GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

K · 08-09-2006, 02:34 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening

Sacha writes
On 8/9/06 11:21, in article , "Judith
Lea" wrote:

I would add 6
months living in Belgium but I can imagine the French reaction to that! ;-)

I spent a weekend in Belgium last year - I speak French but I found them
very difficult to understand.

We spent last Friday night in a lovely old hotel on the French border in
Northern France and heard Walloon French, Wow, different to anything I
have heard before - mind you the food and wine were superb so I didn't
have to speak too much!

I was living in a small hamlet just on the very edge of the battlefield of
Waterloo. It was in 1970 so a very long time ago now but I don't remember a
problem with understanding them. We were the only English there, so perhaps
I just got used to it. I do recall thinking that their numbering system of
septante and nonante for seventy and ninety was a great deal more 'sensible'
than that of the French!

Isn't the French a relic of counting to base 20?

ISTR the Phoenicians counted to base 60. I still find that
mind-boggling, despite having grown up with a monetary system which
combined base 4, 12 and 20.
--
Kay