With a variety of dialects, a multitude of traditions and contrasting landscapes, 40,000 monuments, including 10,000 châteaux, abbeys and manor-houses, 6,000 museums and over 1,000 festivals France is a country of differences and variety.
In France diversity is king and this is backed up by the extraordinary amount of heritage. From museums stocked with major works to magnificent monuments to small chapels and fountains dotted about the countryside all telling stories of past times.
The scenery varies from the flat open plains of the north, to the mountainous peaks of the Alps and Pyrenees, from the tiny little coves and beaches of Brittany to the vast long stretch of sand which run from Bordeaux to Spain. From the desolate plains of the Causes to the forested woodlands in the north.
Rivers predominate everywhere, giving name to most of the departments of France varying in size from small winding streams to the huge Loire river in Nantes, the mighty Rhone Delta and the Gironde estuary.
There are fields of maize, wheat, barley and sunflowers, apple orchards and vineyards, dairy meadows and sheep pastures. Fields of cabbages and onions predominate in the north whilst the south grows aubergines, tomatoes and peppers and the west has melons and of course there are vineyards in many areas.
The weather is a varied from the harsh snowy cold winters and hot summers of the mountainous regions to the mild and moist winters of the north west, from the mild winters and hot summers of the Mediteranean to the defined seasons of central France. There is a climate to suit everyone and every activity.
France is a lot larger than you might think, here are some statistics:-
the total area: 551,000 km2
the total length of France's borders is 6,310 km of which 420 km is coastline (taking into account all the twists and curves)
France is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Andorra and Spain
The highest point in France is Mont Blanc at 4,807m
The lowest point in France is the Rhone delta at 2m
Maximum distances:
North to South (Dunkirk to Prats-de-Mollo) 973km;
East to West (Lauterbourg to Pointe de Corsen) 945.5km;
North-West to South-East (Pointe de Corsen to Menton) 1082km.
The population of France currently stands at 60.5 million
It is growing at a rate of 0.37% per annum and increased by 2.9 million in the last 10 years.