La Belle Vie: French New Year's resolutions and motorway nicknames
From how to wish someone a happy New Year to the favourite resolutions of the French and learning the nicknames for France's motorways, this week's La Belle Vie newsletter offers you an essential starting point for eating, talking, drinking and living like a French person.
La Belle Vie is our regular look at the real culture of France – from language to cuisine, manners to films. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to your newsletter preferences in “My account”.
Happy New Year! If you have spent any time in public these past few days, you have probably been wished a Happy New Year in French. If you have found yourself at a loss for words, you could always respond with a simple thank you (merci).
Then, you have two choices for how to express your well-wishes: either bonne année, which is slightly more casual and directly translates to 'happy new year', or meilleurs vœux, the slightly more versatile option which technically means 'best wishes'.
Like any language, French is full of synonyms and phrases that appear to mean the same thing but have a subtle difference that non-native speakers may not recognise.
12 French expressions and their commonly used counterparts
The French also like to take stock of the year that has passed and come up with some résolutions for the new year. Normally, I am not a huge fan, as I have a bad habit of only keeping my resolutions during the month of January. But this year, I made a list of goals and I intend to stick to them until at least February 1st.
It turns out the French and I have a lot in common - I do not know who copied whom, but seven of my 10 resolutions were mysteriously the same as theirs.
What are the most popular New Year's resolutions in France?
For the first time, I am attempting Le Dry January this year - along with thousands of French people who are also giving one month alcohol-free a try.
The défi de janvier, as some refer to it, is becoming more popular each year, but not everyone in France is supportive of the sobriety campaign. The French government opted not to back it, and one ministerial aide even told BFMTV that it is "not part of our culture to go without wine or beer".
'It's not French culture to not have wine': Does France do 'Le Dry January'?
Some French politicians are taking part in the occasion - I felt for transport minister Clément Beaune when he posted a photo on social media of a glass of soda with the caption "It's going to be long, this Dry January".
In the meantime, the French public has been thinking about who they would most like to share a beer with. The results for 2023 are in, and perhaps unsurprisingly, President Macron himself did not take the first place crown.
Which French politicians are the most popular drinking companions?
As for non-alcohol related resolutions, if I could give the French any tips, I might add "stop setting cars on fire on New Year's Eve". Maybe it is too tall of an order, considering the tradition has been going on for decades.
That being said, this year, just 745 vehicles were burned, according to the interior ministry, which is down 10 percent from last year.
Why do the French set fire to cars on New Year's Eve?
And finally - on the topic of cars, if you have ever taken a road trip in France, you might consider yourself to be familiar with the country's motorways. All of the autoroutes start with an 'A', followed by a number - but did you know they also have nicknames?
If you have driven from the UK to France, you may have taken the autoroute des anglais or if you have joined the many holidaymakers on their way down to Marseille along the autoroute du soleil.
‘Autoroute des Anglais’: Do you know the nicknames for France’s motorways?
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La Belle Vie is our regular look at the real culture of France – from language to cuisine, manners to films. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to your newsletter preferences in “My account”.
Happy New Year! If you have spent any time in public these past few days, you have probably been wished a Happy New Year in French. If you have found yourself at a loss for words, you could always respond with a simple thank you (merci).
Then, you have two choices for how to express your well-wishes: either bonne année, which is slightly more casual and directly translates to 'happy new year', or meilleurs vœux, the slightly more versatile option which technically means 'best wishes'.
Like any language, French is full of synonyms and phrases that appear to mean the same thing but have a subtle difference that non-native speakers may not recognise.
12 French expressions and their commonly used counterparts
The French also like to take stock of the year that has passed and come up with some résolutions for the new year. Normally, I am not a huge fan, as I have a bad habit of only keeping my resolutions during the month of January. But this year, I made a list of goals and I intend to stick to them until at least February 1st.
It turns out the French and I have a lot in common - I do not know who copied whom, but seven of my 10 resolutions were mysteriously the same as theirs.
What are the most popular New Year's resolutions in France?
For the first time, I am attempting Le Dry January this year - along with thousands of French people who are also giving one month alcohol-free a try.
The défi de janvier, as some refer to it, is becoming more popular each year, but not everyone in France is supportive of the sobriety campaign. The French government opted not to back it, and one ministerial aide even told BFMTV that it is "not part of our culture to go without wine or beer".
'It's not French culture to not have wine': Does France do 'Le Dry January'?
Some French politicians are taking part in the occasion - I felt for transport minister Clément Beaune when he posted a photo on social media of a glass of soda with the caption "It's going to be long, this Dry January".
In the meantime, the French public has been thinking about who they would most like to share a beer with. The results for 2023 are in, and perhaps unsurprisingly, President Macron himself did not take the first place crown.
Which French politicians are the most popular drinking companions?
As for non-alcohol related resolutions, if I could give the French any tips, I might add "stop setting cars on fire on New Year's Eve". Maybe it is too tall of an order, considering the tradition has been going on for decades.
That being said, this year, just 745 vehicles were burned, according to the interior ministry, which is down 10 percent from last year.
Why do the French set fire to cars on New Year's Eve?
And finally - on the topic of cars, if you have ever taken a road trip in France, you might consider yourself to be familiar with the country's motorways. All of the autoroutes start with an 'A', followed by a number - but did you know they also have nicknames?
If you have driven from the UK to France, you may have taken the autoroute des anglais or if you have joined the many holidaymakers on their way down to Marseille along the autoroute du soleil.
‘Autoroute des Anglais’: Do you know the nicknames for France’s motorways?
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