Publisher's Synopsis
Maybe it's France's architecture known the world over, entrenched in history and folklore: here, you can fulfil dreams of scaling the Eiffel Tower, its looming iron lattice anchoring the whole of Paris together as the capital's stoic, structural symbol; you can marvel at royal Chateaux in the Loire Valley and stay at a restored farmhouse in the sunny south of France. Whichever way you turn here, you're bound to be faced with an iconic piece of history, standing tall, or all the way down to face level with the unfalteringly familiar, France's smaller towns, with their cute, village square markets and lace-curtained bistros. Maybe it's the allure of French cafe culture. Going back centuries, cafes, or coffee houses, were a place to meet for intellectuals, and where philosophical debates were held - and this vision of Hemingway, Picasso and Sartre mulling over a dark, rich expresso, contemplating the nature of existentialism and surrounded by dramatic clouds of tobacco smoke on a cafe terrace, is deeply engrained in the cultural musings associated with France - and still stands strong today. What you'll find inside: * Are You Ready for an Amazing Journey? * France at a Glance (North, South, East, West) * When to Go & Where to Stay In France * How to Get Around France (Without Getting Lost!) * Planning Your Trip Ahead (Sample Itineraries) * Paris and Versailles * The North of France * Champagne and the Ardennes * Alsace-Lorraine * Normandy * The Loire Valley * Burgundy * Poitou-Charentes and the Atlantic coast * Limousin, Dordogne and the Lot * And More...
