Fête de la Musique: Negotiating a meeting point in a crowded square

💬 In casual French, on is the normal way to say "we", even though the verb looks like the one for "he" or "she". So it's on se retrouve, not nous nous retrouvons, among friends.

💬 Trop means "too" here, but in casual speech it also just means "really". So c'est trop bien means "it's so good", not a complaint.

🇫🇷 French pharmacies have glowing green cross signs and turn up on almost every busy street, so they're a go-to meeting landmark. That is also why there's often more than one nearby.

💬 Laquelle matches a feminine word like la pharmacie. For a masculine one, such as le café, it becomes lequel.

💬 The little en means "of them" and can't be left out, even though English drops it. Same pattern: J'en ai trois "I have three (of them)".

💬 Before a masculine noun, de le squeezes into du: à côté du métro "next to the metro".

💬 Celle stands in for a feminine noun already mentioned, here la pharmacie. For a masculine one, use celui: celui à côté du café "the one next to the café".

🇫🇷 J'arrive is what people say even if they haven't left yet. It means "on my way" and is often optimistic.

💬 Dans counts forward from now, meaning five minutes from this moment. En cinq minutes would mean "within five minutes", that is, how long something takes.

💬 French uses the plain present tense for something about to happen. J'arrive here means "I'll be there", with no extra future word needed.

💬 The final t is silent: (par-feh).

💬 Colours come after the noun in French. Swap it out: une casquette bleue "a blue cap".

💬 French often uses J'ai "I have" to describe what you're wearing. Je porte "I'm wearing" also works but sounds a little more formal.

💬 À tout de suite means within minutes. For later the same day, say À tout à l'heure "See you later".