Vive la France!!!

[Christian P.]

As I am in France for a few weeks, it is a great opportunity to share some observations on what makes this country so awesome...

I'll start with today news:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13168354

France riot police face beer and wine meal ban

French riot police are outraged over plans to end a long-cherished tradition of drinking alcohol with their meals.

Under the terms of an interior ministry decree, riot police will no longer be allowed to wash down their lunch with a glass or two of beer or wine.

I personally do like the fact that it is socially accepted to have a drink at lunch.

That being said, one of the team members exaggerated a bit yesterday...and showed up totally drunk a few minutes before our 3 pm meeting...and was ruining the whole thing. It was quite a spectacle - something that would most likely have triggered quite some drama in the HR department in most US corporations....

:)

[EMrider]

As I am in France for a few weeks, it is a great opportunity to share some observations on what makes this country so awesome...

I'll start with today news:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13168354

France riot police face beer and wine meal ban

French riot police are outraged over plans to end a long-cherished tradition of drinking alcohol with their meals.

Under the terms of an interior ministry decree, riot police will no longer be allowed to wash down their lunch with a glass or two of beer or wine.

I personally do like the fact that it is socially accepted to have a drink at lunch.

That being said, one of the team members exaggerated a bit yesterday...and showed up totally drunk a few minutes before our 3 pm meeting...and was ruining the whole thing. It was quite a spectacle - something that would most likely have triggered quite some drama in the HR department in most US corporations....

:)

It is an odd country (from a US perspective of course) in many ways.

But I do admire their zeal and skill in creating and supporting epic sporting events. Dakar, TDF, megavalanche........if a full day of competition is good, then heck, why not 3 straight weeks?

[Christian P.]

2 elements to master if you work in Paris as a IT consultant:

Wear a suit and a tie.

Shake hands to everyone when you arrive in the morning and you leave at night.

Optionally, also consider taking up smoking...

[Christian P.]

Another thing to learn while you are here - get used to a bunch of really cool cars and motorcycles that we will never get in North america in my lifetime, such as the VW Scirocco R TSI TDI


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[barlowrs]

Just got back from a 4 week stint in Paris for work. I end up in various areas of France quite often. It is a wonderful country. If it wasn’t so hard for an American to get a job there, I would probably head there on a more permanent basis! Enjoy it while you are there.

[Christian P.]

Paris is a paradise for motorcyclists. I am amazed by the number of scooters everywhere in town. I am also amazed at how kamikaze the riders are - splitting lanes in the morning on the "Peripherique" at 60 mph is normal business...

It is also the only town I have seen that have a large network of "mototaxi".
We are not talking about the scooter taxi like in Thailand or Cambodia, but large Goldwing 1800 cc that carries passengers around town or to/from the airports.

http://www.taximotoexpress.fr/images/1.jpg

http://www.motojet.fr/images/template/motojet.jpg

[Patman]

French riot police are outraged over plans to end a long-cherished tradition of drinking alcohol with their meals.



So who is going to protect the public from the rioting riot police?

[Flounder]

I thought I was a good moto rider until I moved to Paris with my Ducati. I later realized i was a good rider, just not crazy enough.

[Scott Brady]

I always enjoy my travels to France. It is a living museum.

[Christian P.]

I thought I was a good moto rider until I moved to Paris with my Ducati. I later realized i was a good rider, just not crazy enough.

I couldn't have imagined a better way to describe it.

[Christian P.]

I always enjoy my travels to France. It is a living museum.

Speaking of museum and motorcycle, check out this quick article on a Velo and Moto museum I came across last weekend
(http://www.expeditionportal.com/vehicules/motorcycles/70-other/342-discovering-a-secret-motorcycle-museum-in-france.html)

http://www.expeditionportal.com/images/stories/adventure/france/CastleFront.JPG (http://www.expeditionportal.com/vehicules/motorcycles/70-other/342-discovering-a-secret-motorcycle-museum-in-france.html)

[Christian P.]

Music has also evolved quite a lot in France. There are obviously all the classic songs that everyone knows...but the new generation has been doing a great job at creating big hits.

I am usually not a big fan of hip-hop or dance in a different language than English but I must say that it works very well in French.
I believe the mix coming from immigrants from Northern Africa/Middle-East has brought a very unique touch to these styles.

of course, everyone has different tastes...

7pKrVB5f2W0

[jrueppel]

Thanks for the music! Please keep it coming. It's extra hard to find the good stuff happening in the Francophone music scene with out someone there doing the looking for you. Added a photo of a Willys that caught my eye last summer while hiking in the Alps near Annecy. I've always been surprised by the sweet little 4x4s you find up high there.

[Christian P.]

Well, since you are asking...a few more of my favorites....

Old, but still one of the best ever rappers: MC Solaar

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NTM (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supr%C3%AAme_NTM), another very popular hip-hop band.

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and a last one...more like a light one-hit wonder, but sort of funny:

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(sorry for the pub at the beginning, blame YouTube...)

[Christian P.]

I had the great pleasure today to visit an exhibit of the most beautiful cars ever built (sorry pictures were not allowed, so I have to show you these generic videos):

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[jrueppel]

Thanks!

[Christian P.]

here's another one, different style - L'Horloge tourne ("The clock is ticking")


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9iYK91IKMU

There are a lot of songs about the 20-30 y.o. phase of our life - especially taken place in Paris, such as this older "classic".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buPbgI9CSCQ

[The Swiss]

Make sure you check out the group 1, 2, 3 Soleils; they were big when I still lived in Europe, in the 1990ies. Not even sure if they still exist.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjGKqFJSgDc&feature=player_detailpage

[Christian P.]

I have been here for about 2 months now and I must say I am absolutely amazed by this city (and this country). It's very interesting how sometimes adventure is not always where you think it is.

I typically commute back from work (from Levallois (17ieme) to Le Marais (3ieme)) which takes about 40 minutes.
Riding the bike (Velolib) through the traffic at 7pm wearing a full suit is quite a thrill.
You are usually racing and avoiding pedestrians, scooters, taxi, bus, cars and everything else in between.

This video gives a little taste of this activity - the song literally means "in Paris on a velo, we overtake motos, taxi, cars, etc"


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0zlW0HAX-0&feature=fvwrel

Here is a fun video of what some guys managed to do with these bikes


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afE44cHNkEg

[RadioBaobab]

Music has also evolved quite a lot in France. There are obviously all the classic songs that everyone knows...but the new generation has been doing a great job at creating big hits.

I am usually not a big fan of hip-hop or dance in a different language than English but I must say that it works very well in French.
I believe the mix coming from immigrants from Northern Africa/Middle-East has brought a very unique touch to these styles.

of course, everyone has different tastes...

7pKrVB5f2W0

The language is French... but the artist certainly isn't. He is from Belgium ;-)

[Christian P.]

Here is something we don't have in North America...as far as I know

http://www.renault.tv/en_GB

It's a TV station that broadcast 24/7 programs about Renault...quite entertaining I must say, their episode on the Renault 4 was awesome!

http://www.renault.tv/fr/passion/videos/1326/renault-4-rallye-monte-carlo-historique#/passion/videos/1326/renault-4-rallye-monte-carlo-historique

They have tons of movies, i could spend hours watching these...! Check the Gordini!

http://www.renault.tv/fr/passion/videos/1326/renault-4-rallye-monte-carlo-historique#/passion/videos/148166/cine-club-gordinissimo

[Christian P.]

Make sure you check out the group 1, 2, 3 Soleils; they were big when I still lived in Europe, in the 1990ies. Not even sure if they still exist.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjGKqFJSgDc&feature=player_detailpage

Great band indeed. I believe I saw them in Montreal once.

[Christian P.]

I am literally falling in love with Paris. I had not expected to enjoy this city so much.

Right now we just moved in a much larger apartment for the last 2 weeks of my stay. It is fabulous.

And we just got welcomed by thousand of rollerbladers, passing in front of our windows on their Friday night tour of the city.

More here:


http://www.pari-roller.com/


The mission of Pari Roller is to organize and promote the Friday night skating tour and to encourage roller skating as a leisure activity, as a sport or as a means of transportation… The association is a-political, not-for-profit, and non-religious--in short, independent!

The organization is built on principles that started in the streets, with unauthorized rides. At that time, a small group of skaters was organizing in the city to skate for pleasure, discover the city and meet other people—in other words, for freedom.

Pari Roller is now totally independent from any commercial or political structure. Its only partner is the Paris police department, which along with Pari Roller ensures the security of the participants and the spectators. These are what make the event successful.

Of course today, due to the growing popularity of the Friday Night Fever skate tour, things are changing … But the basics remain the same. The tour is free and open to anyone who can control his or her speed. It is a space of freedom.

Pari Roller does not consider itself the “owner” of the tour, but rather it guarantees a certain philosophy and spirit of the tour. By encouraging a work ethic related to its philosophy, Pari Roller tries to protect the skaters from outside influences, such as attempts of commercial or political takeovers, or massive distributions of leaflets, etc.

But it’s also your job, you faithful or occasional riders of the tour, to tell us what you think. If you have any ideas or if you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us!

This weekly ride gathers the largest number of skaters in the world… and it is yours. Its survival depends on you.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94NFZ7eRR4A


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uImfQG-C5k

[jrueppel]

As weird as it is, Pari Roller is one of the coolest things I remember about living there. There are some crazy talented skaters there and it was always great to see so many folks out on a Friday night essentially just for fun and exercise. A lot like critical mass for cyclists but without all the politics.

[Christian P.]

As most people know, finding a parking in Paris is a challenge.

But getting out of your parking spot...a mystery.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/images/stories/articles/CP/France/stuck.jpg

[morini]

Music has also evolved quite a lot in France. There are obviously all the classic songs that everyone knows...but the new generation has been doing a great job at creating big hits.

I am usually not a big fan of hip-hop or dance in a different language than English but I must say that it works very well in French.
I believe the mix coming from immigrants from Northern Africa/Middle-East has brought a very unique touch to these styles.

of course, everyone has different tastes...

7pKrVB5f2W0

Oops. This is wrong.
Stromae is born in Brussels. His father is from Rwanda and his mother is Belgian. His real name is Paul Van Haver. Although his name is Flemish (Dutch), his native language is French.

[Christian P.]

Oops. This is wrong.
Stromae is born in Brussels. His father is from Rwanda and his mother is Belgian. His real name is Paul Van Haver. Although his name is Flemish (Dutch), his native language is French.

thanks for the correction. Since it's native language is French, and I love this song, I would still accept it...

:)

[morini]

thanks for the correction. Since it's native language is French, and I love this song, I would still accept it...

:)

No problem.I Like the song also.
His girlfriend is miss Belgium
In Belgium 60 prc speeks Dutch, 40prc french , and a few prc German.
I speak them all, and also a little bit English.:ylsmoke:
Love France also, spending a lot of vacation over there, Là-bas en douce france

[Landy4x4]

Hi everyone

I'm new here. I'm on 4x4 forums, I had a lot of Lada Niva a few years ago, but now I search a truck for my family.

I live in Orléans, but i'm born in north near Lille, belgium limits.

France is a very fantastic coutry to discover, offroading is more and more limited.

It's a small country like US and Australia :sombrero: but a very big country to discover. Bretagne, Alsace, Volcans d'Auvergne, Côte d'Azur, Alpes, .... Castles, Cathedrals, old villages in desert lands ....

In Orléans, our Cathedral, Sainte Croix

137081

In south of Orléans, you have old castles like Chambord, Chenonceaux, ....