BBC: Parisian Women Legally Allowed to Wear the Pants

There are a surprising number of antiquated laws in the books, in France and in any country (including the US) with a long legal history. A lot of these are along the lines of "morality" laws, faith-based laws, sumptuary laws, &c. -- laws that regulated behavior and are no longer compatible with modern notions of freedom of expression. Most of these were buried in reams of text and forgotten about as times changed and attitudes modernized, so nobody ever got around to changing them. Of course, because they seem so silly, few of these laws are actually enforced these days, which allows them to remain in the books until someone stumbles upon them, as in the case with Parisian women's pants (Trouser pants, not... underwear pants. In France, I imagine underwear might have a whole different set of laws, or lack thereof.)

Anyhow, there was apparently a ban on Parisian women wearing pants that was never stricken from the books until now:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21329269

It reminds me of this book, which for some reason has been sitting on my sister's shelf for a good many years.

Unfortunate Advertising

I was in a shopping mall last weekend with my sister (shocking, I know -- the mall, not the sister), and spotted this:


"La mer" means "the ocean" in French, but perhaps the French don't know what "lamer" means in English...

Edit: My sister informs me that La Mer is actually a French brand of cosmetics. My mother uses it, apparently.

NYTimes: The Besieged and the Beautiful in Languedoc

I'm particularly interested in the history of southern France, in part because of a fascination with troubadours, Eleanor of Aquitaine, castles, the Albigensian Crusade, and the area's medieval culture of arts. Anyhow, here's an article about it:

http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/05/09/travel/09Languedoc.html?8dpc

It is, in some ways, not surprising at all, that these old castles and grand landscapes were once the site of so much bloodshed. It is often the most beautiful places that have the darkest stories. After all, castles were originally built as fortresses, their imposing facades and crenellated towers meant to defend their inhabitants against besieging foes.

I'd dearly love to see the place at some point in my life. Anyone want to road-trip around southern France? (My high school French is rusty, but still serviceable, last I checked.)

Oh, and the lede line is brilliant.

BBC: The Seine, a Memoir

Historically, most of the world's greatest cities were built on rivers, for the many obvious (and often life-sustaining) benefits a river contributes to any settlement. Rivers are colorful backdrops, facilitators, and even participants in major historical events. Here is a modern perspective on one of the most important rivers in the world, the Seine:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/8695476.stm

BBC: French Farmers turn Champs-Elysees into Huge Farm Fair

I've been to the Champs-Elysees, and the idea of it turning into a giant farm for two days is a little mindboggling.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/10143393.stm

I want to go see it, but it's only around for a few days.

There's also a video on Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera: Art Thefts in Paris

Picassos and Matisses stolen from the Musee d'Art Moderne. Mon dieu... and the recovery rate for this sort of thing (especially intact recovery) is shockingly low, so it's an especial tragedy.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2010/05/201052013110430506.html

I understand the obvious motivations -- these are extremely valuable pieces -- but if the thieves are intelligent enough to get past museum security, one would think that they'd also consider that these pieces should be tremendously hard to sell, especially after the news gets out that they've been stolen. It's like trying to pawn the crown jewels; they're rather too distinctive. (Actually, it's even more difficult, considering gemstones can be re-set and metals can be melted down, but any alteration to a famous painting drastically decreases its value.)

The Complete Military History of France

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/text/france.html

It's terribly funny, and all true (if massively oversimplified). Ah, the joys of being a student of history: it's much more entertaining than many other subjects.

I think my favorite line has to be the one about accordions.

Parisian Love (Google Search Stories)

A Google ad, and one of the best, cutest YouTube videos I've ever seen. *warm fuzzies* (Gosh, how many times have I clicked the replay button?)

This is a prime example of the power of understatement. It's not quite Hemingway (the apocryphal author of the most famous six-word story in literature: "for sale, baby shoes, never worn"), but it comes pretty darn close.