Category Archives: France
Film about my Adventures in Brazil
Now that I am safely on a plane from Brazil to Bolivia, I can reveal a bit more about what I have been doing here. Here is the trailer to the upcoming film about my adventures in Brazil:
Everything flies at Half-Mast
After the terrorist attacks in Paris, flags fly at half-mast in places as far away as Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. But reading the comments and listening to part of the usual post-attack debate, I have the impression that many … Continue reading
Who invented Parkour?
There are these two Frenchmen, Raymond and his son David Belle, who go around and claim that they invented Parkour running. In reality, the sport had already been invented by Arnim Dahl in Germany in the 1930s. Here is some … Continue reading
Charlie Hebdo
“Je suis Charlie” – “I am Charlie” – we could read on many Facebook and Twitter profiles after the attack on the French satirical newspaper. That was cheap and maybe a bit presumptuous, even though it was of course intended as a show of … Continue reading
Not only in James Bond
Some people still believe that James Bond books and films are fiction. How naive. I have just read Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre, the true story of a British operation during World War II, in which a dead body was … Continue reading
Commemorating World War I
For the 100th anniversary of World War I in 2014, the participating countries have different plans to commemorate this 4-year long war: The United Kingdom will hold a military parade in London and bask in memories of the Empire that once spun … Continue reading
Easily Confused (32) Manuel Valls
Whenever I see Manuel Valls, the new French Prime Minister, I am reminded of Jamie McDonald (actor Paul Higgins), the “crossest man in Scotland” from the film In the Loop:
Easily Confused (16) – Tour de France
Number of Tour de France victories by Lance Armstrong: zero Number of my Tour de France victories: zero But I achieved the same result as Lance Armstrong with much less sweat and toil and with fewer lawsuits.
What did Jérôme Kerviel do wrong?
Today, an Appeals Court in France upheld the conviction of Jérôme Kerviel, a former trader with the French bank Société Générale, sentenced him to serve time in prison and ordered him – rather symbolically I assume – to pay 4.9 billion … Continue reading
Companies that may want to change their name, # 2
Yesterday and coincidentally while having lunch with a hitchhiker from France, I came across Vichy Water. I wonder if drinking this will turn me into a Nazi collaborator?
The Happy Hermit 