Sightseeing at WWII Museum
First trip to Paris, we were ignorant tourists. Liz was our guide and navigator. Second trip, we were staying with Liz in Aix. She was teaching at the university and we were on our own during the day. I loved Aix and learning about artists who painted there. We went to notable towns and museums and saw lots of antiquity around the Provence Region. Liz planned our itinerary for each day. Over dinner, we reported on all we saw. Somehow, we muddled our way through adventures to Avignon, Nîmes, Saint Remy, Pont du Gard, Marseille, and Arles.
Donnie’s high school French served us well. I was no help at all, but our incompetence did plant a seed in my mind,“Perhaps you should get serious about learning French. Liz will likely spend a lot of time over here with her goals for French.“ I couldn't hear the sounds to correctly say words. My processing time too slow to even do fundamental greetings.
One day at the end of a very long adventure, when we finally got home, on entering the door, I said, “It’s amazing we found our way home tonight. We got lost trying to get to the Aqueduct museum, so by the time we got there they were closing. The best we could do was walk around and marvel at the architecture and craftsmanship. It was getting dark when we were leaving. Once we got to the interstate, we were fine. We found our usual way into Aix and parked in our usual place on the street. I said, "Let's pick up something for dinner on our walk back. Oh no! Looks like everything closes by 7:00 pm. Nothing I want is open. Wait, there's a boulangerie that's still open. Hope they have some baguettes left. What can we fix to go with them?" I enjoy this European novelty of buying fresh products to prepare for dinner. I was really disappointed that night but so tired, we didn’t really care.
Simple dinning at home always with baguettes
The die was cast when Liz married Philippe, native Parisian. Liz took charge and introduced me to a language tool on the internet called Duo. I’ve been friends with Duo for close to four years. My immediate incentive was a trip to Paris to meet Philippe's family. They invited us to spend Christmas with them. I was over the top excited about staying in a real Parisian home. My goal was to learn enough French to greet Philippe’s family and communicate enough to get by. Not a high bar, but I failed. I give credit to MS for my slow reaction time. I knew what I wanted to say but couldn't find the words let alone get them out.
I’m enjoying my learning project with Duo. I have read in Brain and Life magazine that learning anything, but foreign language specifically, is very good for the aging process and for managing neurological diseases, like MS. 
Memory from Normandy trip
Practicing speaking for Duo with nobody listening and no expectations is really enjoyable. I set my own bar and congratulate myself when appropriate. Speaking occasionally on Zoom with Philippe’s parents is still a big problem. I still can’t come up with the right French phrase or word to respond. I feel like my brain is tied in a knot. I know what I should say in English but saying it in French is impossible. Luckily, they are understanding and supportive.
Baby Loleh is my incentive to keep striving for better French. Even though he will be bi-lingual, I want to converse with him in both languages. That’s the ultimate incentive to get on board the French train. I hope to visit him often in France. We don’t know when our first trip over will be, but when we go, my goal is to be able to converse with Liz’s French family better than we did the first time.
Colorful bouquets of flowers at street markets
Duo pesters me daily until I do my lessons. Memory, retention of ideas and problem solving are all involved with learning foreign language. No wonder it’s recommended for aging and neurological diseases. Picking the right verb and using the right tense has to be worked out. Also, French has many peculiarities about the way things are done. For example, Pronoun usage with certain verbs, speaking about time of day, and organizing the sentence correctly can be stumbling blocks. Frankly, I don’t know how one becomes fluent in any foreign language!
I’m looking forward to using my new French skills when we go over next. I feel confident in my ability to navigate Paris on the metro and bus system, and shop at neighborhood food markets. I can read menus, understand signage and greet people trying to help me. I look forward to going to the weekend markets and interacting with the various vendors. My favorites are the flower, patisserie, and boulangerie. I’d like to go when the temperatures are moderate. I envision walking with Loleh in his stroller on the streets of Paris. When we do I’ll tell him about the fluers, oiseau, pluie, gens marchant, et enfants jouent. Maybe we’ll stop at a cafe and order un café et un croissant.
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