So I’m going to tell you something embarrassing that still makes me cringe when I think about it. I was dating this French girl, Margot, who I met at a bar in Delhi. She was visiting from Paris for like three weeks. Super cool girl, super smart, didn’t speak much Hindi, so we were communicating mostly in English but she kept trying to teach me French.
One day she asked me “Veux-tu diner avec moi jeudi?” And I was like “Yeah sure, whatever day that is.” I literally had no idea what jeudi meant. I just said yes. So I’m thinking in my head, great, I’ll plan something cool for Friday. I started making reservations, I told my friends I’d meet them Friday evening instead of Thursday. I was all organized in my head for Friday.
Thursday comes around. Margot messages me “Je t’attends au restaurant jeudi soir.” I’m thinking okay, she’s confirming Friday. But she’s confirming today. And I’m sitting at home because I thought it was happening tomorrow. I literally missed our date because I didn’t know jeudi was Thursday.
She wasn’t even mad, she just laughed. But I was mortified. That’s when I realized okay, I really need to actually learn the French days properly because this is embarrassing.
Starting From Complete Zero
Before this incident, I hadn’t even tried to learn French. My company was like “Hey, we have some work in France, interested?” And I was like “Sure, I’ll figure it out.” But I hadn’t actually figured anything out. I just assumed I could pick it up when I got there or something.
After the Margot incident, I was motivated. I found this French coaching place online called Berliner’s Institute. I was scrolling through their French language courses and they had this whole thing about learning basics properly. I was like, okay, let me not fuck this up again.
I called them and they were really helpful. They explained their approach and stuff. I felt good about it. I booked a spot and started going to classes.
My First Class Was Humbling as Hell
I walked in and the first thing the teacher, this guy named Marc, asked was “What do you already know in French?” I was like “Um… nothing?” He just smiled and said “That’s okay, we start from zero.”
He literally started with the alphabet. A, B, C in French. I was sitting there thinking I’m paying money to learn the alphabet like I’m five years old. But whatever, I was there to learn.
Then he moved to numbers. Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq. We spent like an hour on this. Repeating after him. Writing them down. Using them in sentences.
Then he said “Okay, now let’s learn the days of the week because you’re probably going to need this soon in real life.” That’s when I perked up because yeah, I definitely needed this.
Lundi, Mardi, Mercredi – The Confusing Three
Marc wrote them on the board. Lundi. Mardi. Mercredi. Jeudi. Vendredi. Samedi. Dimanche.
I was staring at them thinking, okay, which one is which? They all kind of looked the same to me. Like, they all end with -i sound basically.
Marc said “Okay, I’m going to teach you a trick. You see how they’re all similar? That’s because they come from Roman days. They’re named after planets and gods.”
He explained that Lundi comes from “Lune” which is moon. So Lundi is Monday. Moon day. That made sense to me. I wrote it down with a little moon drawing next to it.
Then he said Mardi is Tuesday and it comes from Mars, the god. Mars day. Mars is red, Tuesday is Mars’ day. Okay, I could remember that.
Mercredi is Wednesday from Mercury. Mercury day. Okay.
Jeudi is Thursday from Jupiter. Jupiter day.
Vendredi is Friday from Venus. Venus day.
Samedi is Saturday from Sabbath, the holy day.
Dimanche is Sunday from Dominus, Lord’s day.
So I’m sitting there writing all this down, feeling like a school kid, but actually understanding the connection between the words and what they mean.
The Problem Was I’d Forget Immediately After
We practiced them that whole class. Like, Marc would say a day and I’d repeat it. Then he’d say “What day is Mercredi?” and I’d say “Wednesday” and he’d correct me because I’d say it confused. Like, I’d get Mercredi and Mardi mixed up instantly.
This happened for the whole class. I’d learn it and five minutes later I’d forget. It was frustrating as hell.
When I left that class, I literally knew nothing. On my drive home, I was trying to remember them and I couldn’t. I remembered moon day was Monday. But I had no idea which one was which after that.
That’s when I realized I actually had to study outside of class. Like, Marc couldn’t just inject this knowledge into my brain. I actually had to sit at home and learn it.
My Desperate Attempt to Learn Them
I went home and I made a chart. Just on a piece of paper. Lundi, Mardi, Mercredi, etc. And I wrote the English day next to each one. Then I put it on my fridge.
Every time I went to the kitchen to get chai or something, I’d read it out loud. “Lundi, lundi, lundi. Monday.” Just repeating it.
I did this for like a week. Every time I passed my fridge, I’d read the days out loud. My roommate thought I was losing it. He’d be like “Dude, why are you yelling at your fridge every hour?”
But honestly it worked. By the end of a week, when I said “Lundi” my brain automatically thought “Monday.”
Actually Using Them In Conversation
The next class, Marc asked us to introduce ourselves and say what we like to do on different days. Like, what do you do on Monday? What do you do on Wednesday?
I was terrified. I didn’t want to mess up. But I was like “Je travaille lundi. Je joue au foot mercredi. Je vais au bar samedi.” I work Monday. I play football Wednesday. I go to the bar Saturday.
Marc corrected my pronunciation a bit but he was like “Good, you’re using them.” That felt good actually. Like, I was doing something right.
The girl next to me, her name was Priya, she tried to say something about Saturday and she said “Je vais au cinema samedi” and she pronounced it wrong. She said “sa-me-dee” like really emphasizing each syllable. Marc gently corrected her and she said it again correctly. “Samedi.” And then we all practiced it together.
After that class, I felt more confident about the days. Like, I could actually use them now.
The Second Date with Margot (Which Actually Happened)
Two weeks after my French classes started, I texted Margot. I was like “Veux-tu diner avec moi samedi?” Do you want to have dinner with me Saturday? And I was 100% sure samedi was Saturday. I’d written it on my brain basically.
She said “Oui!” And we had an actual conversation in French about it. Like, she asked “Quelle heure?” What time? And I said “20 heures.” 8 PM. And she was like “Parfait.” Perfect.
So Saturday came. I was there at the restaurant at exactly 8 PM. Margot was there too. We had dinner. She was impressed that I was learning French. We talked about it. I told her about my class, about learning the days.
She was like “Marc is a good teacher. Efficient.” So apparently she knew about the place. She said she’d tried to learn Hindi once at a similar place when she first moved to Delhi.
That date went way better than the first one. And honestly, it was because I had actually invested time in learning the basic stuff properly. Not rushing through it, not guessing, but actually sitting down and learning it.
Why The Days Matter More Than You Think
I realize this sounds silly, but knowing the days of the week changed how I could communicate in French. Before, I couldn’t make plans. I couldn’t talk about my schedule. I couldn’t understand when someone was asking to meet.
Once I knew the days, suddenly I could say “Je suis libre lundi et mardi.” I’m free Monday and Tuesday. That’s a useful sentence. That’s something you actually need to say.
I could understand when someone said “Demain est jeudi.” Tomorrow is Thursday. Or “La semaine prochaine, lundi.” Next week, Monday.
It’s not exciting vocabulary. It’s not like learning how to say cool stuff. But it’s foundational. It’s the stuff that actually matters in real conversations.
Staying Consistent With Practice
After those first two weeks, the days stuck with me because I kept using them. Every time I made plans with Margot or my friends, I’d try to use French. “Veux-tu sortir vendredi?” Want to go out Friday? “Je suis occupé jeudi.” I’m busy Thursday.
Marc also had us do homework where we’d write out our week schedule in French. Like Monday I do this, Tuesday I do that. And we’d read it out loud in class. That repetition really helped.
I also started following French accounts on Instagram and I’d see posts like “Lundi motivation” or “Samedi mood” and I’d understand what they meant. That helped reinforce it too.
By like week four of classes, saying the days in French was automatic. I didn’t have to think about it anymore. Someone would say jeudi and I’d automatically think Thursday. It just happened.
Things I Learned About Learning Languages
I learned a few things about myself from this experience.
First, I can’t learn anything without actually using it. If I just memorized the days and never used them, I would’ve forgotten them immediately. But because I actually had to use them to make plans with Margot, they stuck.
Second, basic stuff matters. I wanted to skip straight to like, having conversations about interesting topics. But you can’t have conversations if you don’t know the days of the week. It’s boring but it’s foundational.
Third, repetition actually works. I know that sounds obvious, but until I did it, I didn’t believe it. Reading my fridge chart every day actually worked way better than cramming before class.
Fourth, having a reason to learn is important. I learned the days super fast because I wanted to not mess up another date with Margot. If I was just learning for some random reason, I probably would’ve given up.
The Actual Days One More Time
Lundi = Monday Mardi = Tuesday Mercredi = Wednesday Jeudi = Thursday Vendredi = Friday Samedi = Saturday Dimanche = Sunday
I’ll be honest, even now when I’m speaking French quickly, sometimes my brain has to pause for a second to remember if mercredi is Wednesday or Thursday. But it’s just a split second now, not like completely forgetting it.
If You’re Learning French
If you’re learning French and you’re at the stage where you’re learning days, don’t skip it. Don’t think it’s too basic. Sit with it for a few weeks. Use it in actual conversations. Make it stick.
I learned mine at Berliner’s Institute and they had this approach where they wouldn’t let you move on until you actually understood something. That annoyed me at first but it actually worked. You can check them out here if you want: https://berliners-institute.com/french-language-courses/
But honestly, the specific place doesn’t matter as much as your commitment to actually practice and use what you’re learning. You have to use it. Not just memorize it. Use it.
Tell your friends which days you’re free. Plan things in French. Read posts on French social media about days. Watch French YouTube videos where they mention days. Just use it constantly.
And most importantly, don’t be embarrassed about not knowing basic stuff. I showed up to a French language class not knowing a single word and I felt like an idiot. But everyone’s at different levels. Everyone starts somewhere.
Now I’m Actually Learning French For Real
After I got the days down, I kept going to classes. I learned numbers. I learned how to introduce myself. I learned basic verbs. I can now have super simple conversations in French without completely embarrassing myself.
Margot went back to Paris but we keep in touch on WhatsApp and we text in French sometimes. It’s slow and I make mistakes and she corrects me. But at least now I know when she’s asking me out on mardi versus jeudi.
So yeah, that’s my story about learning the days of the week. It’s not exciting. It’s not glamorous. But it’s real and it actually mattered in my life. Sometimes the most important stuff is the most basic stuff. You just have to actually invest time in it.