Alaska forever

One of the most interesting parts of the US lies maybe not where you might think. I mean that New York, L.A., Washington, the Grand Canyon are all interesting places to visit, but a very unusual place to go might be the largest state of the Federation : Alaska.

Alaska has a very different history than the rest of the nation for several reasons:
- It is maybe the first American territory to be populated by settlers that would have crossed the straight separating Russia from America,
- Vitus Bering was indeed the first Russian to cross the straight in 1741, and therefore it became a Russian territory. It was only in 1867 that this huge piece of land was bought by the US for $7,2 millions.

Alaska became the 49th state on January 3rd, 1959 (Hawaii was incorporated as a state on August 21st, of the same year).

Resulting from these years of Russian occupation, several and unique orthodox churches were built in Alaska. Something unique in Northern America.

So if you're interested, the Alaska tourism bureau is a good place to begin your research otherwise you can always read this great article published in my newspaper the New York times.


Photo from nytimes.com

No border please

An interesting story was told in yesterday's New York times, the one about a sleepy little town settled on the US-Canada's border. The town is called Stanstead in Quebec and Derby line in Vermont.

There is actually some border stations on the main streets of this little town but on the other ones one can freely go from Canada to the US. Sometimes, it is even impossible to tell in which country you're in.

I know that because I travelled throught this little town in the summer of 2005. It was really cool. Some of the buildings are on the border itself like the Opera house and the library (in the picture).

Some houses are on the US side but the driveway is on the Canadian one.



The town has been like this for ever and now the authorities are trying to change this. They are affraid of a potential terrorist threat and of illegal immigration. To me, this is just non-sense, there is no threat at all and illegals immigrants can easely avoid the border town by crossing into Canada throught the nearby fields and or forets.

On top of that the local authorities are not willing to disclose to the public what exactly is at risk. How many illegal immigrants are we talking about?

The way of life of this charming city is at risk of disappearing. People will be less likely to travel to the other side to go grocery shopping, see friends etc...

I believe that cooperation between the two countries border agencies is the best way to address security issues and not barriers that only complicate everyday lifes.

French Universities

French Universities need a serious makeover. Their facilities are cramped, the faculty unmotivated, the research almost inexistent etc....
Fortunate students try to avoid them by integrating the Grandes Ecoles: those elite institutions. For the rest, the Public University is the only available option.

I did 5 years of studies in France in 3 Universities: Bordeaux IV, Paris I and Paris II. At Bordeaux IV, some lectures were given in lecture halls with more than 1000 students! This is not education, this is mass-education.

The new reform is supposed to give more freedom to Universities' administrators to recruit top notch professors, regulate the spending etc....

All of these are welcomed reforms in my opinion. They are much needed. France must invest into its students so that they can easily find a job once they graduate.

The French Universities need more money that is for sure, and libraries that are open on Sundays!
I am a strong believer in keeping the University almost free to everyone, but not to the detriment of the education. If to guarantee a better education, students have to contribute a little bit, I don't see the problem. What is important is that they get out with all the tools that will make them more attractive to potential employers.


So will see what exactly comes out of this new reform, but I really hope that our government will be able to shake things up!