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Where do you think the best city to study is? Are certain places a student's paradise and others a student's hell? Well, a new survey hoping to answer those questions has placed London as the second best city in the world for students. Only Paris beat the UK capital after cities were judged on affordability, quality of life and the number and reputation of their universities.

Higher Education organisation QS carried out the survey predominantly with international students in mind, with hundreds of thousands currently considering where to study. Over 500 cities were considered, with anywhere with a population of over 250,000 and at least two universities qualifying.

The sheer number of London's top quality universities (think Imperial, UCL, King's, SOAS) gave it the edge over Paris, but the city was let down by being far more expensive than the French capital. Whilst international students in London will expect to pay up to £20,000 each year in tuition fees, that figure drops to just £1,000 at Paris universities. Ben Sowter, the lead researcher, explained:

Across the world people are showing their love for one another today as part of Valentine's Day. Whilst here in Britain these days it is simply the case of couples buying each other chocolates and flowers and going for a romantic meal out, there are some slightly more unusual traditions in other cultures. Here we look at some of the best current and historical traditions enjoyed on Valentine's Day:

Britain: Valentine's Day in the UK hasn't always been such a boring, commercialised celebration. Traditionally, it has been considered the day on which birds chose their mates, and in parts of the county of Sussex, it is still referred to as the Birds' Wedding Day. On the theme of birds there are also some very unusual superstitions surrounding the day. If a woman saw a sparrow flying overhead, it meant she would marry a poor man but be happy, or alternatively if she saw a goldfinch then she would marry a rich man. If she saw a robin then it meant she would marry a sailor...apparently.

With Stephen Fry hosting, the Baftas promised to be a charming, light-hearted and very British night of entertainment, and did not disappoint. The annual film and television awards were held last night at Covent Garden's Royal Opera House, and attracted some of the biggest names in cinema. Whilst the audience was littered with such stars as Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Meryl Streep, it was a silent, black and white French film which swept the awards.

The Unexpected Film of the Year

The film that is so surprisingly dominating the awards season is The Artist. Set in 1927, it tells the story of a silent movie actor whose career begins to wane just as his lover's career takes off in the ‘talkies'. After already winning big at the Golden Globes and gaining ten Oscar nominations, the movie won a massive seven awards last night. In total it won (deep breath): Best Film, Director, Original Screenplay, Leading Actor, Original Music, Cinematography and Costume Design.

The overjoyed (but slightly embarrassed) director and writer Michel Hazanavicius (pictured on the right above) had to come up on stage and make several different speeches, revealing "I know that I will have some bad days because I'm a director but I will remember this day, today, as a good day".

As part of Foreign Fridays, we explore a different country each week through its most unusual, amusing and odd facts. If you want your country to appear, then simply get in contact with us either in the comments below or through Facebook or Twitter.

This week it is the turn of the South Korea:

During 'Black Day' on April 14th, 
what do women eat in South Korea
if their love life isn't going well?

People around the world will be celebrating Valentine's day next week, February 14th marks a day in which couples reignite their love, while those who are single wish new relations will blossom. In the UK it is customary to receive and send Valentine's cards to those whom you harbour affection for, some leave the name of the sender, others are more mysterious.

As part of Foreign Fridays, we explore a different country each week through its most unusual, amusing and odd facts. If you want your country to appear, then simply get in contact with us either in the comments below or through Facebook or Twitter.

This week it is the turn of the USA:

During the weekend of the Super Bowl in 2012,
it is estimated that 1.25 billion(!) chicken
wings will be eaten in America.

This weekend is the all singing, all dancing, mega event that is the Super Bowl. On Sunday, hundreds of millions of people (literally) in America will invite their friends around, prepare the refreshments and sit down in front of the TV to watch the finalé to the American football season. They may be the only country in the world to properly understand the rules of it, but they certainly know how to put on a show.