Lorsque la montagne découpe des criques de dentelle dans la mer
English translation: where mountain spurs jut/cut into the sea, forming (deeply) scalloped inlets
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GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
French term or phrase:
Lorsque la montagne découpe des criques de dentelle dans la mer
English translation:
where mountain spurs jut/cut into the sea, forming (deeply) scalloped inlets
French to English translations [PRO] Tourism & Travel
French term or phrase:Lorsque la montagne découpe des criques de dentelle dans la mer
Lorsque la montagne découpe des criques de dentelle dans la mer, que les plages de sable d'or ne s'offrent qu'au navigateur, chaque mouillage devient enchantement.
I've put the whole of the phrase, since I think you need to see it as a whole to give an answer.
I'm having difficulty in expressing this and would be happy to have a little help with it.
Explanation: or, to be a little more fanciful - after all, this is tourism -
"where arms of jagged mountain jut/cut into the sea, embracing scalloped coves/inlets"
I'm using a different interpretation here to the other posters for "dentelle", which I envisage as those scalloped edges on old-fashioned tablecloths, rather than an overall lacy effect, which I find harder to visualize. This "edging" seems more appropriate in the context of a coastline... Also, I see "découper" here as "to outline" rather than necessarily carving. Although "jut into" is pretty akin to "cut into"...
A few examples of "scalloped coves" - of which there are plenty:
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Beyond is a deeply scalloped cove, Bloody. Bay, rimmed by a beautiful beach. Negril's upscale all-inclusive resorts are located here ... www.lonelyplanet.com/shop_pickandmix/previews/jamaica-5-neg... - Similar pages
CAPE TOWN'S BEST BEACHES: Cape Town's Top Beaches namely Clifton ...Clifton's scalloped cove is strewn with giant granite boulders dividing it into four separate beaches. Steep cliffs dotted with expensive beach bungalows ...
south-africa-travel.suite101.com/article.cfm/cape_towns_best_beaches - 35k - Cached - Similar pages
Jamaica - Google Books Resultby Christopher P. Baker - 2003 - Travel - 352 pages
Beyond is a deeply scalloped cove. Bloody Bay. rimmed by a beautiful beach. Negril's upscale all-inclusive resorts are all located here or on the north end ...
books.google.co.uk/books?isbn=1740591615...
Experience Dominican RepublicFor beachgoers, one of the island's most picturesque strands of sand is Cofresí Beach, a small scalloped cove where the sun rises through a swath of palm ... www.discoverdominicanrepublic.com/sightseeing_ac.html?city_... - 28k - Cached - Similar pages
unknownsa feature areas - the innes national park pictures page 1 of 2... deeply-scalloped cove surrounded by a thick arc of white sand and one of the state's premiere surfing areas. those of us who can remember the old road ...
users.chariot.net.au/~greenh/innes/default.htm - 16k - Cached - Similar pages
Estemerwalt Lumber Products - Round Log Siding - Our ProductsThe scalloped cove with the shiplap edge and the resulting effect of lighted space and shadow provide depth and texture to your home. ... www.roundlogsiding.com/products.html - 14k - Cached - Similar pages
Classic Corvette 30 Years - Google Books Resultby Mike Mueller - 2003 - Transportation - 384 pages
... on the hood and scalloped "cove" panels ...
books.google.co.uk/books?isbn=0760318069...
Mother of All Lawn Ornaments | Seven DaysShe is often cloaked in blue, and is sometimes situated in a grotto -- that is, a half-buried bathtub covered with stones, or a scalloped cove reminiscent ... www.7dvt.com/2006/mother-all-lawn-ornaments - 24k - Cached - Similar pages
The C-1 Corvette in MiniatureThe 1962 model eliminated the chrome outline around the scalloped cove on the body and replaced the 3 fins in the reverse fender scoops with a grid . ... www.breithaupts.com/totc248.htm - 15k - Cached - Similar pages
Reel-Time's Fly Fishing Reports for the Boston Metropolitan RegionThe best fishing was on the outside beach, where little bass were visible around the points at the edge of every scalloped cove. ...
Until today, I had a put together a mixture of all the answers, resulting in "where the sea carves an intricate coastline of creeks into the mountains", which I liked for the 3 'c's. However, your answer is probably the closest to the original and I really like "scalloped" which translates "dentelle" really well. So I've decided to give you the points. 4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer
even if a couple of elements are sacrificed, the final reader of course should be given a credible, honest poetic piece to read. I reckon we can trust Miranda to do that with the help of some or all of the offerings posted!
yes, that's very true Nikki and nowhere is it more relevant than in translating descriptive texts for tourism where the beautiful should be given priority over the faithful
Yes, there is a clear image on this one, but image is a matter of spirit too, and here, I suspect that the essential is to convey the right spirit in the mind of the reader. That is conveyed by the image conjured up of course. The clues are to be found in the original but depending on how the prhasing and feeling in the rest of the text, some of these examples will work better than others. The possibilities are endless!
Susan and Paul :
Given that "crique" is longer than "anse" and "creek" deeper inland than "inlet", "creek" probably works well perfectly here for British English readers anyway.
creek (krk, krk)
n.
1. A small stream, often a shallow or intermittent tributary to a river. Also called regionally branch, brook1, kill2, run.
2. A channel or stream running through a salt marsh: tidal creeks teeming with shore wildlife.
3. Chiefly British A small inlet in a shoreline, extending farther inland than a cove.
Idiom:
up the creek (without a paddle) Informal
In a difficult, unfortunate, or inextricable position.
[Middle English creke, probably from Old Norse kriki, bend.]
for those English speakers from the Southern hemisphere are streams or brooks rather than inlets or coves; don't know who your intended audience is, of course....
Jagged works best for me - if it's limestone "dentelles".
Stick it into Scott W's great version: "Where the sea cuts a lacework of jagged creeks into the mountains".
I think that when 'dentelles' is used in reference to a geological formation it cannot be considered superfluous here, no matter where it is. 'ragged' and 'jagged' seem to be the closest description of the creeks I'm dealing with and I just wanted to confirm that.
Probably the prettiest mountain range in Provence, the Dentelles are formed by three ridges of chalk topped by ragged crests. The French think of these as lacework (dentelles ), but they can look more like fangs in rough weather. Within the range, tiny villages (Suzette, La Roque Alric) cling to the crags as if by magic and climbers are attracted to the sheer rock-faces. The walking, too, is spectacularly good, notably up to St Amand, at 730 m (2,400 ft), the highest point. Round the western edge cluster the picturesque wine villages of Beaumes-de-Venise, Gigondas, Vacqueyras and Séguret. It’s advisable to stop here after, rather than before, a ramble (see Vineyards and Distilleries).
Presumably they mean that the coastline looks like lace (i.e. jagged rather than smooth). The sentence reminds me of the callanques near Marseille (I've never been to Corsica), where in some places the mountains litterally jut into the sea and are in any case not 'even' but rather 'jagged'.
I very nearly put 'crique de dentelle' to start with, but decided that the phrase needed to be dealt with as a whole. You are right, it is the crux of the problem
in my experience mountains rise up, out of the sea; they don't cut into it... it might help to know if this is a stand-alone text, a title or part of a much larger description
It may be worth mentioning that this is an article that is destined for sailors, describing Corsica.
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Answers
13 mins confidence:
Where an intricate lacework of foam, sculpted by the steep cliffs / White horses
Explanation: White horses is the usual English idiom to indicate the foam caused by the sea crashing onto the shore or rocks, but the sentence would have to be re-arranged somehow.
Marian Vieyra United Kingdom Local time: 11:10 Specializes in field Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 3
Where the sea cuts a lacework of creeks into the mountains
Explanation: I suggest reversing who cuts what, i.e. the sea cuts into the mountains, not the other way round. It amounts to the same result, doesn't sound any worse and is more accurate from a geological point of view!
Mark Bossanyi Bulgaria Local time: 13:10 Works in field Native speaker of: English
Notes to answerer
Asker: I had thought of reversing it, but couldn't quite get it right. This is a good way of dealing with "dentelle".
The translation workplace 
