No surprise, then, that for 2011, Sam Lemheney, the show’s designer, promises an “absolutely amazing” experience – an interactive Eiffel Tower with a light show and a 33-foot base, and gardens depicting the City of Light’s underground catacombs and its romance, opulence, artistry, cuisine, and “timelessness.”
Philadelphia International Flower Show, March 6-11, 2011.
The producers of Roquefort and Époisses de Bourgogne may view it as infernal rind but the world’s best cheese comes from England. Cornish Blue, made in Liskeard by Philip and Carol Stansfield, nosed ahead of 2,600 entries from 26 countries to win this year’s World Cheese Awards.
via The Independent
Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, world-famous as France’s first lady and as a model and singer, has now been “immortalized” — as a comic-book heroine, an American publisher said.
via AFP
Chanel No. 5, the perfume synonymous with Francophile luxury and celebrity decadence, was not always — oo la la! — from France.
While World War II raged in Europe, the perfume factory was moved to, of all places, New Jersey, according to a new book, “The Secret History of Chanel No. 5.”
Marilyn Monroe said she slept in nothing but Chanel N° 5… Buy some N° 5 at the Francophilia Amazon Store.
via NYPOST.com
The Steins are responsible in many ways for the turn-of-the century revolution in the visual arts through their adventurous patronage, deep ties to leading minds of the era, and legendary Paris salon gatherings.
Buy Paris France by Gertrude Stein at the Francophilia Amazon Store.
via artdaily.org, image: Gertrude Stein by Picasso
France is to start teaching philosophy to younger pupils, in some cases as young as four, provoking a row over whether the discipline is being dumbed down.
(We think it’s a brilliant idea.)
via Montreal Gazette
As you probably know, Barbie, the most popular doll around the world, is turning 50 next year. A grand show dedicated to this golden anniversary is to be staged during the New York Fashion Week in February.
Buy the Eiffel Tower Barbie at the Francophilia Amazon Store!
via MillionLooks.com
It turns out that the English, American and North-European countries are the peaches. Their soft outside skin and tissue shows their open and direct approach in communication.
via Expat Friendly, image Jean-Louis Bouzou
Learn more about this mini-documentary a get a free audio book at Open Culture.
BNP Paribas is now the world’s biggest bank by assets at a staggering $3.2 trillion, according to Bloomberg.
via BusinessInsider, image rediff.com
France’s traditional meal was added to the Unesco world heritage list, in the intangible category, on Tuesday. A committee of Unesco experts decided in Nairobi that French gastronomy, with its presentation and rituals, fulfilled the necessary conditions to be added to the list.
via RFI, image Le Comptoir Gastronomique
Mac Guff, the Paris-based animation company behind Despicable Me, will take on the Gauls in a new 3D adventure fronted by Alexandre Astier.
via Collider
There’s a deeply held conviction in France, a conviction both political and cultural, that having a life is as important as making a living.
If you want to understand the 2010 French demonstrations, read What’s Wrong with the (Fighting) French? by Debra Ollivier, author of What French Women Know.
Historians are rising up against the president’s grandiose plans to immortalise himself by founding a national history museum in his own image.
via The Guardian, image France In Photos
