I’m ashamed to admit that it’s been quite I while since I last posted here. It’s not from lack of want, but unfortunately the day job keeps getting in the way!

I’ve also been wanting to move web hosting for TouteFrance to a company that’s better suited to hosting WordPress sites as I’ve had a few issues with some things not working properly on my old hosting. Hopefully things will now work much better now that I’ve changed hosting companies. At the same time I thought I might as well give the site a new look, so have changed the theme of the site too. I particularly like the option to change the rotating images, so will updating these from time to time.

Hopefully I’ll get to post again a bit more often, but in the background I’m still keeping up with what’s going on in France and am hoping to get over to France before the end of the year!

When travelling to France, one of the best things is trying to interact with the locals, which can make a holiday or business trip that much more rewarding. As today is the International Day of Francophonie (20 March), celebrating nations that speak French, I thought it apt to give you some links to learning resources. French is spoken as an official language in 29 countries  and by 80 million people as a first language, so even if you’re not travelling in France, you may find it useful elsewhere!

There are plenty of language resources available online, and here’s a pick of the ones I found. I’ve not tried out any of these resources (I already speak French), but hopefully some of them may be of use:

BBC Website – a whole language section is on the BBC website and it offers language learning tips from beginners to intermediates.

About.com – About.com is a very popular US website with content covering a huge range of subjects. Their French section has articles in French, tips and the best ways to learn French.

Language Guide – is a resource for vocabulary learning and also has the pronunciations in audio some of the vocabulary lists also include images.

Radio France Internationale – has up to date news in an easier learning audio format (speaking more slowly), as well as transcripts to read. This is a good resource, I found it particularly useful!

Target Language – offers help learning French for GCSE and common entrance.

TV5 Monde – has language learning resources based on news from the last 7 days

Of course, learning online or from audio and books can’t replace the experience of actually going to France and learning, but hopefully some of these resources will give you the confidence to give it a go when you get there!

It’s been a few weeks since I last posted news items that have caught my eye, and here’s a selection of the latest:

The French can teach us a thing or two about national pride – from Telegraph.co.uk. Recent bashings from the French lead to more discussions & comparisons over Britain vs France. There’s plenty good and bad about both!

Facebook Is Big In France – from WashingtonPost.com. Facebook is now the most popular social networking site in France – isn’t it the most popular everywhere?

French Push Pop Ad Pushes Propreity Levels - from Slashfood.com. Crass push pop ad in France pushes the limits – check it out!

French farmer is new sun king – from Reuters.com. A French farmer is making the most of new incentives for solar power to supplement farm incomes as well as help France meet renewable energy targets and hopes to power 4000 homes.

French town of Eu to change name because of Google searches – from Telegraph.co.uk. Eu in Normandy is thinking about changing it’s name due to being bypassed by search engines and missing out on tourism. Plus a bit of advice on this from SearchEngineLand.com – What France Can Teach Us About Search Success

France considers redrawing the map – from BBC.co.uk. Sarkozy has launched a controversial plan to alter the political map of France via a shake-up of local and regional government.

Sarkozy provokes anger with luxury holiday in Mexico – from Telegraph.co.uk. President in hot water again after a string of extravagant holidays in the last few months.

Deux tiers des Français lisent peu… ou pas – from LeFigaro.fr (in French). According to a recent survey, 30% of French people don’t read books and 34% only about 5 books per year.

Le Chateau de Chambord is one of the most famous of the Chateaux of the Loire. I visited the Chateau a few years ago and found it not only stunning, but containing some very clever architecture.

It was contructed by King Francois 1 and was built between 1519-1547 as a hunting lodge as the King’s main royal residences were the Chateau d’Amboise and Chateau de Blois. The Chateau is composed of a central keep and 4 immense bastion towers. It has 440 rooms, 365 fire places and 84 staircases! One of the most famous staircases is the amazing double helix staircase in the centre of the Chateau. The two helixes ascend the three floors without ever meeting,and there have suggestions that Leonardo da Vinci may have designed the staircase, but this has not been confirmed.

The grounds of the Chateau are immense – 13000 acres of wooded parkland and red deer which were introduced for hunting. The Chateau is surrounded by a 31 kilometre wall.

For more information, you can visit the Chateau de Chambord website (in French) and you can also find out more about the Chateau on Wikipedia.

It’s well worth the visit!

We Brits are obsessed with the weather and constantly bemoan how bad our weather is, but this winter, it seems that the French have been pretty hard hit too and have also had their fair share of bad weather! One of the worst winters we have seen in the UK in the last few years has also been seen in France with snow in Marseille in January, a major storm that hit France & Spain on 24 January, to this week’s storms that hit northern and western France.

Here’s a few links about some of the weather related events of this winter:

Une Journée Sous La Neige à Marseille – from LaProvence.com. Video of snow in Marseille in January

Tempête Sud Ouest 24 janvier 2009 (vidéos) – from tuxboard.com. Several videos / news clips of the storms that hit south west France in January

Videos de la tempête du 9 et 10 février – from Tijuana.fr. Various news clips of the storms that hit France during this last week.

Des tempêtes plus violentes en prévision – from SudOuest.com. Short interview with  Robert Vautard, directeur de recherche en sciences du climat, CNRS (Centre Nationale de la Recherche Scientifique), about climate change.

So what’s the weather got in store this weekend in France? Well according to Metéo France, not particularly warm! The highest about 10 degrees in the south eastern corner, the rest of France looks quite cold, no warmer than here in the UK. I remember when I lived in Toulouse sitting in the sun on our roof terrace in February!

Here’s the latest round up of news that took my interest in January. Stories that dominated the news recently have included the violent storms that hit western France last weekend and the latest round of strikes this week.

French baker cooks up a golden sales gimmick – from Independent.co.uk. Although it’s now a while since new year, I really like this story, and 2 lucky people have now found real gold ingots worth €400 within their Galette des  Rois!

New lingua franca upsets French – from BBC.co.uk. It looks like a business speak version of English is now beginning to find its way into the French language.

Wonder Woman or traitor to her sex? – from TimesOnline.co.uk. There’s been a lot of debate in the news about the fact that Rachida Dati, French Justice Minister only took 5 days maternity leave when her baby was born. She may be dedicated to her job, but will she live to regret her decision in the future?

A Beginner’s Guide to French Cheeses – from Suite101.com. A guide to 14 of the different varieties of French cheeses to begin an exploration of the 325 or more different cheeses that you can find throughout France. A definite read for cheese lovers!

US roquefort tariff angers French - from Guardian.co.uk. Continuing the cheese theme, the Bush administration has sparked anger across the Atlantic by tripling the import duty rate on roquefort cheese to 300%! Wonder if Obama will reverse this?

Why France’s 35 Hour Week Won’t Die – from Yahoo.com. Six months after France’s ruling Conservatives voted to gut the nation’s famous 35-hour work week, anecdotal evidence suggests most companies are sticking with it.

Storm leaves 15 dead in S Europe – from BBC.co.uk. Eleven people died in separate incidents in Spain and south-western France as the fiercest storm in a decade blew in from the Atlantic.

French designers defy the global downturn – from AFP. The biggest names in French fashion are putting up a defiant front against the global downturn this week with extravagant shows to demonstrate that it is still business as usual.

Huge crowds join French strikes – from BBC.co.uk. About 1 million people took to the streets of France on Thursday to protest over the handling of the economic crisis, causing disruption to rail and air services.

Asterix has sold out to the Empire – from Guardian.co.uk. Albert Underzo has retired and sold his rights to Hachette Livre, and his daughter Sylvie, now accuses him of selling out.

And finally, Snow in Marseille. Yes, Marseille was hit by a snow storm at the beginning of January, the first time snow has fallen there in years!

This week saw the publication of this year’s Michelin Guide and those restaurants receiving the coveted Michelin stars.

Only 3 restaurants received 3 Michelin stars, and those probably come as no surprise: The Fat Duck in Bray nr Windsor (Heston Blumenthal), The Waterside Inn, also in Bray (Roux brothers) and Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea.

One thing I’m pleased to see is that 2 restaurants local to me are on the list, although the chances of me going are probably quite slim. 36 on the Quay in Emsworth is about 10 minutes walk from my house and I’ve often looked at the menu that’s on display outside and peered through the window, perhaps one day I’ll take out a second mortgage and go!

The other restaurant close to me is West Stoke House about 15 minutes drive away, not far from Chichester. They have several rooms as well, so you could make it a lovely weekend away, particularly as West Stoke is a very small village and quite tucked away. Restaurant  prices are on a par with 36 on the Quay.

You can view the full list of restaurants in the UK which have gained 1 or more stars here. (Guardian website)

madeleines au citron

This Christmas I was given a ‘madeleine’ baking tray as I absolutely love madeleines! My first attempt at making them was just in the new year and I followed a recipe I found in the January issue of ‘France Magazine’. The end result is pictured here. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 125g sugar
• 100g soft butter
• 125g plain flour
• a pinch of salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 untreated lemon (although I used a waxed lemon)
• butter for the tins

Madeleine tray with approx 5cm moulds

Method:

• Zest the lemon, cut the lemon in half & squeeze one half
• Cream the butter and sugar until light & fluffy, mix in the lemon juice & zest then beat the eggs and flour alternately, adding a pinch of sale to the flour.
• Cover and put in the fridge for about 1 hour
• Lightly butter the madeleine tray, divide the mixture between the moulds, place on a rack and bake in a preheated oven for about 10-15 mins until golden brown (at 180 degrees celcius)
• Take out, leave to cool slightly then remove from the tin and cool on a cake rack.

The Verdict:

The recipe is ridiculously easy and I made about 23 madeleines out of the mixture. As I only had one tray, I had to do it in 2 batches, so put the mixture back in the fridge while the first batch was baking. The only problem I had was with my oven which is a very efficient fan oven. Even though I compensated and reduced the temperature to 160 degrees, they still cooked rather fast, so next time I make them I’ll try at 150 degrees, or put them in for less time.

The end result was delicious though. I’ve a few other madeleine recipes so will try them all out and see which one works best!

It’s been a little while since I did a news update, but here are some articles that took my interest this month, avoiding ‘la crise économique’ as best as I can!

Organic French Chickens Join the List of Products Tainted by Melamine – from Treehugger.com. Suggests some melamine has got into organic soy chicken feed.

Zut! France leapfrogs UK in economic table – from TimesOnline.co.uk. Britain falls down the international economic league table to 6th place, behind France.

Solar panels to ‘intelligent’ barrels, winemakers on new course – from Climateark.org.  Climate change and economic slowdown are pushing winemakers to seek new ways of getting grapes into the glass.

France abuzz over alcoholic ‘cure’ – from News.BBC.co.uk. An eminent French cardiologist has triggered an impassioned debate in the medical world over his claim to have discovered a cure for alcoholism.

Why work like the British, France wonders?  – from TimesOnline.co.uk. The European Parliament has just voted to end Britain’s exemption from the maximum 48-hour working week and the French are wondering why Britain bothers.

Monsieur, with these Rocher you would not be spoiling us - from Guardian.co.uk. The world’s ambassadors have been saved from social embarrassment after 10 tons of fake Ferrero Rocher chocolates were seized in Paris before they could be sold on the party circuit.

Sour grapes for French wine in 2008 - from AFP.  2008 has been all sour grapes for French wine, a once proud symbol of the nation’s identity now swirling in a cocktail of alcohol abuse legislation. 

MP3 player saves skiers lost on Alps - from Telegraph.co.uk. The light from an MP3 player saved two winter sports enthusiasts after they got lost in the Swiss Alps.

As this is our last post for 2008, we wish you all ‘une très bonne année’!

Joyeux Noel!

I would like to wish all of TouteFrance’s readers un très Joyeux Noël & Bonne Année 2009.

I’ll be back with more posts on news and my observations on France in 2009 – and hope to post a bit more often!

Bonnes Fêtes!