FLC EXCEEDS HOLDING PATTERN LIMITS DUE TO DIFFICULTY UNDERSTANDING FRENCH CTLR.

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FLT WAS ON ASSIGNED HEADING AT FL70 WHEN CTLR GAVE INSTRUCTIONS. ALL WE UNDERSTOOD WAS 'CLRNC AT 59.' CTLR WAS SPEAKING FRENCH AND ENGLISH (ENGLISH TO US) BUT THE ACCENT WAS SO PROMINENT THAT IT TOOK ME 3 OR 4 WORDS TO BEGIN TO RECOGNIZE THAT IT WAS ENGLISH. SHE HAD ISSUED HOLDING CLRNC FOR THE PUBLISHED PATTERN AT EPR WHEN WE WERE ABOUT 10 NM FROM THE VOR. IT TOOK 3 INQUIRIES ON THE VERY BUSY FREQ BEFORE WE FULLY UNDERSTOOD THE CLRNC. SINCE WE WERE GOING DIRECT TO THE VOR; WE FLEW PAST THE VOR BEFORE BEGINNING THE TURN TO ENTER HOLDING. AT 230 KIAS AND FLYING PAST THE VOR; I'M SURE WE EXCEEDED THE HOLDING PATTERN LIMITS. UNDERSTANDING THE CTLR WAS CAUSE OF THE PROB. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATED THAT CLRNC TO HOLD CAME LATE AND THE INSTRUCTIONS TO HOLD WERE DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND. RADIO FREQ WAS SO BUSY THEY COULD NOT VERIFY OR HAVE CTLR REPEAT INSTRUCTIONS. HE ESTIMATES THAT WITH A LATE TURN INTO THE HOLDING PATTERN THAT ITS LIMITS WERE EXCEEDED; BUT NO MENTION WAS MADE OF ANY PROB BY THE TRACON CTLR. RPTR STATED THE OTHER PLT WAS HAVING THE SAME DIFFICULTY IN UNDERSTANDING THE CTLR. THE BEST WAY THEY KNEW THAT CTLR WAS TALKING TO THEM WAS TO TRY AND LISTEN FOR THEIR CALL SIGN; THEN DECIPHER ANY OTHER INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN AFTER THE CALL SIGN.