There's plenty of variety in France, a country that boasts iconic cities, impressive alpine mountain ranges, glorious weather on the Mediterranean coast, vintage wines, fine cuisine and easy access to the rest of Europe. With that kind of line-up, it's definitely worthy of a few visits.

French people often get heavy criticism from the British for being rude and arrogant, but this seems to be caused by a friction between the different cultures. An amusing comment in the Francofile blog reads 'One American asked me why, when she went up to a French woman and asked for directions, the French woman started beating her with her purse!". You have to wonder where she was wanting directions to ... McDonald's?

All in all, we like the place and some day hope to set roots in the south. France has got a lot of good qualities for happiness, but make sure you're not allergic to garlic and enjoy having bread with every meal.