Fashion is Supreme

France is the second largest country in Europe and borders on Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Spain, among others. The beautiful country is a popular travel destination – not least because of its diverse and varied landscapes and good cuisine. See andyeducation.com for education in France.

Fast facts to know

• Largest country in Europe by area.
• The landscape is very diverse and varied.
• France was the first modern European republic.
• Once owned the second largest colonial empire.
• Overseas territories belonging to France: Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Réunion, Mayotte, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Wallis and Futuna, French Southern and Antarctic Territories.
• The French are very proud of their culinary skills.
• It is common to arrive 15 minutes late for non-business appointments.
• 10 billion baguettes are sold in France every year.
• France is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world.
• There are more than 40,000 castles in France.

Exciting cities in France

• Bordeaux
• Paris
• Nice
• Strasbourg
• Issigeac
• Toulouse
• Marseille
• Little
• Mont Saint Michel
• Colmar
• Nantes
• Lyon
• Aigues Mortes

history of France

• First settlement about 48,000 years ago.
• From 600 BC Founding of Phoenician and Greek merchant bases on the Mediterranean coast.
• Settlement by the Celts in the northwest.
• Celtic Gauls, with their Druidic religion, are considered the ancestors of the French.
• From the 5th century, increasing numbers of Germanic peoples immigrated to Gaul.
• French Middle Ages marked by the rise of royalty.
• Under Louis VII, a long series of armed conflicts with England began.
• 1337 Hundred Years War
• 1348 the plague wipes out a third of the population.
• 1572 Hundreds of thousands of Huguenots emigrate after St. Bartholomew’s Night.
• 1635 France actively intervenes in the Thirty Years’ War, leading to war with Spain.
• Beginning of the era of French dominance in Europe.
• Under the Sun King Louis XIV, absolutism reached its peak.
• 1793 First Republic is proclaimed.
• 1789 French Revolution.
• 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte seized power with a coup d’état and subsequently brought almost all of Europe under his control.
• After the defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon is exiled.
• 1848 Proclamation of the Second Republic after the bourgeois revolution.
• 1871 to 1940 Third Republic.
• late 19th century France and the UK fight for supremacy in Africa.
• 1946 Fourth Republic by referendum.
• Post-war period characterized by the collapse of the colonial empire.
• 1958 Fifth Republic.
• 1981, the seizure of power by the Socialist Party and the presidency of François Mitterrand, which lasts until May 1995.

Climate & travel weather in France

• North: moderate maritime climate (mild, rainy winters, moderately warm, rainy summers)
• Northeast: continental climate (winter with snow, summer quite warm but unstable)
• Atlantic coast: oceanic temperate climate (humid and cool winters, humid and warm summers)
• South coast: Mediterranean climate (hot summer with little precipitation, very mild winter, autumn with lots of rain)
• Alps: mountain climate (snowy, cold winters, dry summer)
• Recommended travel time:
  • Attractive to travel all year round
  • City tours: spring, autumn
  • Bathing: Mediterranean (May-Oct), Atlantic (June-Sep), North Coast (June-July)
  • Winter Sports: Dec-April

Ideas for trips in France

• Paris
  • eiffel tower
  • Louvre
  • Palace of Versailles
  • triumphal arch
  • Sacred Heart
  • Our Lady
• Strasbourg Cathedral
• Disneyland Paris
• Mont Saint Michel
• Chartres Cathedral
• Avignon Papal Palace
• Loire Valley with its castles
• Marseille Cathedral
• Lascaux Cave
• Castle of the Dukes of Brittany
• Pont d’Arc

Eating & drinking in France

• For the French, eating does not mean eating, but enjoyment.
• Quality, taste and variety always come first.
• Simple breakfast: café au lait, baguette with jam, croissons.
• Lunch often consists of 3 courses, and business lunches are common.
• Most important meal: Dinner, usually 3-5 courses, often a little lighter than lunch.
• Baguette bread is often served with the meal.
• Red wine and water are usually drunk.
• After the meal, often strong coffee with some chocolate and a cognac or something similar.
• France is famous for its sauces: béchamel, béarnaise, hollandaise, velouté, vinaigrette.
• Land of wines, cheese and delicacies.
• Cooked mostly Mediterranean in the south, hearty dishes with cream sauces common in the interior and in the north.
• Many inns and restaurants are closed on Sundays, as this is a traditional day for family meals.
• Bistros and brasseries offer good alternatives (mostly home-style restaurants with home cooking).
• Typical dishes:
  • Tarte.
  • Nicoise salad.
  • Chocolate mousse.
  • Bouillabaisse (fish soup).
  • Barquette d’Huîtres à la Normande (gratinated puff pastry boats filled with oysters, shrimp and mushrooms in butter sauce).
  • Cassoulet (white bean stew with pickled goose, duck and other meats).
  • Confit de canard (duck cooked and canned in its own fat).
  • Coq au vin (chicken in a thick red wine sauce enriched with bacon, onions and herbs).
  • Provençal-style scallops (gedünstete Jakobsmuscheln in Knoblauchbutter).
  • Croque-monsieur (toast with ham and cheese).
  • Sautéed Lamb (Lammragout).
  • Beef Bourguignon (Rindergulasch).

Particularly scenic

• Dune of Pilat
• Padirac chasm
• Chalk cliffs of Étretat in Normandy
• French Alps
• Pyrenees
• French Riviera
• Provence
• Brittany
• Mont-Blanc
• Pink Granite Coast