9781422277980

EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TODAY: FRANCE

France’s Neighbors Around twice the size of Colorado, France has an area of 211,210 square miles (547,030 square kilometers). While the country is bordered to the west, northwest, and southeast by water, France has many neighboring countries as well. These include Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Monaco, and Italy to the north and east, as well as Spain and Andorra to the south. It is a short distance across the English Channel (La Manche, or “the Sleeve,” in French) to England, and many tourists travel the Channel Tunnel (the tunnel that spans the English Channel) in both directions. With so many English tourists visiting France regularly, it is not uncommon to see a car with the driver on the right-hand side, even in the southernmost parts of the country.

ABOVE: The makeshift refugee camp called the "Jungle" in Calais, where migrants stayed before attempting to cross the English Channel. The camp was closed in 2016.

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