29 interesting maps about France

This is an article which lists a whole bunch (29 in fact!) cool maps of France, for example these:

You might even learn a thing or two like I did! Enjoy! :)

linky

Europe's median age from 1960 to 2060

I came across this infographic today which I found pretty scary. I can envisage all sorts of problems due to an ever ageing population :(  Since I'm sure most of us will still be around in 2060 it's a problem we're all going to have to deal with...but at least we'll still have plenty of old friends around us!

If the video does not play, you can see it here.

France forbids names like Nutella, Strawberry, Titeuf and MJ

This is a funny and interesting article. I don't think it's just France either but many European countries are pretty strict about what you can name your children. There's a debate about freedom of choice vs what's 'right' and good for the kid... anyway... that explains why every European I've met has a really 'normal' and most likely very common name and also with a common spelling.

I think I agree with this law. I'm tired of stupid names, funny names, names that you can't spell easily (even if they are common names).. I'm tired of parents trying to be cool or trendy and it's their kids that suffer.

I myself have an uncommon name but it's easy to spell and pronounce but yet I still have so many problems, esp. over the phone.. even when I try to spell it they get it wrong. And so I can imagine the annoyance kids of weird names must feel later on when they are adults..

Article from 'The Local' here

extract:

Nutella and Strawberry

This week saw news that both Nutella and Strawberry (Fraise) were given the red light in France. Why? Because judges thought both girls would be mocked as they grew up. To make matters worse for Fraise, the judge said that the bullies would no doubt pounce at the chance to use the expression "ramène ta fraise" - a slang phrase roughly meaning "get your ass over here".

Titeuf 

 

Titeuf is a popular cartoon character in France. Photo: bgvjpe/Flickr

 

In 2009, a couple from the north of France chose to name their son after the famous French children's comic book hero 'Titeuf'. Unfortunately for them, a judge ruled that the name could prove detrimental to their son's life, especially during his teen years, and later in his professional life. Titeuf was an eight-year-old boy with blond hair. He even appeared in British comic book The Dandy, renamed as "TooTuff" for English-speaking audiences.

My related posts about babies names:

Top French baby's names year by year 1946-2011
Top French baby's names 2009
Top French baby's names 2011
Top French baby's names 2013
Top French baby's names 2015

(strange how I only seem to do this on odd-numbered years, that's not intentional!)

Top French babies' names / Top des prénoms français 2015

Some of the top French babies' names for 2015 :

Voici le top des prénoms (français) 2015 :

Filles/Girls: 

• Emma, 
• Chloé, 
• Inès, 
• Léa, 
• Manon, 
• Lola,  
• Louise 

Garçons/Boys: 

• Lucas, 
• Nathan, 
• Gabriel, 
• Léo, 
• Louis,
• Timéo,
• Raphaël.

More... plus...

JE SUIS CHARLIE and news

I know, I know this is old news. I meant to write a post about this when it all happened but I had a lot going on...

I was quite saddened by the whole thing (to think that people could get killed for drawings) and moved by the big groups of people not just in France but everywhere, that gathered together in public spaces to mourn the loss of those innocent victims but also to come together for a fight against terrorism.

I really hope to God nothing like that ever happens again, in France or anywhere else :(

----

In other recent-ish news, the Swiss franc previously bought about 0.8 Euros and on 15 Jan the Swiss national bank (SNB) lifted the 3 year limit on the exchange rate and all of a sudden 1 Swiss franc buys 1 Euro! Crazy stuff...

I'm probably going to be out of action for a few weeks but when I come back I'll have more and better posts for you! Don't worry, I'll be back :)

France cuts family and childcare benefits

Pic: http://www.cricklewoodchildcare.com.au/

article link:  http://www.thelocal.fr//20140930/france-birthrate-benefits-children-cuts-austerity

Interesting topic! France is well known in Europe for having a 'high' fertility rate of at least 2 kids per couple, compared to only 1 point something for every other European country (except Ireland)...

extract:

France’s healthy birth rate – the second highest in Europe after Ireland’s – has long been attributed to pro-fertility policies such as free post-natal care, subsidized daycare, allowances for each child born (prime de naissance) and discounts on a range of services for large families.
So the alarm bells were ringing even louder this week in the aftermath of an announcement by the government that it intends to reduce key family welfare benefits in a bid to save €700 million.Under the plans, parental leave will be cut, help in paying for childcare will be reduced for the more well-off, as will the famous "prime de naissance".
Critics have slammed the government for measures they claim will only act to dissuade couples from having children.
“Of course these measures will affect the birth rate. If the state doesn't offer help it's clear that poorer families won’t be able to afford childcare, which will put them off having children,” Thierry Vidor, from the organization Familles de France told The Local.
“This government is taking us back to the nineteenth century,” he added.

Top 10 countries with best quality tap water

http://www.mareawhitedds.com/

Over the years I've noticed a snobbery factor with drinking/not drinking tap water. People think it's bad, or low quality, or unclean or whatever but it's not! I was brought up to drink tap water only if it's boiled or filtered but I'm like 'screw that'. I've been drinking tap water since my teens...

In all Anglo and Western European countries the water is PERFECTLY SAFE to drink. So you don't need to waste money by buying bottled water... unless you really want to of course.

So, without further ado, here is the list! All in Europe, except New Zealand. I'm curious where Australia is on the list...

1. Switzerland

2. Norway

3. Luxemburg

4. France

5. Austria

6. Italy

7. UK

8. Sweden

9. Germany

10. New Zealand

http://www.therichest.com/expensive-lifestyle/location/top-10-countries-with-the-best-tap-water/

Because I'm all for ecological and environmental sustainability here are a few infographics I've found on the subject:

http://www.foodwinenet.com

http://www.manataka.org

http://www.pdx.edu

http://askhrgreen.org

One thing I have noticed about tap water in (Western) Europe though (vs tap water in Australia) is that it has a high calcium content. Annoyingly, you get white deposits around the opening of your tap, and inside your kettle. I've heard that this is not so good for washing your hair though :( but I'm not rich enough to take a shower and wash my hair with bottled water.. LOL!

PS I DON'T recommend you drink tap water in most other countries though.

RIP 43things website

I guess all good things have come to an end... :`(

I just logged in to 43 things (which I haven't done so for a few months) and was surprised to find this message. I have this website to thank for so many goals I have achieved over the past 5 (!) years. I shocked myself time and time again when I would review the site every 3-6 months and discovered that I had achieved goals I'd written in there, goals which at that time I didn't think were achievable (at least, not in the short time frame I wanted).

I'm really sad but have to look for another alternative now.

Any ideas?

Did any of you ever use this site?

Bilingualism fights dementia and improves brain function

There are LOTS of articles like this online, this is by no means the best one but it is just one example of how learning multiple languages strengthens brain functions and cognitive thinking skills and fights off alzheimers and dementia..

Article here

Most common languages spoken in the US after English

You might have seen this article already, it originated on Slate.

Ben Blatt has created a cool series of maps showing what second languages are spoken in the various states of the USA.

Check out the whole article here. I originally read it on Gizmodo, and if you go to that page and read the comments it's quite interesting... many people debating about how common German really is in the US. I, for one, had no idea it was that common. I also had no idea that Tagalog was so common in California...

And so, here are the maps (there are more on the site).

Second most commonly spoken language in the USA after English, by state

Third most commonly spoken language in the USA other than English or Spanish, by state

Learning a foreign language: Surround yourself with the people, culture and context

I came across this interesting article and agree with what it says.
Basically they're saying that not being surrounded by the context and culture of the language you're learning affects how fluently you speak the language.. pretty much common sense really! ;)

Pertinent quotes

• The findings could help explain why cultural immersion is the most effective way to learn a foreign tongue and why immigrants who settle within an ethnic enclave acculturate more slowly than those who surround themselves with friends from their new country
• Previous studies have shown that cultural icons such as landmarks and celebrities act like "magnets of meaning," instantly activating a web of cultural associations in the mind and influencing our judgments and behavior

Check it out!

Top French baby's names of 2013 prénoms

According to this site they are:

Le top de prénoms français en 2013

Top 20 French girls' names 2013

1. Emma
2. Lola
3. Chloé
4. Inès
5. Jade
6. Manon
7. Louise
8. Zoé
9. Lilou

Top 20 French boys' names 2013

1. Nathan
2. Lucas
3. Enzo
4. Léo
5. Enzo ??
6. Louis
7. Gabriel
8. Jules
9. Timéo
10. Arthur

(Image from here)

Carla Bruni has a girl called Giulia

First lady of France, Carla Bruni, has a girl named Giulia.

Linky at LeDauphine.com

Paris vs New York skinny people

I wrote that I thought there are no fat people in Paris. I happened to find this article New York skinny vs Paris skinny which I thought was interesting, especially not having been to New York...

I have to say that it's not just the Parisians or the French that exercise portion control. Pretty much every European I have met eats very small portions! I am always so shocked that they eat so little. I'm left thinking, "Aren't they still hungry?" Back home I am not a big eater at all but here I feel like a pig sometimes! Hahaha..

Carla Bruni has a baby

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy's birth update...

Live updates here

1 year old thinks a magazine is an iPad

Continuing on from my rant about babies and technology of almost 5 months ago (sheez where did the time go?!)...





here is a one-year-old who believes all media are now touchscreen-enabled. She seems not to understand that a magazine--Marie-Claire, in this example--doesn't take to pinching or prodding.
The video was posted by Jean-Louis Costanza, currently the CEO at Orange-Vallee, a subsidiary of the France Telecom brand Orange, of his daughter. He ends the video by saying, "They will nod even more sagely at the video's last words: 'Steve Jobs has coded a part of her OS.' "

For me, the most amazing part is when she thinks her finger is faulty.

Some might find this 'cute' but even though I find it funny, I also find it quite horrifying, actually... that our kids will grow up knowing nothing about print-based media and only screen-based media :(

World's best cities to travel to during summer

I just read the title of this Lonely Planet article and had hoped and guessed it was Sydney (hey I'm not biased or anything! ;) ). I was close. Sydney came second. Barcelona came first.

Crap crap crap. That reminds me I am sooooo behind in my blogs I still haven't written about my Italy, Barcelona or Germany trips :(

Anyway, I can see why Barcelona would come first. It is an all-round incredible city. I don't know what it'd be like in winter but when I went the weather was largely perfect. Sunny, but not boiling hot, and with a nice sea breeze.

1. Barcelona
2. Sydney
3. Montreal
4. London
5. Chicago
6. Stockholm
7. Edinburgh
8. Berlin
9. Amsterdam
10. New York
11. Lisbon

Notice how most of them are in Europe and Sydney is the only one in the southern hemisphere?

When friends of mine told me that they wanted to visit Europe in the summer I could never understand why. Don't they realise it can be stinking hot and a lot of things are not open since the residents themselves have gone on holidays?

Also something else about Europe in case you didn't know already: They don't use air-conditioning as much as in Anglo countries. Just yesterday I nearly died on the bus with no air-conditioning and the other day I was standing next to a guy with really bad body odour and swear I was going to faint and throw up at the same time!

In Barcelona also it was horrific on a bus without air con. It's not that they're not equipped with it, the bus driver just doesn't turn it on!

Oops, as usual I've gone off topic..

anyway to all my northern hemisphere readers, enjoy your summer holidays! :)

(picture from here)

Algerian man has been denied French nationality

An Algerian man has been denied French nationality because of his sexist attitudes towards women.

The man's application was refused because "his idea of sexual equality is not that of the republic", according to a high-ranking official quoted by French radio station Europe 1.

The man, who has not been identified, is married to a Frenchwoman, but does not allow her to leave the family home freely, it was claimed.

The French constitution states that the government can refuse nationality or strip nationality for a "lack of integration".

A spokesman for the interior minister, Claude Guéant, told the Guardian that the man had failed to accept the French way of life.

"His behaviour showed a lack of assimilation into the French community; it was incompatible with the values of the French republic, notably in respect to the values of the equality of men and women.".....

Hahaha! I have to say that I agree with this policy but disagree with the one about ending the right to dual nationality!

World's top ten countries with the highest living standards

Not sure where they got their data from... The list sounds about right but I'm not sure of the order... and I'm pretty sure Germany should've been on it too.

Top French baby's names of 2011 prénoms

According to this site they are:


Top 20 French girls' names 2011

1. Emma
2. Jade
3. Léa
4. Manon
5. Chloé
6. Inès
7. Camille
8. Clara
9. Sarah
10. Maëlys
11. Zoé
12. Louise
13. Lola
14. Eva
15. Lilou
16. Lina
17. Romane
18. Anaïs
19. Louna
20. Lena




Top 20 French boys' names 2011

1. Lucas
2. Nathan
3. Enzo
4. Louis
5. Mathis
6. Gabriel
7. Ethan
8. Jules
9. Noah
10. Raphaël
11. Maxime
12. Mathéo
13. Yanis
14. Tom
15. Hugo
16. Arthur
17. Clément
18. Thomas
19. Adam
20. Théo


Compare this to the previous year's


I have to admit there aren't a lot of French girls names that I like. I'm very particular about names.
I usually don't like girls names that end in 'ie' or 'y' (only because the majority of my female friends have names that end like this),
I don't like names that are too long that nobody calls them by their full name (ie I hate abbreviated names),
I don't like names that are hard to spell OR pronounce,
I don't like popular/common names,
I don't like double-barrelled names which once used to be common in French (but not so anymore, obviously, going by the lists above).

If I ever get around to having a kid I have already decided on a girls name (if the father agrees of course ;) ) that is very uncommon yet easy to spell and easy to pronounce, but am quite undecided on the boys one which seems harder to choose.

One of my students is called Nolwenn. It's a girl's name and I have to say it's my least favourite French girl's name I've ever come across!

I can't think of any French boy's names (of my students) that I really dislike but enough negativity for now!

Here are some names of my students that I like:

Girls:
Charlene
Angelique
Marie
Cynthia
Clementine (even though now it makes me think of the fruit!)

Boys:
Christophe
Maxime
Louis
Valentin
Olivier
Fabrice