The very first thing I did the very first time I went to Basque Country was make a complete ass of myself. A few years ago, Nancy and I rented a house in the epically beautiful village of Sare, at … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Yes, we know — it’s a bird. A cute, fluffy little bird. But still, this is a terrible name for a children’s store. Why not Tom Thumb? Tom Boy, Tom Cat, Tom-Tom… Even Tom … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Bayonne is a beautiful town. The narrow streets with their centuries-old buildings, the cathedral with its peaceful cloister, the shops with their tragicomically ill-advised names… In French, it would be pronounced to rhyme with … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Spotted by reader Emily Ruck Keene. It’s a homies invasion! Demonstrating the ongoing, if ill-advised, appeal of American slang, stores are cropping up around Paris with a name that was originally associated with … Read More
One of the great things about the Internet is that it facilitates and encourages the dissemination of utter crap. I mean that sincerely: in the old days, before the Information Superhighway, whenever we humorists wanted to find something to ridicule, … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque Spotted by reader Mary Beth Dietrick I have decided this week to suspend my usual policy of making fun of bad English on French shop signs and, in the name of equality, make fun … Read More
It was quite a day. By lunchtime I had already been in four fights, and had gotten knocked out cold every time. I had been in a concert and a demonstration, worked as a photographer, security guard, chef and hospital … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque I spotted this hair salon on a recent trip to Bayonne. Is it short for “global”? Or an indication of how much gel they use for each customer? In any case, I bet the … Read More
C’est Ironique Sign of the Weeque It’s not the name of this bar just south of the Moulin Rouge that I find intriguing, but the list of services available, especially the last one. Would they lett me have a lapp … Read More
Ah, there’s nothing like a good cops-and-robbers mystery to pass the time on those lazy, leisurely days of summer. Wily villains, a rollicking plot, surprise revelations, the willing suspension of disbelief… And in France this year, no one needed to … Read More
