"Je me débrouille pas mal, je pense," I muster, blushing as my distorted vowels spill out in front of the smug cashier. For someone whose worst grade ever was in French Phonetics (having a professor named Mme Boucher probably didn't help), daily life in France can feel a lot like a never-ending test in the language lab. And in the capital, where English-speaking tourists flock like sneakered sheep, it's easy to be mistaken for a fly-by-night Parisian. Of course, sometimes this can be used to your advantage, like when you're accosted by petitioners or taking longer than normal to count out change at the supermarket. For the most part, though, it feels like a slap in the face to have a French person answer you in English. And it's a matter of honor to accept the challenge and fight back with every irregular verb and idiom you can think of.Kate Hudson as Isabel Walker. [Online image] 2003.
