The France List

*Star Academy*

For all of you American Idol fans out there, France has a version of your show that�s cooler, higher quality, and longer. Star Academy is like Real World gone Road Rules gone Survivor gone American Idol. Sixteen contestants start out, only one will remain. The contestants live in a chateaux together during the duration of their stay on the show. Everyday contains a grueling early wake up followed by hours of working out, dancing, singing, acting, and just lying around looking cute in-between. You can view an hour of this every weeknight. On Saturday nights the show features a three hour long concert where the contestants sing, dance, and pray to god that they don�t get voted off. The concert always features different celebrities every week. With Star Academy�s amazing talent, celebrity endorsement, awesome French accents, and Paxti�s smile; American Idol, well, it just can�t compare.

*Kyo, Aliz�e, Lara Fabian, and Other French Musicians*

The amazingness of French music comes both from the way the French Language lands itself to being sung and its rarity on the radios. American music seems to be somewhat of a trend in France, so at least half the songs you hear on the radio are American, or at least sung in English. I, however, feel like my ears are being raped every time an American or English song follows a French one on the radio. It just can�t compare. French musicians and singers have dominated most of the American music industry with vocal skills, instrumental sounds, and jut plain coolness. So for those Linkin Park fans out there, check out some Kyo. If you�re more of a female singer fan, check out Aliz�e and Lara Fabian. Trust me, even if you don�t get understand the lyrics, you still won�t be disappointed.

*Chocolate*

In America we have the �chip aisle.� Every supermarket has an entire aisle dedicated to the chip and the many flavor thereof. France? In France we can find the �chocolate aisle.� Yes, that�s right. An entire supermarket aisle dedicated to the many flavors and styles or chocolate. The drooling can begin.

Different

*Bisous*

Being an American with a fairly large bubble, you can almost imagine how strange it is for me to great all of my friends here, and perfect strangers for that matter, by kissing them on each cheek. A breakdown of the bisous would go something like this. You place your right cheek on the other persons right cheek, purse your lips and make kissing noise, and do the same on the other cheek. Your lips never actually touch the other persons cheek. There also regional rules about how many bisous you do. In the south of France its common to do four bisous, two on each cheek. Slightly further north in the center of France they do three. In the north of France, where I am, two is common. In Belgium they only do one bisous, which I discovered by trial and error, by the way. Amazingly, I�ve only made a few bisous mistakes, such as bumping noses, going for the wrong cheek, and I once got my hair stuck in a mans bushy mustache. Other than that, though, the bisous have been good. I actually think it�s a fun way to great people, but at first it was totally bizarre.

*Meals*

In America we tend to eat large breakfasts and small lunches. In France its just the opposite. While Breakfasts are tiny, lunches are full blown meals. Breakfast normally feature what American�s would call desert food. Cookies or biscuits are dipped in bowls of hot chocolae or coffee. Cakeis also common, thout it never has frosting. Lunch is as large a dinner. Its normal to eat a warm entr�e followed by cheese, salad, and a desert of fruit or yogurt. Our breakfast foods are their deserts. Dinner is the same as lunch. The French also seem to snack less than Americans do, though they more than make up for it with large meals. This American is still working on switching over to the French eating habits. It�s a difficult thing to do. I�ve always liked my big healthy breakfasts, and there are days when I�d take on of my old smushed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches over their massive lunches any day.

*Dubbed Films*

Being an American I never thought much about dubbed movies. I always thought they were terrible, like in Japanese films where the actors mouth moves for a full minute after the voiceover stops. In France, however, dubbing is a big deal because over half the films in the theater are foreign, and mostly American at that. Obviously, they have a lot of dubbing to do, and let me tell you, they are experts at it! The persons mouth never moves after the voiceover stops. Its amazing! It is kind of weird to watch, and more than once I�ve tried lip reading on English speaking actors. It doesn�t work too well, especially not on actors like Josh Hartnett who barely move their lips at all. Another strange thing is that all actors have the same voice actor in every film. So French people can recognize Harrison Ford�s voice, for example, just not the real Harrison Ford�s voice, his voice actors voice because it�s the same in every film. When a voice actor dies or retires they have to be replace and the real actors voice changes which is very weird for the French people who are used to the original voice actors voice. Its so hardcore, and very confusing. You have no idea how much I wish they would just go back to subtitles.