Aquitaine

1
Aquitaine

• French lesson 7

2
Virtual discovery of a region

• Aquitaine  huwa regjun li jinsab fis-south west
  ta Franza. Huwa jmiss mal-Ocejan Atlantiku,
  mal-Pirenej u ma Spanja. L-aktar ibliet
  importanti faquitiane huma Bordeaux li hija
  l-kapitali tar-regjun, Pau, Bayonne, Biarritz u
  Bergerac. L-ibliet ta pau u bordeaux huma
  maghrufa ghall- universitajiet taghhom filwaqt li
  Bayonne, Biarritz u l-kosta kollha mahgrufa bhala
  Cote dArgent jigbdu hafna turisti specjalment
  zaghzah li jinteressahom is-surfing. Dan
  ir-regjun huwa varjat hafna fdak li hu xenarju u
  pajzaggi. Huwa  maghruf ghall- kosta meraviljuza
  la Cote dArgent. Fin- Nofsinhar insibu
  l-muntanji Pyrenei li jmissu wkoll ma Spanja.
  FAquitaine jiltaqghu wkoll ix-xmajjar Garonne u
  Dordogne. Insibu wkoll l-akbar foresta tapine
  fl-Ewropa kollha.
• L-agrikultura hja mportanti fdan ir-regjun bil-
  prodott principali jkun proprju l- gheneb
  ghall-produzzjoni u l-industrija tal-imbid. Skond
  l-istatistikici miljuni kbar talitri tambid
  jigu prodotti kull sena fBordeaux. Insibu wkoll
  it-trobbija tal-baqar u nteressanti mmens dik
  tal-oysters/ arzell fpost maghruf bhala
  Arcachon.
• Is-sit li ser inzuru llum huwa http//www.tourisme
  -aquitaine.fr li huwa s-sit ufficjali tal- office
  de tourisme ta dan ir-regjun. Naraw li ma
  l-ewwel daqqa tghajn insibu hafna rkejjen
  interessanti. Fin-nofs ghandna informazzjoni fuq
  attivitajiet li huma ghaddejjin bhalissa u
  fin-naha tal-genb ghandna sezzjoni li tidhol
  fid-dettal fuq dak kollu li ghandu xjaqsam
  mar-regjun ta Aquitaine.
• Nikklikkja fuq lAquitaine cest u naraw li
  ghandna hafna items differenti. Kif qed taraw dan
  ir-regjun igawdi minnn temp moderat matul is-sena
  kollha. Fejn fpostijiet ohra fi Franza
  t-temperatura fDicembru tkun taht iz-zero,
  it-temperatura medja fAquitaine hija dik ta
  ghaxar gradi.
• Postijiet interessanti xtara hemm kemm trid.
  Nikklikkjaw fuq Des Lieux Incontournables. Le
  phare de Cordouan hija lighthouse li ghadha
  storja twila. Fil-fatt ilha tezisti mis-seklu
  sittax. U ghandha importanza fl-Ewropa kollha.
  Fil-fatt hija lighthouse li minbarra li  ghadha
  mportanza storika ghadha mizmuma fi stat tali
  kwali sal-llum.

3

• Nghaddu ghal-parti li titratta dwar l-istorja.
  Nikklikkjaw ghalhekk fuq Un Patrimoine
  saisissant. Fil-Preistorja dan ir-regjun kellu
  rwol importanti. Il-Wied taVezere fDordogne
  huwa maghruf bhala l-benniena tal-umanita peress
  li 400 000 elf sena ilu kien jghix hemmehekk dak
  li llum huwa maghruf bhala homo erectus.Fdan
  il-wied insibu koncentrazzjoni kbira ta
  fdalijiet specjalment fil-grotti u postijiet ohra
  interessanti li huma kollha xhieda ta dawn
  iz-zmenijiet. Fil-fatt fdan ir-regjun insibu
  l-isbah fdalijiet taz-zmien paleolitiku li llum
  huma parti mill-patrimonju mondjali tal- Unesco.
  Fosthom insibu l-famuza grotta ta lascaux li
  hija mimlija bi tpingija tal- bniedem
  preistoriku. Fil- fatt din il-grotta hija
  maghrufa bhala l- Kappella Sistina
  tal-Preistorja. Interessanti wkoll jekk
  nikklikkjaw fuq Prehistoire et Antiquite fejn
  insibu dik li hija maghrufa bhala la Dame de
  Brassempouy li hija  l-ewwel versjoni ta statwa
  fejn il-wicc gie mnaqqax ukoll. Instabu wkoll
  verzjonijiet ohra tal-mara l-hoxna bhalma nstabu
  fit-tempji Neolitici hawn Malta. Ta min jghid li
  din l-istatwa tmur lura 22 elf sena u nstabet
  fil- Grotta ta Pair-non-Pair  
• Postijiet interessanti xtara hemm kemm trid.
  Nikklikkjaw fuq Des Lieux Incontournables.Le
  phare de Cordouan hija lighthouse li ghadha
  storja twila. Fil-fatt ilha tezisti mis-seklu
  sittax. U ghandha importanza fl- Ewropa kollha.
  Il-belt ta Bordeaux mhux belt ta min jitlifha.
  Hija l-hames l-akbar belt fi Franza u l- kapitali
  tal- indusriji tal- inbid. Hija kkunsidrata wkoll
  bhala l-aktar post importanti fl- Ewropa fdak li
  ghandu xjaqsam ma ricerka militari, spazjali u
  aeronautika. Il- parti storika tal-belt hija
  mnizzla fil-Unesco World Heritage List minhabba
  l-arkitettura tal-post li tmur lura ghas-seklu
  18.
• Nikklikkjaw fuq Vive les villes dAquitaine.
  Il-belt ta Bordeaux mhux belt ta min jitlifha.
  Hija l-hames l-akbar belt fi Franza u l- kapitali
  tal-industrija tal- inbid. Hija kkunsidrata wkoll
  bhala l-aktar post importanti fl- Ewropa fdak li
  ghandu xjaqsam ma ricerka militari, spazjali u
  aeronautika. Il-parti storika tal-belt hija
  mnizzla fil-Unesco World Heritage List minhabba
  l-arkitettura tal-post li tmur lura ghas-seklu
  18. Bliet ohra nteressanti huma l-belt ta Agen
  maghrufa ghat-tkabbir tal- pruna, Bayonne fejn
  ghadha ssir il-korrida u Biarritz la plage des
  rois et la reine des plages- il- bajja
  tar-rejjiet u r-regina tal- bajjiet- post
  popolari fejn fost dawk li jhobbu l-isports tal-
  bahar fosthom is-surfing.
• Imma la qed nitkellmu dwar Aquitaine u Bordeaux
  ma nistghux ma naghtux daqqa tghajn lejn
  Destination Vignobles. Tistghu tahsbu jigu
  prodotti aktar minn 700 miljun flixkun imbid
  Bordeaux fis-sena- li jvarjaw minn imbid ta
  kuljum imbid tal- mejda nghidlu jien sa whud
  mill-aktar imbejjed fini u prestiggjuzi
  fid-dinja. Il- maggoranza tal- imbejjed ta
  Bordeaux huma homor pero insibu wkoll xi mbejjed
  bojod u rose ta reputazzjoni gholja. Insibu 9000
  kumpanija li tipproduci l-imbid . FBordeaux
  insibu t-tieni l-akbar wesgha tart li tintuza
  ghat-tkabbir tal-gheneb fid-dinja kollha. Qabilha
  nsibu r-regjun ta Languedoc fi Franza wkoll.
  Imma ghaliex dan is-success kollu fl-imbid
  fBordeaux? L-ewwel nett hemm ix-xmajjar li l-
  hin kollhu jfornu l-ilma ghad-dwieli u il-
  hamrija fiha percentagg gholi ta kalcju u tafal.
  It-tipi diferneti ta haeneb li nsibu huma
  Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, merlot, peit
  verdot, Malbec u Carmenere. L-aktar li nsibu huwa
  l-imbid Cabernet Sauvignon fil- Medoc u Il-
  Merlot fSaint Emilion. Il- Bordeaux l- abjad
  huwa generalment helu bhas-Sauternes.

4

• Ovvjament mal- imbid imur l-ikel. Fil-parti Des
  Plaisirs Gourmands, nsibu li ricetta tipika tal-
  post hija dik ta la poule au pot- ricetta tipika
  tat-tigieg, li r-re Henri 4, Enriku r-raba kien
  ordna li ssir  mill- inqas darba fgimgha fkull
  dar fir-regjun. Ikel popolari iehor huwa l-papra
  u anke l-fwied tal-wizz maghruf bhala foie gras u
  s-soppa La Garbure. Bayonne hija maghrufa
  ghall-perzut, Arcachon ghat-trobbija tal-oysters
  u Agen ghall- pruna. Ma ninsewx fl-ahhar
  id-dezerta appuntu le gateau basque.

5
To go further ...

• La Côte dArgent (the Silver Coast) is the name
  given to the Atlantic ocean sea shore of the
  region Aquitaine. It is located in south west of
  France, and it is a part of the bay of Biscay.
  Many tourists go to that part of France during
  the summer thanks to its endless sand beaches.
• Bordeaux is a city of France very famous for its
  wine production. Its inhabitants are called les
  bordelais. Thanks to its location near the sea
  and the river (la Garonne) , Bordeaux had a long
  history of trade. But tourists are also attracted
  by that city thanks to its atmosphere and its old
  areas. There are many historical, religious and
  cultural sites (le Grand Théâtre, les allées
  deTourny, le Pont de Pierre, la Basilique
  Saint-Michel) to visit and people can also
  enjoy doing shopping in that big city.
• Le phare de Cordouan (the lighthouse of Cordouan)
  is located 7kms away from the coast, on rocks in
  the Atlantic ocean. It gives light to the boats
  arriving in the estuary (the estuary is made by
  the confluence of two main rivers the Garonne
  and the Dordogne that gather before entering the
  ocean). It was built in 1862 and is also called
  the Versailles of the Sea, the Lighthouse of the
  Kings or the King of the Lighthouses. In this
  lighthouse, one can find an apartment called the
  apartment of the King even is no one ever lived
  in there, a chapel at the second floor where
  wedding are celebrated every year, and a big room
  on the third floor called room of the
  Girondins, on the fourth and fifth floors, there
  are rooms where the watchmen sleep. Finally, on
  the sixth floor, there is the light of the
  lighthouse. The lighthouse of Cordouan is the
  last lighthouse of France where watchmen keep on
  working they care if everything works well,
  clean the place and welcome visitors who come to
  visit it. It is planed that during the year 2008,
  the lighthouse will be completely automatic so
  the human presence will disappear on what was
  called before the Cordouan Island.

6

• The Lascaux Cave is probably the most famous
  painted cave of France thanks to its numerous
  paintings dating from the Paleolithic age. It is
  located in Aquitaine, near Perigueux. It was
  discovered in 1940 when four teenagers where
  waling, looking for their dog. One of the
  teenager felt in a hole made by the fall of the
  tree. Quickly, the young boys go and warn their
  former teacher of their discovery and they call a
  specialist of prehistory who came to that region
  to flee the occupation of the north part of
  France during World War 2. Many specialists came
  to work on that discovery and they managed to
  count about 1900 paintings in that cave. In 1948,
  the cave opened to visitors but in 1960, because
  of the alteration due to the visits, the cave had
  several problems and the conservation of
  paintings was in danger. A part of it opened
  again to visitors later but is still a source of
  problems. Many tools where found, but also bones
  and colorings. The cave was never inhabited,
  there are several hypothesis concerning it role,
  but the religious purpose is the more plausible
  one. Nowadays, the Lascaux cave is closed to
  public but a copy was made for people to have an
  idea of the paintings found in the real one.
• La Dame de Brassempouy (the Brassempouy Lady) is
  a fragment of an ivory statue dating from the
  Paleolithic superior . It is one of the oldest
  representation of a human face. It was found in
  Brassempouy , a small village in the Landes in
  1894. It was carved in the ivory of a mammoth. It
  is particular because of its realistic features
  and one can see it in the museum of national
  antiquities in Saint-Germain-en-Laye during
  special exhibitions the rest of the time, it is
  conserved in a special place, not visible by
  visitors.
• The Pair-non-Pair cave is located in the
  department of La Gironde. In this cave there are
  also paintings dating from -30 000BC and was
  discovered in 1881 by a landowner, M. Daleau. He
  was the one who explored it, listed about 15 000
  tools made of flint and bones, he discovered also
  ivory and many animal bones. That cave was
  probably inhabited between -33 000 and -26 000 BC
  and the walls are covered with curved
  representations of animals (horses, mammoths,
  ibexes and cervidae species). That cave can be
  visited all along the year but the number of
  visitors is limited.
• Bayonne is a French city located near the border
  with the Pays Basque. It is an important harbor
  that makes work its economy. People there speak
  French, but some of them also speak a dialect le
  Basque. Bayonne is famous for its celebrations
  such as its corridas during the summer, its Salsa
  festival and its ferias y bodegas gathering many
  people in the streets, dressed in red and white,
  to party during summer. Its is also known thanks
  to its ham le Jambon the Bayonne.

7
Weekly Song Clip

• Lets now listen to this duo that keeps being one
  of the most beautiful of French music. Garou is a
  Canadian singer who gained popularity in France
  when he acted in the musical Notre dame de
  Paris. People like him for his grave voice and
  his kindness. On the other side, Michel Sardou
  is a famous French singer who sang some of the
  most beautiful and famous songs that belong now
  to the French culture such as Je viens du sud,
  Les lacs du Connemara, En chantant, La
  maladie damourMichel Sardou is without doubt
  the best-selling, with tens of millions of albums
  sold and a string of more than 25 consecutive hit
  singles. Sardou has often written solid,
  impact-driven songs which illustrate his
  political and social views without fear of
  popular compromise. He has also ignored the
  prospect of international audience, preferring
  instead to focus his attention and artistic
  ability on his homeland. The following song was
  written by Didier Barbelivien, a famous french
  singer and composer.
• Garou et Sardou La rivière de notre enfance

Je me souviens d'un arbreJe me souviens du
ventDe ces rumeurs de vaguesAu bout de
l'océanJe me souviens d'une villeJe me souviens
d'une voixDe ces Noëls qui brillentDans la
neige et le froidJe me souviens d'un rêveJe me
souviens d'un roiD'un été qui s'achèveD'une
maison de boisJe me souviens du cielJe me
souviens de l'eauD'une robe en dentelleDéchirée
dans le dos
RefrainCe n'est pas du sang qui coule dans
nos veinesC'est la rivière de notre enfanceCe
n'est pas sa mort qui me fait d'la peineC'est de
n'plus voir mon père qui danseJe me souviens
d'un phareJe me souviens d'un signeD'une
lumière dans le soirD'une chambre anonymeJe me
souviens d'amourJe me souviens des gestesLe
fiacre du retourLe parfum sur ma veste
Je me souviens si tardJe me souviens si peuDe
ces trains de hasardD'un couple d'amoureuxJe me
souviens de LondresJe me souviens de RomeDu
soleil qui fait l'ombreDu chagrin qui fait
l'hommeau Refrain, x2
8
Intercultural Differences Eating habits

• In France, there are three main meals. In the
  morning the breakfast consists in fruit juice,
  toasts or cereals and tea coffee or chocolate.
  People also buy sometimes croissants and pains au
  chocolat but it is not everybody and not every
  day we reserve it for the week end, when we
  have time to go to the Patisserie to by them.
• n Malta, it seems that not much importance is
  given to breakfast but nowadays a lot of effort
  is being done to encourage this eating habit. On
  Sunday, people eat also as a breakfast bacon
  with eggs and sausages or pastizzi.
• In France, all the meals are accompanied with
  fresh bread. French people eat everything with
  bread, even the pastas.
• During the week-ends, or when there are guests,
  the lunch ort he diner start with an Apéritif
  which consists in drinking one or two glasses of
  alcohol and to eat small appetizers before
  eating.
• In France, in schools or even at work, people can
  go to eat in a canteen which avoid bad food and
  sandwiches every day. A lot of efforts are made
  regarding the meals that are more and more
  healthy with vegetables and fruit. In Malta, a
  few schools have canteens but most of them don
  not serve healthy food to the students. It is
  more snacks.
• In France, at about 4.00, the students would eat
  le Gouter after school which consists mainly in
  biscuits. Adults also have a small snack at that
  time. This corresponds to the Maltese Tea time.

9

• France is also known for being the country of the
  cheese. French people eat cheese at every meal
  usually. Each region has a special cheese. It is
  the same for the wine. The Maltese appreciate
  cheese and good wine too but they do not have a
  good impression of French food because of the
  stereotypes that is a nicely decorated plate with
  only a small amount of food. But this kind of
  cuisine is only found is big restaurants. Most of
  the traditional food in France is very copious !
• In France, there is also the Semaine du Gout
  (taste week). This week is dedicated to food to
  make the children aware of the importance of
  eating healthily. Children cook, taste different
  food during that week.