cafebabel.com

University of Love questionnaire for EU

('Sebastian Baciu',) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:09:56 -0000

The prevailing lovelessness on the old continent might cost the good old European Union dearly. That’s why the last days of the year seem like a good time to sign up for a seminar at a real-life university of love

Tearjerker tips for Europe in crisis

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 15:01:07 -0000

Read ‘em and weep: ‘tearjerker’ is a noun which translates practically perfectly into other European languages. It is used mostly to describe a film, book, play or song which moves us to tears. The entertainment industry gets an excessively sentimental Europe down, but these pearls could also abate our crisis-ridden depression

A-Z glossary of European terms of endearment

('Marta Nathansohn',) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 16:00:11 -0000

From the coasts of Portugal via the Balkans to the Urals, locals become cannibals, zoophiles, astronomers and gastronomists when they give their lovers pet names. Here are some tips on nicknames to use when trying to hit on that cute foreign boy or girl, whether you are serious about hooking up abroad or just having a good-natured laugh

French actress and singer Melanie Laurent’s directorial debut: ‘The Adopted’

('Cari19',) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 15:32:19 -0000

At the age of 28, the actress and singer released her first film as a director, ‘Les Adoptés’, on 23 November in her native France. Do all good things come in threes? Film review

cafebabel.com boys speak: what makes Europe’s twentysomething men happy

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:00:00 -0000

We girls probably think that macho attitudes, making money and succeeding are what make boys happy. After all, why is it so hard to get them to share on ‘happiness’? Apparently not. Winning a game, doing nothing, a tipple, the latest gadget, friends, girls - a pan-European select number of lads share what makes them smile – and why we girls are different. Vox-pop

Wedding fever: UK royals 2011 vs fin-de-siècle Austria-Hungary

('Nettah',) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 18:20:08 -0000

In case you haven’t heard, on 29 April Prince William is to marry Kate Middleton in a royal ceremony at Westminster Abbey. Once upon a time, on 1 July 1900, in Reichstadt, Bohemia, Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria and heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, married his lover of five years

What are you doing on 29 April? European republicans on rise amid British royal wedding hysteria

('Lucy Russell',) — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 17:01:08 -0000

As a Brit currently living in Germany, many people have recently been asking me excitedly about the up-coming British royal wedding. Mostly people are surprised, or even disappointed, when I explain that no, I won’t be watching the wedding, but rather probably inviting friends around for a 'this is not a royal wedding' party

Are Balkan women more promiscuous?

('Milena Stosic',) — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 14:45:08 -0000

It's official: more women are approaching men in the dating stakes and a recent book in Serbia reveals a more liberal attitude. So is the Balkan woman moving towards a western, less conservative European model? We hear from Balkan guys and girls

Lithuania's female bloggers: cooking, sex and the city

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 19:11:53 -0000

Somewhere between the 200, 000 Lithuanians in the UK and the 3 million at home, bloggers are making their own female-shaped dent in the internet universe

Tips: dating success the Greek way

('cafebabel.com',) — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:56:46 -0000

Dear friends from the north. You can print this out and give it a try but it’s useless. Flirting in this part of Europe is an art. It’s impossible to learn it, because southern men are born casanovas. Opinion

Swedish royal wedding: boosting neither tourism nor young spirits

('Emilie Prattico',) — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 16:40:49 -0000

Victoria Bernadotte, the 32-year-old heiress to the throne, will wed commoner Daniel Westling, 36, in the capital's cathedral on 19 June. Despite the smorgasbord of fun on display in Stockholm, the widespread feeling amongst Swedes and expats is that the merriment is wasteful and annoying

Three globalised couples share their expat love stories

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:00:17 -0000

It’s normal to move abroad for professional or financial reasons. But why leave your country sto be with that special someone? Familiar reservations, a new culture and linguistic barriers are all problems often dealt with, from Australia to Canada via France and Germany

Dear Reader via Johannesburg and Berlin: 'We’re all just geeks really'

('Andrew Christie',) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Cherilyn MacNeil, 24, the charismatic singer and pianist of South African indie trio Dear Reader, speaks to us from the fringes of the Berlin Festival about her home country’s mix of danger and new beginnings, faith and spirituality, broken hearts and summer in Berlin

Unrequited love: are you a 'pagafantas'?

('Darren Thompson',) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Boy is in love with girl best friend who wouldn't look at him twice that way. In Spain, a 'pagafantas' ('Fanta-buyer') is that boy who is relegated to always footing the bill of girl's soft drink. The expression of the week bows in from Spain

A traveller reads up on the history of nationalism

('Annie Rutherford',) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 10:08:00 -0000

'A sudden wave of satisfaction envelops J. He recognises his happiness to have been born this millennium in a peaceful Europe'. This short story, set in a Brussels train station, was runner-up of the 2009 German Youthreporter award, ‘Verliebt in Europa’ (‘In Love With Europe’)

Love story: a German teacher deals with an autistic child in Wales

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 10:28:43 -0000

German language assistant Alissa tells the story of a separation in the Welsh valleys in Glamorgan. This article was second runner-up of the 2009 German Youthreporter award, ‘Verliebt in Europa’ (‘In Love With Europe’)

All's fair in love and war

('Lydia Bigos',) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:28:06 -0000

The stories of lovers from times of war are the subject of countless numbers of books and films. Why are love and war so fascinating and why are they always shown together? Tour of Europe's expressions

I love you my dropping

('Lydia Bigos',) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 13:23:00 -0000

My bunny-bear, baby, cabbage, sugar slug - just like Europe, love knows no boundaries. Yet some terms of affection for loved ones vary from being rather unsavoury to overly sickly on the continent – romantic sayings of the week, with audio

Miss Marion: the French burlesque star will 'tease you until you die'

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 15:29:09 -0000

The 32-year-old from Normandy performs a 'slowed-down' version of burlesque. A dance historically popular in eras of depression, her latest show updates the genre, combining nipple tassels and an iPhone - an accessible escape for Europeans in recession

Interview with actor Paweł Szajda: ‘I was used to a kind of dictatorship on the set’

('Ole Skambraks',) — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 13:07:24 -0000

On 13 February, the Polish film Tatarak by director Andrzej Wajda closes the Berlin Film Festival. The 27-year-old lead actor, a sort of Polish-American David Kross, tells us why he wants to return to his European roots

Music editors pick: Valentines songs

('Julie Gonce',) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 10:59:41 -0000

As Valentine's Day swings round (again), cafebabel.com editors provide a selection of old classics and new electronics for your 14 February playlist

My story: mixed-race couples are Europeans by half

Thu, 12 Feb 2009 09:16:29 -0000

St Valentine celebrates love. And love, as everyone knows, has no colour, or language, or race blah blah blah. But what happens when we marry someone from Africa rather than fall in love with someone with a European passport? If love is blind, is bureaucracy stupid? A couple tell their story

Six-minute romances: speed dating in Paris

('Kinia Adamczyk',) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 15:03:23 -0000

In the capital of fashion and romance, there’s a chic way to relax after a hard day’s work and to party for every wallet. And there’s no better time for an (early) night on the town than Thursday, when Parisians head straight to one of the many trendy bars which offer so-called ‘afterwork’ evenings

Meetic: Europe’s ideal woman

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 13:45:00 -0000

The dating site aims to hook up marriages, but is also trying to uncover the story behind seduction in Europe

Skirt chaser

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Putin did not pull a Sarkozy love story

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 12:00:00 -0000

On 21 April, ‘Moskovsky Korrespondent’ apologised after reporting that Putin was to marry athlete Alina Kabaeva, 24. A look back at a story he termed as ‘snotty noses and erotic fantasies’

Hooking people up since 1483

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0000

Turkish love story on Danish shores

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 12:00:00 -0000

With 3.8 million Turkish immigrants in the EU, we head to Denmark with the seventh largest Turkish population in Europe. Aydin Ozturk, 50, settled in Odense with a Danish partner and found his place in society

Putin: a (filmic) kiss for Valentine’s Day

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:00:00 -0000

Two weeks before his handpicked successor takes over, a Russian film released on DVD on 14 February shows a rather different side to a fictional, unnamed outgoing Russian president

Paris: city of (hetero) love

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:00:00 -0000

After European capitals London, Berlin and Amsterdam, Paris has the fourth biggest gay community. 700, 000 people participated in its 2007 gay parade. But life for gays and lesbians in the French capital is not exactly as rosy as the colour pink

Ho Che Anderson: I never actually said 'hey mom, this is my sex book'

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0000

The London-born Canadian graphic novelist, 38, is relaxed and frank as he discusses being chosen as the only black cartoonist to portray Martin Luther King, a series which took him ten long years to complete

2 Days in Paris: 'the French are apparently perfect'

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0000

Julie Delpy’s multicultural comedy with bite, starring her parents, US actor Adam Goldberg and Germany’s Daniel Brühl, opens in French cinemas on 11 July. Reviews from both sides of the Rhein

50 years of love across the Schengen zone

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 12:00:00 -0000

Love beyond frontiers - two Euro-couples relate their stories of post-war Europe bliss

Muslim matchmakers go online

Tue, 10 Oct 2006 04:08:00 -0000

Muslims turn to online matchmaking to find perfect spouse

Jaroslav Zverina: Europeans and sex

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 14:00:00 -0000

What about Europeans and sex? Jaroslav Zverina, Czech MEP and well-known sexologist talks about couples and gives us some secrets to success.

What’s love got to do with it?

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 14:00:00 -0000

February 14th is a special “day of love” in most places in the world. Do we really need it or is it just a marketing scam?

Bridget Jones Syndrome

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 02:00:00 -0000

Is being single a flaw? It is becoming less so if you consider Europeans’ new demands for their love lives.