Blog Title: Why Travel To France

Dans la tete: French Army Animation

Voila for your viewing enjoyment: An impressive and very well-made French animation called “Dans la tete” (in the head) that will grab your attention and hook you ’til the end. 6 minutes. In French with English subtitles. Click on the image above or here to watch it. [via] tags: france, french, french army, animation, dans la tete

You’ll be happy to know the French have the longest zizis in the EU

Thought you’d enjoy this bit of French zizi (penis) trivia: From bild.de: “Sacre bleu – it’s not only their baguettes that are the longest! French men have the lengthiest and thickest penises in the EU, according to a new study. The research by the ‘Institut fuer Kondom-Beratung’ measured penises in their erect state belonging to 10,477 brave volunteers read more..

Sorry, There’s No Cyber Lundi

It’s Cyber Monday! Regrettably, France doesn’t have a Cyber Monday (POURQUOI!?) but just in case you didn’t know about it, it’s like Black Friday, but without the angst and panicked flooded crowds pushing-shoving-stampeding to get the best sale deals of the year. Cyber Monday is an online shopping day with many internet merchants offering free read more..

PSA Shows Potential Dangers to Kids on the Internet

Apparently parents haven’t been too concerned about kids’ safety on the internet because I’m afraid some unpleasant things have been taking place in France, and Europe in general. I don’t know the specifics and we probably don’t really WANT to know what’s been going on, but the government is on to something and has produced read more..

French Record Labels Suing Limewire, SourceForge and Sue Vuze

From torrentfreak: “French record labels have received the green light to sue four US-based companies that develop P2P applications, including the BitTorrent client Vuze, Limewire and Morpheus. Shareaza is the fourth application, for which the labels are going after the open source development platform SourceForge. Société civile des Producteurs de Phonogrammes en France (SPPF), an umbrella group read more..

Lego Fashion From Jean Charles de Castelbajac

Here are Jean Charles de Castelbajac’s recent designs inspired by nearly everyone’s favorite childhood toy products at Lego. The clothes are modeled after Lego playsets and the hats are actual assembled Lego bricks. I really love the house hat! (Now you know what to get me for Christmas. I’m kidding. Sort of.) [via] tags: france, french, lego, read more..

Daft Bodies Harder Better Faster Stronger

Many of you already know that I love the French duo, Daft Punk, so I thought today was as good as any to post some of their music. This video is simply brilliant. No special effects, no varying shots, just fun, perfectly coordinated choreography and Daft Punk love. Click here to see the video at youtube. read more..

Friday France Photo: Stop Graffiti in Nimes

tags: france, french, graffiti, nimes, destructive

WHY Does Philippe Starck Design?!

In the past, I suppose I haven’t been too kind when mentioning the designs coming from Philippe Starck. My opinion is a matter of subjective taste, which happens to be in the minority and generally, I hate am disgusted dislike immensely his designs. I can’t help it. Let’s say that I WANT to like it, read more..

Dialogue entre 2 pilotes d’Air France

Previous dialogues: Dialogue entre Barack Obama et Nicolas Sarkozy, Dialogue entre Sarah Palin et Nicolas Sarkozy, Dominique Strauss-Kahn and Anne Sinclair, Francois Hollande and Maxime Bono, The Dalai Lama and Carla Bruni, Michael Phelps and Alain Bernard, Sarkozy and Qaddafi, Laurent Voulzy and Alain Souchon, Barack Obama and Nicolas Sarkozy, read more..

Immigrants must learn La Marseillaise

From the telegraph: “Foreigners should be forced to study the French national anthem, La Marseillaise, if they want to stay in the country, a close ally of President Nicolas Sarkozy has declared. Brice Hortefeux, the minister for immigration and national identity, says foreigners should be taught the history and “values” of the national anthem - which includes read more..

Friday France Photo: Garden Sculpture

tags: france, french, garden sculpture, Friday France Photo

Oh NON! La Grève! Air France to Strike

Contact Air France if you have a flight scheduled this weekend. From ap: “Air France warned on Wednesday of significant disruptions to flights during a four-day French pilots strike set to start Friday. The carrier said the walkout was called to protest the French Parliament’s coming discussion of a broad reform bill that could extend the retirement age read more..

You may now eat abnormal shaped veggies

From iht: “Misshapen fruit and vegetables won a reprieve on Wednesday from the European Union as it scrapped rules banning overly curved, extra knobbly or oddly shaped produce from supermarket shelves. Ending regulations on the size and shape of 26 types of fruit and vegetables, the European authorities killed off restrictions that had become synonymous with bureaucratic read more..

What is le Mir:ror

Remember Nabaztag, the communicating wifi bunny? The same French company, Violet, is getting ready to launch another very fun new gadget called, “le Mir:ror.” With Nabaztag, they achieved what they sought out to achieve, which was to create “internet objects,” in this case, rabbits, that could let you know a variety of things with gestures, sounds read more..

Hello Kitty Beaujolais Nouveau in Plastic Bottles Arrives in Japan

From japantimes: “This year’s first shipment of Beaujolais Nouveau arrived Friday at Narita and other airports in Japan, with worldwide sales of the French wine set to kick off Nov. 20. Japan, one of the first nations able to taste the fresh, young red, which is traditionally drunk at midnight, is expected to import only 6.48 million read more..

In Time for the Holidays - 99€ iPhone 3G in France

From arstechnica: “French iPhone carrier Orange is offering a killer deal on the iPhone 3G for le Noël, according to a sales flyer turned up by AppleInsider. With a contract, buyers can walk away with a new iPhone for just €99 for an 8GB model, and, according to MacBidouille, Orange is offering the 16GB model for read more..

French Lesson: FAIL

My mum-in-law knows I like pistachio nuts and so she got me this bag…of fruits secs. In this case, “fruits secs” means pistachios. Got that? Good. French lesson: over. Oh wait. In French Fruits secs means DRIED FRUIT. Where is the French Fail Blog when you need it? Related: Restaurant Name Fail! tags: france, french, fruits secs, pistachios read more..

Dialogue entre Barack Obama et Nicolas Sarkozy

Previous dialogues: Dialogue entre Sarah Palin et Nicolas Sarkozy, Dominique Strauss-Kahn and Anne Sinclair, Francois Hollande and Maxime Bono, The Dalai Lama and Carla Bruni, Michael Phelps and Alain Bernard, Sarkozy and Qaddafi, Laurent Voulzy and Alain Souchon, Barack Obama and Nicolas Sarkozy, Johnny Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan, Tom Hanks read more..

Famously Filthy and French

From ty.rannosaur.us: Henry IV “One of the most popular French kings, Henry tried to provide his citizens with a “chicken in the pot every Sunday.” Even though he believed in changing his shirt every morning, a rarity in 16th century France, he also loved hunting and refused to bathe or mask his odor with cologne afterwards. read more..

Online Piracy Has Become a ‘National Sport’ in France

From torentfreak: “Edging ever closer to becoming law, France’s “three-strikes” proposals have received support in the French Senate which voted overwhelmingly in favor for these draconian measures to deal with piracy. Now, a new report suggests that online piracy has become something of a ‘national sport’ in France. The online file-sharing debate is really heating up in read more..

2 French wine-makers suffocated to death by carbon dioxide fumes from grapes they were treading with their bare feet

From dailymail: “Two amateur French wine makers have died after they were suffocated by the fumes from the grapes they were treading with their bare feet. The victims had volunteered to help a friend make wine at his vineyard in the northern Ardeche region and had climbed into the six-foot wide vat to begin the traditional process read more..

Friday France Photos: Restaurant Le Chalet Bleu

A well-established restaurant, Le Chalet Bleu, headed by Philippe Bouché, is one of our favorite restaurants in Autun, France (Burgundy). It’s very reasonably priced with a basic menu starting at 18 euros. Of course, that menu features Tête de veau, which I don’t think I could bring myself to eating. It looks so blubbery and read more..

Etam Pulls Chinese Made Shoes

From Associated Press: “The store, Etam, pulled the product off its shelves, cut commercial ties with the supplier and forbade its other suppliers from using the sachets. They contain dimethylfumarate, meant to fight humidity and mold. But the substance was blamed in a similar case in France, when chairs were withdrawn from sale after buyers complained of read more..

How to Get Your Hands on Le Vin de Merde

When I wrote about the Vin de Merde (shit wine), I clearly didn’t expect to receive a bunch of emails requesting how to get some. My apologies for not writing back. I didn’t know the answer at the time. But now I do - because we bought 2 cases (12 bottles) and received them in read more..

France Loves Obama

An American Dream, What Obama Will Do, 84% of the French Happy about Obama, Hope Presides tags: france, obama, french, france loves obama, obamamania

French Expressions: C’est L’Amérique!

Still in a state of hazy happiness about the election results, I just want to scream and I will find it difficult to focus on any work today. We will HAVE to celebrate with our friends; no question about it. They will simply have to cut work, like us. I’m particularly proud of my district, where read more..

Fired Up, Ready to Go

Congratulations President Barack Obama! To those people who voted for and elected the most obvious choice for U.S. President: Barack Obama: you’re awesome. You’ve restored my faith in humanity. Thank you, America. tags: barack obama, u.s. president, thank you, fired up ready to go

U.S. November 4

Vote. But don’t vote for the icky guy. Thanks.

Dialogue entre Sarah Palin et Nicolas Sarkozy

Previous dialogues: Dominique Strauss-Kahn and Anne Sinclair, Francois Hollande and Maxime Bono, The Dalai Lama and Carla Bruni, Michael Phelps and Alain Bernard, Sarkozy and Qaddafi, Laurent Voulzy and Alain Souchon, Barack Obama and Nicolas Sarkozy, Johnny Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan, Tom Hanks and Jean Reno, Daniel Balavoine and Francois read more..

Palin piégée par un faux Sarkozy / Palin Pranked by a Fake Sarko

Two Montreal based comedians with radio station, CKOI 96.9 FM Montreal, totally got a very gullible and giddy, giggling Sarah Palin. A MUST listen. I like how the French describe it, “piégée” (trapped / pranked her) with plain silliness that she basically ignored or didn’t hear. It’s hard to tell. It is hilarious. Highlights: Marc-Antoine Audette read more..

Comment chier au bureau

Remember the book, Comment Chier dans le bois (How to Shit in the Woods)? How could you forget? Was camping not your cup of tea? That’s ok because now you can read Comment chier au bureau (How to take a sh*t at work). A quirky, humorous lesson book written anonymously by two office workers. read more..

Late Edition: Friday France Photo - Butcher in Nimes

Specializing in beef, apparently. How good have we gotten at disassociating the cow from the steak? Very good. tags: france, french, nimes, butcher, beef, disassociating the cow from the steak

SFR Offers Unlimited MP3 Downloads November 19

From billboard.biz: “France’s second largest mobile operator SFR has announced the launch of a DRM-free all-you-can-eat download service from Nov. 19. The catalog is limited to a few thousands hits exclusively from the Universal Music Group catalog. Subscribers will have unlimited access to only one of three genres (Rap/R&B, Pop/Rock, Clubbing/Electro) in AAC format on their mobile read more..

Da Vinci Code’s Chateau de Villette is for Sale

From the luxurypropertyblog: “A lot of movie fans travel to see the filming site of their favorite flick. And Chateau de Villette is no exception. Many fans of The Da Vinci Code movie starring Tom Hanks have visited this 185 estate about 35 minutes northwest of Paris. It was featured as Sir Leigh Teabing’s home. (Teabing read more..

The 8 Most Disturbing Films of The New Wave of French Horror

Embracing the spirit of Halloween, here’s a little something about French horror movies from greencine (an excerpt). Yes, there ARE French horror films! “…The French horror-meisters are after something more vicious, grounded in a sense of the actual possibilities of terror on the body and psyche… 8. Sheitan (Satan). A racially diverse and hip group of read more..

Happy Halloween! Now Play This Game

French game developers, Phelios Inc., based in Atlanta have released this free game called, “Whack the Dead” just in time for Halloween. So while waiting for trick-or-treaters and munching on tons of candy corn, waste a little time and indulge in some good fun whacking of the dead. Nah, it’s not really violent in a realistic read more..

November Vogue Cover: Vanessa Paradis

Though I’m not much of a fan of her music, I loved Vanessa Paradis in the excellent movie with Daniel Auteuil called, Girl on the Bridge, and I really like this recent photo of her by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott (photoshopped and all), which is featured on the November 2008 French Vogue Magazine Cover. tags: read more..

Skate in Paris on Halloween

Celebrate a different kind of Halloween this year in Paris by roller blading around the city dressed as something ghoulish or Halloweenish with Pari Roller. Pari Roller has scheduled a group skate for Friday, October 31 at 10pm. This should be a lot of fun and not to be missed if you’re into blading. The read more..

Val de Reuil Loves Obama

Val de Reuil, located just south of Rouen has expressed their Obama love with this hard-to-miss billboard. I thought that was kind of cool. tags: france, french, obama, val de reuil, yes we can, french billboards

Thriller à la Française

The 25 year old oldie but goodie, “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, doesn’t seem to age much in la belle France, much like the art of “playback” (lip syncing or lip dubbing). Remember the happy fired AOL employees from last year? (I loved that one.) This year, and just in time for Halloween, 140 university tech read more..

Dialogue entre Dominique Strauss-Kahn et Anne Sinclair (his wife)

Previous dialogues: Francois Hollande and Maxime Bono, The Dalai Lama and Carla Bruni, Michael Phelps and Alain Bernard, Sarkozy and Qaddafi, Laurent Voulzy and Alain Souchon, Barack Obama and Nicolas Sarkozy, Johnny Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan, Tom Hanks and Jean Reno, Daniel Balavoine and Francois Mitterrand, Florent Pagny, Zidane and Xavier Darcos tags: read more..

After the Sarkozy Voodoo Doll Comes a Sarkozy Booklet of Games

Monsieur le président must be a money magnet because the same publishers (Pascal Petiot Editions) of the famous Sarkozy Voodoo Doll is ready to release a book of games based on the presidential couple, and their history. In this book of games you’ll find puzzles and games filled with funny and playful references and anecdotes read more..

Never Put Your Hand Down a French Toilet!

A guy dropped his phone in the toilette of the TGV and tried to retrieve it. Was he CRAZY putting his HAND down a nasty ole French toilet?! I would be so glad never to see that phone again. Ew. Well, his hand got stuck. Beurk!!! A high-speed TGV train en route to Paris was delayed read more..

4 French Television Channels Going HD This Month

From engadgethd: “Apparently all that’s necessary to get a lagging country to hop on the high-def bandwagon is to talk bad about ‘em, or at least that’s the case here with France. After we heard that the nation wasn’t exactly rushing out to adopt HD, in comes word that four major French channels will soon be read more..

Undead Invasion in Paris

As a die-hard enthusiast of Halloween and as a chronic gamer, I can not help but be envious of people in or near Paris this Halloween. Why? The Undead Invasion is in Paris! If you’re in Paris and want to try something different and fun this Halloween, check it out with a team of your read more..

American Expats: What to do if You Didn’t Receive Your Absentee Ballot

If you haven’t received your absentee ballot to vote for U.S. President, don’t worry, you can still fax in your vote. You still have to mail in your vote as well. To note: when you fax your vote, you obviously relinquish your rights to a secret ballot, which is no big deal, really. Go to read more..

Friday France Photo: Fountain

A fountain in Roquemaure, France. tags: france, french, roquemaure, fountain

The Sarkozy Voodoo Doll

Update: According AFP, this item is a best seller at amazon.fr. heee! From reuters: “French President Nicolas Sarkozy has threatened to sue a publishing company unless it withdraws a Sarkozy doll that comes with a “voodoo manual” instructing readers to plant pins in it, his lawyer said. The doll is emblazoned with some of Sarkozy’s most famous quotes read more..

Alsace First French Region to Go all Digital

And to think that we JUST got broadband last week. I’m not kidding. The 2nd to get WIMAX installed in our region - but it’s not actually available to the public yet. Anyway. Back to Alsace. They’ll be the first to switch off their analog tv but all of France is scheduled to do the read more..

Seeing the Camargue on Horseback

Although there are many ways to explore the Camargue, France’s sprawling area of protected marshland, my personal recommendation would be to see it on horseback. That is, if you’re up for that kind of thing. Because the Camargue is designated as a botanical and zoological nature reserve, it seems fitting to try to see it read more..

New Presidential Pooch

Montreal’s French community has given an adorable Labrador puppy named, “Estrie” to Nicolas Sarkozy, following a tradition of canine gift giving to French leaders. Doesn’t she look miserable?!? tags: france, french, montreal, gift from canada, estrie, labrador, sarkozy,

New French Cable Box: Le Cube

The people over at gizmodo find the new cable box, “le cube” a lot more “stylishly French” than I think it is… I don’t find it stylish nor particularly French, except for the fact that it’s in France. I WANT to like it, but it’s not working for me. Anyway. More about it below. From gizmodo: “French read more..

1600 Pandas at Trocadero, Paris

WWF France (World Wildlife Fund) is turning 35 years old. Remembering their 35 years of struggle to save natural habitats and wildlife, and their 35 years of helping to protect biodiversity, the WWF is taking their icon/mascot, the panda, as a theme to “celebrate” these 35 years of combating the disappearance of pandas and thousands read more..

Friday France Photo: Cafe in Nimes

The Cafe de la grande bourse is probably one the best placed cafes in Nimes, one that offers a good view of the colosseum and a main side walk, perfect for people watching. It had been a while since I was in Nimes, and it looks like over the last 5 years or so, they’ve read more..

French Sci-Fi Animated Short, SKHIZEIN in Paris

The French animated short, Skhizein, written and directed by Jeremy Clapin has earned several awards (The Cannes’ Kodak Prize for Best Animated Short, Animafest’s Best Film, Palm Spring’s 2nd Best Film…). It’s a story about Henri, a cute little guy who unfortunately gets struck by a 150,000 ton meteor. Luckily, he survives! Sort of. From read more..

“I Heart Paris” Condoms

Thought these were funny. Find them here. tags: french, paris, i heart paris, condoms, souvenirs

No Boo-ing Allowed!

From bbc: “Football matches in France will be called off immediately if spectators jeer during the French national anthem, says the country’s sports minister. France’s national anthem was booed in Tuesday’s friendly win over Tunisia. “Any match at which our national anthem is whistled at will be immediately stopped,” said Roselyne Bachelot. French Prime Minister Francois Fillon read more..

Dominos Pizzas You Can Only Find in France: La Savoyarde

This spot for a new Dominos pizza was on the other night, and it made me realize that it’s so France specific. You wouldn’t find the French La Savoyarde pizza (topped with light Crème fraîche, Mozzarella, smoked fatty bacon, potatoes and a very strong smelling Reblochon cheese) in the U.S. just like you wouldn’t find read more..

Why Coffee and Cafes in France Have Gone Downhill

Over several years now, a strange thing has happened in France: the coffee started to suck. Yes, there were cafes that served terrible coffee forever, but for the most part in the early 2000s, it was still flavorful, very drinkable sludge espresso. It was French coffee, the coffee that I expected to have each time read more..

French Women Don’t Sleep Alone

According to an advice author French women don’t sleep alone because they have a knack for attracting men. Apparently, American women don’t have this knack. Um. Ok. From topnews: French women have “an effortless gift for attracting men” that American ladies lack and need to learn, says author Jamie Cat Callan, in her forthcoming advice book. In her read more..

The French Air Car from MDI is Now Officially “Flow Air”

I like Air Car better! From engadget: “MDI’s compressed air vehicle has been unofficially known as the AirCar for years now, but it looks like the company is now finally putting a stop to that, and officially bestowing the decidedly less catchy “FlowAIR” name on the car. What’s more, it’s also gotten official with no less than read more..

France Pulls Toxic Chinese Food

From sinolinx: “France has recalled sweets and biscuits made with Chinese dairy after finding high levels of an industrial chemical. In China, four babies have died and 53,000 have fallen sick after consuming milk products contaminated with the chemical melamine. The EU banned imports of Chinese baby food containing traces of milk in response to read more..

Friday France Photo: Restaurant Name FAIL!

This restaurant’s name probably doesn’t bug other people as much as it bugs me - but what on earth are people thinking in Nimes??? The restaurant is called, “Le Sake,” you know, “sake” being the alcoholic beverage made of fermented rice from JAPAN!? YET. The restaurant specializes in Vietnamese and Chinese cuisine. That’s like calling read more..

Yael Naïm

Though she’s been around a while now, her career got a serious kickstart because Apple decided to use her song, “New Soul” for the advertising campaign of the MacBook Air. I didn’t know much about her before that. I’d heard in an interview with the French-Israeli artist, Yael Naim, that she didn’t even realize Apple used read more..

A Guy Traveling With His COW

Upon first glance, this seems to be a ridiculous attempt to grab attention, but that’s clearly not the case here. While those seeking a life changing epiphany take pilgrimages to Lourdes, Santiago de Compostela, Mecca, and beyond, Hadrian Rabouin, an 18 year old Breton (guy from Bretagne), has something else in mind and decided that what read more..

Petit Coeur/Little heart: New Wine Glass

Inimitable sculptor specializing in funky wine decanters and unusual functional glass sculptures, Etienne Meneau, just released a new work called, Petit Coeur/Little heart. It’s a verre à boire (drinking glass) very different than your usual wine glass. The dimensions are as follows: Height : 7.9 inches (20 cm) Content : 6.7 fluid ounces (20 cl) Material : borosilicat read more..

Sean Connery Teams Up With Louis Vuitton

From brandrepublic: “The original James Bond Sir Sean Connery has been photographed by Annie Leibovitz posing on a beach in the Bahamas for Louis Vuitton’s Core Values advertising campaign. Connery, who recently turned 78, is pictured sitting on a rough wooden landing stage on a beach near his home in the Bahamas with a waterproof version of read more..

“Anyone Else but You” Sung by Carla Bruni and Julien Doré

I like this cover of Moldy Peaches’ “Anyone Else But You” being sung by Ms. Sarko herself, Carla Bruni and Nouvelle Star winner, Julien Doré. I’m particularly relieved to not have to listen to Julien Doré singing his last hit that had been playing everywhere, all the time. At least, seemingly. tags: france, Carla Bruni, Julien read more..

Bon Anniversaire, France Gall!

Today is French singer, France Gall’s birthday, born on October 9, 1947. Happy Birthday, France! In celebration, here’s a fun video of her first single, which was also her first hit called, Ne sois pas si bête (Don’t be so stupid). It was recorded in 1963, when Ms. Gall was 16 years old. The old read more..