"Collobrières Journal - A French Village Revives the Franc" - NYTimes.com

France lost a great deal more than the franc as its money when it switched to the euro.

Conseil Régional Languedoc Roussillon

The TV commercial is quite something.....at least the one that they are featuring as I post this.

"Le diocèse de Besançon lance "Prêtres Academy", Tele-Realite" - nouvelobs.com

"Le pouvoir d’achat" - Portail du Gouvernement (site du Premier ministre)

Other things not changed so much

After having noted much change in France, I must also note that so far this week we have had truck drivers essentially on strike, slowing down considerably if not blocking acccess to the Nice Airport, a near total shutdown of bus and local train services here yesterday because of a strike and today the public television stations were to be on strike to some extent. Not sure what is schedule for tomorrow!

"hébergement, restauration, Loisirs et découverte à la ferme" - Bienvenue à la ferme

France changing

France surely has changed a lot in the decades since I started coming here.

Now, for example, laws are pretty strict to prevent drinking and driving (and highway deaths are way down), new laws prohibit smoking in most public places (and some of those places are shuttering because of loss of customers; and the non-smoking customers get a better chance at life as a result) and now soon the law will require that people pick up after their dogs (quel horreur!). No doubt the latter will remove a certain je ne sais quoi from French sidewalk life, but I look forward to being able to look straight ahead, not smell any tobacco smoke and not read about lives ended prematurely as a result of drunken driving.

"Giving Young French Muslims a Close Look at the U.S." - NYTimes.com