While the world media may be in a tizzy speculating about the recently-divorced French President’s new love affair, it should not surprise anyone if the French treat this development with a traditional Gallic shrug…as they did when President Francois Mitterrand had an affair with a young lover who had to be packed off to England when she became pregnant three decades ago.
President Nicolas Sarkozy, 52, and Miss Carla Bruni, 39, who is Italian, appeared happy to be photographed together with their respective children during a trip to Disneyland Paris at the weekend, reports The Telegraph. “the French president has begun a relationship with a former model two months after divorcing his wife, Cécilia.
“Reportedly a former lover of – among others – Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Donald Trump and an ’eminent’ French socialist, Miss Bruni has a ‘legendary reputation as a man-eater’, according to Le Parisien.
“The pair reportedly met at a dinner held by advertising boss Jacques Séguéla last month in the gardens of the château de Versailles. The news ends weeks of feverish speculation over Mr Sarkozy’s private life, after rumours that he had been dating a Bosnian journalist and more recently, Laurence Ferrari, a French TV presenter. Miss Ferrari has sued two newspapers over the allegations.
“Mr Sarkozy’s biographer, Catherine Nay, pointed out that with her long legs, high cheekbones and cat-like eyes, Miss Bruni bears a striking resemblance to Mr Sarkozy’s former wife. ‘Men are often drawn to the same type of butterfly,’ she said.”
Meanwhile “French President Nicolas Sarkozy has asked Italian former supermodel Carla Bruni to marry him, La Stampa newspaper said Tuesday quoting Bruni’s mother.” More here… And here is the Time version.
An interesting French Disneyland story in the times of “war”, fatigue and confusion…
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.