Le Castellet

● Le Castellet is a small medieval village of about 4 480 inhabitants. It is in the South of France. The main activities are making wine and tourism.

Le circuit du Castellet

● Le Castellet circuit, (or Le circuit Paul Richard) is an F1 race track. The race track often organises races or F1 training sessions. You can even drive your car on their race track! They have a really good kart race track. The next page has more pictures.

Le Circuit du Castellet (2) (pictures)

Le Castellet airport

● The Castellet airport is right next to the  circuit du Castellet : the race track.

It isn't an international airport, but famous F1 drivers use it to get to the circuit du Castellet.

The Alps

The Alps are the hightest chains of mountains in France, the Mont Blanc peaks at 4808m height. We can do ski in winter, hiking and rock climbing in summer and spring. There is an incredible number of wonderful naturals sites.

There are a lot of animals like the marmots or the ibexes.

The St-Croix lakeThe St-Croix lake's located

in the Verdon gorges. It's an artificial lake. The construction started in 1973 and finished in 1975.

Now it's a touristic site :

_we can go canoeing,

_we can swim.

It's a wonderful site.

The Azur coast

● The Azur coast is a part of the coast of the Mediterannean sea.

● There are a lot of beautiful beaches or « calanque » (creeks).

Flora of my region:The olive tree

The olive tree is an evergreen tree or shrub native to the Mediterranean, Asia and Africa. It is short and squat, and rarely exceeds 8–15 metres in height.

The rosemary

Forms range from upright to trailing; the upright forms can reach 1.5 m tall, rarely 2 m.

Flowering, very common in a mature and healthy specimens, occurs in summer in the north, but the plants can be everblooming in warm-winter climates. The colors of the flowers are variable, being white, pink, purple, or blue.

The cistus

Cistus is a genus of flowering plants in the rockrose family Cistaceae, containing about 20 species (Ellul et al. 2002). They are perennial shrubs found on dry or rocky soils throughout the Mediterranean region, from Morocco and Portugal through to the Middle East, and also on the Canary Islands.

The iris

Iris is a genus of 260 species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the Greek word for a rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species.

The stone pine

the Stone Pine, Italian Stone Pine, or Umbrella Pine, is a species of pine in the family Pinaceae that is native to the Mediterranean region in Southern Europe, North Africa, and the Levant.

Wildlife of my region :The cicada

● The cicada is a little insect that lives on trees. Its sound is unique.

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Wildlife of my region :Hermann Turtle

There are several tortoise sanctuaries in Europe such as "Carapax" in southern Tuscany, and "Le Village Des Tortues" in the South of France (near Gonfaron). These sanctuaries rescue injured tortoises whilst also taking in unwanted pets. These two sanctuaries specialise in Hermann's tortoises,

The Snakes (Adder , Grass snake )

● The Adder got a « V » on her head and that's fun because in French we say « Vipere » .

● The Grass snake is less dangerous than the Viper.

● The picture shows a grass snake .

The lizard of provence

The lizard reaches up to 40 cm (approximately 16 iches) in length from the tip of the muzzle to the tail. It can be up to twice the length of the body. This lizard sheds its tail to evade the grasp of a predator.

Tarentola Mauritacina

Tarentola mauritanica is a species of gecko native to the Western Mediterranean region of Europe.Adults can measure up to

15 cm, tail included.

La Cadière, a village in Provence

● At the edge of a cliff, on a hill which faces the village of Le Castellet , this small medieval village takes advantage of a vast view of the Mediterranean sea. Surrounded with pine forests ,dominating the famous and renowned (aoc) Bandol vineyard,

A typical street

La Cadiere has the charm of these Provence villages with its flowery streets charged with history. It offers a splendid panorama of Saint-Cyr bay to La Ciotat.

Wine

With few exceptions, all the wines come in red, pink and white. Depending on their dress, they can accompany the traditional red or white meat, seafood of Provencal cuisine, and even desserts with sweet wines. The wineyards of Bandol are well-known.

FruitOlives et oil of olive : extra virgin olive oil is

from the first cold press and can have up to 1 percent oleic acid, normally around 0.5 percent.There are many Olive trees in Provence,

Honey : Provence is a region of production of honeydew honey, which bees collect on oaks and other hardwoods (dark honey), The peculiarities of climate and flora of Provence give honey large aromatic qualities. There are different types of honey from all flowers of Provence: rosemary, thyme, white heather and also lavender.

Fig : The Var is the first department of France on prodution of figs. Tasted kind, dried or as jam, figs are celebrated in the town of Sollies-Pont.

Candied fruit : Candied fruits, candied sugar, used in baking to decorate cakes. They can also be eaten alone as a dessert or candy.

Flowers

Lavender : Blue lavender fields and lavender fragrance are trademarks of the Provence. There are many producing areas. We recommend two, which are of particular importance: Plateau d'Albion, the sparsely populated area between Sault and Simiane la Rotonde, is like a sea of lavender in June and July. Take a closer look at this area in our Alpes de Haute provence section.

Soap

Marseille soap : This traditional soap made from vegetable oil has been made around Marseille for about 600 years.

Christmas crib figures

The word comes from Santon "santoùon”, which in Provencal means" little saint ".The clay figurines represent the Nativity scene, a tradition in Mediterranean countries. But the figures of Provence of the nativity scene (Christmas Creche) have a displacement of human touch: Instead of portraying the people of the Holy Land during the time Jesus lived, the characters are ordinary people of Provence in clothing 18th and 19th centuries. They visit the Holy Family and bring gifts.

The "AÏOLI"

Aioli is a traditional mayonnaise which consists of garlic, salt, egg yolk and olive oil with an assortment of vegetables and fish.

Tapenade

Tapenade is made of black olives or green olives, a clove of garlic and olive oil. You can eat it on toasted bread.

La ratatouille

"Ratatouille" is a dish typical of the South, consisting of vegetables: oignons, tomatoes, courgettes, aubergines and red peppers. With meat or cereals such as rice, quinoa, wheat, "ratatouille" is a dish full of vitamins.

"The bouillabaisse"

The "Bouillabaisse" is a traditional Provencal fish stew originating from the port city of Marseille. Origiginally it was a fisherman's dish. Fishermen sorted fish for sale and put aside certain parts they prepared for themselves and their families. Over the years, it has been improved and can now include seafood.

The "navettes"

● These biscuits or cookies are the fruit of the imagination of the founder of a special oven in 1781: Mister AVEYROUS who had the idea of giving his delightful cookies the shape of a small boat.

"anchovy paste"

● The sauce consists of anchovy, capers, oil of olive and of garlic. The dish consists of raw vegetables of season accompanied with this sauce.

Calanques at Marseille● The Calanques (creeks) are

located along the coast to the South-East of Marseille, and are usually accessed from the attractive harbour town at Cassis.

● There are several small beaches set among the rocks, with pine trees, for example at En Vau and Port Pin, where you can swim between the cliffs.

Saint Tropez● Saint Tropez is a village where

there are many tourists.

● St Tropez started life as a sleepy fishing village. The narrow streets wind back from the coast up to the citadel and the houses are all in the simple style of fisherman’s houses.

● Enjoy the many chic boutiques that Saint Tropez has to offer. On the Place Garezzo you can see the Chateau Suffren built in the late 15th century

The Verdon Gorges

In the Alps of Haute Provence and the Haut Var, the Verdon flows. Born near Val d'Allos, it digs into the rocks of Provence the spectacular Verdon Gorges, Europe's highest gorges, and finally subsides into the lake of Sainte Croix and Lake Esparron de Verdon. Verdon delights this country by its emerald waters, warm and welcoming. You can enjoy hiking along its shores or rafting and canyoning in the roughest waters !

My school

● My school is located in the Var in Southern France in a village called Le Castellet. It was constructed in 2006 and opened in 2007.

● It is surrounded by two small villages: la Cadiere and le Beausset. My school isn't as large as the other schools in the region. There are only 400 pupils.

The Var

● The Var is a department in Provence. It is very popular with tourists with 420km of Mediterranean coastline packed with vacationers during the summer holidays. Further inland the Var is one of the greenest departments in France with mountain ranges covered by pine and oak trees and the ever present Garrigue, the hardy shrubs of the Mediterranean. The Var is the area which suffers most bush fires during summer and autumn.

● There are 1 million inhabitants that represent 20% of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region and live in 19% of the region's land area.

Toulon, Antiquity

Toulon or its former name Telo Martius was a shelter and a Greek vessel center snail farm.

Old regime revolution:Vauban fortified the city

and built a prison.

During the old regime, Toulon was one of the main points of departure and arrival of the French military or colonial expeditions. Napoleon Bonaparte won his rank of brigadier general, saving Toulon from English royalists

Toulon todayToulon has 600 740

inhabitants. It is a major town located on the Mediterranean coast in the Var department. It is situated around a rocky bay, sheltered by limestone relieves of the “Faron”, crowned with ancient fortifications. The sheltered position has given rise to a large harbour and Toulon's role as home to the French naval fleet.

Pétanque

The name « petanque » comes from « pes tanché » which means « feet stuck to the ground ». The legend says that a disabled man who couldn't move played with his feet stuck to the ground.

«  Pétanque » is a sport which is practiced in the South of France, on a ground hard-packed surface. The players, with three boules each are divided into two teams A little wooden ball (the cochonnet) is thrown out as a target, at a distance of 6 to 10 meters. While pétanque was once a masculine sport, it's now practiced by all, male and female. The “longue” is another type of game wich is played in by doing three steps before throwing the ball.

RUGBY

In my department, there is one big rugby team situated in Toulon.

Football

We have a team in Marseille called “OM”, which won the French championship in 2010 and was champion of the league cup in France.

Tennis

In the Var, we have got some famous tennismen such as Fabrice Santoro (in the upper right corner).

1/Santons of provence :

Santons are small hand-painted,terracotta nativity scene figurines produced in the Provence region of southeastern France. In a traditional Provençal crèche, there are 55 individual figures representing various characters from Provençal village life such as the scissors grinder, the fishwife, the blind man, and the chestnut seller.

2/Traditional costume :

The Peasant of the eighteenth century wore the pants with stockings or leggings, a skin vest and a jacket with two tails. The only thing that went through the centuries has been the taillolle (taiolo), wool sash, usually red, which he wore at the waist. The post-revolutionary panties took time to win the campaign. Point for political reasons, but simply because the panties were adapted to daily activities "in the fallow fields, mud and snow." Only the pants in the Camargue was quickly adopted as an indispensable garment work.

Paul Cezanne:

The nineteenth century was dominated in painting by the romantic and impressionist

Paul Cezanne who was able to define a new genre. He was

born in 1839 in Aix-en-Provence, in a wealthy family.

He studied literature at the request of his father in law. But

soon he abandoned a legal career. He went to study

painting in Paris. He died in Aix en Provence on Octover the

22nd, 1906.

Marcel Pagnol

Marcel Pagnol was a writer who was born in Aubagne on February the 28th in 1895. Son of a teacher, he quickly developed a passion for the classics. He was a French novelist, playwright and filmaker.

Frédéric MistralFrederic Mistral was a writer

and lexicographer of French Provencal (Occitan), born on

September 8, 1830 at Maillane (Bouches-du-Rhone), where he died on March 25, 1914

and where he is buried. Mistral was a founding member of Félibrige, a

member of the Academy of Marseilles in 1904. He

received the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Alphonse Daudet

Alphonse Daudet grew up in Provence. He subsequently went to Paris and quickly found some literary popularity. First a journalist, he wrote his tales of Letters from My Mill (1866). He wrote fanciful tales and novels.