If America is the child of England, our other parent is surely France.  From Lafayette’s assistance in the Revolutionary War to our own D-Day at Normandy, from New Orleans to Paris, Texas, from French cuisine to French New Wave cinema, France has provided much of the new flavoring in America.  Our favorite sandwich may be named after a city in Germany, but our favorite side dish is pure Francophone.

Wall Street & the rest of the world economy collapsed, the new season at CitiField may not being going stellar, and the King of Pop is dead, but that doesn't mean New Yorkers can't go outside and enjoy all the goodness (and it's mostly free, for all those tightening belts out there...).  All Points West (QRO Festival Guide) may have taken a step down, now Radiohead-less (QRO APW 2008 photos), and McCarren Park Pool may have ended its days as a venue (QRO review), but Siren's somehow back for another year (QRO festival preview), the Pool Parties have moved to Williamsburg Waterfront (QRO venue review), and there's still a ton of great shows this summer in the City That Never Sleeps (QRO NYC Show Preview).  Here's our blow-by-blow of everything under the sun we're at, from spring flings to the World Series: