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French-speaking
Fascinating Facts
1. French is a romance language derived from Latin. 
2. It's spoken by over 270 million people worldwide! 
3. French fries are not actually French: they were invented in Belgium!
4. André Gide, French writer and Nobel Prize winner, famously said 'French people are Italian people in a bad mood'.
5. Metropolitan France has several regional dialects, including Alsatian and Lorraine German, Occitan and Breton.

  • The Mole Diaries: Tours

    Written by  Christopher Murray Tuesday, 31 January 2012

    Christopher Murray is studying French and German at Queen's University Belfast and is on his year abroad in Tours, France, for nine months. He says, "the vast majority of language students at my university spend the year as assistants, but I was more interested in the Erasmus experience so one of my lecturers set up a new exchange with Université François-Rabelais." Here he passes on his top survival tips.

  • The Mole Diaries: Montréal

    Written by  Louise Wiseman Monday, 16 January 2012

    Louise Wiseman is 21 and studying French and Italian at the University of Kent. She has spent five months in Montréal at the Université de Montréal and will be spending five months in Italy at Università di Parma from February. She fell in love with Montréal and Canada almost immediately after arriving for the first time in August, and is planning to move back once she graduates. Here she passes on her top tips to students studying either French or English and thinking of living in Montréal on their year abroad.

  • The Mole Diaries: Toulouse (Volume 2)

    Written by  Charlotte Watson Thursday, 24 November 2011

    Charlotte Watson is studying French and German at Bangor University and is currently nearing the end of her placement in Toulouse, France, before moving onto Passau in Germany next semester. She is an Erasmus student at Université Toulouse II-Le Mirail, and chose Toulouse because she’d always wanted to see the South of France for herself, having heard such wonderful things about the weather, food and general way of life there. Here she passes on her top tips and advice for other students thinking of living there during their degree.

  • Famed for its unique wildlife and remote location, little is ever reported in the western world of the people of Madagascar, their culture and traditions. Arriving there in October, I realised that I knew practically nothing about the often-forgotten island other than that which I’d seen on the odd David Attenborough documentary. So, with a month of first-hand experience before me and armed with a good old book*, I decided to find out more about Madagascar, a developing country on a mission to catch up with the rest.

  • The Mole Diaries: Lille

    Written by  Christopher Hall Friday, 28 October 2011

    Christopher Hall is 21 and studies French & Linguistics at Queen Mary, University of London. This year he is spending seven months of his year abroad working as an English Language Assistant in two high schools in Loos, in the outskirts of Lille, France. He chose Lille as it provides an urban environment with excellent amenities yet without the expense of living in a capital city, and has speedy transport connections to the UK and many cities throughout continental Europe. Here he passes on his advice about accommodation, getting around town, student discounts, shopping, eating out and the nightlife in Lille.

  • The Mole Diaries: Grenoble

    Monday, 23 January 2012

    Sally is studying French and Spanish at the University of Edinburgh, and has just come to the end of her first semester in Grenoble, where she was studying a range of subjects from politics to symbolism, at Université Stendhal 3. Although Grenoble was initially her 5th choice, she's been totally won over by this exciting city, and now wouldn't have wanted to go anywhere else! Here, she reveals why you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, and why Grenoble really is the perfect city for a year abroader...

  • It has been a while since I last sent out a sign of life on here, but I have been rather busy. I spent the last month and a half wishing the NHS extended its reaches until Belgium (and well, it sort of does with its EHIC, doesn’t it?).

  • The Mole Diaries: Toulouse

    Written by  Hayley French Thursday, 24 November 2011

    Hayley French is studying Spanish, French and Italian triple major at Bangor University in Wales. She took the opportunity to spend a semester in each of the countries and is just coming to the end of her second placement in Toulouse. She chose Toulouse as she is a big fan of the weather in the south of France and is especially interested in the southern culture. Here she passes on her Top Ten Tips for your placement in Toulouse...

  • The Mole Diaries: Lyon

    Written by  Jordaine Hulse Saturday, 05 November 2011

    Jordaine Hulse is studying French and German with Spanish at Bangor University in Wales, and is currently on her year abroad in Lyon, France. She says she chose Lyon for two reasons: "I thought that going to a big city like Lyon would really give me the full experience of independence on my year abroad, and also Lyon is the gastronomic capital of France – and I love my food... so I felt that we would be a perfect match!

  • Lyon: Chapter 3

    Written by  Charlotte Evans Thursday, 27 October 2011

    So, I’ve lived in France for two whole months now. What can I say? It’s been a whirlwind. A whirlwind of meeting tons of lovely new people, exploring new places and… (I have to admit) huge, huge piles of paperwork. One thing that all of us ERASMUS students seem to have noticed here in France is that they love their bureaucracy. You will quickly find yourself caught up in vicious circles of paperwork and on goose chases for some random piece of paper without which you won’t be able to do something vital… It’s all very strange.

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