France | The Best Travel Destinations

Nice – French Riviera

Nice – French Riviera

Nice, the fifth largest city in France, acts as a magnet attracting people from all over the world, for a multitude of reasons, Not only renowned for its grace, Nice has become a hub for research in industry, science and advanced technology since the creation of such centers as Acropolis and Sophia Antipolis. The Palais de Congrès, a convention center, can accomodate diverse functions.

Both elegant and simple, Nice’s charm comes from its exceptional climate as well as its beauty.

Even in the winter the café terraces are filled with people happily drinking and contemplating the ultra famous Promenade des Anglais.

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Mont Blanc Tunnel

Mont Blanc Tunnel is the major Alpine automotive tunnel connecting France and Italy. It is 7.3 miles (11.7 km) long and is driven under the highest mountain in Europe. The tunnel is notable for its solution of a difficult ventilation problem and for being the first large rock tunnel to be excavated full-face—i.e., with the entire diameter of the tunnel bore drilled and blasted.

Otherwise it was conventionally driven from two headings, the Italian and French crews beginning work in 1958 and 1959, respectively, and meeting in August 1962.

Many difficulties, including an avalanche that swept the Italian camp, were overcome, and, when the tunnel opened in 1965, it was the longest vehicular tunnel in the world. It fulfilled a 150-year-old dream and is of great economic importance, providing a significantly shortened year-round automotive route between the two countries.

In March 1999, however, a two-day fire killed 39 people and caused extensive damage to the tunnel, forcing it to close. It reopened to car traffic in March 2002 and to trucks and buses in the following months. Protestors, citing environmental and safety concerns, opposed the tunnel’s reopening, especially its use by heavy trucks.

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The Channel Tunnel - A Tunnel Connecting Britain and France

A tunnel connecting Britain and France has been an engineering holy grail since the early 19th century. The first attempt at a tunnel excavation began in 1880, but the project was abandoned soon after and workings lay dormant for a hundred years.

In 1988, international treaties were signed and once more excavation work began in earnest.

At 50km from Kent to Normandy, with a full 39km passing 40m under the English Channel seabed, the Channel Tunnel is the world’s longest marine subway.

One of the most ambitious and costly engineering projects of its day, the Channel Tunnel cost £9 billion – enough to pay for the Golden Gate Bridge 700 times over.

Transmanche Link – the engineering firm behind the project – used seismic profiling technology, developed for deep-sea oil exploration, to check exactly what was under the seabed. This helped guide the excavations away from the soft clay beneath the Channel, giving the tunnel sturdy foundations in solid bedrock.

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