La Belle France Trivia Quiz

Answer: River Basin

The beautiful city of Paris is in the basin of the Seine River, which rises near Dijon in north-eastern France and flows for 776km, through the capital, and on into the English Channel at Le Havre. Ocean-going ships can travel inland as far Rouen, which is 120 km from the sea.

The river is also used by commercial and recreational vessels for most of its length. The ashes of Joan of Arc were thrown into the Seine after she was burnt in 1431. Napoleon wanted to be buried on its banks, but his wish was not carried out and he has a magnificent tomb in Les Invalides, previously a military hospital, but later a spectacular museum.

Answer: La Manche

The literal translation of La Manche is 'the sleeve'. The Channel is an arm of the sea linking the Atlantic to North Sea. At its closest point (i.e., between Calais and Dover), it is only 34km wide. The department of La Manche, in Normandy, is still a mainly rural area with beautiful green grasslands and long sandy beaches, which were used by the allies for the D-day landings. Today this area is a place of pilgrimage for those who want to visit an historic place in western history.

Answer: Half-timbered buildings

While Troyes was at the heart of highways to other parts of France, no public Roman remains exist except some traces of an aqueduct. The main attractions of the city are the well preserved medieval half-timbered buildings. In the old part of Troyes you can walk through the courtyards which lead one from the other and see that each housed a particular occupation - the place of the carpenters, the place of the leathermakers etc. Troyes is also home to some architecturally beautiful churches and public buildings.

The Musée d'Art Moderne contains some great works from Matisse, Degas, Gauguin, and Braque.

Answer: Owl

The original owl was carved in relief on the stone on the church of Notre Dame in Dijon. If you rub it with your left hand you are supposed to have good luck. It had almost been rubbed away and was restored some years ago. The easiest way to see the old city is to buy a map of the Owl Trail, which consists of 22 numbered metal plates, each with the symbol of an owl, in the footpath and follow it to view all of the best that Dijon has to offer. One of the fascinating sights of Dijon is the Street of Flags, where the banners of all the noble houses of the region are displayed along its length.

Answer: Mont Blanc

Mont Blanc, in the Rhône-Alpes region, has spectacular scenery in all seasons. The houses in this area look like Swiss chalets, complete with gabled roofs with wide eaves, carved mouldings and balconies. It's almost at the point where the borders of France, Switzerland and Italy meet. Even in summer Mont Blanc is covered in snow, and the cold winds at the summit ensure that only those who have brought suitable winter wear venture up on the cable car.

Answer: Napoleon

This section of road, which leads north from the vivid blue sea and white sandy beaches of the Riviera to the rugged scenery of the Alps, is named the Route Napoleon and is marked by golden statues of flying eagles. It is the route that was taken by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1815 on his return from Elba.

He was joined by enthusiastic volunteers from the countryside as he passed through, but his triumph was short-lived when he was defeated by the English at Waterloo.

Answer: A medieval bridge

The song, 'Sur Le Pont d'Avignon', is sung by children who are learning French all over the world. The bridge is officially named Le Pont Saint Bénezet after a local shepherd boy who, according to tradition, was commanded by angels to build a bridge across the river.

It was built to connect Avignon and Villeneuve-lès-Avignon on the left bank of the Rhone River. Its original length was 900m, but floods constantly caused much damage and after a catastrophic flood in 1668 it was decided to abandon it. Only four of the initial 22 arches remain intact. Avignon is also noted for being the place where popes, who had fled from Rome, lived in the 14th century.

The Palace des Papes, while empty, is still a very imposing structure.

Answer: The Camargue

The Camargue horse is an ancient breed that has lived wild for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years, in the marshes and wetlands of the Rhone Delta where the river enters the Mediterranean Sea. These small but hardy horses are used by the local gardians (cowboys) to round up the black Camargue bulls that are used for bullfighting in the restored Roman amphitheatre in Nimes.

As well as the horses and bulls the Carmague is home to over 400 species of birds including the beautiful pink flamingo. Tourists are able to go horse riding and see the wildlife up close.

Answer: An aqueduct

The Pont du Gard, part of a 50km long aqueduct, is a stunning piece of first century Roman engineering built to supply the city of Nimes with drinking water. It qualified for special UNESCO World Heritage status in 1985 because it excelled at showing human creative genius and was a memorial to a civilisation which is long gone.

It stands as an example of a type of building which illustrates a significant stage in human history. Nimes is a wonderful place to visit. There is an intact Roman temple from the 4th Century BC and a perfectly preserved Roman amphitheatre right in the centre of the city which is so impressive that it was used as the setting for the film "Gladiator".

Answer: Paleolithic paintings

The Lascaux Caves were discovered accidentally on 12th September, 1940, by a group of four teenage boys who were exploring in the hills above the Vézère River near the town of Montignac. A large old pine tree had fallen over leaving a hole and while climbing down into it the group fell into a cave, where a 20m by 5m frescoe had been painted between 15,00 and 17,000 years ago, portraying cattle, deer, aurochs and horses and which used the stony outcrops of the cave walls to make them appear more realistic. Altogether the caves consisted of The Hall of the Bulls, the Passageway, the Shaft, the Nave, the Apse, and the Chamber of Felines.

The caves became a great tourist attraction, but had to be closed in 1963 because they were being damaged by the breathing of visitors. An amazing new cave system, Lascaux II, which exactly replicates the Great Hall of the Bulls and the Painted Gallery was opened in 1983 just 200 meters from the original. Guided tours allow the public to view how these paintings looked back when they were first discovered.