Its old town, la Grande Île ("Grand Island") has been classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The city was founded in 12 BC by Drusus, the brother of Tiberius. Its Celtic name was "Argentorate" (which the Romans called "Argentoratum"). People think this name is linked to the river Ill (that flows into the Rhine near Strasbourg).
At that time, it was on the Limes, a fortification the Romans built across Europe (to keep out the Germanic tribes). There was a fortification (named "castella drusi", "drusus fort") at that spot. Soldiers need to live from something, so a local civilian settlement developed there. Later, the Limes was pushed farther east.
Strasbourg has an oceanic climate ("Cfb" in the Koeppen climate classification).
Montpellier
Montpellier is a city in south of France. About 280,000 people live there. It is the 8th largest city in France. It has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate ("Csa" in the Koeppen climate classification).
A campus of the École nationale de l'aviation civile (French civil aviation academy) is in Montpellier. The computer science school École pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies and E-Artsup are also in the city.
The University of Montpellier is one of the oldest in the world, as well as the Montpellier Business School.
Montpellier is twinned with:
Lille
Lille is a city in the north of France with a population of about 226,800 inhabitants. It is the capital of the region Hauts-de-France and the Nord
department., and is not far from the border with Belgium, where in Dutch it is called . About two million people live in the urban area ("conurbation") shared with Kortrijk and Tournai, which is the fifth largest in France behind Paris, Lyon, Marseille, and Toulouse.
Lille has an oceanic climate ("Cfb" in the Koeppen climate classification).
There are two big railway stations in Lille with many trains to and from different places around France and Belgium. Most of these serve station and are operated by SNCF, including the TGV high-speed service. The other big station, , has Eurostar trains to and from Brussels, Paris, and St Pancras station in London via the Channel Tunnel to the United Kingdom.
Public transport in Lille is made up of buses, two metro lines, and two tram lines to the nearby towns of Tourcoing and Roubaix. The metro system is one of the first in the world that does not have drivers.
Lille is twinned with:
Rennes
Rennes is a city in France, the prefecture of Brittany and the Ille-et-Vilaine department. Its name is « » in the Breton language.
The Rennes agglomeration has a large student population (around 63,000) and 2 universities :
A campus of the computer science schools "École pour l'informatique et les techniques avancées" and "École pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies" , the university in electric energy and information sciences Supélec, the engineering school CentraleSupélec.
The business schools Rennes School of Business and Paris School of Business are also in Rennes.
Within France
Pacts of cooperation
Sponsorship
Reims
Reims is a commune in France, in the Marne department in the Grand Est region. NEOMA Business School is located in the city.
Reims Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims) is famous by coronation of almost every king of France. The cathedral was destroyed by fire in 1914 (after an attack by the German army).
Orléans
Orléans is a city in France, the prefecture of the Centre-Val de Loire region and the Loiret department. It is on the Loire River and was formerly a busy port.
Orléans is twinned with:
It has a partnership with:
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in Normandy. It is one of the most important ports in France. It is located on the right bank of the Seine river along the English Channel.
The city and port were founded by the King Francis I of France in 1517.
The city was bombed during World War II. The damaged area was rebuilt by Auguste Perret from 1945 to 1964. This section was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
The École de management de Normandie is located in the city.
Mountain range
A mountain range (mountain chain, mountain belt) is a geographic area with many mountains. A 'mountain system' or 'system of mountain ranges' includes geological features that are in the same region as a mountain range.
Mountain ranges usually include highlands or mountain passes and valleys. Individual mountains in the same range do not always have the same geology or petrology. They may be a mix of different orogenic expressions and terrains, for example thrust sheets, uplifted blocks, fold mountains, and volcanic landforms. This results in a variety of rock types.
Most geologically young mountain ranges on the Earth's land surface are associated with either in the Pacific Ring of Fire or the Alpide Belt. The Pacific Ring of Fire includes the Andes of South America, extends through the North American Cordillera along the Pacific Coast, the Aleutian Range, on through Kamchatka, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, to New Zealand. The Andes is long and is often described as the world's longest mountain system.
The Alpide belt includes Indonesia and southeast Asia, through the Himalayas, and ends in the Alps. The belt also includes other European and Asian mountain ranges. The Himalayas contain the highest mountains in the world, including Mount Everest, at of elevation.
Mountain ranges outside of these two systems include the Arctic Cordillera, the world's northernmost mountain system. If the definition of a mountain range includes underwater mountains, then the ocean ridges form the longest continuous mountain system on Earth, with a length of .
Many mountain ranges have sub-ranges within them. It can be thought of as a parent-child relationship. For example, the Appalachian Mountains range is the parent of its own ranges, two of which are the White Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains. The White Mountains are a child of the Appalachians, and there are also children of the Whites, like the Sandwich Range and the Presidential Range.
The position of mountains influences climate, such as rain or snow. When air masses move up and over mountains, the air cools producing precipitation (rain or snow). As the air descends on the leeward side, it warms again and is drier, having been stripped of much of its moisture. Often, a rain shadow will occur on the leeward side of a range.
Mountain ranges are always being eroded. Erosion is at work while the mountains are being uplifted and long after until the mountains are reduced to low hills and plains. The basins next to an eroding mountain range are filled with sediments which are buried and turned into sedimentary rock.
The early Cenozoic uplift of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado are an example. As the uplift was occurring some of mostly Mesozoic sedimentary strata were removed by erosion and spread as sand and clays across the Great Plains to the east. This mass of rock was removed as the range was actively undergoing uplift.
Straight edge
Straight edge (Often called sXe) is a lifestyle without drugs, tobacco, or alcohol. Some followers of "straight edge" also abstain from illegal or casual sex.
For some, no drug use includes caffeine which is a stimulant drug. Some will accept drugs such as codeine or morphine for medical reasons.
Some followers of straight edge will not use Ny-Quil or Day-Quil because they contain alcohol.
Those straight edgers who quit casual or illegal sex would not have one-night stands and will wait until they are in a committed relationship to have sex.
Some cities have associated straight edge as gang affiliation, but advocates call it a way of life such as being a vegetarian.
Rouen
Rouen is a commune. It is the prefecture of Upper Normandy and the Seine-Maritime department.
First settlements in that region were from the 6th century before Christ.
The Romans founded Rotomagus about 100 A.D..
Since 384 Rouen is the seat of a bishop.