fête de la francophonie
Imagine my excitement and delight in knowing about the francophonie festival this year!
I've started learning French 2 years ago and had that 2 years break till now...
finally I've come to know what I've missed out all these while!
Half a billion Francophones around the world will celebrate International day of Francophonie on 20 March. This event began in 1998 as a way for the 49 members of La Francophonie to celebrate their common bond, the French language, as well as their diversity.
Francophonie refers to the ensemble of people around the world who speak French. A Francophone is a person who speaks French.
(from french.about.com)
how wonderful it is to know that there is actually a festival when people celebrate the language of French! and yes, all around the world!
check out the francophonie events happening around the globe!
17 Mar 07
Nearer to home, there are many activities lined up for the french-speaking community here!
There was a competition with the theme on the comic character Tintin with participation from various universities/schools... all who are learning/have learned french. Up till the last minute before the race begun, my friends and I were still thinking we were just going to be spectators! Not so when our teacher roped us in to form a participating team! Trust us, we know nuts about Tintin! Yes, I have never watched a single episode or read the comics as a kid!
-> catch Tintin and The Broken Ear, english version
So there we found our other team members... with our two youngest friends from the german school and the eldest being a 70 year old lady.
We were up and about the entire school... from staging some scenes in the comics, answering quizzes from watching the cartoon, piecing the comic sequence, translating and coming up with the original scripts, singing french songs (perhaps that was my only contribution). Excuses being that we are the only elementary learners while the rest are already seasoned french learners and speakers... we could barely understand most part of the game. Yes, even the german kids beat us to it.
Unexpectedly or not, our team won first prize. We even went up the stage to receive our prize and took a picture with AF's executive-director. We were delighted but could only humbly accept the prize for our contributions seemed so minimal.
In the evening, there was prize presentation for the francophonie awards... the best students were rewarded with a trip to France! That certainly was the best reward for any french learner! :)
Later, we had a buffet serving up an array of delicacies (presented from francophonie countries) like belgian wafflesand beer, swiss chocolates, canadian brownies, egyptian pastries, french dishes, cheese and wine!
A great gathering of french-speaking people where I caught up with all my french teachers (even the one from 2 years ago)!
24 Mar 07 -> Beach Party at Bora Bora Bar, Sentosa
Drop the idea of sexy bikini babes if that was what you would expect from a beach party with the French! And mind you, this party was organised by APFS! So expect nothing but a decent gathering of all things French!
Venture into the island at night on the brand new Sentosa Express!
It was like an amusement ride or similar to the skytrain at the airport.... so yes if that was what you wanna know. By the way, the train only stops at a few stations which left us on a walking trail to Palawan Beach. Being newbies to the nightlife at Sentosa, it was not easy finding our way to the bar! We only knew we were in the right place when we heard that familar tune from our french singing class!
Lesson 1 - Never be late for a party! We were left stranded amidst the heaps of people where life at the party had started way ahead! Forget about what they told you about Chinese weddings, it doesn't apply here. We had a hard time finding our places to fit into the crowd - and I meant literally. All seats taken. So seems like the first protocol we gotta keep to is punctuality. With the kind assistance from our mr. nice guy cum professor, we found a whole big table to ourselves - which didn't help when we were seated away from the tentage area where the crowd were! We were at least compensated by being near the centrestage where the live French band was singing and playing away! The food was nothing impressive compared to the international buffet we had earlier on. So be glad for the company and music we had for the night.
Dance the night away! How I wished I could but pardon me for being a lousy dancer :( Oui, ma premiere fois! More dance practice, more clubbing please! Perhaps I just need that extra boost of alcohol! So otherwise, let loose and enjoy the rest of the night!
Alas, the night was not good for photo-taking as the wind was so strong that plates and things started flying everywhere... and yes, in my direction! So we were all virtually Marilyn Monroe... only that by standing against the night sea breeze, we risked getting hit by sand and being blown away if we were ever light enough. Even on our way back, we saw people sitting in the tram with their hands on their face!
Some late night beach partying to remember! :)
I've started learning French 2 years ago and had that 2 years break till now...
finally I've come to know what I've missed out all these while!
Half a billion Francophones around the world will celebrate International day of Francophonie on 20 March. This event began in 1998 as a way for the 49 members of La Francophonie to celebrate their common bond, the French language, as well as their diversity.
Francophonie refers to the ensemble of people around the world who speak French. A Francophone is a person who speaks French.
(from french.about.com)
how wonderful it is to know that there is actually a festival when people celebrate the language of French! and yes, all around the world!
check out the francophonie events happening around the globe!
17 Mar 07
Nearer to home, there are many activities lined up for the french-speaking community here!
There was a competition with the theme on the comic character Tintin with participation from various universities/schools... all who are learning/have learned french. Up till the last minute before the race begun, my friends and I were still thinking we were just going to be spectators! Not so when our teacher roped us in to form a participating team! Trust us, we know nuts about Tintin! Yes, I have never watched a single episode or read the comics as a kid!
-> catch Tintin and The Broken Ear, english version
So there we found our other team members... with our two youngest friends from the german school and the eldest being a 70 year old lady.
We were up and about the entire school... from staging some scenes in the comics, answering quizzes from watching the cartoon, piecing the comic sequence, translating and coming up with the original scripts, singing french songs (perhaps that was my only contribution). Excuses being that we are the only elementary learners while the rest are already seasoned french learners and speakers... we could barely understand most part of the game. Yes, even the german kids beat us to it.
Unexpectedly or not, our team won first prize. We even went up the stage to receive our prize and took a picture with AF's executive-director. We were delighted but could only humbly accept the prize for our contributions seemed so minimal.
In the evening, there was prize presentation for the francophonie awards... the best students were rewarded with a trip to France! That certainly was the best reward for any french learner! :)
Later, we had a buffet serving up an array of delicacies (presented from francophonie countries) like belgian wafflesand beer, swiss chocolates, canadian brownies, egyptian pastries, french dishes, cheese and wine!
A great gathering of french-speaking people where I caught up with all my french teachers (even the one from 2 years ago)!
24 Mar 07 -> Beach Party at Bora Bora Bar, Sentosa
Drop the idea of sexy bikini babes if that was what you would expect from a beach party with the French! And mind you, this party was organised by APFS! So expect nothing but a decent gathering of all things French!
Venture into the island at night on the brand new Sentosa Express!
It was like an amusement ride or similar to the skytrain at the airport.... so yes if that was what you wanna know. By the way, the train only stops at a few stations which left us on a walking trail to Palawan Beach. Being newbies to the nightlife at Sentosa, it was not easy finding our way to the bar! We only knew we were in the right place when we heard that familar tune from our french singing class!
Lesson 1 - Never be late for a party! We were left stranded amidst the heaps of people where life at the party had started way ahead! Forget about what they told you about Chinese weddings, it doesn't apply here. We had a hard time finding our places to fit into the crowd - and I meant literally. All seats taken. So seems like the first protocol we gotta keep to is punctuality. With the kind assistance from our mr. nice guy cum professor, we found a whole big table to ourselves - which didn't help when we were seated away from the tentage area where the crowd were! We were at least compensated by being near the centrestage where the live French band was singing and playing away! The food was nothing impressive compared to the international buffet we had earlier on. So be glad for the company and music we had for the night.
Dance the night away! How I wished I could but pardon me for being a lousy dancer :( Oui, ma premiere fois! More dance practice, more clubbing please! Perhaps I just need that extra boost of alcohol! So otherwise, let loose and enjoy the rest of the night!
Alas, the night was not good for photo-taking as the wind was so strong that plates and things started flying everywhere... and yes, in my direction! So we were all virtually Marilyn Monroe... only that by standing against the night sea breeze, we risked getting hit by sand and being blown away if we were ever light enough. Even on our way back, we saw people sitting in the tram with their hands on their face!
Some late night beach partying to remember! :)
posted by Jerylene at 09:16
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