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Archive for January, 2007

Too tired to work? Then have a snooze.

They already enjoy Europe’s shortest working week. Now French workers are to be encouraged to have a nap after lunch.
The state-backed siesta is part of a €7 million campaign to encourage the French to sleep more and better. A third of the population does not sleep enough, experts say.
Tiredness is blamed for 20 per cent […]

Posted: Wed 31-Jan-07 under Society

Alix Malka Photography

Alix Malka is an upcoming French talent in fashion photography. Watch his impressive and colorful portfolio here.

Posted: Wed 31-Jan-07 under Art & Heritage, Created in France

Human cable cars and catapults

Some people have more guts than I do:

You can take this ride at Fantasticable in Chatel, France. You travel at speeds of up to 120km/h for over 1km.
If that's not thrilling enough, try this:

These guys catapult you 35 meters in the air. Just pray your parachute works!
Via

Posted: Wed 31-Jan-07 under Video & Audio, Events

Tomorrow she'll do it without clothes on

Five times European figure skating champion Surya Bonali is angry with the slaughter of baby seals in Canada. As a fighter for Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) she plans to follow in the footsteps of Pamela Anderson and Kim Basinger in the USA and Eve Angeli in France, and bare it all. […]

Posted: Wed 31-Jan-07 under People, Events

French pulp: sex, violence, and '1 for the tits'

Malko Linge, full-time Austrian prince, has been on France's bestseller lists since 1965. In the books, Prince Malko works as a part-time freelance for the CIA to pay his Austrian castle's upkeep.
The creation of novelist Gerard de Villiers, Malko (also known as SAS - Son Altesse Serenissime, or His Most Serene Highness) is a spy […]

Posted: Tue 30-Jan-07 under Art & Heritage, Created in France

Paris follows Dutch 'free-bike' initiative - 40 years later

Left: the first Dutch "white bike", 1966. Right: the French copy.
Paris is going to offer its citizens and tourists a new service: free self-service bikes.
Before the summer 14,100 bikes will be available; by the end of this year there should be 20,600. Users can pick up and drop off the bikes at 1,451 stations […]

Posted: Tue 30-Jan-07 under Economy & Biz, Environment & Health

Smoking ban won't protect all non-smokers

(This is not in France, but I just love the picture…)
On February 1, a partial smoking ban will become effective in France.
Smoking in most public places will become illegal, except in restaurants and bars, where the ban becomes effective in January next year.
The main goal of the ban is to protect non-smokers from contracting […]

Posted: Tue 30-Jan-07 under Society, Oops

Takeway Concerts

Buskers are all over France, and even more so in Paris.
Most of them remain anonymous for the rest of their lives, but some become stars in the end.
Blogotheque.net, a French music site that stays far away from today's mainstream noises, provides a podium to those original street musicians.
I've selected two videos from their site: […]

Posted: Tue 30-Jan-07 under Art & Heritage, Video & Audio, Web

Days of Glory: French or Algerian movie?

French trailer. Watch on DailyMotion.
A row has broken out in France about Days of Glory, a film about the African soldiers who fought for France in the Second World War.
Director Rachid Bouchareb surprised critics when he entered the film as an Algerian rather than a French production for this year's Oscars.
The issue is sensitive […]

Posted: Mon 29-Jan-07 under Video & Audio, Created in France

Macarons in Paris

For your sweet tooth: over 100 Parisian macarons in this photo set on Flickr.
Via | Make your own

Posted: Mon 29-Jan-07 under Food, Drink & Smoke

Tintin in Iraq

Tintin and Bin Laden

Liberating the Iraqis - with bombs.
Tintin en Irak is a clever parody, based on the original Tintin albums created by Hergé.
This spoof uses images from different Tintin albums with adapted balloons, creating a completely new story about the war in Iraq. Good knowledge of French is a must if you want to […]

Posted: Mon 29-Jan-07 under Art & Heritage, Created in France

Are real women coming back to the catwalk?

Out with anorexic models. In with real women (like Laetitia Casta).
At last: French fashion chiefs agree to discuss ultra-thin models.
The powerful fashion federations of France, Italy, the United States and Britain have decided to address the controversy over ultra-thin models.
The fashion industry has been widely attacked for promoting the kind of stick-thin images which critics […]

Posted: Sun 28-Jan-07 under Economy & Biz, Society

French gambling: State is the biggest winner

The French gamble big: 55.6 million euros every day
You can't accuse the French of not trying to be rich. In 2006 they spent over 20 billion euros on lotto and scratch cards, horse betting and in casinos.
The daily average is 55.6 million euros, the price of an Airbus A-319 or the construction of two […]

Posted: Sun 28-Jan-07 under Economy & Biz, Society

Largest marionettes ever made?

This happened in 2005 and is absolutely amazing:
The Sultan's Elephant is a show created by the Royal de Luxe theatre company in the French city of Nantes, involving a huge moving mechanical elephant and other associated public art installations. In French it is called La visite du sultan des Indes sur son éléphant à […]

Posted: Sun 28-Jan-07 under Created in France, Events

Why use DNA tests to catch a scooter thief?

Double DNA test used to arrest scooter thiefs. Over the top? Not if you know whose scooter it was.
Paris police knows how to catch a thief. When a 50cc Piaggio scooter was reported stolen, they used fingerprints and two DNA tests to identify the three 17 and 18-year old thieves.
Asked about the costly methods […]

Posted: Sun 28-Jan-07 under Politics, Oops

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