The Alliance Francaise of Tiruchi celebrated ‘La fete Nationale de France' popularly known as le quatorze juillet (July 14 celebrations) or Bastille Day on Saturday. The event was marked by distribution of certificates to students of the A1 Part One course and the 40 hour crash course for beginners in French, offered by Alliance Francaise.
G. Balakrishnan, former Vice Principal, St. Joseph's College who presided over the event, described how French had evolved into an international language. He said it was beginning to provide stiff competition to English. A trip to Europe would be difficult without adequate knowledge of French, he added.
Yannick Meunier, French faculty, Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology who distributed certificates to the students, noted that knowledge of French would open up new avenues.
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“Learning French is like embarking on an adventure. Students joined the courses offered by the Alliance for diverse reasons but today they are united by a common knowledge of French”, he said.
Bastille Day is celebrated in France to commemorate the storming of the Bastille prison in 1789, a landmark event of the French Revolution. This act of defiance spelt the end of feudalism and marked the conception of a nation based on the principles of ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity'.
A cultural show including a Bharathanatyam performance, violin and veena recitals, was presented by the students of Alliance.
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Geetha Sri, co-ordinator of Alliance Francaise delivered the welcome address. Part Two of the A1 course would commence on 23 July.