Articles

Are you ‘Crazy’ about Paris?

Are you crazy about Paris? If so, enjoy the video below with both French and English lyrics underneath. French Version Dingue, Dingue, Dingue Je sais qu’on revient pas en arrièreEt que tu ne reviendras pas non plusMais...

Say Cheese or Oui-sti-ti!

The traditional command in France is “Ouistiti!” (pronounced wee-stee-tee) instead of “Say Cheese!” when taking pictures. Your lips assume a semi-smile when saying the “wee” in ouistiti. A ouistiti is a type of South American monkey. A Tour Eiffel sign on its first...

La Pub

Compared with the US, Paris is relatively free from the garish signage that permeates modern urban life. Even on television, the commercials are grouped into bunches every 15 minutes or half-hour and you can easily avoid them. These segments are called La pub, short...

16 Dollar Store Travel Hacks – Paris Edition

The dollar stores are your unlikely best friend when packing for Paris. Visit a dollar store before leaving the US to avoid overspending on travel supplies. The dollar store is cheaper than the travel aisle in your local pharmacy or discount store. Their price point...

Paris is for Lovers

It's true: Paris is for Lovers Paris is romantic. You really do see more people kissing in the street (like this couple at a bus stop) than in other cities. They're doing it everywhere. And on bridges!

France Remembers

We don't do a very good job in the United States of remembering, especially wartime events. It's a different story in France which was devastated by both world wars.There are memorials everywhere. Most small towns have a monument in their center square listing the...

The Great Paris Flood of 1910 Building Markers

Have you noticed any of these markers on Paris buildings? Une crue is a flood and these carvings and plaques found around Paris reference the Great Flood of the Seine River in 1910. Une inondation is another word for a flood or a deluge, but...

Henri, le chat noir

Don't we all miss the existentialist cat, Henri le chat noir? If you haven't seen him before, catch him on his YouTube channel (11 videos). He passed away in 2020, but lives on in the hearts of cat lovers around the world. As one commenter noted, "All cats are French".

Gougère

Une gougère, made with chou pastry and gruyère cheese, is a Burgundy specialty. It's different from the little puff pastry appetizers you find in the US. Those are often small, pinball-sized thingies that are perfect as hors d'œuvres. But the Bourguignonne variety are...

Holidays – Les Etrennes – New Year’s

In the US, we often give small monetary gifts at Christmas time to certain people who supply services, such as hairdressers or housecleaners. In France, this is done at New Year's and the gifts are called 'les etrennes'. Some of the recipients are similar: the...

Holidays-April Fools’ Day-Poisson d’avril

For the non-francophiles among us, the poisson d'avril (fish of April) is the French equivalent of our April Fool's Day. Paper fish are surreptitiously stuck on someone's back and when the person discovers this: Ha-ha! Poisson d'avril! But until I read a recent...