Not to be confused with La Fête de Mai (Festival of May), A tradition from the Perigord, La Fête des Mais is a whole ‘nother thing altogether. After having seen many of these dead pine tree branches, with a French flag and a sign that said “honoring –someone–” throughout the Perigord, I had to ask what it was all about. Most of these signs said “Honoring the Owner” as in an owner of a business, but apparently, this tradition is basically applied to anyone, whether it is a person celebrating a birthday, an elected official, an owner of a new business or just about anyone else celebrating something important.

La Fête des Mai translates as the festival of the Mai trees, a tradition that goes way back when Mai trees were sacred and symbolized youth and fertility and was connected with the ancient goddess of nature, Maïa, from Greek and Roman mythology. Much later, other elements were added: a flag for victory and pride, and the sign specifying the honoree.

I happened to take a photo of one of the more quirky ones that had a strange picture of a claymation-like cowboy or something holding a gun and sporting a cowboy hat - next to a thought bubble with lots o’ dollar symbols. I guess the owner is a dollar-hungry, trigger-happy Texan…

Sometimes it makes sense to stay in a hotel while you’re vacationing but there will be times when you might want to mix it up a little and try something different. The great thing about France is that you have many options when it comes to accommodations, whether it is a full service hotel, or something more independent.

We spent an amazing week in Sarlat, where we based ourselves strategically to have easy access to many sites of interest in the Perigord, places I’ll eventually write about.

This time we picked Au pré de l’arbre in Sarlat, which is a vacation village with 6 completely self-contained (self-catering) chalets in a forest just about a half a mile from the center of the village. Each chalet is completely equipped with all of the most necessary and convenient appliances you’ll ever need (fully equipped kitchen including dishwasher. Yay), giving you the independence and comfort to live, even for a week, in your own home sweet home.

We stayed in the house called Les Charmes, which is, of course a charming 2-story chalet that sleeps up to 4 people. There are two bedrooms upstairs and a balcony with a view of the forest. Les Charmes was one of two houses that sleeps up to four and we were very comfortable there; For larger groups, two of the six houses accommodate up to 8 people.

Oh! Most importantly, all houses are wired with high speed internet, cable TV (stations in English, German, French), CD/DVD player and even the two mascots of the village, Zora and Argos, a chocolate lab and a yellow lab. They hung out in front of our house, but if you’re not into adorable canine companions, no problem. Dogs are optional.

The pool is a rather large one with a wonderful view of the valley and forest, and is a particularly quiet and relaxing environment to take a leisurely swim or sunbathe within a setting of pine trees softly swaying with the gentle breeze.

We were happy to get to know the owners Nathalie and Marc, who told us of of their life changing decision to sell their home in Chartres (just outside Paris) to buy land in the Perigord, move their whole family into a forest, all in order to embark on their village des vacances that officially opened in 2003. It was a huge risk that involved the most challenging of trials and tribulations but everything has eventually fallen into place and only three years later, they already have returning clientele.

We highly recommend Au pre de l’arbre if you’re in this area of southwest France, and want to use it as a comfortable, clean and independent base to explore the nearby sites as well as the village of Sarlat itself - or even just to relax. I have no doubt that you’ll find this place a pleasant base, to say the least, and you can always feel free to ask advice from Marc or Nathalie to give you some itinerary ideas, specific places of interest or even recommend wines from the region, which include some of the finest wines in France.

To view the houses: Les Pins; Les Acacias; Les Charmes; Les Ormes; Les Châtaigniers and les Chênes, and to find out more about Au pre de l’arbre and rates, click below on their website.

We loved staying Au pre de l’arbre, and will be joining the group of “regulars.”

Au pre de l’arbre - Open all year
Website: Au pre de l’arbre (in English and French)

Nathalie et Marc Pinta-Tourret
Au pré de l’arbre
Rue Lino Ventura, “Le Mas Cavaillé”
24200 Sarlat-la-Canéda
E-mail: sarlat@aupredelarbre.com
Phone / Fax : +33 5 53 59 33 33
Mobile: +33 6 73 79 12 87

Tags: travel, france, dordogne, perigord, self-catering, chalets, accommodations, gites, Au+pré+de+l\\\'arbre

Next to Paris, surprisingly, the Perigord probably has the richest heritage of historical monuments in France. The notable places to visit are somewhat spread apart, and if you’re only in the area for a week, like us, you have to choose your base carefully and organize your days as best as possible.

One of the ideal spots to choose as a base when exploring this area, in my opinion, is the medieval village of Sarlat. If you stay here, you most certainly will not regret it. You will not only be close to so many of the most beautiful villages in France, you will be staying in one as well. Also nearby are the most famous prehistoric sites (Lascaux, Les Eyzies, Fond de Gaume), 1500 chateaux, caves and more. We like to choose a base that we can call “home” and that we’re always happy to return to. I loved Sarlat, and loved having used it as home away from home.

^{I tried not to disturb this artist too much with my camera…}

A little more than 40 years ago, Sarlat was a simple, quiet, unnoticed little hamlet town that resembled many of the other villages in the area. In 1962, the writer and then Minister of Culture, Andre Malraux, took notice of Sarlat, fell in love with its simplicity, lack of modernization and architectural unity and decided to take it under his wings to begin a gargantuan restoration project.

It was a project that would last three years but once finished, there would be lots of oooohs and ahhhhhhs - and later Sarlat was scouted as a filmworthy location for the movies Cyrano de Bergerac and Manon of the Spring.

The winding streets are lined with foie gras, wine, walnut cake merchants and street musicians as well as several restaurants offering the local specialties of confit de canard, cassoulet and more. If that isn’t your thing, there’s an excellent restaurant called Le Gaulois, that caters to the locals who can’t constantly being eating foie gras, confit de canard and cassoulet. The great thing about Le Gaulois is the atmosphere and how it feels like a restaurant not for tourists. I liked how the menu was written in chalk on mini chalkboards that many school children in France used to have in grade school. Two nights ago we had dinner there with friends who drove in from Paris and with the owners of where we stayed (which I’ll write about later) and ordered the Raclette (melted Raclette cheese, potatoes, jambon cru) and something called l’Assiette de loup, which was a melted blend of cheeses served with a small salad, potatoes, jambon cru, which was actually prochiutto from Parma, Italy. Everything was delicious including dessert and it was hard to stop eating when we were full.

We all needed to stroll around the wonderfully lit village afterward to walk it off.

Tags: hotels in dordogne

There’s a French song by a guy named, Gérard Blanchard called, “Rocamadour,” which apparently was a huge hit in 1982. Now, if I’d listened to this song before going to Rocamadour, honestly, I might not ever had gone to Rocamadour. Sorry, Gerard. I’m kidding of course. For the bold and inquiring minds that wanna listen, click here for the song.

Warning: this is a song you shouldn’t listen to first thing in the morning especially if you’re not a morning person. The song starts, “aaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” Here are the lyrics (in French).

Lucky for me, I heard about the song yesterday after I visited Rocamadour (for a day trip a couple of days ago). Ok, I don’t hate the song; I’m just amazed it was a hit. It’s a love song, believe it or not, and little kids were crazy about it because it is SO GOOFY.

Back to Rocamadour. This tiny southwest town (Region: Midi-Pyrénées, Department: Lot) is rather, a vertical village magnificently built into a mountainside, three levels stacked one on top of another. Lazies can take the elevator for 2 euros from the bottom level to the top level where there’s a private chateau at the peak of the cliff. Others can take the winding stairway that goes from the bottom Cité Médiévale, through the middle Cité Religieuse, then all the way to the top.

The bottom tier of Rocamadour, the Cité Médiévale is the village of merchants and restaurants. You’ll find gobs of foie gras shops and other touristy places for souvenirs.

The Cité Religieuse, the middle level, has seven churches and chapels, which is a lot of worshipping for a town of about 650 inhabitants! Actually, it is said that some time in the 12th century, the perfectly preserved body of Saint Amadour was unearthed. He was reported to have actually been the biblical Zacchaeus, a tax man who turned his life around after having dined with Jesus.

Since then, there were numerous (alleged) miracles that ensued, turning Rocamadour into an important site for pilgrimages as well as an official “Ville Sanctuaire de France” (Sanctuary Or Shrine Town of France).

On this middle level is a terrace called the Plateau of St. Michel. Look up to where the rock meets the main church of Notre Dame. There, you’ll see an alleged fragment of the sword called, Durandal, which belonged to Roland. (I thought Roland was a fictional character…)

The chateau is privately owned, and therefore, is not accessible to the public.

Lastly, there’s a AOC labeled cheese called, Rocamadour, a goat milk cheese that was named by the village, but I couldn’t find any Rocamadour cheese in Rocamadour!

[Related: Rocamadour Cheese Festival]

Tourist Office of Rocamadour
Guided Tours are available
46500 Rocamadour (website)
Tel : (33) 5 65 33 22 00

Tags: travel, france, rocamadour, cite+religieuse, cite+medievale, durandal, roland, ville+sanctuaire, pilgrimages, st.+amadour

Ok, I’m not really sure what to say about this Velouté de foie gras de canard, (which is a very thick, creamy foie gras (duck liver) soup) we saw yesterday, except to say that this is surely something for the die-hard, true, absolutely loyal foie gras afficianado. Not saying it’s bad. I have no idea. Maybe it’s good!? I was too chicken to try it. Perhaps this is a regional thing; I’ve never seen it before and just figured since we are in foie gras country, it might just be a commonplace local dish.

On our way to Sarlat and as we were approaching the small village of Terrasson (southwest France in Dordogne, part of the Perigord), we noticed a sign to this walnut mill and decided to check it out.

It’s a very small, independent, family-run producer of walnuts and walnut oil that sells directly to vendors and to the general public. Le Moulin Maneyrol is run by the man in the photo, his wife and his son.

All 13 hectares of walnut trees are on the property as well as the mill/press.

Their small mill produces 8 liters of oil for each pressing. It is delicious, too. (They have free tastings.) The perk for you when buying products directly from the producers, is the savings, as their prices are usually very reasonable. Later in your travels, you’ll most likely see some of these walnut oil bottles in the boutiques in more touristy villages being sold for at least twice the price (usually much more).

These wheels above, about 30 centimeters (12 inches) in diameter, are the bi-products of the pressing process, after the final pressing. It is basically super compacted walnuts that no longer ressemble walnuts at all. They were for sale for 1.50 euros. They make excellent bird and squirrel feed.

Bobby, the mill’s mascot and pet beagle, fell in love with Lulu - even as she was giving him endless hip checks à la hockey player playoffs.

Bobby, the beautiful beagle kindly posing for his photo.

Le Moulin de Maneyrol (offers mill demonstrations by appointment)
RN89- Maneyrol
24120 Pazayac
Tel: 05 53 50 06 34

Tags: travel, france, dordogne, perigord, moulin+maneyrol, walnut+press, walnuts, walnut+oil, Noix+du+Périgord

Vegetarians and vegans, I salute you. Though I’ve spent the last month eating mainly vegetarian, I must admit that it is impossible for me to stay that way in France. Some dishes are just too tempting.

We’re visiting the Perigord (southwest France) and randomly picked the restaurant, Le Bistrot, to have lunch. I had to have the Confit de Canard, which is a specialty of Gascony, not far from where we are. It is a salted duck leg slowly cooked in its own fat. Oftentimes, like here, it is served with potatoes cooked in duck fat. These potatoes also had bits of foie gras, another regional specialty. It was sooooooo gooooooood.

I’d mentioned before that I hated cassoulet, but wondered if it was because I just hadn’t eaten a good cassoulet. Before I go on, cassoulet, named after the earthenware pot (cassole) in which it is cooked, is a slowly cooked stew with duck or goose fat, haricots blancs (white beans), pork sausages and confit of goose. Regional versions will vary. Didn’t I also mention it was so gross that things were swimming in duck fat? I changed my mind. This cassoulet that my sweety ordered, was intense and exceptional.

The area also specializes in walnuts and you’ll find sacks of walnuts to buy everywhere as well as wonderful walnut oil. If you have a salad in a restaurant, you’ll likely have walnut oil instead of olive oil as a dressing. You will also find walnutty goodness like this gateau aux noix (walnut cake) with creme anglaise. It was as good as it looks.

Le Bistrot
14, Place du Peyrou
24200 Sarlat
(in the center of the old town in Sarlat, near the cathedral)

NB: I’ll try do a separate post on Sarlat soon.

Remember this dog bar in France? I found another one!

Wait, look closer:

A slight improvement from the last one. I can’t wait to see the next.

Tags: france, french, dogs, dog+bar, toutou+bar

Since when are écoles (schools) and kids dangerous? This sign was good for a chuckle anyway. Somehow we got a feeling they felt that “Attention” wouldn’t fit in the allotted space on the upper portion of the sign. Too many letters!

Tags: france, travel, french, signs, danger, ecole, schools

If ever you mention Roussillon to someone who knows France, they will likely say that it is one of the most beautiful villages in France. They would be correctomundo. Its striking beauty may come very unexpectedly if you’ve been exploring the surrounding area of Luberon, where normally you’re surrounded by white stone, like what you’d find in Gordes. Rousillon is very different.

Because Roussillon is in the very center of one of the biggest ochre deposits in the world, the first thing you’ll notice while approaching it would be the wonderful view of the ochre cliffs ranging in color from pale yellow to orange, wild red and brown. Coupled with the earthy tones from the mountains, the light, the lush green pine trees all around and the bright blue Provençal sky can often create an amazing combination of new colors of pink, purple and infinite shades of red.

For this very inspiring reason, Roussillon has attracted many artists and writers. Also, since there are several quarries and a pigment factory (for paint), painters come to stock up on their warm and beautiful natural earth pigments. (This is where Chloe, from Apres la Sieste got her pigments for her wall paint.)

Roussillon cannot help but put you in a good mood while wandering the winding, vibrant streets. Every door, window shudder, window shade, and wall is tinted with the most warm shades of color the earth has ever created.

Be sure to visit the Sentier des ocres, which is a natural park just beside the village of Roussillon. Take a walking tour of the park through the wide, dusty ochre deposit between magnificent wind-sculpted cliffs. The walk should take less than an hour. (Remember: this is not a good day to wear white shoes or white clothes.) Find the entrance to the park on the small hill facing the village, next to a cemetery.

Sentiers des ochres
Hours: 9am-7:30pm (July & August); 10am-5:30pm (Mar-Nov) - 2 euros admission
Note: From November to March, entrance is free. Closed on rainy days.

Tourist Office
Place de la Poste
Tel: 04 90 05 60 25
Hours: 9:30am to Noon, 1:30pm - 6:30pm Monday to Saturday and Sunday from 2pm to 6:30pm
====================
Lulu Lundi* features Lulu, our Boston Terrier, somewhere in France every Monday.

Tags: travel, france, french, villages, roussillon, luberon, provence, Sentiers+des+ochres, pigments, ochre+deposit, lulu, dogs, boston+terriers

For several months now, we’ve been following, with fascination, the story and news about La Demeure du Chaos (Abode of Chaos). I’ve been calling it The Chaos House.Located in a small village called Saint-Romain-au-mont-d’or, France, just north outside of the the city of Lyon, The Abode of Chaos is a collective and complex art piece by Thierry Ehrmann and a group of international artists. This “residence” is made up of 2,500 works that cost Mr. Ehrmann approximately 5 million dollars, which was spent (over a period of 7 years) to transform the 17th century stone house into what is now La Demeure du Chaos / The Abode of Chaos. There are giant black and white paintings of the faces: Osama Bin Laden, George Bush, Ariel Sharon and others (Mr. Ehrmann notes that Terrorism has many faces); the garden keeps large sculptures: a model of the remains of the World Trade Center, crashed helicoptors, a pool filled with blood, an oil platform sits on top of the roof. It expresses many bold statements related to the state of the world, humanity, war, politics, religions, hatred, terrorism. It is a collective set of opinions. It is artistic expression.

Since it’s such a striking piece of artwork due to its content, which also extends to the outside of the walls of the Abode, it creates a striking contrast with the rest of the village.

The drama that surrounds it is also part of the work, much like performance art with everyone contributing as participants. The work has been a topic of much controversy, particularly from the village’s mayor, Pierre Dumont. He finds such a work ugly and intolerable, and does not consider it art at all, so he decided to take Mr. Ehrmann to court to try to have the Abode dismantled. Last June, the court ruled in favor of the village’s mayor, and ordered Mr. Ehrmann to pay a fine and to restore the house to its original state. Mr. Ehrmann made an appeal (this included a petition of 54,090 signatures worldwide by people in support of the Abode), and the final verdict was announced just a few days ago. This time, the court fined Mr. Ehrmann 200,000 euros ($253,360) for property violations but ruled that the residence would be allowed to exist in its current state. In fact, the Abode was declared a unique, artistic work of the 21st century by the Court of Appeals.

As part of the Journées européennes du patrimoine / European Days of Pride (September 16 and 17), The Abode of Chaos is opening its doors to the public today from 3pm to 7pm.

La Demeure du Chaos (Musée l’Organe)
69270 Saint-Romain-au-Mont-d’Or FRANCE
Website: La Demeure du chaos / Abode of Chaos
Email: contact@demeureduchaos.org
Photo Galleries: Photos of the Abode of Chaos (this set contains photos of all of the works since 1999)

In a recent post on her blog called, in my spare time, Jan from New South Wales, Australia, has beautifully drawn maps and info in her rebound Moleskine-like sketchbook (she even did the rebinding herself!) in preparation for her trip to Paris. The sketches and teeny tiny info are amazing and avoid having to lug around a whole guide book that she doesn’t really need, plus it’s all part of her travel journal/sketchbook that will have her personal observations and experiences of her trip in drawings and writing. I am already dying to see it and she hasn’t even gone yet.

She used the maps and travel information from an old 1969 Guide France, which she also rebound - then sketched what she’s planning to do during her trip. I love this idea because it’s meaningful and personal (she didn’t just photocopy pages she needed) and shows how much she’s looking forward to the trip by spending so much of her time in preparation.

In a way it makes me feel guilty when I think of my first solo trip to Europe that lasted 4 months and I traveled all over. I had a huge guidebook and after I visited a place, I’d tear out and throw away the pages of the book related to that place, to lighten my backpack! (I know, how wasteful of me. I’m not as wasteful anymore, if that helps.)

Lastly, I admire how Jan loves old books so much so that she rebinds them to give them a re-birth instead of just tossing them in the trash. More people should be so thoughtful and kind to the environment. Thanks for sharing your wonderful blog, Jan.

See Jan’s Paris sketches

[via Angry B]

Tags: france, paris, maps, sketchbook, travel, journals, moleskine

This would be my post entry:

Tags: france, french, puns, carnival+of+the+puns, play+on+words

From August 21 to the end of this month, Peugeot has run a “special promotion.” They will apply up to 3,700 euros toward the purchase of your new Peugeot (specific conditions apply of course) plus the blue book value of your OLD car. I’ve seen the ads in spam mail in our mailbox as well as television spots of this particular promotion.

They really, really bug me. The TV ads shows this guy pushing his 20+ year old, crappy car off a cliff, then he remembers the “special” and uses his magic powers to bring it back up. Reverse tape and voila: old crappy car back on top of the cliff and ready to be redeemed at a Peugeot dealer. That sounds like a great deal!!

The print ad shows the same promotion with an ad babe sitting atop an old  Peugeot 104, which is a Peugeot model that began production in 1972 and lasted until 1988. But you’re not supposed to be paying too much attention to that because afterall, there’s a babe in the picture! I guess you’re supposed to be blinded somehow by the babe so you don’t read the fine print.

Peugeot’s fine print is like practically all fine print: very tiny at the bottom of the ad necessitating the use of a magnifying glass. In the TV ad, the fine print is scrolled really fast at the bottom of the screen. Try not to be distracted by the great deal or ad babe! Always read the fine print!!!!

The deception here is that Peugeot uses these examples of extremely old cars and they imply that you can exchange them for real value. The Peugeot 104 in the print ad, for example, is at best 18 years old, and could possibly be as old as 34 years old if it was one of the Peugeot 104s built in 1972.

The fine print will probably not surprise you. It didn’t surprise me either but nevertheless bugs me. Here’s what the fine print revealed: the promotion is only valid for cars less than eight years old.

If that isn’t a case of extreme and shameless deceptive marketing, I don’t know what is.

Tags: france, french, advertising, ads, cars, promotion, peugeot, publicite+mensongere

From Screenhead:

“According to an article posted by AP, Luc Besson has stated that his latest directorial effort, Arthur and the Minimoys (not to be confused with Mini-Me) will be his last film. Besson stated that he will be devoting his time to civic projects including a foundation on behalf of youth in France’s inner cities. Besson is quoted as saying: “I want to take a little care of my fellow citizens. I want to take a little care of my planet. I want to act in favor of the inner cities, in favor of the environment. I want to do lots of things. I am trying to start a foundation. I want to help youths in the inner cities. I am very sensitive about all these youths. I find that they have incredible energy.” Refering to the films he’s directed, Besson said: “They are my 10 little babies. I love them all. I am pleased to have completed this cycle. That is finished…”

Read the entire post

If you didn’t register early for free entry into the Paris Apple Expo, you can still head over but you’ll have to pay 12 euros to get in. It just started a few minutes ago and goes on until the 16th. They call this expo the premier Mac event in Europe but Steve Jobs rarely shows up for a keynote anymore. This year, he’s set up a special media event in California (why didn’t he do this in Paris??) to introduce new products: the second-generation iPod nano, an updated 5G iPod, and upgraded iMacs, sources from Think Secret report.

Will there be mobile phone, an iphone perhaps??, an iCamera? What, already??! While the announcement will be carried by a private satellite feed to a central London location for members of the European press, it will not be fed to the Paris expo. However, the new products will be on display at the Paris exhibition. The new 24-inch screen iMacs will also be on display. In any case, Apple Expo is a good opportunity to buy Mac equipment, peripherals and software. It’s a huge marché aux puces (pun intended) à la pomme.

I get a feeling that the Paris event is sort of like the neglected, adopted son of Apple.

Apple Expo - September 12-16, 2006
Hours: 10am - 7pm
Porte de Versailles
M: Porte de Versailles
Bus: line 39, 49, 80, and PC
Car: take exit Porte de Versailles or Porte de Vanves

Tags: france, french, apple, macintosh, apple+expo, paris, macs, imac, steve+jobs

Courtepaille is a very average roadside restaurant chain. You’ll find them all over France. I just laugh a little each time I see one; it always makes me wonder about what they were thinking when they named it that. The name, “Courtepaille” means short straw, as in when drawing straws, whoever pulls the shortest straw loses. Obviously, this hasn’t prevented the chain from success. I don’t think people even think of it as meaning short straw (and if they did, they probably don’t care); I think I’m actually one of the few that has noticed. *sigh* A non-native French speaker thing, I guess.

I briefly mentioned and recommended the best-seller, Perfume, a novel by Patrick Susskind in a post about Grasse, which is the perfume capital of France. The novel has sold more than 150 million copies since 1985, and has been translated into 45 different languages. In France alone, 2.5 million copies of Perfume were sold.

The Story from Library Journal:

Set in 18th-century France, Perfume relates the fascinating and horrifying tale of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, a person as gifted as he was abominable. Born without a smell of his own but endowed with an extraordinary sense of smell, Grenouille becomes obsessed with procuring the perfect scent that will make him fully human. With brilliant narrative skill Susskind exposes the dark underside of the society through which Grenouille moves and explores the disquieting inner universe of this singularly possessed man.

It’s been many years since its initial publication and I’ve been wondering why it hasn’t been made into a movie. Actually, the German novelist, Patrick Susskind was approached by both Martin Scorsese and Ridley Scott for the film rights, but he declined. It wasn’t until 2001 that Mr. Susskind finally allowed the sale of the film rights (for an undisclosed amount) to his friend, German Film Producer, Bernd Eichinger, who produced The Name of the Rose, and The Neverending Story among many other films.

Finally, 21 years after the novel’s publication, the movie, Perfume, was made for the big screen.

Perfume was directed by Tom Tykwer, who also directed and wrote the excellent, Run Lola Run. British actor, Ben Whishaw, will play the lead character, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. (Yes. Last Name: Frog.) Alan Rickman, who i LOVE, will be playing the Antoine perfumer, Richis. I was largely disappointed with Dustin Hoffman casted as the Grenouille’s teacher Guiseppe Baldini, but I’m crossing my fingers everything will be fine.

Perfume opens in French theaters on October 4.

The weirdest item came up earlier on the evening prime time news on the channel, France 2. The subject? Ejaculation Précoce (Premature Ejaculation). Alrightee then. Apparently, this problem affects 20-30% of men but can be treated with a new drug (approval pending). So, guys - as you can see in the graphic from the study, if it takes you two minutes to get to your happy moment without meds, you’ll be able to stretch those heavenly 120 blissful seconds to three minutes and 20 seconds if you take Dapoxetine! Of course three minutes 20 seconds, while an improvement (of 80 seconds!), is still rather in the quickie category.

What is this about? Like, why are they airing this? It’s hard to read the mind of a country that embraces the consumption of calf heads, but here are a few thoughts: 1) A pharmaceutical company wants to compete with Viagra; 2) France wants women to be happier; 3) France is trying to work on the population issue. Make babies, people!! 4) They had nothing else as viable news. 5) It was an opportunity to rub it in; 6) France is informing guys who may not be aware of this but…TWO MINUTES IS NOT OK.

I love when dogs smile. Ok. If you don’t think that’s cute above, we can’t be friends.

We went to the open market in Autun this morning. A woman saw Lulu and said, “Oh yes, that’s a Boston,” which surprised us because 99% of the people we meet think Lulu is a French Bulldog. So we chatted and she introduced us to her two Bosties, Popstar and Cheyenne.

Though the breeder was French, she sort of reminded me of some people I’ve met in L.A. (and in the entertainment industry) because she began to namedrop. She said she sold a beautiful and unusual, mostly white (with a little patch of black) Boston to Maxime Le Forestier (He’s a famous semi-old timer singer in France) and she sold another dog to Jean Yanne, who I didn’t know. (I had to look him up. He was a comedian and actor.)

She also mentioned that she, in fact, lived in L.A. for a while.

Tags: france, dogs, boston+terriers, maxime+le+forestier, jean+yanne, friday+ark, carnival+of+the+dogs

Free unlimited landline calls!!!

Voice over IP (VoIP) software maker Skype has announced that all France-based Skype users can make unlimited calls to landlines in France for free, now through December 31, 2006.

The calls are routed through Skype’s SkypeOut service, which enables users to make phone calls to any landlines or cell phone number using the Skype software and a computer. Users purchase “credits” which are used to pay per minute fees for outbound calls to landlines and cell phones. Using just the Skype software, Skype users can message and call each other for free.

This promotion removes the cost of making SkypeOut calls to users in France who want to call French landline numbers — it’s similar to a promotion Skype offered to North American users this May. Charges remain in effect for French SkypeOut users who wish to make calls to landlines elsewhere, or cell phones.

Skype works on a variety of platforms, including Mac OS X.

[via Macworld]

This place is called Burger Pizza. They serve burgers and pizza.

Tags: france, restaurants, burger, pizza, signs

Gamers everywhere are reveling the savvy and unabashed style of French advertising, specifically for these PS2 ads from TBWA France. Needless to say, these aren’t ads deemed “appropriate” for prudish American audiences. Don’t they realize gamers are a different breed? I think I hear them screaming, “Vive La France and thank God for the Internet!!!”

And, we mustn’t forget this creepy panty sniffing one:

While Kotaku calls these ads Bacchanalian and bold, it’s just your usual status quo for the day in the life of French audiences. [via Kotaku]

Tags: france, french, ads, advertising, tbwa+france, ps2

10 years ago, something amazing happened to a struggling, unknown band in L.A.: They got famous in France. Lemme back up a little.

Big Soul, a band playing mainly rhythm and blues covers in a vegetarian cafe on Fountain Avenue in Los Angeles, was basically boring Los Angeleno crowds night after night, and was soon finding themselves desperate to reinvent the band to get more attention. They decided to try something completely different and spice up their work and lives with a little bit of French set in a backdrop of punk disco rhythms. They didn’t know French well, but that didn’t stop them from stringing together lyrics from a French phrase book; slapping French words all over the place: a “monsieur” here an “Edith Piaf” there. The song, Le Brio was born. The song makes little sense, really - but it’s in French. And that is supposed to be cool.

Luck was with BIg Soul in 1996 because France had just passed a law regarding the quotas musicaux (music quotas). The new law mandated that French Radio air a minimum of 40% songs in French. Nevermind that the French was splattered helter-skelter, radio programmers were scrambling to find enough French songs to meet the quota, so “Le Brio” made the playlist for on-air coverage in France. And play it did. A LOT. They played it so much that it grew on the hearts of French kids, became a huge cult hit, and Big Soul’s CD went gold.

No, I would not post this without giving you the pleasure of listening to the song in question: Le Brio. Somehow it explains a lot about the music scene in Fr