🗺️ Using French in Unfamiliar Territory

An Afternoon In Montréal, Québec

Montréal was not one of the cities on my travel list until after I started learning French. For this first visit, I was happy to stay for just a few hours to get a feel for the city.

In my February recap and plan for March, I had these two tasks on my board:

1. Visit Montréal

2. Order something in French

I did both of those during my trip plus some other things!

💬 Speaking French

I didn't speak much during my visit, but whenever I did, I made sure to communicate only in French. The first instance was when I ordered a drink at Lindt in the Montréal Eaton Centre. Since I planned to visit Mount Royal and the mall was on my way, I decided to stop there first. As I walked in, I was greeted by a staff who told me the sales for the day before offering me a complimentary chocolate. I nodded along, said “Merci” and put my free chocolate into my jacket pocket.¹

I felt a bit nervous when it came time to order my hot chocolate. The person behind the counter greeted me, and I proceeded to place my order. Ho…