Les cloches de Genève
The Bells of Geneva
A visiting student discovers Geneva's old town during a street-music festival and hears its church bells for the first time.
- travel
- music
- discovery
Tap an underlined word to see its meaning.
What you'll encounter
- Grammar
- present tense
- depuis + present
- Vocabulary
- music vocabulary
- travel and discovery vocabulary
- Skills
- reading a sensory discovery narrative
- following a short conversation with a stranger
Eléna est étudiante. Elle vient d’Italie et habite à Genève depuis une semaine, pour ses études. Aujourd’hui, c’est samedi, et elle a du temps libre.
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Eléna is a student. She comes from Italy and has been living in Geneva for a week, for her studies. Today is Saturday, and she has free time.
Elle étudie l’ à l’université, et elle aime beaucoup les bâtiments anciens de la ville.
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She studies architecture at the university, and she loves the old buildings in the city.
Depuis son arrivée, Eléna explore la ville petit à petit. Elle aime les rues calmes, les vieux bâtiments et les petits cafés. Mais elle ne connaît pas encore très bien la vieille ville.
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Since arriving, Eléna has been exploring the city little by little. She likes the quiet streets, the old buildings, and the small cafés. But she doesn't know the old town very well yet.
Elle décide de visiter la vieille ville à pied. Les rues sont étroites et pleines de vieilles maisons en pierre. Soudain, elle entend de la musique au loin.
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She decides to explore the old town on foot. The streets are narrow and full of old stone houses. Suddenly, she hears music in the distance.
Eléna suit le son. Elle arrive sur une grande place où il y a un de musique de rue. Il y a beaucoup de monde sur la place. Un jeune homme joue du violon près d’une boutique de fleurs, et un peu plus loin, un vieux monsieur joue de l’accordéon près d’une fontaine.
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Eléna follows the sound. She arrives at a big square where there's a street music festival. There are a lot of people in the square. A young man plays violin near a flower shop, and a little further away, an old man plays accordion near a fountain.
Sa musique est joyeuse et les gens dansent autour de lui. C’est un moment nouveau pour Eléna : elle ne connaît pas ce genre de festival en Italie.
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His music is cheerful, and people dance around him. This is a new experience for Eléna: she doesn't know this kind of festival back in Italy.
Des enfants dansent en rond autour du musicien, en riant. Eléna sourit et en rythme avec la foule.
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Children dance in a circle around the musician, laughing. Eléna smiles and claps along with the crowd.
Une femme l’invite à danser un moment. Eléna rit et essaie quelques pas, un peu , mais elle s’amuse beaucoup.
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A woman invites her to dance for a moment. Eléna laughs and tries a few steps, a little awkwardly, but she has a lot of fun.
Près de la fontaine, une femme vend des de la ville. Eléna en achète une, avec une photo du lac, pour l’envoyer à sa mère en Italie.
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Near the fountain, a woman sells postcards of the city. Eléna buys one, with a picture of the lake, to send to her mother in Italy.
Une femme, assise sur un banc, remarque l’intérêt d’Eléna. « C’est la première fois ? » demande-t-elle en souriant. « Oui ! » répond Eléna. « C’est magnifique. Ce festival a lieu chaque année ? »
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A woman sitting on a bench notices Eléna's interest. "Is this your first time?" she asks, smiling. "Yes!" answers Eléna. "It's wonderful. Does this festival happen every year?"
« Oui, tous les étés », explique la femme. « Les musiciens viennent de toute la Suisse. » Elle offre à Eléna une petite chaude d’un stand voisin. Eléna la remercie et goûte avec plaisir.
Show English
"Yes, every summer," explains the woman. "Musicians come from all over Switzerland." She offers Eléna a small warm waffle from a nearby stand. Eléna thanks her and tastes it happily.
Au-dessus de la place, les d’une vieille église se mettent à sonner. Le son est fort et profond. Eléna lève les yeux vers la tour et reste immobile, surprise par la beauté du moment.
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Above the square, the bells of an old church begin to ring. The sound is loud and deep. Eléna looks up at the tower and stands still, struck by the beauty of the moment.
Après le festival, Eléna marche jusqu’au lac. Elle voit le fameux qui monte très haut dans le ciel, plus haut qu’un immeuble. Les derniers rayons du soleil brillent sur l’eau.
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After the festival, Eléna walks to the lake. She sees the famous water fountain shooting high into the sky, higher than a building. The last rays of sunlight shine on the water.
Le soir, Eléna rentre chez elle, le cœur léger. Elle décide d’écrire quelques mots sur la carte postale avant de dormir, pour raconter cette journée magique à sa mère.
Show English
In the evening, Eléna goes home with a light heart. She decides to write a few words on the postcard before sleeping, to tell her mother about this magical day.
Elle pense déjà à revenir la semaine prochaine, et peut-être à inviter une amie de l’université. Genève, avec sa musique, ses cloches et son lac, lui plaît déjà beaucoup.
Show English
She is already thinking about coming back next week, and maybe inviting a friend from university. Geneva, with its music, its bells, and its lake, already pleases her very much.
Show full English translation
Eléna is a student. She comes from Italy and has been living in Geneva for a week, for her studies. Today is Saturday, and she has free time.
She studies architecture at the university, and she loves the old buildings in the city.
Since arriving, Eléna has been exploring the city little by little. She likes the quiet streets, the old buildings, and the small cafés. But she doesn't know the old town very well yet.
She decides to explore the old town on foot. The streets are narrow and full of old stone houses. Suddenly, she hears music in the distance.
Eléna follows the sound. She arrives at a big square where there's a street music festival. There are a lot of people in the square. A young man plays violin near a flower shop, and a little further away, an old man plays accordion near a fountain.
His music is cheerful, and people dance around him. This is a new experience for Eléna: she doesn't know this kind of festival back in Italy.
Children dance in a circle around the musician, laughing. Eléna smiles and claps along with the crowd.
A woman invites her to dance for a moment. Eléna laughs and tries a few steps, a little awkwardly, but she has a lot of fun.
Near the fountain, a woman sells postcards of the city. Eléna buys one, with a picture of the lake, to send to her mother in Italy.
A woman sitting on a bench notices Eléna's interest. "Is this your first time?" she asks, smiling. "Yes!" answers Eléna. "It's wonderful. Does this festival happen every year?"
"Yes, every summer," explains the woman. "Musicians come from all over Switzerland." She offers Eléna a small warm waffle from a nearby stand. Eléna thanks her and tastes it happily.
Above the square, the bells of an old church begin to ring. The sound is loud and deep. Eléna looks up at the tower and stands still, struck by the beauty of the moment.
After the festival, Eléna walks to the lake. She sees the famous water fountain shooting high into the sky, higher than a building. The last rays of sunlight shine on the water.
In the evening, Eléna goes home with a light heart. She decides to write a few words on the postcard before sleeping, to tell her mother about this magical day.
She is already thinking about coming back next week, and maybe inviting a friend from university. Geneva, with its music, its bells, and its lake, already pleases her very much.
Words to know
- architecture
- — architecture
- festival
- — festival
- tape des mains
- — claps her hands
- maladroite
- — awkward
- cartes postales
- — postcards
- gaufre
- — waffle
- cloches
- — bells
- jet d’eau
- — water fountain