The French Republic , commonly known as France is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories

and islands located on othercontinents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. [15] Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is often referred to as lHexagone ("The Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its territory. It is the largest western European country and it possesses the second-largest exclusive economic zone in the world, covering 11,035,000 km2 (4,260,000 sq mi), just behind that of the United States (11,351,000 km2 / 4,383,000 sq mi). Over the past 500 years,[16] France has been a major power with strong cultural, economic, military and political influence in Europe and around the world. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France colonised great parts of North America and Southeast Asia; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, France built the second largest colonial empire of the time, including large portions of North, West and Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and many Caribbean and Pacific Islands.

Coat of Arms: The current emblem of France has been a symbol of France since 1953, although it does not have any legal status as an official coat of arms. It is printed on the cover of French passports and was adopted originally by the French Foreign Ministry as a symbol for use by diplomatic and consular missions during 1912. It is considered an emblem rather than a coat of arms, since it does not respect heraldic rules. The emblem consists of a wide shield with, on the one end a lion-head and on the other an eagle-head, bearing a monogram "RF" standing forRepublique Francaise (French Republic). A laurel branch symbolizes victory of the Republic, the oak branch symbolizes perennity or wisdom, and the fasces is a symbol associated with justice (the bundle of rods and an axe, carried by Roman lictors).

The French flag - the tricolore - consists of three vertical bands of equal width, displaying the country's national colors: blue, white and red. The blue band is positioned nearest the flag-staff, the white in the middle, and the red on the outside.

French National Anthem

La Marseillaise
La Marseillaise was composed by Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792 and was declared the French national anthem in 1795

Languages of France
There are a number of languages of France. French is the sole official language and is by far the most widely spoken, but several regional languages are also spoken to varying degrees. Owing to immigration, a number of non-indigenous tongues are now also spoken in parts of the country. The map to the right displays the historical areas in which regional languages have been spoken. Some of these languages have also been spoken in neighbouring countries; this is true in the case of Dutch (Vlamsch) and Walloon (wallon), a majority of whose speakers reside inBelgium. The official language of the French Republic is French (art. 2 of the French Constitution), and the French government is, by law, compelled to communicate primarily in French.

National Flower The National Flower of France is the stylised Lily. Even the Iris is supposed to be the flower emblem of France.

The Gallic rooster is an unofficial national symbol of France.

Paris ( i/prs/; French: [pai] ( listen)) is the capital and largest city of France. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the le-de-France region (or Paris Region, French: Rgion parisienne). The city of Paris, within its administrative limits (the 20 arrondissements) largely unchanged since 1860, has an estimated population of 2,211,297[2] (January 2008), but the Paris metropolitan area has a population of 12,089,098[4] (January 2008), and is one of the most populated metropolitan areas in Europe.[5] Paris was the largest city in the Western world for about 1,000 years, prior to the 19th century, and the largest in the entire world between the 16th and 19th centuries.[6][7][8] Paris is today one of the world's leading business and cultural centres, and its influences in politics, education, entertainment, media, fashion,science, and the arts all contribute to its status as one of the world's major global cities.[9][10][11][12] It hosts the headquarters of many international organizations such as UNESCO, the OECD, the International Chamber of Commerce or the informal Paris Club. Paris is considered one of the greenest[13] and most liveable[14] cities in Europe. It is also one of the most expensive.[15][16]

The Eiffel Tower, an icon of Paris, is a wonder of design and structure, and an impressive sight worth getting close to. Lie in the grass at the Champs de mars and gaze up. Ascend the tower for spectacular views of Paris. Return at night with a bottle of Merlot to watch the spectacular light display. The Eiffel Tower tops out at over 1,000 feet, containing 2 restaurants, a souvenir shop, a post office (for that one of a kind postmark), snack bar, and a viewing area.

The official emblem of the Government of the French Republic, one using the face of Marianne.

COLOURS OF THE FLAG Blue, White and Red are the three colors used on the national flag of France. Each color of the French flag combines different symbols. Blue is the color of Saint Martin. He was a rich Gallo-Roman officer, who ripped his blue coat with his sword in order to give one-half of it to a poor begging in the snow. So blue symbolizes the care and duty the rich had to help the poor. Color White symbolizes the Virgin Mary. Louis XIII consecrated the Kingdom of France to the Virgin Mary in the 17th century. White is also the Joan of Arc. Under his banner, the English were driven out of the Kingdom of France in the 15th century. White became the color of the Royalty. Red represents Saint Denis, the saint patron of Paris. The flag of France represented a new revolutionary movement. The Flag had an influence on a number of flags. The French Flag influenced the placement of the colors on the Romania Flag.

Limestone cliffs of Normandy neartretat. Mediterranean vegetation (lavender) in Provence. Alpine climate in Savoie (note theAlpine Ibex on the left). Black Prigord in Dordogne (Aquitaine). Verdon Gorge.

23:5 9

Singapore

06:20 (Sun)

London(Heathro w)

Qantas flight Q F31 Qantas Airways flight operate d by British Airways QF34 11 $801 9 $88 9 $133

09:05 (Sun)

London(Heathro w)

11:25 (Sun)

Paris (Charles De Gaulle)

Duration: 18h 26m

= Flight Operated by British Airways

Heathland in Cap Frhel (Brittany)

Emirates