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New map of France finalized as regions settle on names

France has finally settled on a new map after the name of the final new super region was decided on.

Published: 28 June 2016 13:07 CEST
New map of France finalized as regions settle on names
Photo: AFP

The new administrative map of France's regions is now complete after the adoption of “Nouvelle Aquitaine” to designate the region in South Western of France.

The name “Nouvelle Aquitaine”– formed from a fusion of l'Aquitaine, Limousin and Poitou-Charentes– was adopted on Monday by the Regional Council.

Alain Rousset, the Socialist president of the region said that the addition of “Nouvelle” to “Aquitaine” was a “way of looking towards the future”.

Not everyone agreed however with the new name, not least the thousands who signed a petition to try and block it.

“The merger of three former regions shouldn't be an annexation of two regions by the third one,” the petition read. 

“Nouvelle Aquitaine doesn't mean anything,” petition author Hugues Linyer told Le Nouvelle République.
 
“We must find a name of today that respects all identities. I’m Rochelais but there are also Basques, Béarnais, Limousins and Poitevins and we are not Aquitains.”
 
France reorganised its regions in January 2016 in an effort to reorganize regional government and whittle back France’s famous voluminous bureaucracy. The reform shaved the number of French administrative regions on the mainland from 22 to 13.

Some of the new amalgams– such as Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté – opted for a simple merger of their former names.

Others chose to start a fresh after internet consultations.

Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine became Grand-Est while the union of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées was renamed Occitanie.

In March Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardie was baptised Hauts-de-France-  a change that provoked widespread mockery.

One joker pointed out that with Hauts de Fance (that could translate as Upper France), and with the region Great East, a region in central France should be called Middle Earth after the land in fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings.

Six regions – Brittany, Centre-Val de Loire, Corsica, Ile-de-France, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'azur, known as PACA and Pays de la Loire – did not undergo any changes to their boundaries. They will keep their existing names.

The State Council (Conseil d'État), France’s highest administrative body, now has until 1st October to approve the new names.

by Imogen Wallace

 

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MAP

MAP: the one attraction you have to visit in each province in Spain

What’s the one thing you have to do or see in each of Spain’s 50 provinces? 

Published: 9 July 2021 10:09 CEST
MAP: the one attraction you have to visit in each province in Spain
Image: Musement, Paul Gilmore/Unsplash

With international travel restrictions – albeit eased – still making it hard to fly abroad in 2021, a holiday within Spain is a good alternative for many locals and foreign residents in the country this summer. 

Spain is after all an incredibly diverse country with a rich history and culture, wonderful nature, landmarks, leisure and more.

With so much on offer it can be difficult to decide what to choose between, but what attractions are must-dos and must-sees that you can’t miss out on?

An amazing new infographic by tourism and events website Musement has shed some light on this. 

To carry out the study, Musement took into consideration 4,500 points of interest throughout Spain, counting the number of Google reviews to ascertain which attractions were the most liked by travellers in each of Spain’s 50 provinces and two autonomous cities.  

Attractions that form part of different provinces were also included.

For travellers who prefer to escape the crowds and get away from it all, national parks in the northern Spain such as the Sil Canyon (Ourense), Ordesa and Monte Perdido National Park (Huesca), or Montaña Palentina Natural Park (Palencia) are ideal options. 

cañon sil

Cañon Sil in Ourense province. Photo: Teo Romera/Flickr

Among Spain’s most popular tourist attractions is the Sagrada Familia (Barcelona), which accumulates more than 155,000 reviews on Google. But this is not the only religious landmark to earn its place on the map.

Here is a version of Musement’s map with all the attractions written in their original Spanish names. 

Santiago de Compostela Cathedral (La Coruña), the Burgos Cathedral (Burgos), the Sanctuary of Covadonga (Asturias) and the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar (Zaragoza) also draw many visitors. 

The plazas and public parks, a meeting point for both locals and tourists alike, are in many provinces the most emblematic and preferred spots in the whole province, such as Plaza de Espana (Seville), the Plaza Mayor (Salamanca), the Plaza del Torico (Teruel), El Retiro Park (Madrid) or the Alameda de Cervantes (Soria).

Plaza Mayor in Salamanca. Photo: Gabriel Fdez/Flickr

There is no lack of architectural gems in Spain either, such as the Hanging Houses (Cuenca) or the Hórreos de Combarro (Pontevedra), nor ancient ruins, such as the Roman theatres of Merida (Badajoz) or Cartagena (Murcia). 

For the thrill-seekers, there’s reaching 110km/h speeds on the famous Dragon Khan rollercoaster of PortAventura (Tarragona).

Photo: Jordi Payà Canals/Flickr

Artsy travellers can marvel at the great works of surrealism in the Dalí Theatre and Museum (Girona).

Photo: Julia Casado/Pixabay 

History buffs can discover the old home of the Catholic Monarchs in the Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos (Córdoba) or travel to the past and visit the Roman Walls of Lugo (Lugo).

Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos. Photo: Herbert Frank/Flickr

How many of these memorable attractions have you visited? An which one is your favourite?

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