* raised and educated in Picardy, Northern France. My hometown, Lehaucourt, is located north of Saint-Quentin in the Aisne department, half way between Paris and Brussels.

* crossed the channel to work for a year in a British High School in Brentwood, Essex then spent eight years at the University of Iowa before coming to Millsaps College in 1988 as a French professor.

* in the summer of 1996, traveled to Japan, where my sister Marie-France resides

* Where to next? Vietnam of course!

As can be deducted from my collection of favorite sites , my interests fall mainly into the popular culture category.

* World music: mostly French, Italian, Arabic, New Age and soft rock. My favorite French artists are Bachelet, Cabrel, Ferrat, Nougaro and Guy Marchand. Lately, I have been listening assiduously to "Las últimas composiciones de Violeta Parra" from Chile.

* Film: Louis de Funes makes me laugh. I relish comedies especially those directed by hilarious eccentrics like Almodóvar, Itami or Poiré. My top 5 films are Beineix's "Diva",

Hubert's "Le Grand Chemin", Almodóvar's "Tacones Lejanos", Hitchcock's "Rear Window" and Saura's "Cría Cuervos". The best movie I saw recently was Manchevski's "Before the Rain" (1994) with Grégoire Colin.

* Traveling: often in an armchair, surfing the Net or reading travel guides, biographies and fiction by American Chinese or Jewish authors, detective novels (Faye Kellerman's The Ritual Bath is my favorite) and short fiction (ancient tales and Renaissance novellas).

* Languages: I dabbled in Japanese through the Millsaps Enrichment Program. To prepare for my teaching summer stint in Costa Rica, I am actively reviewing my Spanish.

* Exercising, not as frequently as I should, at the Baptist Fitness Center to keep indulging in the hobby listed next...

* International cuisine: Thai, Vietnamese, Sushi and Continental. In Jackson, I recommend heartily Little Tokyo, Nicks, Bravo and The Thai House.