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Are French Cars Better Than Italian Cars? Posted by Transparent Language on Oct 6, 2008
« La puissance est plus impressionnante lorsqu’elle est générée par une simple goutte. » This comes from an Audi ad that was blinking at me this afternoon while I was reading Le Monde online. It didn’t inspire me to go out and buy a car, but it did bring me to write this article on comparatives in…
Baggage Thieves! Posted by Transparent Language on Oct 1, 2008
According to an article in Le Monde today, a baggage theft ring has been caught at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport with approximately 450,000 euros worth of stolen goods. The baggage handlers’ finds included computers, iPods, iPhones, cell phones, jewelry, perfume, luxury shoes and travelers checks. Many items were later sold on eBay. In 2007, there…
L’Hexagone Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 30, 2008
France is a country to love as no matter what you are looking for: mountains, beaches, rivers…you will find it all in France. The entire country is roughly 80% the size of Texas, so you have so much available geographically and you can can get to it all in very little time. It is bordered…
Falloir Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 30, 2008
The United States is famous in Europe for being prohibitive despite its status as a nation of freedom. I have tried again and again to explain to my French and other European friends that one’s freedom in the United States ends when their acts fringe upon another’s freedom. In any case, the French version of…
Americans and their Love-Hate Relationship with France Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 29, 2008
According to a March 2008 Gallup poll, Americans have a more positive attitude towards France than a few years back. 69% of Americans say they have a favorable view of France as opposed to only 57% in February 2007. Well, I for one, have always had a favorable view of France and I’ll give you some…
Gallic Pride Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 25, 2008
As I was quick to observe when I began living in Paris in 1997 as a young, impressionable university student, the French are very, very proud of their language, culture, history, wine, food, geography, women, clothing, music, brands, etc. etc. and did I mention their food and wine? After having already lived in Spain where…
Chez Maïté Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 24, 2008
When I was living in France for the second time in 2003 there was a Big Brother type show on television (Nice People) which I avidly watched and one of the guest housemates was a French cook named Maïté. Since I wasn’t eating there, I obviously fell in love with her personality as she’s bubbly, fun…