Are you ready to go on one of the most brutal rally races in history? Just sign up for the 2010 Dakar Rally which will take you all across South America: from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Antofagasta, Chile and back.

The Dakar Rally—also known as The Dakar—is an off-road automobile race for amateur and professional racers held every year by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) since 1978. The race route is usually from Paris, France to Dakar, Senegal. But due to the political uncertainties in Africa, the race was moved to South America in 2009. continue reading…

Photo credit: Benh Lieu Song

For a long time no one could accuse France of being a corny destination, because, theoretically speaking, it has not had cause to be. It attracts more tourists than any other country annually.

Paris itself, the City of Lights, is emblematic of many things: the cosmopolitan, the gourmet, the artistic, the haute, the ironically witty. It usually feels far more acceptable to frame Paris in provocative adjectives such as sniffy or libidinous, and expect orgueil (pride) rather than outrage from Parisians as a reaction.

But boring? Even in French boredom translates to l’ennui, an emotionally-loaded term that spans angst and grief. To reduce Paris to the “Capitale Européene de l’ennui” (European Capital of Boredom), as Le Monde has labeled the City of Lights recently, eats away at the decadent spectacle the historian Andrew Hussey traced in Paris: The Secret History, published in 2006. continue reading…

This time, it’s those people in Paris who’ve really made his day. Hollywood icon Clint Eastwood was awarded as commander in France’s prestigious Legion of Honour.

The Telegraph reported that on Friday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy gave the 79-year-old Hollywood actor-turned-director with the decoration for his “body of work, longevity and his ability to delight audiences around the globe.”

Although it is somewhat rare to elevate a foreigner to the rank of commander of the Legion, it was still given to Eastwood, who was honored as a knight by former French President Jacques Chirac two years ago. continue reading…

Image from slashgear.com

Got an iPhone? Careful, it might be a bombshell as well. Several iPhones in France were reported to have exploded during the past few months.

Adding to the deadly numbers is a French businessman whose iPhone spontaneously shattered. The victim has asked a court to investigate the device’s safety but Apple’s lawyers said that the explosive incident is subject to police fraud inquiry. continue reading…