What makes France such an endearing and infuriating country at the same time?

Why are the French a people that you love one day and hate the next?

Come here every day and you may find out...

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    • Dan: It’s a deodorant ad? Didn’t see that coming….
    • Max: video no longer available…
    • Alain Q.: obviously the photo was taken during the great flood of 1910 when a good part of Paris was under water....
    • Fernandez: “Once more into the breach or seal the wall with our English dead…” Paraphrasing from...
    • Fernandez: Perhapse the seige from Henry V?
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    • Jennifer in BC: this looks like a doctored image to me, where did you get it from? >> not doctored —...
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    Last updated on May 11, 2008

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    I'm offline for a few days, enjoying a short spring break. This blog will become live again around Saturday May 10th. In the meantime: enjoy the daily posts I've prepared for you!

    New Riot Gear For French Police

    police1.jpg
    If you want to fight this guy, you have to come up with something better than a gun or a molotov cocktail.

    French riot police (all 13,000 of them) will now be equipped with a battle dress that protects them against high-caliber bullets, and can’t catch fire. To fight back they’re equipped with the latest-spec Taser guns, and rifles that fire rubber bullets at high accuracy across forty meters.

    The new gear was developed after 82 officers got injured (many with bullet wounds) in just 24 hours during the urban fights in Paris last November. Similar riots in 2005 sent 200 policemen to hospital. That’s still a far cry from the student revolt in 1968, which injured 1900 officers in just one month.

    Personally, I like the old uniform better:

    police2.jpg

    Source (in French)

    One in two French cuts summer holiday expenses

    french beach1.jpg
    They’re feeling the squeeze: 51% of the French intend to reduce their summer holiday budget this year, and only 16% are going to spend more.

    Since this is France, the poll also looks at the political side of the situation: 57% of leftists will reduce their budget, 39% of right-wingers will do so, and 44% of centrist are tightening the belt.

    Finally, the age divide: 30% of people under 30 years go against the flow, and will spend more.

    Will it make any difference? Don’t think so. The roads will be mayhem, the beaches will be hell. Stay at home if you can!

    Source (in French)

    First French superhero takes on Hollywood

    Move over Batman, Superman, Iron Man, Spiderman: here is Vendome, France’s own superhero:


    Note: the original video on YouTube seems to have been removed. Hopefully the one above from DailyMotion stays alive for a while…

    Read more in the Telegraph

    Another Day in France (Sunday Edition)

    Barbie Baker

    barbie baker.jpg
    Click for bigger picture

    After toy giant Mattel had launched a Spanish Barbie doll, and the Iranian government had banned Barbie, claming that “the long-legged big-breasted Western blond doll is destructive for Iranian culture“, Photoshoppers were asked to create their own version of the famous doll. Shown above is a Barbie version of Josephine Baker (or Joséphine Bakèr as they say in France).

    Josephine Baker (wiki) | Original photo

    Chicken Bondage

    chicken bondage.jpg
    Benjamin Deroche is a young cynical photographer from the West of France. These pictures are part of a series named Tribute to Araki, and are an attempt to reproduce with a dead chicken the pictures of bondage of the Japanese master. But Araki is not one of his favorite photographers. Actually Benjamin Deroche really wanted to play with the corpse of the beast.

    Via Zoum Zoum (in French) | Full series on Benjamin Deroche website
    Some Araki bondage photos (NSFW): here and here

    Erotic Cosmetics

    You have to give the French credit for inventing innovative products: YESforLOV

    yesforlov2.jpgYESforLOV is a range of cosmetics that “invites you to love”. From love vitamins to post-pleasure relief, from intimate honey gel to sensitive derriere beauty cream.

    But the prize for the most original products goes to Sexy Body Messages (”Tattoo each other with secret messages, surprise him: draw arrows pointing the way. Then rub it all off in the shower together“) and Intimate Hide-And-Seek Kit (”Take a brush with invisible ink and a black light under the sheets… and let him break the code that is written on your skin.“)

    If you fancy this stuff, it’s currently only available via the Sephora shops (who also do mail orders).

    Mont Saint-Michel — 1300 Years Old


    View Larger Map

    Mont Saint-Michel is, after Paris, France’s most popular tourist destination. In the next two seasons it’s likely to be even busier. Starting this May (and for a period of 18 months), the rocky tidal island in Normandy is celebrating its 1300th anniversary.

    After centuries of silting, the rock is hardly recognizable as an island these days. That’s about to change. The government has kicked off a 150 million euro plan to make it an island once again, by 2012. The large parking area you can see on the Google Map above will be eliminated, and a bridge will link the island with the mainland.

    Click the following links to find out more.

    Mont Saint-Michel (Wikipedia) | Saving Mont Saint Michel (Expatica)

    Plastic surgery of the future

    Chrisophe Huet.jpg
    Chrisophe Huet is a professional photo retoucher best known for his freaky, exaggerated depictions of superhuman, surreal images. The former photo lab technician realized that he preferred drawing to shooting and developing photographs, and that’s how he got into the retouching business. Now he’s one of the best at his trade in the whole world. Find more here.

    Another Day in France (Saturday Edition)

    New in ‘Bouguereau Remastered’

    Le Ravissement de Psyche - iron man  detail 2.jpg
    Discover the latest addition to the Bouguereau Remastered blog: this magnificent photoshopped Le Ravissement de Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jr and Gwyneth Paltrow.

    Sex Sells (Or Does It?)


    “Sensation” is an extremely unsubtle new French Schweppes ad.

    The blogger at Shape+Colour explains and illustrates the subliminal sexual details that you may (or may not) have missed while watching this commercial.

    Via NotCot

    Madame et ses Porteurs

    madame et ses porteurs.jpg
    Fragment. Click to see full photo

    I don’t know much about this photo. It was taken by one of the Seeberger brothers, who were famous fashion photographers in Paris a century ago. This one is titled Madame et ses Porteurs. It was shot in the Rue de Solférino, Paris, circa 1910.

    Via VintagePhoto

    Thanks to commenter Alain Q I know now that there was a big flood in Paris in 1910. Here are many more photos.

    Harfleur Under Siege

    harfleur siege.jpg
    Click for bigger picture

    According to Wikipedia, the French town of Harfleur changed hands between the English and the French repeatedly between 1415 and 1562, including being pillaged by the Huguenots.

    It’s not sure which particular incident this Brickshelfer is illustrating with this Castle creation, but things don’t look good for the residents of Harfleur.

    More Harfleur battle scenes in Lego | Via The Brothers Brick

    Depressing World Map

    manic depression deaths.jpg
    Click map for more details

    This map shows territories sized in proportion to the absolute number of people who died from bipolar depressive disorder in one year. The big bordeaux blob in the center represents France.

    Bipolar affective disorder (manic-depression) is an illness with periods of unnaturally high mood and other periods of unnaturally low mood (episodes of mania and episodes of depression). Mania is a state of excessively elevated mood and excessive activity, sometimes accompanied with unjustified ideas of self-importance (grandiose delusions). Depression is an episode of very low mood with an overwhelming sense of hopelessness and worthlessness. Manic-depression affects men as much as women.

    WorldMapper