Destination: France
2008 Nobel Prize in Literature Goes to ‘Avid Traveller’
by Jim Benning | 10.09.08 | 10:56 AM ET
French author Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio will soon be swimming in Swedish Krona. He won the 2008 Nobel Prize in literature today, lauded for being an “author of new departures, poetic adventure and sensual ecstasy, explorer of a humanity beyond and below the reigning civilisation.” The Telegraph describes him as an “avid traveller” who loves the work of two other great travelers, Robert Louis Stevenson and Joseph Conrad. His overseas experiences altered the way he saw the world. Notes the paper:
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Yahoo! BuzzThe Paris Greeters: Helping Dispell Notions of ‘Inhospitable Locals’
by Valerie Conners | 10.06.08 | 3:40 PM ET
Ignorant stereotypes, be damned! The Paris Greeters—a group of Parisians intent on showing foreigners that the French are, in fact, friendly—have been spreading warm fuzzies for tourists by providing free tours of the City of Light in nine languages, English included.
Bee Colonies Thrive in Paris. Really, That’s a Good Thing.
by Valerie Conners | 10.03.08 | 12:33 PM ET
A French program to promote beekeeping in cities has yielded at least 300 bee colonies in Paris, some in the unlikeliest of places—like the roofs of hotels and the Paris Opera House.
Feasting in Lyon
by Jeffrey Tayler | 09.30.08 | 9:08 AM ET
Jeffrey Tayler feared he would never feel as intoxicated with the sense of discovery as he once did. But something clicked when he set foot in France's third-largest city.
Une Baguette, S’il Vous Plaît: Cash-Strapped French Forgo Multicourse Lunches
by Valerie Conners | 09.24.08 | 12:01 PM ET
Gone are the days of languorous French lunches. As France’s economic crisis worsens, more French diners are opting for quick, cheap meals. The Guardian reports that restaurant-goers are “skipping the traditional aperitif, avoiding starters, drinking tap water, passing on wine and coffee and—at most—sharing a pudding.”
Singing the Praises of Belleville, Edith Piaf’s Paris
by Jim Benning | 09.12.08 | 11:20 AM ET
Many travelers know Belleville as the Paris neighborhood where they can find Pere Lachaise cemetery. I recall riding the metro out there more than a decade ago, like every other college kid with a Let’s Go, to check out the tombstones of Jim Morrison and Gertrude Stein. But what I didn’t appreciate at the time was that Belleville was also once the home of singer Edith Piaf.
Dozens Evacuated in Channel Tunnel Fire
by Jim Benning | 09.11.08 | 12:36 PM ET
In what must have been a harrowing experience, more than 30 people were evacuated from a freight train today when a fire broke out in the Channel Tunnel between England and France. Officials suspect the fire started when a truck on the train overturned, CNN reports. The evacuees, some reportedly suffering from smoke inhalation, were taken into a service tunnel. Fortunately, no passenger trains were in the tunnel at the time. Tunnel train service has been temporarily suspended.
French Food Violations: France’s Entire Image ‘At Stake’
by Valerie Conners | 08.18.08 | 11:13 AM ET
Before biting into your escargot in that bistro along the Seine, beware: a report from France’s agriculture ministry reveals that more than a quarter of France’s eateries violate food safety standards. It’s no small embarrassment for a country that has hoped to have its food named a UNESCO world treasure. “The image of France is at stake,” France’s agriculture minister, Michel Barnier, told the Telegraph.
Carry-On? Check. Passport? Check. Dancing Shoes? Er, Check.
by Valerie Conners | 08.06.08 | 5:09 PM ET
Think airport travel is nothing but security lines and baggage nightmares? Not in Paris’s airports, where dance lessons in terminals may soon become de riguer, reports the International Herald Tribune. Aeroports de France has announced that 15-minute dance lessons complete with music and vocal instruction are now offered on summer weekends. Heading to Cuba? Learn to salsa. Buenos Aires? Tango is on the menu, as well.
Has Paris Become a ‘Backwater’?
by Michael Yessis | 07.28.08 | 11:40 AM ET
This New Zealand Herald story asserts that, when it comes to arts and culture, Paris has become “second string” to Berlin, New York and London. Catherine Field writes, “[T]he worshippers these days are consumers, not creators. They are mainly foreign tourists who come to see the eternal Mona Lisa, post-modern American artists, the French Impressionists and Moliere. The city chemistry that produced rawness, dynamism, change and challenge seems absent.” This comes on the heels of Donald Morrison’s Time magazine piece, The Death of French Culture.
Related on World Hum:
* David Sedaris on Flea Markets and Foods Courts in Paris
Photo by izarbeltza via Flickr, (Creative Commons)
David Sedaris on Flea Markets and Foods Courts in Paris
by Eva Holland | 07.28.08 | 11:33 AM ET
David Sedaris’s latest collection is storming the bestseller charts, and the Globe and Mail tracked him down for a chat about his adopted hometown, Paris. In the interview, Sedaris talks about his love for Parisian food courts, flea markets and movie theaters, and why he never gets tired of the city: “Paris is so beautiful that, even after 10 years, I stop sometimes and I am just overwhelmed.”
In Paris, Everyone Wants a Burger
by Joanna Kakissis | 07.18.08 | 11:56 AM ET
The French are mad about juicy beef patties on sesame-seed buns, and restaurants all over the City of Light are offering Gallic translations of the ultimate all-American meal, writes Jane Sigal in the International Herald Tribune.
Paris Bistros on a Budget
by Jim Benning | 07.17.08 | 3:16 PM ET
And by those “on a budget,” I’m guessing we’re talking about, among others, any poor sap with U.S. dollars. The Guardian has a list of 10.
Related on World Hum:
* Three Travel Tips: Ways to Save Money in Europe
Happy Bastille Day (or Not)
by Jim Benning | 07.14.08 | 11:16 AM ET
Which is to say, if you’re French, you may not be too excited about the whole thing. Writes Susan Nagel in the Los Angeles Times: “Although Americans often think that July 14 is as important in France as July 4 is in the United States, the reality is that the holiday is of less and less significance as the years pass. Today, many French citizens, whether their ancestors went to the guillotine or not, do not take part in the celebrations, and for a variety of reasons.” Among them: an aversion to the holiday’s militaristic bent, as well as to displays of patriotism. Fair enough. But Syrian President Bashar Assad has no qualms about partying in Paris.
Photo by Luigi Versaggi via Flickr, (Creative Commons).
Does Creme Brulee Qualify as a Global Treasure? UNESCO Says No.
by Joanna Kakissis | 07.09.08 | 3:50 PM ET
UNESCO just inscribed 27 new sites to its World Heritage List— the usual mix of archaeological, architectural, ecclesiastical and ecological places. French cuisine didn’t make the cut, despite a campaign led by President Nicolas Sarkozy to enshrine it. Did the coq au vin fail to inspire?