Destination: France
The Man Behind the Bells of Notre Dame
by Michael Yessis | 02.08.08 | 10:57 AM ET
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Yahoo! BuzzR.I.P. Miles Kington, King of ‘Franglais’
by Jim Benning | 02.01.08 | 12:05 PM ET
Miles Kington “satirised the earnest but doomed efforts of native English speakers to handle French,” as the BBC put it. (Example: Bill Wyman’s remark, “Je suis un rock star.”) Kington coined the term “Franglais,” and his books on the topic included Let’s Parler Franglais! He died Wednesday, prompting the fitting BBC headline: “Au revoir Mister Franglais.”
Related on World Hum:
* New Addition to the Travel Lexicon: ‘Geotourism’
In Dubai, a Little Lyon in the Desert?
by Joanna Kakissis | 01.29.08 | 7:07 AM ET
Ah, what love (and oil money) can do. They’re fueling the so-called “Lyon-Dubai City” project, which aims to create a mini version of France’s third-largest city in the desert of the United Arab Emirates.
Found Document Reveals ‘Mona Lisa’ Identity
by Michael Yessis | 01.18.08 | 12:51 PM ET
She’s Lisa del Giocondo, wife of Florentine businessman Francesco del Giocondo, according to a document found at the University of Heidelberg in Germany by Armin Schlechter. So, some of the mystery is gone, but I’m sure it’ll continue to draw David-like crowds.
Related on World Hum:
* Checking Off the Mona Lisa
Dining With NPR’s Sylvia Poggioli at Le Train Bleu in Paris
by Joanna Kakissis | 12.04.07 | 5:21 PM ET
For months now, NPR’s correspondents have been tempting devoted foodies like me with delicious reviews of noteworthy restaurants, bistros and cafes around the world. Among other things, they’ve sampled creamy orange hot chocolate in Berlin, camel’s milk desserts in Nairobi and blue corn quesadillas with zucchini flowers in Mexico City. The latest dispatch comes from senior European correspondent Sylvia Poggioli, who sampled pan-fried shrimp with red onions and fresh coriander, spiced pumpkin soup with mushrooms and a dessert of oranges, yellow and black carrots and yuzu sorbet at Le Train Bleu in Paris.
‘Forget Waterloo’: New Train Route Bringing ‘Two Old Foes Closer’
by Joanna Kakissis | 11.21.07 | 11:52 AM ET
France’s high-speed rail network, which has been coping with a labor strike, was hit by fires and other acts of sabotage overnight, according to reports. But in unrelated news, there’s at least one glimmer of good news coming from some rail service in the region. Historical enemies France and England are getting soft-eyed over the new high-speed rail link between Paris and London, according to the New York Times. A recent full-page ad in the French newspaper Le Figaro declared “Oubliez Waterloo”—forget Waterloo. And the English were talking not about Napoleon’s last stand but the former Waterloo rail terminus station.
Romance By Rail: Europe Does It Better
by Julia Ross | 11.01.07 | 1:30 PM ET
The thought of finding romance on a train from Washington D.C. to New York City—a trip I’ve made many times—strikes me as unlikely. Let’s face it: There’s nothing particularly romantic about Amtrak. But a chance meeting on a European train? On atmosphere alone, I’d give it much better odds. Two train-related events in Europe this fall are reviving the romantic image of rail travel, albeit with a 21st century spin. Reuters reports that German rail operator Deutsche Bahn has introduced speed-dating on an intercity line from Nuremberg to Munich, providing an upscale alternative to the usual pub meet-and-greet, complete with champagne and roses.
French Museums to Offer Free Admission
by Michael Yessis | 10.24.07 | 2:05 PM ET
France’s culture minister Christine Albanel announced that 14 museums in the country will offer free admission during the first six months of 2008. The most famous museums in Paris—the Louvre, the Musee d’Orsay and the Centre Pompidou—will also take part on a limited basis, according to the AFP. It’s all welcome news for budget travelers, particularly those who have grown accustomed to free museums in Washington D.C., Britain and elsewere in Europe. Albanel said it’s part of an effort to “inspire desire—desire for artistic experiences and culture—in people who are not familiar with these places.”
New Immigration Museum in Paris Confronts, Celebrates a Changing French Society
by Eva Holland | 10.17.07 | 11:55 AM ET
The Museum of Immigration History in Paris seeks to tackle one of the most incendiary subjects in France, and, according to a story in The Globe and Mail, its creators certainly don’t see themselves in an impartial role. “Ever since the word ‘immigrant’ appeared in our vocabulary in the late 19th century, it has had a negative connotation—connoting a menace, an inassimilable foreigner, a potential criminal, a polygamist and now a terrorist,” Gérard Noiriel, one of the curators, told the Globe. “Our job is to change that point of view.”
Monet, Twombly and the Price of Art Vandalism
by Eva Holland | 10.16.07 | 9:03 AM ET
Talk about an art lover. A woman who kissed a Cy Twombly painting worth close to $3 million—leaving a red lipstick smear that restorers have been unable to remove—went on trial in Avignon last week, charged with “voluntarily damaging a work of art.” The defendant, who described the kiss as an “act of love,” faces a hefty fine and a mandatory class on good citizenship.
The Eiffel Tower: A View From Underneath (Pig Fat Included)
by Terry Ward | 09.18.07 | 10:27 AM ET
Photo by rayced, via Flickr (Creative Commons).
A story from the always intriguing Time Zones series in the Washington Post gives a view of Paris few tourists see—and from the city’s most iconic landmark, no less. Molly Moore’s foray into the inner workings of the Eiffel Tower, as experienced alongside the head of services for the tower’s operations, one Fabrice Fevai, gives a ground-up view of Gustave Eiffel’s coup de grace. “People enter the Eiffel Tower as though it’s a monument with lots of iron,” Fevai tells Moore, while threading his way through a sea of milling tourists. “But the Eiffel Tower is like a factory—they don’t even realize what’s underneath.”
New Travel Book: ‘Far Afield’
by Michael Yessis | 09.11.07 | 10:17 AM ET
Full title: “Far Afield: A Sportswriting Odyssey”
Author: S.L. Price, author of Pitching Around Fidel: A Journey into The Heart of Cuban Sports and a writer for Sports Illustrated.
Released: Sept. 1, 2007
Travel genre: Sports travel/France memoir. “Think ‘A Year in Provence’ in sweats,” says a press release.
Territory covered: Europe, Asia.
Airport Security to Lourdes Pilgrim: Your Holy Water is a Security Threat
by Michael Yessis | 08.30.07 | 11:39 AM ET
Paola Saluzzi tried to carry eight small plastic bottles of water “in the shape of the little Madonna” from Lourdes on one of the Vatican’s new charter flights for pilgrims, but security inspectors at France’s Tarbes-Lourdes airport stopped her from bringing the liquid with the supposedly miraculous healing powers back to Rome. Reuters writes, “The real miracle would have been getting it past airport security.”
In Washington D.C. and Paris, Seduced by a Night View
by Julia Ross | 08.29.07 | 3:57 PM ET
Two recent stories on Paris and Washington D.C. after dark are a good reminder that taking in cityscapes by night can yield an entirely different travel experience than tromping around at mid-day. A Washington Post article and slide show on the patchwork system used to illuminate the monuments lining the National Mall nicely conveys the city’s nocturnal alter-ego, while a New York Times piece on ascending the Eiffel Tower at night actually made me want to brave the interminable line to try it.
Vatican to Launch Charter Flights to Holy Sites
by Michael Yessis | 08.21.07 | 11:50 AM ET
Religious pilgrims will now be able to fly to Santiago di Compostela, Spain; the shrine of the Madonna of Guadalupe, Mexico; and other sacred sites via official Vatican charter flights, the BBC reports. The first flight takes off Monday from Rome bound for Lourdes, France, with religious guides and the vicar of Rome, Cardinal Camillo Ruini, aboard. Routes from other cities may be introduced, according to RTE News. The planes, which will be provided by the Italian airline Mistral, will feature the phrase “I’m Searching for Your Face, Lord” on seat headrests.