Carnival of France

I AM really pleased to be hosting Kelby Carr’s Carnival of France this week which is a look at interesting corners of the web you may not have seen before.

Of course they all have a link with France and feature news articles, reflections on life, photographs of French life and even a video or two.

In today’s collection you will get the chance to go surfing on the beaches of Biarritz, read how one man discovered the history of his French home and take a bike tour around Provence.

A post on La Poste
From the blog of Etienne Marcel comes this peek into the fabulous world of stamp collecting, French style. Etienne writes how a series of stamps featuring the foods of France made his stomach rumble.

A home’s past history
Many people buy an old property in France and wonder who lived there before and what happened within its four walls. Retired US diplomat Gregory Orr was lucky enough to be shown a painting of his home as the village patisserie.

Spending a penny
Excuse me I’ve just got to take a ‘comfort break’ and luckily Kelby has written a guide on how to use the toilet in France and I never knew those pod-style loos in the street open automatically after 15 minutes.

Cycling tour of Provence
If you want to take a tour of the roads then take a look at the Bike Rite blog which provides first-hand guides to a selection of routes. It is clear cyclists John and Caroline know their hairpins and just reading some of the routes will see you out of breath.

Strike action Tuesday
A quick news alert on possible disruption to public transport this coming week. A number of unions have backed a call to protest at government plans on workers’ contracts.

Photographs and videos
My two favourite places to visit for things visual are Flickr and the new Google Video, here are a few highlights.

Take a trip around the streets and buildings of Paris.

A stunning winter landscape in the Alps

Surfing in Biarritz with a soundtrack to match

If you want to host a Carnival of France just get in touch with Kelby Carr.