Editorials

Not lost in translation

After all, it may be that Jean-Luc Godard is not Korean. Lucky Koreans : if he had been, they would enjoy and understand him less.

This is the doom of French-speaking viewers, as they listen to Godard dialogues : because the words sound familiar, they think they can make sense of the sentences ; they fail and the more they fail, the more frustrated they grow.

In Korea and the whole non-French-speaking world, spectators run no such risk : as they listen to Godard, they hear the foreign language it is.

They do not try to grasp the words ; to their ears, this is music and how Godard should be appreciated.

Corsica

Corsica is one of the 26 régions of France, although strictly speaking Corsica is called a “territorial collectivity” (collectivité territoriale) by law. As a territorial collectivity, it enjoys powers slightly more important than other French régions, but for the most part its status is quite similar to the status of the other French régions. Corsica is referred to as a “région” in common speech, and is almost always listed among the other régions of France. Although the island is separated from the continental mainland by the Ligurian Sea, politically Corsica is considered part of Metropolitan France.

Corsica is famed as the birthplace of Napoléon Bonaparte.

Ecology

'Tis time to be merry: Here comes the Beaujolais nouveau!

Beaujolais nouveau is a wine of the Gamay variety produced in the Beaujolais (AOC) region of France that is authorized for immediate sale after fermentation. It is the most popular vin de primeur, a wine harvested in fall and sold before spring (much sooner than it could be produced through normal fermentation).

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Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe is a monument in Paris that stands in the centre of the Place de l’Étoile, at the western end of the Champs-Élysées. It is the linch-pin of the historic axis (L’Axe historique) leading from the courtyard of the Louvre Palace, a sequence of monuments and grand thoroughfares on a route leading out of Paris.

Avignon

Avignon is situated on the left bank of the Rhône, in the Vaucluse département, about 400 miles south-south-east of Paris, and 50 miles north-north-west of Marseille. Its coordinates are 43°57N 4°50E.

Early history

Tour de France

History and general description

The race was founded as a publicity event for the newspaper L’Auto (ancestor of the present l’Équipe) by its editor, Henri Desgrange, to rival the Paris-Brest et retour (PBP) ride sponsored by Le Petit Journal and Bordeaux-Paris sponsored by Le Vélo. In the early days of the race, it was a near-continuous endurance event. Racers slept by the side of the road and were required to avoid all assistance, but several competitors in the second Tour de France were disqualified for taking a train part of the way. These days, the tour is a “stage race”, divided into a number of stages, each stage being a race held over one day.