French Culture

I have a nose to pick with you…

21 November 2011
Thumbnail image for I have a nose to pick with you…

It’s been awfully quiet here on La Belle in France – between trips to and from my little university, I haven’t had much to say. Plus all of my writer’s juju is being redirected towards my 100 page thesis… in French. So I’ve been waiting for a few weeks now for inspiration to come my [...]

Continue reading…

Guest Post: French Influence on American Culture

30 September 2011
Thumbnail image for Guest Post: French Influence on American Culture

I’ve known Amber since we were tiny dreamers at the age of 12 living on an island in Hawaii. Even then, she taught me how to let go of my inhibitions and never care for what others thought of me. While the years have shaped us, matured us, and helped us evolve, Amber never lost [...]

Continue reading…

Learning French with Film

18 July 2011
Thumbnail image for Learning French with Film

Due to the popularity of my Essential French Language Tools post I did last year, I decided to update it with a sequel of sorts – this time sharing tips on learning French using film. Watching French movies can improve your listening comprehension skills by leaps and bounds, help develop your vocabulary (especially slang and [...]

Continue reading…

From my iPod: French Afropop (An Inspiration)

20 March 2011
Thumbnail image for From my iPod: French Afropop (An Inspiration)

In the midst of current events both on the African continent and in Japan, I thought everyone could use a little hope and inspiration. So today I’m highlighting a young musician who found ways to overcome horrific tragedies through music. Corneille was born to Rwandan parents in Germany and when he was six his family [...]

Continue reading…

From my iPod: Charlotte Savary, Wax Tailor and Felipecha

13 March 2011
Thumbnail image for From my iPod: Charlotte Savary, Wax Tailor and Felipecha

A lot of movies with “Paris” in the title were released the last few years and for a while I wasn’t sure which one was which especially since the movies share many of the same actors. Of course, Paris, Je t’aime (2006) had the most success in the US but there was also Dans Paris [...]

Continue reading…

From my iPod: Algerian R&B Zaho

27 February 2011
Thumbnail image for From my iPod: Algerian R&B Zaho

There is healing in the simple act of getting together with an old friend and after three years of talking about visiting each other, I was finally able to meet up with my #1 Paris Pal from studying abroad back in ’08 while in Chicago earlier this week. Of course two francophiles (Ashley is now [...]

Continue reading…

From my iPod: French Reggae

20 February 2011
Thumbnail image for From my iPod: French Reggae

I had never even thought of the possibility of French reggae, that is until I was introduced to Kana. Of course it makes since – French is after all the official language of many Caribbean islands. And since reggae was once my genre of choice (the little islander in me growing up in Hawaii), I [...]

Continue reading…

Romance with Rimbaud

14 February 2011
Thumbnail image for Romance with Rimbaud

Arthur Rimbaud is by far one of my favorite French poets. I’m not only drawn to his poetry, but also by my own desire to understand how someone so young and so talented could abandon poetry all together after less than five years writing. I’m sure he spoke little of his life as a poet, [...]

Continue reading…

← Previous Entries