Do you know what tomorrow is?
In the USA it is April Fools Day and we play pranks like,
"Look out! There's a spider on your shoulder!"
The
tradition in France includes poisson d'avril, attempting to attach a
paper fish to the victim's back without being noticed. There is an
interesting history of this holiday of foolishness, and it originated in
France in the 16th century. You can read about it here.
Today
in France, people who are fooled on April 1 are called poisson d'avril,
which literally means the "April Fish," because a young naive fish is
easily caught.
This man who is kindly shucking oysters has been "tagged" with a paper fish.
So, are you going to play a little prank tomorrow?
Le Baron Rouge, wine bar
1, rue Théophile Roussel
75012, Paris
4 comments:
Years ago, here in Portugal, there used to be that tradition, especially in the newspapers and TV's. They made once a story on TV with a very serious reporter about a spaghetti plantation somewhere in the country, a 5 minute piece that seemed really true. Nowadays the tradition is no longer what it used to be!
You know, I always forget about this until too late! So, I'm going to make me a little paper fish today (or maybe two or three!) and give it a go tomorrow! I already have one victim picked out!
I've probably heard about this notion in your blog or one of the other French photoblogs I follow. I've played the odd April Fool's joke in the past. Odds are I'll look for a good meme or two and post it to my Facebook wall.
I did not know that any other country celebrated April Fools. Thanks for the info.
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