Location
France is the second largest country in Europe. Two thirds of France is mountains and hills, with the Alps, Pyrenees and Vosges ranges. Mont Blanc in the Alps is the highest mountain in Europe.  The Mediterranean coast includes the popular tourist area, the French Riviera. Its hot, dry summers and mild winters make it a popular beach area.

Language
French

Population
France has a population of 57.5million

Currency
The new monetary currency is the Euro which is divided as follows: bills of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500; coins of 1, 2, 5, 10 Euros, 20 and 50 cents.

Time
In terms of standard time zones, France is six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time in the USA and Canada. Daylight saving time in France goes into effect each year usually from the end of March to the middle of October.

Electricity
The electrical current in France is AC - the cycle is 50Hz 220 V. A tourist carrying electrical appliances to France should have a transformer, either obtained before leaving your country or bought at an electrical appliance shop in France. Plugs have round prongs, not flat, therefore an adapter plug is needed.

Water
There is plenty of water of an excellent drinking standard.

Climate
France is located mid-way between the equator and the North Pole. This gives France a temperate climate. Most areas do get extremely hot or cold. Along the Mediterranean coast, the warm Gulf Stream current provides for mild winters and hot, dry summers. Mountain areas tend to be colder, with considerable rain and snow.

Communication
The region is very well developed in terms of IT networks and telephone communications. The international access code is 33

Transportation
The road network is very well developed in France: nearly a million kilometers, of which almost 8,000 kilometers are motorways. There is usually a toll for motorways. To find out everything about toll charges, service stations, rest areas, restaurants, filling stations, and hotels along your route, and for details of your journey, consult the website www.autoroutes.fr

A valid US driver's license is sufficient. The legal driving age in France is 18 years. An international driver's license is not required for U.S. citizens. You are also required to carry the vehicle's registration document, and the current insurance certificate (a green card is not mandatory but remains internationally recognized and helpful). Also, a nationally plate or sticker is required. Car rental agencies will provide their customers with all these necessary documents.

Dining
Wonderful food is France's gift to the world, and the French take cooking very seriously. A slice of quiche from a pastry shop will often taste as if it had been prepared in a fine restaurant. You should be aware, though, that the French are not squeamish about what they eat - don't be shocked by menus containing offal, boudin noir (blood pudding) or pigs' trotters. Take along a dictionary if you want to be sure you know what you've ordered. More common menu staples include such meaty delicacies as veal, entrecote (steak) and especially duck. If you're a vegetarian, you'll find that menus are rarely put together with you in mind. Be especially careful in the southwest, where duck fat is sometimes used for cooking, even in vegetable dishes.

Wherever you go, experiment with various sauces, a French specialty, and be sure to try the coffee (on the strong side), croissants, pastries, brioches, jams, cheeses (more than 250 kinds), oysters and truffles. Whenever you tire of walking, sit down at the nearest sidewalk cafe, not only for refreshment but to observe the people passing by. If you're looking for a fuller meal in a place you're unfamiliar with, look for a routier, the French version of a truck stop. The decor may not be stylish, but French truckers know about good food. Many routiers have long tables, and the food is served boarding-house style. You will get an excellent three- or four-course lunch with wine, water and coffee for half what you might pay elsewhere.

There are a few practicalities you should know about. The first is mealtimes. Lunch is served between noon and 2 pm (the French traditionally eat their main meal at midday). If you wait any later, you may well go hungry. Dinner is served from 7:30 pm onward. Those who like to dine early may not be able to (for those whose children really need something to keep them going, try the local cafes' croque-monsieur - a toasted ham and cheese sandwich).

Second, this is not a country for snacking: Even cheap cafeteria meals include two or three courses. Most restaurants (from the bottom end of the scale up to the most glitzy) will have a menu du jour. Children are always welcome, too, even in the most upscale restaurants (ask for the menu d'enfant).
You might want to opt for having the quintessential French picnic lunch between bouts of sightseeing: A baguette, some pate or hard French sausage (saucisson), cheese, farm-fresh tomatoes, fruit and, of course, wine can be a real treat. For true indulgence, several shops in Paris offer out-of-this-world handmade chocolates; in Provence, the delicacy is candied almonds (calissons).

No discussion of French cuisine would be complete without a mention of wine. In France, the wine industry holds nearly as much intrigue and influence as politics. When one of Bordeaux's foremost producers, Chateau Giscours, was accused of adding cheap wine to its better vintages, the scandal was front-page news. Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace, Lorraine, the Loire Valley and the Rhone region all produce wines of unparalleled quality. Anyone with timeshould tour at least one regional vineyard. In restaurants, even if you don't know your Medoc from your muscadet, just order one of the house wines - they are usually excellent and surprisingly inexpensive.

Activities
France's varied geography and climate allow for a wide ride range of outdoor pursuits. The French have taken to hiking with gusto, and there are walking paths through every imaginable kind of terrain. Probably the best known trails are the sentiers de grande randonnée, long-distance footpaths designated by the letters GR. The GR 5 winds through the Alps, the GR 4 is in the Massif Central and the popular GR 10 runs along the Pyrenees from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. Cycling is another mania in France. La Margeride in Languedoc is a particularly inviting area for mountain biking, as are the Alps, Brittany and the Pyrenees. Skiing is also popular with some of Europe's finest - and most expensive - facilities in the Alps (at Chamonix, for example), though prices tend to be much cheaper in the Pyrenees around Cauterets and the Massif Central, which is good for cross-country skiing.

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