GeoStats:

Provinces: Normandy, Brittany, Bordeaux

Passport/Visa Requirements: US citizens need only a passport

Population: 8,525,000

Voltage Requirements: 220 volts

Time Zone: 1 hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (+1GMT), 6 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time (+6GMT)

Predominant Religions: Christian (Roman Catholic, Protestant), though other major religions are practiced

Currency: Euro

Language: French, though English widely understood in tourist areas

Phone codes: 33 is country code; 02 is area code for Normandy and Brittany; 05 is the code for Bordeaux