A Bit of French with A&C Podcast Ep.12: Les Vacances d'Été

Here’s some useful vocabulary featured in this podcast for you to learn and/or review:

• se révéler être = to turn out to be / to reveal oneself to be
• un(e) fidèle [de l’émission] = a loyal follower / listener [of the show]
• vinicole = wine-growing / wine-producing
• d’autant plus que = especially since / all the more so because
• la détente = relaxation
• s’accompagner de [quelque chose] = to come with [something]
• rigolo(te) = funny / fun
• la déconnade (exp.fam.) = joking around / fooling around
• une expo(sition) = an exhibition
• une brasserie = a brewery
• avoir hâte de [faire] = to look forward to [doing] / can’t wait to [do]
• les marais salants = salt marshes
• des animaux en liberté = free-roaming animals / animals in the wild
• croiser les doigts (exp.) = to cross one’s fingers
• la canicule = heatwave
• ne pas être son truc (exp.) = to not be one’s thing / cup of tea
• une randonnée = a hike
• se baigner = to go swimming / to bathe
• au hasard = at random / haphazardly
• la vibe = the vibe
• les papilles = taste buds
• en camping-car = in a camper van / RV
• rustique = rustic / basic
• la climatisation = air con / AC
• là-dedans = in there
• des anecdotes en veux-tu en voilà (exp.) = anecdotes galore / plenty of anecdotes
• faire une pause = to take a break
• un coucher de soleil = a sunset
• à perte de vue = as far as the eye can see
• donner envie de [faire] = to make one want to [do]
• une lune de miel = honeymoon
• se régaler = to thoroughly enjoy a meal
• hors-saison = off-season
• une anecdote croustillante = a juicy anecdote

Proper nouns and cultural references:

• la Sologne [re: region in north-central France, famous for châteaux and nature]
• les châteaux de la Loire [re: the famous Renaissance castles of the Loire Valley]
• la Bretagne (le Morbihan, les Côtes-d’Armor) = Brittany [re: places in northwestern France where Céline spends her holidays]
• les crêpes et les galettes [re: traditional sweet and savoury Breton buckwheat pancakes]
• Barcelone = Barcelona [re: Spanish city that Aurelie plans to visit]
• l’Espagne = Spain
• le Portugal = Portugal
• les Asturies, sur la côte atlantique = Asturias [re: a rugged coastal region in northwest Spain, on the Atlantic coast]
• la côte napolitaine / Naples / l’île d’Ischia / Pompéi [re: Italian locations Aurélie visited for her honeymoon]
• “Du pain, du vin, du Boursin” [re: a famous 1970s advertising slogan for Boursin cheese joked about by the hosts]

Ready for a little challenge? Listen out for this sentence taken from the podcast:

“La montagne, la mer, voilà, c’est des endroits qui nous plaisent particulièrement avec des paysages magnifiques, sauvages…
Plus l’air est pur, mieux c’est ! Faire des petites randonnées, faire des petits pique-niques, se baigner dans des lacs, par exemple…
voilà, ça c’est notre type de vacances préféré.“

To help you practise your grammar, test yourself with this special Notebook comprising the following Kwiziq lessons related to this sentence:

• C’est, ce sont = this is, these are
• Qui = Who/which/that (French Relative Pronouns)
• Expressing you like something/someone in French with the verb “plaire”
• Forming regular adverbs with “-ment” in French
• Plus… plus…, moins… moins… = the more…the more…, the less…the less… (comparisons with phrases)
• Using the infinitive form of verbs to express the English “-ING”
• Notre/nos/votre/vos/leur/leurs = our/your/their (French Possessive Adjectives)

Want to practise some French grammar while discussing summer plans? Then you’re going to love this Fill-in-the-Blanks exercise 😍:

• Les vacances d’été d’Aurélie et Céline (Le Futur Simple) – B1

Want to practise your French knowledge further? Have a go at these summer-themed Kwiziq exercises:

• Fill-in-the-Blanks – Un été international ! (Prepositions with countries and cities) (A1)
• Dictée (Premium subscribers only) – Mes vacances d’été (A1)
• Writing Challenge (Premium subscribers only) – Summer recipes (C1)

Not Premium yet? Now’s a great time to upgrade! You’ll get unlimited exercises, kwizzes and multiple notebooks to help you stay organised and make progress faster, plus Weekend Workouts exercises every week.