La Poste to have 10,000 electric vehicles by 2011

Some offices will get Citroen Berlingo electric delivery vans (pictured above), many of which are already on the roads. Other postal carriers will have their four wheels replaced by electric bicycles, and still others will have to walk, aided by an electronic trolley.

via Gas 2.0

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Gallica, the best of French culture at your fingertips

Gallica, the best of French culture at your fingertips

Now I know what I’ll be doing for the rest of my life… As soon as I get an iPad, that is. Which may now be sooner than I had thought because the Bibliothèque nationale de France has just released Gallica for iPad. And it’s free. The app contains 240,000 books, 880,000 magazines and 470,000 images. Also original musical scores, manuscripts and other goodies. Watch the video, and download the app (French store link).

No iPad? Enjoy the riches on the web.

Lingerie model hologram graces Paris shop window

Magical. We especially like the sparkles as she appears and disappears. Very Tinkerbell-y. The store is Empreinte at 13 rue Saint Florentin.

via RTL.fr via @adngold.

Notre Dame getting new bells

Notre Dame getting new bells

The bells that have been ringing every 15 minutes since 1856 in the towers of Notre Dame are being melted down and reforged. The Diocese of Paris says they’re ”mediocre in quality and of discordant tonality.”

Not sure I want bells that are in tune. It’s like having perfect teeth; no character…

Read the rest at the Sydney Morning Herald.

Gallica, France’s digital library

Gallica, France's digital library

We could wander these virtual stacks for days! So far, the Bibliothèque nationale de France has digitized more than one million works, including books, maps, manuscripts, images, periodicals, scores and sound recordings, and made them available for free to the public at the Gallica digital library. This is France’s answer to Google Books, and the result of the big fight from a couple of years ago.

Mullin Automotive Museum in LA preserves French Art Deco cars

Mullin Automotive Museum in LA preserves French Art Deco cars

The Mullin Automotive Museum, a Southern California institution dedicated to the preservation of French Art Deco era art and automobiles, announced today that its latest book, French Curves: Delahaye ∙ Delage ∙ Talbot-Lago, will be unveiled to the public this August at the 2011 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

We covered the first volume in this series, The Art of Bugatti, here. French Curves is the second volume, and you can buy them both directly from the publisher. If you ask, you can get them signed by author Michael Furman too!

France Telecom bids adieu to the Minitel

France Telecom bids adieu to the Minitel

France Telecom said today that it was shutting down its ground-breaking Minitel service, the proto-Internet that brought online shopping and chat rooms into millions of French homes in the 1980s.

Read the rest at PCMag.com.

“Married To The Eiffel Tower” documentary

"Married To The Eiffel Tower" documentary

A documentary about objectophilia (being in love with objects). The part where the lady marries the Eiffel Tower starts at the 6:50 mark. Dig that ET cleavage tattoo! Watch the video on Documentary Heaven.

Seen @Brainpicker.

Musée du Quai Branly iOS app

Musée du Quai Branly iOS app

Free iOS app for your next visit to Jacques Chirac’s legacy museum!

“Paris Cafes” app for iOS

"Paris Cafes" app for iOS

Paris Cafes for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the iTunes App Store.

Tallest bridge in the world

Tallest bridge in the world

It’s hard not to be impressed by the Millau Viaduct that’s down the road from where I live in France.

Read more at Design Observer.

A little girl, a train ticket and a Belgian museum

A little girl, a train ticket and a Belgian museum

Built by the same firm that renovated the Ellis Island Immigration Museum, the Red Star Line Museum will open in Belgium in 2013. All told, the train had transported 2.6 million people through Europe on their way to the United States–Antwerp was typically the last stop before America. Passengers on the line, which ran from 1873 to 1934, included Albert Einstein, Irving Berlin, Golda Meir and Arthur Murray.

Read the rest at Forbes and visit the Red Star Line Museum site.

“Immersive French” application for iOS

"Immersive French" application for iOS

Wattanasoft, a leading provider of iOS language-learning apps, today is pleased to announce Immersive French for the iPad and iPhone. Immersive French provides the user with a full multimedia learning experience by associating pictures with spoken words and sentences.

Details at prMac.com.

The past and future of Samaritaine


We loved this video by the Mairie de Paris telling the story of the iconic Paris department store (and registered monument) Samaritaine. It also tells about the plans to restore it, which include shops, offices, a luxury hotel, a daycare center and subsidized housing!

The Élysée has its own iPhone/iPad app

The Élysée has its own iPhone/iPad app

The Élysée (the French presidential palace) has its own iOS app (“Élysée“). It’s free and in French. Check it out if you’re interested in watching the Sarko Show on your iThingy.

via igeneration

EU tells French to take better care of their hamsters

EU tells French to take better care of their hamsters

A top EU legal adviser has warned the French government that it must do more to protect endangered hamsters living near Strasbourg in eastern France.

via BBC News

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