What is life like in Normandy?
Join Lidia as she introduces her family and tells us about her life in Normandy.
Exploring Normandy with Lidia
Lidia: Hi, I'm Lidia. I live in Normandy. Bonjour, je m'appelle Lidia. I live with my mum – ma maman, dad – mon père, brother – mon frère and two dogs – mes deux chiens.
Normandy is only just across the Channel from England. I used to live in a big city in England, but I moved to France, when I was seven. And now I live in this village. There are only a few shops, like a bank, hairdresser and une boulangerie.
Lidia: « Bonjour, je voudrais quatre croissants, s'il vous plaît. ».
This is my house. It’s very old, une maison ancienne in French. I live in the countryside – j'habite à la campagne and there are no big towns to walk to.
In the morning, I drive from home to my village, so I can go to school – mon collège. I like going to school because I get to spend time with my friends. Living in the countryside means it's hard to see them otherwise.
At school, all my classes are in French and I speak French with my friends.
After school and at weekends, I like to do lots of activities, so I go to the cultural centre – le centre culturel. There are lots of things going on in there, like music and dance.
My mum is a dance teacher. The classes are contemporary dance. J'adore danser – I love dancing, because I find it’s fun to move to music and to the rhythm.
After dancing, mum and I go home. While my parents make dinner, I sometimes practise flute, do my homework, or play board games.
As we're in the countryside, in winter there are not many other things to do. Dinner - le dîner is often eaten later in France, sometimes around eight or nine pm.
Lidia: « Bon appétit ! »
Family: « Bon appétit ! »
Lidia: We all sit down and eat together and talk about our days. In France, it is common to all eat together and not spend mealtimes alone or in front of TV.
There are many delicious, French foods that we eat, but tonight we are having one with lots of cheese – avec beaucoup de fromage, one of my favourites – raclette.
Where is Normandy?
Lidia lives in Normandy, a region in the north-west of France. She has also lived in the United Kingdom.
There are some differences and some similarities between Lidia’s life in France and her life in the United Kingdom, such as the mealtimes and the types of foods that she eats.
Mealtimes in France
Mealtimes and food can be a little different in France.
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – breakfast is the smallest meal of the day. It may be a bowl of coffee or hot chocolate with a pastry such as Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. or Check your connection, refresh the page and try again., or bread and jam – Check your connection, refresh the page and try again..
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – lunch is eaten around midday and is often served with water – Check your connection, refresh the page and try again.. There are usually four courses, a starter such as salad, a warm main course, cheese Check your connection, refresh the page and try again., and dessert such as fruit Check your connection, refresh the page and try again..
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – afternoon snack is after school at around 4.00 to 4.30 pm, when children eat biscuits or bread Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. to keep them going until dinner.
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – dinner is eaten quite late at around 8.00 or 9.00 pm.Like Lidia’s family, you sit down together to eat at the table with your family and talk about your day, rather than eating alone or watching TV.
Before you eat, you wish each other Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – 'Enjoy your meal!'
Traditional foods in France
For their evening meal, Lidia’s family eat Check your connection, refresh the page and try again., melted cheese with potatoes, which is normally served with cured meats. It's a popular dish in the Alps.
France is a very big country with different regions, so there are also different regional dishes. Here are some of the most popular foods.
You might have heard of some of them before as they are words that we also use in English. These are borrowed words or cognates.
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – a French stick of bread
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – a casserole of bacon, sausage, pork, onions, carrots, tomatoes and haricot beans
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – toasted ham and cheese sandwich. The name comes from the words Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – to crunch/to eat and Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – mister
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – sliced potatoes baked in cream
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – salad of tuna, eggs, olives, potatoes, lettuce, green beans and tomatoes
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – French onion soup
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – apple tart
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. – baked potatoes, bacon, onions, cream and cheese
Key French words
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | enjoy your meal |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | hello |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | a bakery |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | the countryside |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | a croissant |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | lunch |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | dinner |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | some cheese |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | afternoon snack |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | some bread |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | breakfast |
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