Archive
France has 9 cities in Top 100 Global Innovation Cities ranking
France’s strong tradition of research and innovation, as well as growing FDI and domestic investment in pharma, nanotechnology, cleantech, biotech, and other innovative sectors seem to be gaining worldwide recognition.
In the latest rankings of Innovation Cities released by the company 2thinknow, the United States has 23 cities in the Top 100, Germany has 16 and France has 9, making it third among countries in the poll. One of my favorite cities, Lyon, even makes it in the Global Top 10. Congrats to Lyon! The following French cities are in the Top 100:
#3 Paris
#8 Lyon
#27 Strasbourg
#37 Nantes
#39 Marseille
#41 Bordeaux
#44 Toulouse
#63 Montpellier
#96 Reims
After the Top 100 but within the overall ranking of 331 benchmark cities, France has several other cities featured within Europe: Nice, Lille, Cannes, Rennes. Although I’m personally surprised that Grenoble, a city known for its research and nanotechnology, is nowhere to be found…
American Clubs of France newsletter: events in France
The American Clubs has an extensive list of expat networking events across the country. You can check out the latest listing here. You can sign up for the newsletter on the website. Happy Networking!
Events in the following cities:
PARIS, AIX-EN-PROVENCE, ANGERS – SAUMUR, BIARRITZ, BORDEAUX, CAEN, CANNES /NICE, CHANTILLY, CHARTRES, CLERMONT – FERRAND, DUNKERQUE, GRENOBLE, LATTES, LILLE, LYON, MARSEILLE, MONTPELLIER, NANTES, NARBONNE, ORLEANS, SETE, TOULOUSE, TOURS
French politics, news, economy, wedding coverage…
As you know, I write for Bonjour Paris, and this week I have an article covering many subjects. You can read it here.
Where to celebrate Thanksgiving in France & Monaco
Thanksgiving this year falls on Thursday Nov. 25. This is one of the most important American traditional holidays and being abroad can make one miss home being with family and friends. (French explanation here by US Embassy Paris, Thanksgiving guide by Lyon à la carte.)
Luckily there are many communities of expats in France and Thanksgiving festivities all over the country from Biarritz to Paris, even in Monte Carlo (Monaco). Here is a list below, non-exhaustive of course, as there could be events of which I’m not aware (especially in other cities). If this is the case, please feel free to list events as “comments”.
Many of these require reservations in advance and spots are limited, so get on it! Not all fall on Thanksgiving, they range from Nov. 17 to Nov. 28. Also, price ranges vary, anywhere from 20 to 80 euros a person usually. Parents with children ages 3-5, you may be interested by American Library in Paris having a story hour on Nov. 24.
cheers, and Happy “jour de dinde” (Turkey Day) en avance!
PARIS
Nov. 17: France-Etats Unis Paris (with talk on JFK)
Nov. 23: France Amériques
Nov. 24: American University Clubs of France
Nov. 25: Breakfast in America diner
Nov. 25: Katz’s American Diner, contact@katzparis.fr, their menu, their flyer
Nov. 25: AmCham France (American Chamber of Commerce)
Nov. 25, 26, 27: Le Saint-Martin
Harry’s Bar (not sure for 2010, contact them).
American Club of Paris (not sure, contact them)
LYON
Nov. 21: International Christian Community of Lyon (contact through site)
Nov. 27: American Club of Lyon. Info, PDF sign-up here.
MARSEILLE & Aix-en-Provence
Nov. 14 – ICCM English speaking church
Nov. 28 – Anglo-American Group of Provence
LILLE
Nov. 21: American Club of Lille
TOULOUSE
Nov. 20: France-Etats Unis Toulouse
Americans in Toulouse may have information on events.
BORDEAUX
Association Bordeaux-USA (not sure for this year, contact them)
STRASBOURG
Nov. 28: Americans in Alsace (looks like members only, contact through site)
GRENOBLE
Nov. 25: France-Etats Unis Grenoble (under “calendar”)
Pumpkins restaurant (contact them)
NANTES
Nov. 28: France-Etats Unis Nantes
MONTE CARLO (MONACO)
Nov. 25: Stars ‘N’ Bars
NICE and CANNES
Nov. 25: Expat Meet-Up Nice
American Club of the Riveria (I’ve heard they hold Thanksgiving, but call to confirm).
CAEN
Nov. 25: France-Etats Unis Caen
BIARRITZ
Nov. 26: France-Etats Unis Biarritz (soirée gala, Thanksgiving dinner)
Paris security expecting 50,000 at “giant apéro” on Champ-de-Mars May 23rd
Le record du plus grand apéro de France est prévu le 23 mai, au Champ-de-Mars, à Paris © VALINCO/SIPA
A Facebook group has organized what it hopes to be the biggest apéro (apéritif) in France with more than 50,000 people expected….but authorities are concerned that it could get out of hand, as it is planned for on the Champ-de-Mars and a similar event in Nantes (with 9,000 participants) witnessed the death of a young man. Parts of article below in French:
La perspective d’un apéro géant au Champ-de-Mars inquiète les élus parisiens
AFP/Le Point 14 mai 2010“Le maire de Paris et les responsables UMP de la capitale se sont prononcés vendredi contre l’organisation via Facebook d’un “apéro géant” baptisé “Record du plus grand apéro de France à Paris” le 23 mai au Champ-de-Mars (VIIe arr.). Ils se sont déclarés solidaires des initiatives de la préfecture de police (PP) qui a ouvert le 6 mai son propre compte Facebook pour mettre en garde contre “les risques graves liés à la gestion de foule”, susceptible de réunir plus de 50.000 personnes.
Après le décès à Nantes d’un homme de 21 ans lors de l’une de ces manifestations la préfecture a de nouveau mis en garde sur Facebook les organisateurs et les personnes relayant l’”apéro géant” du Champ-de-Mars sur les “risques graves” d’un rassemblement non “organisé et encadré”. Dans deux messages distincts, la PP “souhaite attirer” leur “attention sur les risques graves pour la sécurité des participants que ferait courir un grand rassemblement de personnes s’il n’était pas organisé et encadré par ses promoteurs tant sur le plan de la sécurité civile et sanitaire que sur celui de la gestion du public”. “La consommation d’alcool est strictement interdite sur le Champ-de-Mars” et nul “ne pourrait apporter sur le site des boissons alcoolisées sans commettre une infraction”, ajoute-t-elle.
Une semaine après le lancement des “invitations” pour le 23 mai, l’incident mortel de Nantes “confirme les risques de grave dérapage que présente ce type de rassemblements dont l’objectif affiché est d’inviter le maximum de gens à consommer le maximum d’alcool dans des lieux publics où la sécurité et la protection sanitaire des personnes peuvent être difficilement assurées”, a déclaré le maire de Paris Bertrand Delanoë (PS)…”
French driving veil row escalates
From Expatica.com below, but you can follow news in French here on Figaro.
French driving veil row escalates
A political row over the case of a French woman fined for driving in an Islamic veil gathered pace Sunday as a leading Muslim scholar and a French far-right leader both weighed in.
With the government planning to ban the full Islamic veil in public, the fining of the French woman in Nantes took a political turn when a minister threatened to punish her Muslim husband for offences including polygamy.
The woman has challenged the fine as a breach of her human rights.
Tariq Ramadan, a professor of Islamic studies at Oxford University, said that the move by French Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux to punish the woman’s husband “betrays the values of France”.
“To be polygamous is illegal… that is the law that says that. But since when has a minister been able to say that they will take away his nationality?” Ramadan told around 1,000 people at a conference the Arrhama mosque in Nantes.
Hortefeux had written to Immigration Minister Eric Besson asking him to look into allegations the woman’s husband may belong to a radical group and may be a polygamist with four wives and 12 children and guilty of welfare fraud. He said the man could be stripped of his French nationality if they proved true.Swiss-born Ramadan, who had a Bush-era visa ban lifted by the United States earlier this year, hailed the Muslim community of Nantes for refusing to react to “provocation” over the issue.
Mourad Sandi, an official at the Arrhama mosque, said the affair had been given too much attention in the media. “I am not sure the subject merits our discussing it, we do not want to add fuel to the fire,” he said.
But the collective of Nantes mosques said in a statement that they were “worried by this systematic stigmatisation which goes against the values of the Republic”.
The association “considers that the stopping of a driver is a judicial procedure and is angry at how such an event has been turned into being all about Islam.”Meanwhile French far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen told local media it was “scandalous” that the man’s alleged wives were receiving family benefits and said the potential stripping of the man’s French citizenship was “normal”…
Michael
americanexpatinfrance
