Nicola Williams - Lonely Planet Discover France

This Is France

Snooty, sexy, superior, chic, infuriating, arrogant, officious and inspired, France never fails to stir up passionate opinion. Even if youve never set foot on French soil, its a place that already seems immediately familiar: every time youve gazed at an impressionist painting, watched a new-wave film or sipped on a glass of sparkling Champagne, youve been letting a little bit of Gallic flair seep into your soul.

France is all about art and seduction, Roman to Renaissance and beyond. Stroll the lily-clad gardens Monet painted and sip un caf in a Parisian cafe where Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir met to philosophise. Imagine the glorious life of French kings at bourgeois Versailles or view tomorrows art stars at new headline-grabbing museums up north. Ride magnificent mechanical elephants in an old Nantes shipyard. Listen to Marseille rap and Parisian jazz. Sense the subtle infusion of language, music and mythology in Brittany, brought by 5th-century Celtic invaders. Yes, French culture fills any stay in France with never-ending possibilities.

The countrys feast of fine food and wine woos every traveller. But gastronomic France goes far deeper than Parisian bistro dining, long lunches outside, shopping for fruit and veg at the market and wolfing down croissants hot from the boulangerie (bakery). Taste wine with world-class sommeliers in Bordeaux; visit an Atlantic Coast oyster farm; drink sparkling Champagne in ancient cellars in Reims; tour a Provenal melon farm; harvest olives, peaches and cherries in the hot south; and realise that food is as much an art de vivre (art of living) for the French as an essential to survive.

Then there is the terroir (land) and its wonderful variety. Its rich and fabulous journey starts in northern France with chalky cliffs and sand dunes, continues south through to pea-green vineyards, and onwards to the bright blue sea of the French Riviera.

Gardens at Chteau de Versailles ()
PHOTOGRAPHER: DENNIS K. JOHNSON/GETTY IMAGES

Frances Top Experiences

Eiffel Tower

Seven million people visit the Eiffel Tower () annually but few disagree each visit is unique. From an evening ascent amid twinkling lights to lunch up the tower in the company of a staggering city panorama, there are 101 ways to do it. Pedal beneath it, skip the lift and hike up, buy a crpe from a stand here or a key ring from a street vendor, snap yourself in front of it, visit it at night or our favourite on the odd special occasion when all 324m of the tower glows a different colour.

THIERRY/GETTY IMAGES

Louvre & Louvre-Lens

Art aficionados have never had it so good. Linger over the lush collection of 35,000-odd pieces think paintings, sculptures, artefacts, royal crown jewels, Svres porcelain and so forth in Paris palatial Muse du Louvre ().

Muse du Louvre (), Paris
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