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Month: June 2020

Know the World: France

All You Can Books : Travel Series

France is one of the world’s top tourist destinations, and there’s plenty to get your teeth stuck into, from great cities like Paris, Bordeaux, and Marseille to the prehistoric sites of the Vézère valley and Brittany’s beautiful coastline.
But how well do you really know the country?

The country also has an extremely rich history. Because of this history, France developed bizarre customs and stories that make it one of a kind.

Embrace “joie de vivre” with these fun facts about France.

TOP 10 FUN FRANCE FACTS

  • Francophone

Francophone is a person who can speak French Fluently.
Did you know how easy it is to become a ‘Francophone’? All you can books offer easy to learn language courses, which will help you in calling yourself a ‘Francophone’

  • French Toast is not French 😲

Some claim that French toast isn’t French, Neither are French fries. Fries actually come from Belgium, French Toast was actually invented by a man called Joseph French.

  • France hates ‘STOP’ signs

 France favors roundabouts over stop signs. In fact, they have about 30,000 in the country, which is more than half of all roundabouts in the world. According to studies, roundabouts reduce the overall number of collisions and the seriousness of collisions.

  • It is Illegal to Kiss on Railway Platforms

It is illegal to Kiss on France Railway Platforms to avoid delay in Train Timings. Well isn’t that an odd rule to keep things in place. But Hey! anything to get my train on time.

  • Louis XIX was king for 20 minutes

The shortest period a king or queen has ever reigned over a country was when Louis XIX, technically could claim himself as the king of France. It took about 20 minutes and he stepped down and placed his nephew in charge, and he never really ruled the country.

  • You can Marry a Dead person in France

In the 50’s it was decided that it should be allowed to marry a dead person, under special circumstances. One needs to prove that there were already plans on getting married, and also send a formal request to the President.

The one who marries a dead person will not inherit and the family of the deceased must approve the marriage as well.

  • It is Illegal to name your pigs ‘Napolean’

IN FRANCE it is illegal to name a pig Napoleon, almost 200 years after his death

Napoleon built a large empire that ruled over much of continental Europe before its final collapse in 1815. He is considered one of the greatest commanders in history, and his wars and campaigns are studied at military schools worldwide.

Experts say the odd law exists because ­calling a pig after the emperor would insult a head of state.

  • Death Penalty = Guillotine (in France)

The guillotine was introduced as the official way to execute people back in 1792. It was a simple way that also let the people watch offenders get their punishment. Luckily, the death penalty was abolished in 1981.

The last execution with a guillotine in France happened in 1977 after a man from Tunisia named Hamida Djandoubi was sentenced to torture and later death.

  • France the land of Inventions

Among the many inventions, some notable ones are the hot air balloon, pasteurizer, stethoscope, and the parachute. Each of these has changed the world.

In recent years there is one particular famous French invention, namely the cell phone camera, which was first developed by Philippe Kahn, back in 1997.

  • Male impotence was considered a crime in the 17th century

Back in the 1600’s in France, it was considered a crime if a man wasn’t able to get an erection, and this was enough to let a woman file for divorce. If a married woman accused her husband of male impotence, he had to prove the contrary in front of an expert panel.

If he failed, which was understandably quite common, the man could also demand to get a second chance by having intercourse with his wife in front of a judge. Quite an obscene fact about France. The law was banished in 1677.

As you can tell, the history of France has created a rich culture. It has its quirks, just like any nation, but overall it’s a tremendous place to live and visit.

The French are well-known for the love of wine and cheese. They are also a very progressive culture that is on the cutting edge on a lot of social and environmental issues.

We hope these fun facts pique your interest in France. If you’d like to learn more about other countries be sure to check out our posts on Germany and Japan.

Be sure to check out All You Can Books and the variety of Language courses it offers :).

Until next week……

Queen Sheba’s Ring

Queen Sheba's Ring by Henry Rider Haggard

Queen Sheba's Ring by Henry Rider Haggard

A famed archeologist, an aging doctor, and a young army engineer set out across the African desert on a great adventure. Professor Higgs is in search of new archeological discoveries, Dr. Adams seeks to rescue his kidnapped son, and Captain Orme wants to forget an unhappy love affair. Maqueda, Daughter of Kings, ruler of the Abati, enlists their aid to destroy the sacred idol of a neighboring tribe with promises to help the doctor rescue his son. However, the idol is a second great sphinx, carved out of a mountain. In their quest they can expect little help from the weak and cowardly Abati. The road is fraught with danger, wild beasts, valiant enemies, and traitorous allies, but their greatest danger is a beautiful woman whom it is death to love.

Enjoy this wonderful book from All You Can Books audiobooks and ebooks service. Visit us at AllYouCanBooks.com for more great titles you can enjoy anytime, anywhere.

Know the World: Japan

All You Can Books : Travel Series

Welcome, all to the second stop to our traveling journey!
After our first visit to Germany it is time for our next stop, i.e the magnificent country of Japan.

Let us dig deeper into the fascinating facts of Japan

Top 10 Facts about Japan, you ought to know:

  • Welcome to the Shakiest place on Earth!
    The number will vary from year to year, but in general, there will be more than 1500 earthquakes in Japan. Luckily, most of them are do not cause any damage, but each year there are earthquakes that reach more than 8 on the Richter scale. Japan sits along the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, so it has many volcanoes and experiences many earthquakes.
    In 2011, an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 hit Japan and created a Tsunami which resulted in much devastation.
  • ‘Kanamara Matsuri’: The Penis Festival of Japan
    The festival is known as Kanamara Matsuri, which means something like “the festival for the phallus of steal”.
    The Festival is celebrated in the Japanese city of Kawasaki on the first Sunday in April. In short, everything, including candy, vegetables, and decorations, has the shape of the male reproductive organ or other things related to fertility. I mean EVERYTHING!
Kanamara Matsuri - The Story Behind Kawasaki's Strange Spring ...
  • Kobe Beef: The Most Expensive Beef in the World
    Japanese Kobe beef is famous worldwide for its succulence and taste. This beef comes from cows who receive daily massages and, in summer, are fed a diet of saké and Beer mash. True Kobe beef comes from only 262 farms in the Tajima region, of which Kobe is the capital and each of which raises an average of 5 of the animals at a time. In the United States, Kobe beef is called Wagyu beef. The rarest steak in the world, Olive Wagyu, can cost anywhere from $120 to over $300 for a steak.
  • The Cuddling Cafes: Cafes where you can pay to cuddle
    Stop right there….there is nothing sexual about it. There is a reason why these cafes exist, a lot of inhabitants are single and loneliness is a big problem in Japan due to their high work rate. That’s why there is a demand for cuddling and intimacy, and at these cafes, you can come and get a hug or just lie down in someone’s lap, or spend time together with another human being.
  • Something is Fishy in Tsukiji!
    The world’s largest seafood market is the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo. The market employs over 60,000 people and opens at 3:00 am most mornings, with its famous wholesale tuna auctions beginning at 5:00 am.
    The Japanese eat more fish than any other people in the world, about 17 million tons per year. Woahhh….That is a lot of fish!

Tsukiji Outer Market: Exploring the Fish Market - Japan Rail Pass
  • Japanese Macaque – The Japanese Snow Monkey
    Japan is home to the Japanese Macaque, or snow monkey, which lives in colder climates than other primates. The Nagano Prefecture is known for its macaques, who bathe in hot springs in the winter.
    The omnivorous monkeys aren’t picky about their meals and will eat everything from fruit to insects, ferns, invertebrates, bird eggs, and, when times are tough, fish, and even soil.
Famous Japanese Snow Monkeys Take Baths to Lower Stress | National ...
  • Japanese Ganguro
    Japanese Ganguro (“black face”) fashion was started in the 1990s and has young women tanning their skin as dark as possible, bleaching their hair, and using extremely colorful makeup in contrast to the traditional Japanese pale-skinned, dark-haired standard of beauty. This fashion style has often been criticized for having a racist theme.
  • Ssssluuuuurrrrrppppp your Noodles! Japan Loves it!
    If you go to a noodle restaurant in Japan, (which you should) don’t be afraid to slurp up the noodles. On the contrary, this is considered polite.
    According to Japanese customary, it’s polite to slurp up the noodles since it shows the cook that you appreciate the food and at the same time, it enhances the flavors.
What is the reason behind the Asian culture of people slurp their ...
  • Japanese Bosses Love it when their employers take a Nap
    Taking a Nap in during a work hour is considered to be the fruits of working extremely hard. Japanese people are working more than any other country in the world and the working days are long. Since a couple of years back, some employers are letting their employees take a power nap at work, recharge, and get more energy. It’s pretty interesting, and overall I would say that power naps are very common in Japan, and you will constantly see people taking power naps on trains.
Japanese firms encourage workers to take nap breaks to fight ...
  • It’s forbidden to bathe in Hot springs and Onsen with tattoos
    Many hot springs and onsen (public bathhouses) in Japan ban customers with tattoos from entering because the tattoos remind the public of the Yakuza, or Japanese mafia, whose members sport full-body tattooing.
    Luckily, nowadays many places offer guests to cover their tattoos with a skin-colored band-aid.
    If you can cover them, you’ll be allowed to take a bath. However, not all onsen are this strict, since Japan is moving on to be more inclusive for boosting their Tourism.
Everything You Need to Know About Visiting a Hot Spring in Japan ...

We have come to an end of this Interesting Journey with Japan.

Be sure, to return to know more about our next Destination.

All You Can Books offers Easy to Learn Language Courses. Be sure to brush up your Japanese with All You Can Books.

Know the World: Germany

All You Can Books : Travel Series


Hallo Leute (That is Hello you guys!)

We at All You Can Books are starting our own Travel series. With the Virus lurking around us, it is unsafe and has kept us housebound. Hey, but that should not stop us from Learning and Knowing more about the other parts of the world.

This week we are going to learn some interesting facts about a country which is Europe’s Economic Powerhouse.

Welcome to Germany!!!

TOP 10 Interesting Facts about Germany!

  • Prison Escape is not against the Law in Germany
    German Law states that it’s human nature to want to be free, so prisoners have the right to escape jail
Hundreds of Brazilian Prisoners Escape After Prison Riot Over ...
  • It’s Illegal to Run out of Fuel on the Autobahn (Highway)
    Poor Planners can be fined and have their License suspended for up to Six months.
How Far Can You Drive Your Mazda Vehicle with the Low Fuel Warning ...
  • Over 800 Million Currywursts are eaten in Germany each year.
    This widely popular sausage with spicy ketchup combo even has its own museum in Berlin!
German Sausage With Curry Ketchup (Currywurst) Recipe
  • Frühschoppen
    Bavarian’s have a Tradition called Frühschoppen that means having a glass of beer before noon. They claim it aids digestion and boosts the metabolism.
    Beer is officially considered a food in Bavaria . Germany constitutes of more than 1,500 different beers.
Pro & Kontra: Frühschoppen - Kolumne: Pro & Kontra - derStandard ...
  • Chinese Checkers
    Despite it’s name, the game Chinese Checkers was invented in Germany in 1892.
Chinese Checkers | Retroland
  • Berlin – The Capital City
    Berlin is 9 times bigger than Paris and has more bridges than Venice, Berlin Central Station is the largest Train Station in Europe.
Berlin Central Station | visitBerlin.de
Berlin Central Station
  • The Chancellor
    The Chancellor’s office in Berlin is known locally as as the “washing machine”. Chancellor Angela Merkel has a Barbie doll made after her.
Angela Merkel: appelez-la Barbie Chancelière! - Gala
  • Oktoberfest – The love for Beer
    The biggest Beer Festival in the world is of course the Oktoberfest in Munich, Bavaria, where the size of the beer glass is not 500ml but a whole liter!
    After the Irish, the Germans are those consume the most beer, making Germany the second largest consumer of Beer.To get ONE beer in Germany, you show your thumb. To show your first finger and your thumb means that you want 2 beers (i’d say a pretty effective way)
Oktoberfest Is Canceled For The First Time Since WWII - Simplemost
  • Football (Soccer for the North Americans)
    There are more Football fan clubs in Germany than anywhere else in the world.
    The Germany national football team has won four FIFA World Cups (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014), being the joint second most successful nation in the tournament only surpassed by Brazil.
How German soccer is navigating the tricky questions facing sports ...

It is so interesting as well as easy to understand a culture when you understand the language. All You Can Books provides a range of languages to learn, in an extremely easy way.

We will meet Next Week to in search of a new country and to learn new Facts.

Until then Stay Tuned with All You Can Books.

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