And eventhough you know English you want to try speaking French to make this occasion special.
Infact many in France would not like to speak English in their country.
So let us keep our discussions in French.So the first thing you must know is to greet other people, so that you can befriend them and get your workdone.
So the word you must know is "Bonjour or Salut". The former is formal and the latter is informal.
You may have to ask "How are you?", soon after greeting. It is "Comment allez vous? or Comment ca va?". The same formal and informal here too.
And now most probably you will be receiving one of those following replies.
Ca va bien - It goes well.
Ca va. -It goes.
And least probably you will receive...
Ca va mal - It goes bad.
No problem how it goes...Let us go on with French now...
Now you may feel like introducing yourself.
like I am Mr.yourname and I am an Indian.
The easiest way is to remember the two words " Je suis ".
Je suis shyam.
Je suis Indien.
Now you have made clear that you are a foreigner to France.
So now you may need a help, tracing an address.
The next thing is "Can you help me?".
And it is "Pouvez vous m'aider?".
The French people would be pleased to help a foreigner and especially a french speaking.
So he will tell you "Oui" means "Yes".If it is "Non" meaning "No" then you may have to start altogether from inception "Bonjour" with another person.
So you hand over your address slip to him and ask "Où est cette adresse ?" - "Where is this address ?".
Now be ready to catch the key french words when he speaks that would convey the so called go-this-way phrases ...So that you can get the exact location of the address.
And those words should be...
droite _ right
gauche _ left
tout-droit _ straight ahead.
suivez la rue _ follow the road.
a côté _ at the side
près de _ near
en face de la banque _ accross from the bank
le croisement _ intersection
tournez à droite _ turn right
tournez à gauche _ turn left
continuez toujours _ continue on
With all these phrases you have to get the exact location of the address.
But still you may have problems in getting what he actually says.
You may not understand.
And so you can say "Je ne comprends pas" means "I do not understand".
So you can just Je-ne-comprends-pas till you get your exact location.
And dont forget to say "Merci" means "Thank you".
Finally. you got your exact location with your French in France.
It's one of the best thing that can happen to you in France.
