Visiting Saint Emilion – French Story & Translation

Author: Edwige

Today, we’ll take a stroll in the gorgeous village of Saint Emilion. Saint Emilion is world-famous for its wine, but it’s also a typical village of the Bordeaux region, so pretty and interesting to visit.

Use the floating blue icon in the bottom right to hide/reveal the English translations below or just click here.

This story was written by Kate as she was doing a French immersion homestay at teacher’s with French Today. Merci Kate!

Aujourd’hui avec ma prof et hĂŽtesse, nous sommes allĂ©es visiter un joli village dans le Bordelais (la rĂ©gion de Bordeaux) : le cĂ©lĂšbre Saint Emilion. La vue sur les toits est tout simplement saisissante, et tellement typique de la rĂ©gion !

Today with my French teacher and host, we went to visit a beautiful village in Bordelais (Bordeaux region): the famous Saint Emilion. The view over the rooftops is simply dazzling and so typical of the region!

saint emilion bilingual visit

1 – Saint Emilion and Its Church

Tout a commencĂ© avec Emilion qui Ă©tait un moine venant de Bretagne. Il a dĂ©cidĂ© de rester ici et d’habiter dans une grotte. Depuis ce temps-lĂ  beaucoup de religieux se sont installĂ©s ici et ont construit de trĂšs beaux bĂątiments. Il y a une Ă©glise monolithique (construite directement dans le roc). Elle est trĂšs impressionnante!

It all started with Emilion who was a monk from Brittany. He decided to stay here and live in a cave. Since that time lots of religious people have settled down here and built very nice constructions. There is a monolithic church (built straight in the rock). It is very impressive!

learn french saint emilion

2 – England and Saint Emilion

Nous avons aussi marchĂ© dans le cloitre. Nous avons vu le gisant d’un chevalier anglais. En fait, l’Aquitaine Ă©tait anglaise au douziĂšme siĂšcle pendant trois siĂšcles!

We also walked through the cloister. We saw the recumbent statue of an English knight. Actually, Aquitaine was English in the 12th century for 3 centuries!

learn french saint emilion

L’Aquitaine est restĂ©e anglaise jusqu’à la fin de la guerre de cent ans en 1453.

Aquitaine remained English until the end of the Hundred years war in 1453.

Pendant cette pĂ©riode beaucoup de vin a Ă©tĂ© exportĂ© en Angleterre. Pour garder les bateaux aussi lourds sur leur retour en France, ils remplissaient les cales avec des pierres. Aujourd’hui nous pouvons voir ces pierres dans les charmantes ruelles de Saint Emilion. Attention de porter de bonnes chaussures pour marcher sur les petits pavĂ©s !

During that time lots of wine were exported to England. To keep the boats heavy enough on their return, they filled up the hold of the boats with stones. Today we can see these stones in the charming little streets of Saint Emilion. Make sure to wear good shoes to walk on the little cobblestones!

learn french saint emilion

3 – Meaning of The French Expression “Avoir du BlĂ©â€

A cĂŽtĂ© de la place il y a les Halles, c’est oĂč ils vendaient les cĂ©rĂ©ales comme le blĂ©. Seulement les gens riches pouvaient acheter du blĂ© Ă  l’époque. Edwige m’a alors appris l’expression « avoir du blĂ© » qui signifie « avoir de l’argent ».

Next to the main square are the “Halles”, it is where they used to sell cereals like wheat. Only wealthy people could buy wheat back then, Edwige then taught me the expression “avoir du blĂ©â€ meaning having money.

4 – St Emilion Tourist Train

Il y a aussi le petit train pour visiter la ville mais je recommande de marcher si vous pouvez parce que le petit train ne peut pas accĂ©der aux toutes petites rues et je pense qu’elles sont les plus mignonnes.

There is also a little train to visit the city but I recommend walking if you can because the little train cannot access the tiny little streets and I think they are the prettiest.

bilingual story saint emilion 5

AprĂšs la visite nous nous sommes assises Ă  une terrasse pour dĂ©guster un dĂ©licieux verre de vin : Edwige m’a parlĂ© du vin de Saint Emilion, et puis m’a demandĂ© mes impressions sur Saint Emilion et j’ai pu pratiquer les temps du passĂ© que nous avons appris en classe. C’était une trĂšs bonne aprĂšs-midi !

After the visit we sat at a terrace for a delicious glass of wine: Edwige told me about Saint Emilion’s wine, and then asked about my impressions of Saint Emilion and I could practice the past tenses we learned in class. It was a very good afternoon!

Author: Edwige

Edwige

Bonjour! My name is Edwige, I live in the beautiful Bordeaux region of France, famous for its wine.

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