Many moons ago, I wrote about Duolingo, the language learning app that uses short lessons, goals and badges to encourage you to reach your targets. I’ve dipped in and out of that app over the years and for some reason, just recently, the obsession grabbed me once again. I downloaded the app and was impressed with some of the new content since the last time I looked at it. Not only are there the standard lessons – with each topic of the language broken up into a specific area where you can learn and gain skills via typing, speaking and listening – but now there are stories and audio lessons too.

When I was younger, I moved from one school that hadn’t started teaching languages yet, to another that were already a year into their studies. I was an entire year behind in learning French, and I vividly remember spending a few weeks beforehand driving around with my mother, listening to some French tapes to try and catch up. In the end, I did a couple of years of French, but studied Spanish more intensely and took exams in that language instead.

Podcasting News » LonelyGirl15 Creators Get $5 Million For EQAL Startup I both love and hate LonelyGirl15 at the same time. It’s an interesting mix! Podcasting News » Audience For Audio, Video Podcasts Way Up Everyone loves a good set of stats. Quelle horreur! How can the French Eurovision song be in English? It irks me when songs have both English and their native language in there. Pick one and stick to it.

I’ve just been looking at the official Franck Montagny site, and it’s a bit odd. The news is in French, and I don’t speak the language, which makes things a little bit tricky. What I am confused about is the beginning and the end. Beginning of news article: Hot wheels,hell yea !!!! Pas beaucoup de news ces derniers temps hein ?? End of news article: Voilà vous en savez tout autant que moi !

I’ve already mentioned my desire to buy a house and make it solar powered and very eco-friendly. It’ll be tough to do that in this country, given the lack of adequate space, and the cost of the space once you find it. The best bet is to move somewhere else, like France. But I want to get a nice big plot of land with plenty of space to sort out a vegetable garden and the usual compost and green features that you would expect.

There’s a programme on the BBC at the moment, and it basically involves three “celebrities” going to France and trying to learn the language. It is a reality show, but it’s not like Big Brother or anything like that. The celebs are staying in a posh villa in a really nice, rural part of France. They are not allowed to speak English between 9am and 5pm, or something like that. They have their own personal French tutor to help them.