how to say hello to a french hottie

I know what you are thinking?  How could I possibly say hello to a stranger?  To a handsome beautiful stranger?  In France?

Fear not! Saying hello is a much more common and expected activity over here in Europe than in Anglophone countries.

And there are lots of different ways to do it.

Here are (voila) my favourites…

Bonjour

(Good day)

It’s a classic - and yes you should say it to everyone all the time, when you walk into a shop or restaurant, when you pass someone in the street and make eye contact.

Bonsoir

(Good evening)

Evenings start late - wait till the sun is down to use this one.

Don’t use Bonne nuit

(Good night)

Unless you actually just made love to someone and are trying to whisper in their ear that you are about to go to sleep right now.

Okay so that’s the classics out of the way. Now let’s try the fun ones.

Salut

(Hey!)

Think of this as like a cheeky salute with a little wink.  You don’t pronounce the ‘t’ sound so it sounds like saahloo. 

Great thing about this one is it works for goodbye just as well.  So, for those of you that know how to hit on an Italian with ‘ciao’ you’ve got the same deal here.

Coucou

(Oh hey there!)

If you think that sounds like popping out of a European wooden clock then you are bang on. I can’t think of a better translation than a “Boo! Hi there friend, I’m a friendly tiny bird! Saying hello  Cocuou is however extremely common and a great one for stating a text message to any gender or age.

Ca va

(How are you?)

This is the easiest.  It’s like in Australia we say (how is it going?) but in the French ca va goes for everything.

Ca = it. Va = goes.

If someone asks you “ca va?” You just respond “ca va". You can then ask them back “ca va”. To which they will likely respond “ca va” or “oui”

Here is a classic script

French hottie: Ca va?

You: Ca va

[PAUSE]

You: Ca va?

French hottie: Oui, ca va.

Too easy. Right?

BOUNUS round: Ca roule

If you want your “how’s it going?” to be super smooth you can say replace “it goes” (ca va) with “it rolls” (ca roule). Here, roule is pronounced like the word ‘rule’ in English.

If you DO try this out please be aware it is common for French people to respond to this question with “ca route ma poule” (it rolls, my chicken). 

If someone is calling you their chicken, well then, maybe you and your new friend are ready for une tres bonne soirée (a very good evening).

Remember, DO try this at home or in the streets of Paris.

Bisous 💋

Clair deLune

P.S. Need a non judgemental friend to practice with? You can book in a 10 minute call with me for free any time!