Time to dust off the schoolboy French again...

[snowleopard]

I have a Yachtsman's 10 Language Dictionary that seems to contain only words I'll never use, e.g. it can tell you the Portuguese for hanging knees but not the French for marina berth.

Anyone know of a source of useful nautical French, particularly things like key words for VHF?

 

[Gunfleet]

VHF French is pretty difficult, especially if men talk to you over it because the parts of the band the voice uses that are cut out to allow radio transmission seem to have a particularly bad affect on French male voices. Women are easier to understand. A vous (over) and j'ecoute (go ahead - literally I'm listening) are the most useful. You'll have to figure out what you want to say in the message from your schoolboy French (which would be a bit of a mission, if your French is anything like mine was when I left school!). For a pocket sized guide to French nautical terms try Termes de Marine published by Chasse Maree and containing lots of English translations and an English index. You can buy it from them direct at Abri du Marin 29117 Douarnenez. The classic French dictionary of nautical terms is Merrien but you'll have to search around French bookshops for that (or try amazon.fr) but one of the most useful items of all is the drawing with names of the parts of a boat in Bloc Marine Livre d'abord, the French equivalent of Reeds but cheaper.