Monthly Archive for June, 2008

Paris Gay Pride Parade

Published
by
Ted
on June 28, 2008
in Parisians, daily life and paris
. 0 Comments

I’ve been to several Pride Parades in California and was looking forward to seeing one in Paris. I expected a similar format: groups of floats, bands, people in cars, Dykes on Bikes, and politicians riding down the route as thousands of people watched and cheered.Paris gay pride route

I was really shocked when I arrived at the route a couple hours before the start and saw no signs of an event about to happen. Where were the crowds? Where were the signs, the chairs, the families?

I should have known better. This is Paris, not California. this is a country where protests, rallies, and parades are a common occurrence. They are participatory events. There were thousands of people in the parade, just not watching the parade.

The Pride Parade follows the standard parade/rally format. People show up at a designated area to prepare and coordinate. At the scheduled time, or after the standard delays, people start marching/walking/dancing/participating along the route to the final destination. Paris Pride Parade (Marche des Fiertes)Upon completion of the parade, there will be more music, dancing, eating, talking, and discussions.

If you’ve become bored of the French Pride Parade, take a trip to California or New York for a new perspective. Likewise, the Paris parade is a great alternative to the standard American exhibition.

Learn to be French via the iPod

Published
by
Ted
on June 14, 2008
in Education, Language, Online Resources, daily life and metro
. 0 Comments

Gare du Nord

You’ll have a lot to learn when you move to France. You’ll need French language lessons, pick up the cultural references, and understand the history of Europe to truly appreciate your experience.

But how do you find the time to do all of this studying? Fortunately, we spend many hours each week riding the metro and your trusty Apple iPod or iPhone makes this job much easier.

Note: you cannot go directly to the podcasts or iTunesU material on the internet. The following links will prompt your computer to open your computer’s iTunes program. This is really annoying, but blame Apple, not me.

Podcasts and iTunesU

Podcasts are audio productions that are published on a regular basis. You can subscribe to them via iTunes and they will automatically appear on your iPod every time you synchronize. They are free and you’ll find a

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huge variety of topics to choose from.

Here are some useful podcasts for the new Parisian.

ITunesU - it’s like going to college without the dorm

ITunesU is a collaboration between Apple and the top Universities and educational organizations around the world. They typically record and publish the symposiums and extended study programs, rather than the normal courses. This gives you access to concentrated information by leading lecturers. I have found UC Berkeley and Stanford University presentations to be of the highest quality. Here are some of the iTunesU courses that I have found particularly interesting.

These are just a sampling of the information you can get on iTunes and iTunesU. The content is free and you’ll find your commutes much more productive as you learn history, language, and culture as you travel to work, school, or the museums. Take some time to explore iTunes, there are a lot of hidden gems.

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