In the news

Henri IV, French King, Skull Back With Heirs

Man fined for insulting French flag    

Train across France completes 'hell on wheels' journey

Paris Charles de Gaulle terminal evacuated due to snow on roof

Europe flights resume after snow

Spanish woman fakes kidnapping to test husband

Sleep like royalty…

…or at least sleep near where royalty used to live.

Sometime next year a luxury hotel will open on the Château de Versailles grounds. So those of you with a few extra euros can book a room overlooking the Orangerie or a lake.

Following the same theme, a BBC article discusses luxury hotels in relation to poverty in Paris. It points out that new Paris hotels feature suites costing over 20k euro per night while over a tenth of Parisians live below the poverty line.

Click here to read about the Versailles hotel and here to read “Parisian luxury hotels mask city's growing poverty”.

Naturalized Framerican

As the next step in my frenchification process, I had to attend a naturalization ceremony. I’ve never been one for ceremonial hoopla but since attending was mandatory to receive the documents proving that I am now a frogette, I braved the cold and traipsed to Rue des Ursins in the 4th.

I’m used to anything having to do with the prefecture taking a long time. Even when you receive a letter stating to arrive at X hour, you usually have to take a number and wait. So I decided that it would be a good idea to get to the location early. It wasn’t. Another lady and I arrived at 12:30 (the letter stated 13:00) only to be told to come back 5 to 10 minutes before 13:00. Have I mentioned that I’m not a fan of cold weather?

 When I went back around 12:50, there were a lot of people waiting outside. We were directed upstairs and after waiting in a small room, we were brought in 3 groups into the naturalization room. We watched a film on what it means to be French and the Sous-Directeur (I can’t remember his name) went on and on about the many famous French people who were originally from elsewhere. We stood and sang La Marseillaise. Fortunately, the words were provided since I don’t know anything past “le jour de gloire est arrivé”.

After singing the national anthem each person’s name was read in alphabetical order, and we went up to get our packet and kiss the Sous-Directeur (the men gave a handshake). We numbered about 100, and there were a lot of people from the Maghreb countries. The rest were from other parts of Africa, Asia, South America and a few were from Europe. There was even one man from Italy. Not surprisingly, I was the only American.

To see the video on what it means to become French click here and to view photos from a previous ceremony click here.

Winter calling card?

I was on my way to have dinner with a friend last night, when I noticed a name written in the snow on one of the cars. As I kept walking I saw other names on other cars. I don’t know if the same person wrote all of the names or if someone did the first and others followed the example. Either way, I thought it was amusing.

French gastronomy recognized by UN culture and education agency

UNESCO has added France's traditional gastronomic meal to the world's intangible heritage list.

Fremont is not a suburb

It’s always interesting to hear perceptions of my hometown from “outsiders”. But when I read a recent article about Seattle in the Telegraph, I thought – this guy clearly has not spent much time in the city.

Never mind that he refers to Fremont as a suburb (I assume that it’s a UK vs. US terminology difference). In only the 2nd paragraph he states It's a city whose presiding geniuses are Kurt Cobain (the late frontman of Nirvana) and Frasier. Uh…no to both. Cobain is from Aberdeen, which is about 100 miles from Seattle and is closer to Olympia and Tacoma and Frasier is a fictional character from a TV sitcom. Ask any true Seattleite to name someone famous from the city and I can guarantee you that Frasier will not be on the list.

Mark Jones, the author, also mentions that Seattle houses Microsoft and Starbucks. Ok on Starbucks but another big NO on Microsoft. MS HQ is in Redmond, part of the eastside a.k.a. the dark side.

I know I probably sound nitpicky, but these are the details that do matter to those of us who come from and have lived in the Emerald City. I can let Nirvana pass, since Seattle has claimed the band as its own. But mixing up the eastside and Seattle is quick way to make me doubt your credibility when talking about anything related to Seattle.

Mr. Jones waxes lyrical about t-shirt shops, Fremont, his hotel and tells readers that the waterfront is disappointing. I give him a B for effort, however I’d say that Mr. Jones has missed the ferry with this one. Why focus on Fremont and the Pike Place Market? And anyone who’d spent any time in Seattle would know not to go to Pioneer Square at night (unless you're looking for a certain type of experience). What about Capitol Hill, Queen Anne or Green Lake? How about popping over to Alki for an amazing view of downtown or hopping on a ferry?

I’m not saying my Seattle is the only Seattle, but there are many other parts and aspects of the city Mr. Jones could have mentioned. To read his take on Seattle click here.

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Greek police destroy letter bomb sent to French embassy

French prime minister revolts over likely dismissal

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