A Personal First

I started chatting to a fellow student in samba class last night about one of the new rhythms we were learning. There are perhaps 25 students and I hadn’t talked much to her before; usually just a few comments shouted over the din of our classmate’s drumming. She was friendly, but I was having a little trouble placing her accent; at first it seemed like she was from France, but then I wasn’t sure. After we’d exchanged a few pleasantries, the one anglophone I knew in the class walked past, and I said something in English to her. Suddenly, the first student I was talking to stopped, switched to English, and said, “Are you anglophone?” Slightly taken aback by her lack of a French accent, I told her I was. She replied, “So am I!” It turned out she’s from Newfoundland, but had lived in France for several years.

From talking to friends, next up on the list of signs that I’m living the bilingual life is attending an event with live translation, and wondering why the speakers keep repeating themselves. I’ll keep you posted.