France is a very romantic place, rich in history and fashion trends. Many people associate France only with the Eiffel Tower, Paris, and frogs leg, but there are a lot more. We offer you a selection of facts about this beautiful and most visited country in the world.
1. France is the third-largest country in Europe, after Ukraine, and Russia, but it once controlled more than 8% of the world’s land.
2. Of all the countries that celebrate Independence Day, 26 are independent of France, which is why there are more French-speaking people in Africa than in France itself.
3. In ancient times, Paris was originally a Celtic settlement, which Romans conquered and called Lutetia.
4. France has more castles than anywhere else in the world. Today there are 4969 of them and according to various estimates almost as many have not survived to this day.
5. In France, Napoleon was not considered short because at that time he was above the average Frenchman, according to various sources, his height was 5 feet 7 inches (169 cm).
6. From 1814 to 1830 the flag of the Kingdom of France was a plain pure white version.
7. In 1886, France in honor of independence gave the United States a Statue of Liberty, as a symbol of the two countries’ friendship.
8. France was the first country to introduce license plates.
9. There are coffee shops where visitors who do not say hello (“Bonjour”) and thank you (“Merci”) pay more for coffee.
10. French is one of the most depressed countries in the world. They take first place in the world in terms of the use of antidepressants.
11. The French army is the only one in Europe that still have “carrier pigeons”. They are kept them in case of an emergency.
12. There are more than 400 French cheese varieties listed in France, which are usually classified into seven categories.
13. France is the second country in the world, after the United States, has hosted a total of eight Olympic Games ( three Winter Games and five Summer Games).
14. France banned beauty pageants for children under 16 in an effort to protect girls from being sexualized too early.
15. In 2016, supermarkets were banned from throwing away unsold products. Now they are obliged to donate it to charities or for animal feed.
