

As a French woman, I am kind of expected to know a lot more than I probably do about all things fashion and style. I don’t really live and breathe fashion but what I have probably took with me to Australia is that I value simplicity above anything, I do not overthink any look and I must absolutely be comfortable in anything I wear.

What really is French Style?

French style is actually easier to attain than you might think. I like to think of it as effortless, classic, definitely cool but not arrogant. It’s about finding the equilibre between looking like I made an effort but also looking quite casual at the same time.

I personally do not feel comfortable wearing bold shades and over the top pieces.  I prefer good quality items that work well together and find myself mixing fabric and textures.

So how do you dress like a French woman?

Here are my “How do you look so French?” tips. 

1. Buy less but better. It would be so easy to be tempted all the tim
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What a title!

Now that I have said it, there is no turning back.

Let's have a closer look at why you want to get back into French, shall we? 

Picture yourself planning your next trip, speaking with your local boulanger, asking about the origin of the produce at the local market, enjoying an aperitif with your delightful neighbours...that's what we all want when we learn another language. Very rarely...ermm...actually never, do I hear : "ohhh, I'm learning French because I really want to understand the reasons why avoir is so irregular".

No, what we want is connection, we want to understand and be part of conversations, we want to get the jokes, the nuances and feel culturally supercharged..hey..maybe we want to feel we could live there and be ok, maybe we could almost be French.

I know because that was exactly me when I started learning English. I just wanted to be able to talk to Madonna, the guys from Depeche Mode and Lloyd Cole if I ever met them. That's true, when I first s...

You have learnt so much, you are killing it with your grammar, you feel ready to take on the French world by storm and speak French all the time until your conversation partner asks you to repeat or simply and rudely switch to English half way through your effort....how frustrating!

They might just want to be practising their English but they might also feel that you are actually struggling and maybe they are saving you.

To keep the natural flow of a conversation going, you will have put 'your French mouth' on. That's what I always tell my students when I hear them slip...You know what I mean, us French can go a bit lazy too and revert to " Ello..ow arrre yoo? " or  "Ze sheese is delissious".

So, follow these few tips and before you know it you will sound like you have been learning French for ever.

• listen.

Obvious, non?  learning a new language will be the exact same process as learning your first language, just faster. Hearing it over and over and over again will get you in ...

As the year is flying by and the ever so feared oral examination is looming, some might start feeling a little insecure about their ability to hold a conversation for 8 min then a discussion for another 8 minutes or so.

The fear of making mistakes, the horror of not understanding a question or being understood, the horrifying prospect of uncomfortable silences between you and the examiner. That is enough to make anyone's stomach churn....

So let's have a look at the situation and see how we can transform you into a bubbly and chatty expert who seriously wouldn't want to be anywhere else but the exam room!  

Let me first reassure you on a few points:

• Do not learn of feel you must learn by heart answers to the general conversation.

There is a difference between being prepared and well practised and learning by heart. In a oral situation, what you are expected to display is how you can manage a conversation, how you interact, how French can flow from you. I said it a million time...

Big title...I know. 

Do you often wonder why some students never seem stress and get well above the expected mark in French while you are still trembling at the idea of writing your next piece?

Maybe it has nothing to do with 'how fluent' they are. Actually, I can guarantee you these students aren't necessarily better than you in French. They just have a method. A method that they have developed, tested, learnt and can now apply to any written work they will ever have to produce in French.

  The coolest part is that it is all true and tested, you can write an epic essay without difficulties. It does require knowledge and organisation but it is more manageable than you think and will leave you plenty of time for other fun stuff!

So follow these tips and you too will soon be producing epic essay in no time.

Text type. Spend some time working out which is your favourite text type. I recommend you really focus on two or three if you can manage and have time. A formal (or informal) ...

I'm afraid to report that there is no way around learning verbs and grammar when you decide to study French. It's an essential part of the learning journey but there are a few ways to make it easier, smoother and lot more enjoyable.

Here are my top teacher approved hacks to learn better and faster.

• Say it out loud: whenever you hear some new word, repeat it, put your French voice on and go for it. Nobody has to hear you. If it is a new word you aren't sure how to pronounce, just google it and click the sound icon, click again, then repeat.

•  Learn some ready made sentences. Why not? I used to learn songs lyrics in English (taken from teen mags back in the day) cut and paste them in my essays. Yes, I did that...and you know what ? I still remember so many of them ! Don't hesitate, dedicate some time to find sentences you like, that you would see yourself using and go for it. 

• Watch some French movies with subtitles. I feel like a broken record but this really works
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