Fast Facts on France:
Total area- 551 100 km2 of territory (appr. 180,000 sq. miles - almost like Texas) 95 metropolitan departments 8 overseas departments and territories.
Population details- 60 million inhabitants (10 million in the Paris region alone)
36 000 towns and villages
French Major religion- Secularism, Roman Catholicism, Islam Date entered by WorldVenture: 1962 Number of WorldVenture workers: 19 Location of WorldVenture work: Greater Paris area
Climate- France has a temperate climate, and is made up of four broad climatic zones: the humid seaboard zone west of the line Bayonne-Lille with cool summers; a semi-continental zone with cold winters and hot summers in Alsace-Lorraine, along the rhodanian corridor and in the mountainous massifs (Alps, Pyrénées, Massif Central); an intermediate zone with cold winters and hot summers in the North, the Paris region and the central region; a Mediterranean zone with mild winters and very hot summers in the south of France.
The Land and the People of France- France is Western Europe’s largest country and one of the world’s most economically advanced nations. It is a charter member of the European Union. One of the oldest nations in the Western world, France is also historically and culturally one of the most influential. World renowned for their fashion and cuisine, the French people also consider independent thought and tolerance of various personal beliefs as a predominant characteristic of their national identity. In light of the increasing influence of American values and culture in the world, France sees itself as an alternative cultural force.
The French are amongst the most patriotic people in the world. This patriotism fosters a general expectation that visitors have some knowledge of France and show appreciation for French culture.
Famous French Figures- Leaders: Charlemagne, Clovis, King Henry IV, Louis XIV, Napolean, Charles de Gaulle, Jaques Chirac (former president), Nicolas Sarkozy (current president); Philosephers: Rene Descartes, Pierre Abelard, Blaise Pacal; Painters: Delacroix, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Manet, Cezanne, Degas; Musicians: Edith Piaf; Author: Simone de Beauvoir, Albert Camus, Victor Hugo; Military Leader: Joan of Arc; Football Athletes: Michel Platini, Eric Cantona, Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry
Famous Landmarks: Eiffel Tower, L'Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elyees, la Defense, Cannes, Normandy Coast, Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, Centre Pompidou, Seine, Notre Dame, Chateau de Versailles, Sacre Coeur, Place de la Concorde, Bastille, Pont du Gard, Mont Blanc
Some fun insights from "Xenophobe's Guide to the French"-
*How they see themselves- La France the country is illuminated and every other nation is not French. The French see themselves as the only truly civilized people in the world. On anything that matters they consider themselves experts. Anything in which they are not experts does not matter. They see glory in what others regard as defeat. Since they have won almost every war they have entered, they assume that the final battle must have resulted in a French victory, and therefore wonder why the British named Waterloo Station after a battle they think the British lost.
*How they see others- To give their feeling of superiority some validity, the French are generously prepared to accept that other nations have to exist. The French think the Spanish are proud but noisy. They see the English as small-minded, uncultured, faintly ridiculous and badly dressed. The French no longer dislike the Germans but they are not fond of them. They feel the Germans have a markedly inferior culture. The Swiss may be hospitable, but they are obsessively clean and speak French in a most odd fashion. The Belgian are universally dull and totally lacking in finesse.
*How they would like others to see them- Since the French are so full of their own self-esteem, they don't really care how others see them.
*Every Frenchman is a farmer at heart yet all 60 million of them are philosophers.
*The French are great snobs. From the most minute thing to the greatest they are snobs.
*Manners- Butting in on each other's conversations is not considered rudeness by the French, but proof that they find the exchange interesting and wish to take part.