This French Life

Bordeaux to host Lascaux 3 before world tour

THE Lascaux 3 exhibition will open to visitors at Cap Sciences, in Bordeaux, in October before setting off on a tour of museums around the world.

Lascaux 3 is a representation of the famous caves found in the Dordogne, after the original and the replica that was created to protect the delicate artwork and enable people to learn more about what lies underground.

The new mobile exhibition will, for the first time, enable visitors from around the world to see a selection of the famous cave art close up without turning to books or the internet.

Visitors to Lascaux 3 will learn about the initial discovery of the cave 70 years ago and how scientists and artists deciphered the extraordinary paintings as well as the work to preserve the Paleolithic cave paintings for future generations.

There will also be a virtual visit of the caves and the opportunity to discover the exceptional replicas of the Nave and the Shaft.

And people will also come face-to-face with a Cro-Magnon family and learn how the Lascaux artists prepared their tools and painted the cave walls.

The exhibition at Cap Sciences runs from October 13, 2012 to January 7, 2013 before it begins a tour of centres around the world, including Chicago in March 2013 and Montreal in 2014.

News stops: Bring in the army, says Marseille mayor

A LOOK over the news headlines from France.

Marseille mayor calls for army to be deployed to tackle gang warfare
François Hollande on Thursday faced calls from the Socialist mayor of a tough Marseille neighbourhood to send in the army to tackle the city's gang warfare.

Vivendi plans to cut jobs and costs amid price war
French media and telecoms giant Vivendi has said it will cut costs, including jobs, as it reported a drop in second-quarter net profits mainly due to its struggling telecoms unit.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn movie due to start filming
Film to join array of books and plays about French politician arrested over alleged attempted rape of US hotel worker.

UN slams France over Roma expulsions
UN special rapporteurs have accused France’s Socialist government of fuelling racism against Roma with its recent clearances of travellers’ camps.

US study abroad students urged to send vote home

STUDENTS from the US heading to France for the new academic year are being advised to register to vote to ensure they can take part in their own country's presidential elections.

The Youth Vote Overseas (YVO) is an initiative promoted by the Overseas Vote Foundation (OVF), which is a a nonprofit, non-partisan charitable organisation.

The YVO service has tried to make it a simple process for US students to register to vote, with the first step being to the registration deadline for each state as they are different.

The General Election Deadline Chart will let voters find out when their voter registration application must be received by their local election official.

It is possible to register to vote through the Youth Vote Overseas website, click on the Register to Vote button and there are four steps to complete for your registration.

You’ll be asked for the information required by your state. Don’t forget to print, sign, and mail the form to your local election official. The YVO wizard automatically provides you with this address.

This year, US voters will elect a president and vice president, all 435 members of the US House of Representatives, and 33 members of the US Senate.

And it is worth remembering that as an overseas voter, you need to submit a new voter registration application every calendar year if you want to take part in the electoral process.

A painful headache for Hollande on budget plans

AS we head into September we should begin to see how the French government intends to make savings of around €33 billion to hit its 2013 budget targets.

François Hollande, and his prime minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, have said they intend to get the government deficit down to 3% of GDP by the end of next year.

All their calculations are based upon growth within the French economy of 1.2%, however with rising prices and increasing unemployment, many believe the country will struggle to hit 0.5% growth.

If this is the case then savings of €45 billion will have to be found to hit the 3% target, so it is clear that some very difficult decisions will have to be made.

News stops: France's oldest woman dies aged 112

HERE is a quick round up of some of the news headlines from France.

India diplomatic bag found in French Alps after 46 years
A bag carrying diplomatic mail from India has been found on Mont Blanc in the French Alps, close to where an Air India plane crashed 46 years ago.

France carries out third Roma camp clearance this week
French police evicted about 600 Roma travellers from two camps near Paris on Wednesday, the third such mass expulsion this week. Camps were cleared near Lyons on Tuesday and near Paris on Monday.

France's oldest woman dead at 112
Paule Bronzini, France's oldest woman, has died at the age of 112, her retirement home announced on Wednesday.

Carrefour says it slashed first-half loss by 88%
Carrefour, the world's second biggest retailer by sales after Walmart, posted on Thursday a sharply reduced 2012 first-half net loss, a day after a union source said it would eliminate up to 600 jobs.

Carrefour to cut 500 to 600 jobs in France: union
French retail giant Carrefour is to cut 500 to 600 office jobs in France as part of a voluntary departure programme, union sources said on Wednesday.

Government cash to back youth employment plans

THE French government has put forward a plan to create 150,000 jobs for young people, at a cost of €2.3 billion.

The Emplois d'Avenir proposal aims to subsidise the payment of young staff taken on in the public, non-profit and in some cases the private sector by covering up to a maximum of 75% the payment of the minimum wage to the new workers for three years.

Young people aged between 16 and 25-years-old will be targeted by the measures, with particular emphasis on those living in urban areas and the countryside that face poor job prospects.

With the unemployment figure in France expected to top three million next month, the employment minister Michel Sapin said they hope to offer the first positions to young people by early next year.

Watching the Paralympic Games on France Television

IT will be possible to follow the Paralympic Games from London, which run from August 29 to September 9, on France Television but you'll have to search around a bit.

The opening ceremony takes place today, with the main competition starting tomorrow featuring wheelchair basketball, archery and powerlifting amongst the many sports on offer.

France Television will not be offering the same wall-to-wall coverage it provided for the Olympics, but the opening and closing ceremonies will be on France Ô, which is free to watch and can usually be found on channel 19 of the TNT freeview style service in France.

Government and oil industry cut fuel prices

THE French government and fuel suppliers have agreed a price cut on petrol and diesel of up to six euro cents per litre for the next three months.

With the price at the pump heading to record levels the French finance minister, Pierre Moscovici, said an agreement had been put in place to help motorists.

The measure will see the government cut its tax take by three euro cents per litre, with fuel suppliers undertaking a similar cut, and a more permanent measure is promised in the future.

Lower prices should be seen at the pumps immediately as the measure will be introduced over the next 24 hours, but there is a high price for the move.

Pierre Moscovici said the cost to the government would be at least €300 million ($375 million) in lost tax revenues for the three month period.

Related: Compare French petrol prices on the web

First signs of autumn in the Dordogne countryside

THERE is a touch of autumn chill in the air when taking the dog out for a walk in the morning.

The local farmer walks past, following an overnight rain shower, most probably on the look out for cèpe mushrooms as he is armed with his wooden walking stick to fold back the bracken hoping to tease out the bun shaped fungus.

News stops: Unemployment nears three million

A LOOK over some of the recent headlines from France.

French unemployed nears 3 million in July
The number of French job seekers has risen for the 15th month in a row and is tipped to hit three million next month.

Man charged with killing British woman in France
Gardener accused of murder after blood found at Aveyron home of woman whose body has not been found.

François Hollande calls on Syrian rebels to form provisional government
Move reveals differences with UK and US, which have been more guarded in their dealings with Syrian opposition groups.

Ryanair charged with breaches of French labour law
Low-cost Irish airline Ryanair has been ordered to appear in court to answer a string of charges of alleged breaches of French labour law, lawyers representing a pilots' union said on Monday.

French rocker Hallyday treated in Caribbean hospital
French rocker Johnny Hallyday, a legend in his homeland, was treated in a Caribbean hospital Monday after being rushed there by helicopter but was quickly released.