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The great white birds of France

France has at least three great white mute birds in various locations. There are swans in Paris, storks in Alsace and Egrets on the coast. All three of these birds have been commemorated on postage stamps. Swans in Paris In 1676 Louis XIV brought in several couples of swans from Denmark to decorate the banks of the Seine and several basins in the Royal châteaux. The Maquerelle Island in the Seine near the Champs de Mars was chosen for the swan’s new home. The island was soon renamed the “Ile des Cygnes”. In October of the same year the king signed an ordinance to strictly to prohibit troubling their peace and quiet. River boatman had to stay away from the island and no one was allowed to walk there. The fine was quite steep for stealing eggs or harassing the birds. By 1678, only two years later, there were 150 swans. Clearly, the swans liked their new space. Guardians were put into place to protect the swans along the Seine from Charenton to Poissy. Later the origin…

The Power of a Postcard – make an impact

The Power of a Postcard - make an impact

I've received postcards from my parents when they travel for many years. I've kept nearly all of them in a file and some day when they can no longer travel it will become a set of reminiscences to look at with them. The power of a postcard picture and small bits of information on the weather or activities will bring their trips back to life and lead us on to various and sundry conversations. I also have a collection of my-grandmother-in-law's postcards which she sent in the 1940s and 50s when traveling in the United States. Some were picked up along the way at the Howard Johnson's Motor Inn or others in National Parks.

I know from being both the sender and receiver of postcards how the power of a postcard is to bring joy. That's why when we created Bill & Rosa's Book Room we put in a POP desk dedicated to what we call the Power of a Postcard. Time and time again we have found that taking a few minutes to hand writ…

Happy 80th birthday Smokey Bear

Who are Les Phryges, Germain the Lynx, Smokey Bear, KC Wolf, Serge the Rabbit, Bison Futé, and Bibendum? They are all mascots. “A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fictional, representatives spokespeople for consumer products.” Wikipedia Germain is part of the PSG soccer team, KC Wolf of the Kansas City Chiefs NFL team. Serge is the RATP character and Bison tells us the French traffic report. Bibendum, better known as the Michelin Man, is perhaps the most widely known and the oldest mascot. Les Phryges – you’ve seen them a lot lately. But the only one who was real is the American firefighter Smokey Bear. Smokey celebrated his 80th birthday in 2024. The bear first appeared on a wildfire prevention poster in August of 1944, but it was the introduction of a live bear with a …

French postage stamps include the baguette

French Postage Stamps are a view of the history of the country, they also tell you what is going on currently as various events are commemorated. In 2024 obviously there are several sets of Olympic and Para-olympic stamps. There are also two collector sets for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the 150 years of Impressionism. But did you know that 2024 is also the 500th anniversary of the European discovery of New York? And to commemorate the baguette, listed on the intangible heritage of humanity of UNESCO since 2022, a Scratch 'n sniff stamp was released. A great way to highlight artisanal know-how and the traditional French baguette.On May 16th, the day of Saint-Honoré, patron saint of bakers, the national printing works in Boulazac, near Périgueux, began printing 594,000 copies of a stamp decorated with the French baguette swirled in a bleu blanc rouge ribbon. Created by La Poste in collaboration with the National Confederation of French Bakery-Pâtisserie, this stamp wa…

Two Concept stores – Objets parisiens

Les Parisettes is a concept store specializing in Objets parisiens in the form of decorative objects, kitchen accessories, leather goods, jewelry, games... in the colors of Paris and the Eiffel Tower. Their shop is located in the 15th arrondissement.

THE OBJECTS OF Les PARISETTES: Les Parisettes is a creator of objects which are made mainly in France and Europe. They offer 2 collections: the Paris collection, centered on the Eiffel Tower and the Store Collection, eco-responsible and colorful. Les Parisettes is offers an elegant and colorful line of stationery and shopping bags for Paris lovers. Created by young designers and in collaboration with students from a major Parisian graphic design school, the patterns are relevant, offbeat, kitsch or refined... THE CREATORS: Maryse Bazzoli and Sophie Ollé-Laprune, two Parisians passionate about cities and in particular Paris, created this concept store more than 10 years ago to change the…

Reflections from an old timer in Paris: La Télé

La Télé – French TV in the 1980s One cold, wet evening during a recent school holiday, we suggested a movie-and-pizza evening to our 12-year-old granddaughter. We spent an hour scrolling through all the channels in addition to Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Apple TV, but every (suitable) movie was rejected or had already been seen. In the end we gave up and went out to eat the pizza we were going to order in. The old adage about the more channels there are, the less there is to see? It's not that I’m nostalgic for the days of three-channel French TV, but I did have a pang for those times when we had what you might call community viewing, when you could be sure that most of your friends watched the same show the same day and you could dissect it together and share the pleasure of anticipating the next episode. Realising this, no doubt, some distributors of major recent series, like Succession and White Lotus, also released episodes on a week-by-week basis. The 1980s wer…

Reflections from an old timer in Paris: La Sécu

Reflections from an old timer in Paris: La Sécu The first time I took my toddler to a see a doctor in Paris many, many years ago, I received a prescription a mile long. Back in the 1980s antibiotics were given for every ailment (common sense has since prevailed) but there were other, strange sounding names such as sérum physiologique, a saline solution for squirting up the nasal passage, unpleasant but efficient for blocked-up noses, and le suppositoire for a different passage, which actually proved useful for small children, but neither of which were in common use in Britain at the time. click to listen We had just arrived from Hong Kong and hadn’t a bean. Not even the La Sécu, since to obtain a social security number one had to be working, if not born in France. But someone had told me about the PMI, Protection Maternelle et Infantile, which, at the time anyway, provided free medical care for mothers and babies. Perhaps the doctors there were just being kind by a…

Revealed: The Paris Olympics medals

French savoir-faire and excellence has come to the forefront again in the design and making of the 2024 Paris Olympics Medals. Design by the Maison Chaumet (where Gustave Eiffel was a client) and produced by the Paris Mint they carry lots of detail and symbolism. The cherry on the proverbial cake is a hexagonal (of course) piece of the Eiffel Tower embedded in each medal. This piece of Paris authenticity makes the medals truly unique. In keeping with its desire to strengthen the links between sport, culture and heritage, Paris 2024 has called on the expertise of French jeweller Chaumet. Founded in 1780, the LVMH group company, Premium Partner of Paris 2024. Renowned worldwide for its expertise, elegance and embodiment of French crafsmanship, Chaumet is bringing the medal into the world of high jewellery with a design based on three inspirations: the hexagon, radiance and the setting. Read more about the Chaumet Family of jewellers as well as several other entrepreneurial Fre…

We tested non-alcoholic wine. It’s good!

We tested non-alcoholic wine. Yes it exists! And it is a pleasure to drink! Plus there are all the benefits of wine minus the big negatives: alcohol and mega calories. Whether you want to go dry for January or just enjoy wine without headaches, this is a nice product. Here's how I came to try these products that are still rather a secret. I like red wine, but I've decided to reduce my alcohol, so I went looking for something else to drink with dinner that is enjoyable and pretty and doesn't overpower the meal – that's why we like wine isn't it? I like to pour into a pretty glass; I enjoy the gesture and the color of wine which is part of why I've not been able to find anything else that I want to drink at dinner. I love water, but I gulp it when I drink it, so it is not for dinner when I want to sip. I love fruit juice, but it is too heavy and sugary for dinner (and as a friend so aptly mentioned “too interfering”). I'm using my same wine glasses and amounts and I've tho…

Sing C’est la Vie by Sonny and Cher

Sing C’est la Vie This priceless song by Sonny and Cher from 1965 was the flip side of a 45 rpm single titled Just You. Sing C’est la vie is a great pick-me-up and a motto for life and will certainly bring a smile to anyone you share it with today. Happy New Year from FUSAC ! We love the interjected comments with a great French accent by Sonny. Who knew! (He is clearly pleased). This rare video has 1960s vintage sound and image which adds to the charm. During 1965, five of Sonny and Cher's songs were on the US Billboard Top 20, a record surpassed only by Elvis Presley. Sing C’est La Vie was number 1 in Belgium in November 1965 for 24 weeks. It was recorded along with I Got You Babe on their second album Look at Us. In the decade they spent together, Sonny and Cher sold over 40 million records worldwide. Here are the words to Sing C’est la Vie because you'll want to sing along and because the best verse is not in the video. Sing C'est La Vie And s…

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