What's a "marsouin"? + kitchen garden tour!

A wild boar, a hedgehog, a dog... lion... chicken. I can't find a photo of a porpoise to illustrate today's word--thankfully these furry and feathery volunteers behind a shop window are happy to pose as one. (And the handwritten ads were taped to the window by students looking for work).

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le marsouin (mar-swehn)

 : porpoise 

In old French le marsouin was pourpois (poisson-cochon, or fish-pig)

Audio File: listen to Jean-Marc pronounce the following sentence Download MP3 or Wav file

Le marsouin est aussi appelé le cochon de mer.
The porpoise is also called the sea pig.

Porpoises are related to dolphins and whales. Do you have any other trivia or something to add for this marsouin entry? Do you collect marsouins or have you ever seen one? Where? Thanks for sharing here in the comments box. 

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Smokey says Come along on a garden tour with me...


And see poppies, roquette, and zucchini!

Inside the stone beds there are cucumbers, kale, and lots of fèves! 


There are stairs leading up to an ancient rock wall... once hidden behind masses of thorny brambles. 

That's me, says Smokey, humble King of the Hill. 


And these are tomatoes, peppers, and poppies from the field. 


Here's how bees and hummingbirds pollinate. Help save these creatures--allez make haste!

Raspberries and soucis, or marigolds... does the latter really work or is that an old wives' tale?

 Some of the materials have been reporpoised. (Sorry to interrupt your story, Smokey, but the word you are looking for is "repurposed".) 

Smokey: This re- re-puh... re-puh... reporpoised wood comes from the French railroad tracks below our house. 

Hope you enjoyed my garden tour. Be kind to bees, purposes, and the earth.

(Smokey, I think you meant "porpoises" this time.)

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Back in February, Jean-Marc and I planned out the garden. But we didn't always see eye to eye...

• Learn French in context: read Kristin's vocabulary-rich memoirs: Words in a French Life or Blossoming in Provence 
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This old panier has had many reincarnations: once used in a produce shop, it has since held bath towels, dried herbs, fresh pots of lavender, bottles of shampoo and bath supplies. Currently it holds a tie from a bale of straw, the string could now be used to tie up the tomatoes... or mend a broken corner of the basket....

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