A Little Painting Workshop in France, Anyone???

I've been busy planning my Venice painting workshop for the last several weeks and months, but soon it'll be time to think about....France!

If you'd like information about joining me in France (either in 2014 or 2015), why not leave me a comment so that I can gauge interest!  

Helen.

www.helenKbeacham.com

Love Paris? Then you''ll love these 5 freebies!

• Here are five things that prove that the city of romance knows better than most the best things in life are free.
  
• 1. Tuileries Gardens. In search of a haven away from the stresses of the city? Paris has just the answer with the Tuileries Gardens - sitting tranquilly in the heart of the capital between the Louvre Museum and the Place de la Concorde. Looking down the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe, the 400-year-old gardens offer not only one of the best city-views in the world, but a place to relax with ornate fountains, magical statues and fresh air. Despite their age, the old public gardens keep their eye on the younger generation, boasting a wonderful children's play area and a carnival in summer.  Read more HERE.

  

  Paris Plages or Paris Beaches, is a free summer event that transforms several spots along the Seine river into complete beaches. 

  (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)

  
  

  
  

Cezanne's stomping grounds.

Photo courtesy of:  www.blogs.vancouversun.com

"...the  Bastide du Jas Bouffan, the home once owned by Cezanne’s family. The artist lived there in his early 20's and began his career in painting there.

The avenue of giant plane trees is still a powerful and impressive spectacle. The mistral wind was blowing exceptionally hard and much cooler than in previous days, but the sound of it rushing through the canopy of these giant trees created a wonderfully dramatic atmosphere for our visit.

The house itself with its lovely high windows is still watched over by two large griffins on pedestals."....read more HERE.

Read my latest post HERE.

Surfing in France?

© YEP / Duponteil
Courtesy of: http://www.mensjournal.com

There's no greater feeling for a surfer than a nice long ride. In the ocean, that might mean 20 to 30 seconds. But on an odd freak-of-nature wave that rolls up the Dordogne River in Bordeaux, France, every month, it can mean 20 to 30 minutes. It's called the Mascaret, and it's one of several tidal bores around the world (created when extreme fluctuations in lunar tides push a swell from the ocean upriver)....read more HERE

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French sheep used to mow Paris green spaces

By David Ferguson
Friday, May 3, 2013 10:23 EDT

French shepherd Gilles Amar has a novel way of earning a living as a professional landscaper. Amar himself isn’t the one cutting the grass however: his flock of sheep and goats are.

Photo of shepherd, Gilles Amar, courtesy of http://www.rawstory.com

Using a kind of mobile pen on wheels, Amar takes the flock grazing in the Paris suburb of Bagnolet, where they trim the grass and hedges by munching away. Local people often stop by to watch and even pet the animals.

“They attract people to places they wouldn’t normally use or value,” said Amar. “I mean, an ordinary lawn is suddenly turned into a...read more HERE.

And click on VIDEO to see the sheep & goats in action!

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Woody Allen to make next film in France

Director and producer Woody Allen at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 14, 2012 (AFP/File, Joe Klamar)

AFP

LOS ANGELES — Woody Allen is to make his next movie in the south of France, starring Britain's Oscar-winning Colin Firth and US actress Emma Stone, the project's producers announced.

The as-yet-untitled film, to be shot this summer, will be the second set in France by the 77-year-old cult director, who scored his biggest commercial hit ever with 2011's "Midnight in Paris."

Allen has made a series of Europe-based movies in recent years -- "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" in 2008 and 2012's "To Rome with Love" -- and has hired a number of collaborators from those movies for the new film.

Cinematographer Darius Khondji, production designer Anne Seibel and costume designer Sonia Grande all worked on "Midnight in Paris" and "To Rome with Love," while Grande also worked on "Vicky Cristina Barcelona."

The new Gravier Productions film is produced by Allen's longtime associates, Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, who have worked with Allen for a decade and a half, they said in a statement.

After early classics like "Annie Hall" (1977), 1979's "Manhattan" and "Hannah and Her Sisters" in 1986, Allen fans had become used to mild disappointment with his annual output, until the last five or ten years.

"To Rome With Love" made $68 million at the global box office, a decent sum for an Allen film, but way behind the $155 million earned by "Midnight in Paris."

Allen's latest film "Blue Jasmine," a drama co-starring Cate Blanchett, Sally Hawkins and Alec Baldwin, will be released in the United States in July, and in several European countries in August and September.

Copyright © 2013 AFP. All rights reserved.

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First falcons born in Paris since 19th century

(AFP) –

PARIS — The first peregrine falcons to be born in Paris since the end of the 19th century have hatched at the top of a giant heating tower close to the Eiffel Tower, it was announced on Tuesday.

The news has been greeted with delight by conservationists battling to build up stocks of a species that came close to extinction in France.

"It sends an important signal: when we apply ourselves, nature can reclaim its place in the city," Antoine Cadi of France's League for the Protection of Birds (LPO) told AFP.

The three chicks, known as eyases, were born in an artificial nest placed at the top of the 130-metre tower, two of them on April 25 and their sibling a couple of days later.

Since the births, the male of the adult pair has been busy hunting for his new family, taking out unsuspecting pigeons in full flight at speeds of more than 300 kilometres an hour (up to 200 miles an hour).

"They are the cheetahs of the skies," said Cadi.

The adult pair was first spotted in the...read more HERE.

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Doubleday/Associated Press -
This book cover image released by Doubleday shows “Paris,”
by Edward Rutherfurd

By Associated Press, Updated: Tuesday, April 30, 8:31 AM

“Paris: The Novel” (Doubleday), by Edward Rutherfurd

Paris has been both good and bad to the aristocratic de Cygne family over the centuries. While one generation was welcome at the nearby court of Versailles, another faced the guillotine during the Reign of Terror.

Edward Rutherfurd’s latest historical novel tracks the de Cygnes and a few other families in Paris from 1261 to 1968 as the city evolves from a medieval outpost to world-class metropolis. His primary focus is on the cohort born later in the 19th century who grew up to witness the existential threat to Paris in two world wars. Aside from the noble de Cygnes, the book follows the merchant Blanchard family, the working-class Gascons and the lefty Le Sourd clan. Action jumps from their day to points in the past. The fates of the families intersect over the centuries like lines on a Paris subway map.

The churches, gardens and back alleys of long-ago Paris are...read more HERE.

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The Paris Pass

What Do You Get With The Paris Pass

If you're headed to Paris, you might enjoy this website I discovered!  Here's what they say:

"The Paris Pass is your one stop shop for everything you need for a fantastic trip to Paris. It’s a specially designed sightseeing package that provides you with everything you need to discover the city.

The package is a bit like an ‘all you can eat’ buffet - once you’ve bought your Paris Pass you don’t have to pay to get into any of the attractions covered by the pass and the more sights you see, the more money you save.

Included in your Paris Pass package is:

• Paris Museum Pass – free entrance to over 55 of Paris’ world famous museums and monuments.
• Paris Attractions Pass – free entry to Paris’ best attractions including a Seine River Cruise, Musée Grévin, Tour Montparnasse and even a Wine Tasting experience!
• Paris Visite Pass – free unlimited travel on the metro, buses and RER within central Paris.
• Paris Bus Tour - Free Les Cars Rouge hop-on-hop-off bus tour of Paris, every Paris Pass comes with an unlimited use ticket valid for 2 consecutive days.
• Skip The Lines – at a selection of the busiest museums and attractions in Paris..."
  ...read more HERE.
  
  

  Read my latest post HERE.