Guadeloupe tourist information

Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It is an overseas département (département d'outre-mer, or DOM) of France. Like the other DOMs, Guadeloupe is also one of the 26 régions of France (as a région d'outre-mer), and an integral part of the Republic. As part of France, Guadeloupe is part of the European Union, and the currency in use is the euro.

Places to go in Guadeloupe ...

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Guadeloupe comprises five islands: Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre (separated from Basse-Terre by a narrow sea channel called salt river) with the adjacent islands of La Désirade, Les Saintes and Marie-Galante.

Basse-Terre has a rough volcanic relief whilst Grande-Terre features rolling hills and flat plains.

Further to the north, Saint-Barthélemy and the French part of Saint Martin come under the jurisdiction of Guadeloupe.

On December 7, 2003, both of these areas voted to become an overseas territorial collectivity

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Culture ^*

Guadeloupe's culture is probably best known for the islanders' literary achievements. Particularly the poetry of Saint-John Perse, the pseudonym used by Alexis Lèger. Perse won the 1960 Nobel Prize in Literature "for the soaring flight and the evocative imagery of his poetry which in a visionary fashion reflects the conditions of our time."

Also culturally important are the arts, particularly painting. Music and dance are also popular, and the mix of African and French cultures created a few important forms on the island. Islanders enjoy many local dance styles including the quadrille "au commandement", zouk, zouk-love, and toumbélé. Music includes la biguine and gwo ka la base.

Another element of the Guadeloupean culture is its dress. Women in particular have a unique style of dresses, with many layers of colorful fabrics. They also wear a head scarf, which is tied in many different forms. The headdress can be done in the "bat" style, or the "firefighter" style, as well as the "Guadeloupean woman." Jewelry is also important in the Guadeloupean woman's dress.

Transportation

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Terrain Basse-Terre is volcanic in origin with interior mountains; Grande-Terre is low limestone formation; most of the seven other islands are volcanic in origin.

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History Guadeloupe has been a French possession since 1635. The island of Saint Martin is shared with the Netherlands; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles and its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe

Languages French (official) 99%, Creole patois

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