Lorraine Voyage Tips and guide

Lorraine (German: Lothringen) is in the Grand Est region of France. The region is home to a rich historical, architectural, and cultural heritage, with prestigious gems and sometimes little-known treasures.

Map of Lorraine

• 48.17446.45121 Épinal — local capital of the Vosges, and a former hub of the printing and textile industries
• 49.1880566.92 Forbach
• 49.1202786.1777783 Metz — cathedral city with a strong military history and a regional branch of the Centre Pompidou
• 48.69366.18464 Nancy — medium-sized city of culture and learning. With a large student population, Nancy hosts vibrant ballet, opera, jazz and rock scenes. has about 100,000 people and, despite its relatively small size, is the cultural capital of the Grand Set region
• 48.286.955 Saint-Dié-des-Vosges — refreshingly-modernist architecture contrasts with the rest of the region's towns; the crowning glory is Le Corbusier's World Heritage-listed textile factory
• 49.1625.38766 Verdun — site of the infamous World War I battle, home to a memorial and museum. The episcopal palace is a handsome example of French Revolutionary architecture
• 48.20255.95037 Vittel — small spa town known for its mineral water and regional beauty contest Miss Lorraine

Part of the region spent a lot of its history bouncing back and forth between Germany and France. As a result, the contemporary feeling of "Frenchness" in the province is very strong. However, that is not to say the locals in Germanic Lorraine are not interested in maintaining their distinct multi-ethnic heritage.

It borders the countries of Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany in addition to the French regions of Franche-Comté, Alsace, and Champagne-Ardenne.

Lorraine was an administrative region of France until 2016 when it was merged with Champagne-Ardenne and Alsace to form the Grand Est region.

Slightly-accented French is the everyday language spoken in Lorraine, but like in other parts of the country, regional languages are also spoken.

Alsatian, (Elsässerditsch), a dialect closely related to Swiss German and Alemannic, is still spoken in south-eastern Lorraine near the German border. Lorrain, more specifically, "Lorrain and Moselle Franconian", is known to its speakers as francique or platt. It is the other regional language, spoken mainly near the Belgian and German borders. Both Alsatian and Lorrain are non-standardised dialects of German containing many French loan words, spoken mainly by older inhabitants.

Other than that, English and standard German are worth a try, but only if you don't speak French!

• Archaeological sites of Bliesbruck-Reinheim or Grand,
• Fortifications of the Maginot Line
• The Saint-Étienne cathedral in Metz and its 6,500 m² of stained glass windows, nicknamed the "Lantern of the Good Lord"
• The extraordinary basilica of Saint-Nicolas-de-Port
• The cathedrals of the Three Bishoprics
• The birthplace of Joan of Arc in Domrémy
• The Place Stanislas in Nancy, listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO
• The Renaissance ensemble of Bar-le-Duc
• The museums of the Cour d'Or in Metz.
• The Nancy School of art with Gallé, Vallin, and Majorelle, and the Lorraine masters of painting, sculpture, and architecture.

In Lorraine, celebrations are everywhere, urban or rural, with all artistic emotions, in all seasons. Saint Nicholas, a tradition linked to the land, Christmas markets, a historic event "From Flames...to Light" in Verdun, the mirabelle plum in Metz or the daffodil in Gérardmer. Street festivals in Epinal, sculpture festivals in La Bresse, geography festivals in Saint-Dié: celebration, imagination, and discovery are all on the agenda.

Lorraine's queen is the mirabelle plum. Lorraine offers a tasteful range of other sweets: bergamot plums from Nancy, madeleines from Commercy or Liverdun, and sugared almonds from Verdun. Taste specialties like potée or Quiche Lorraine.

The potato is used in various traditional dishes of the region, such as the potée lorraine. The Breux potato, which takes its name from the village of Breux in the north of the Meuse, is considered to be excellent because of the perfect conditions of the area for its cultivation.

Smoked bacon is also a traditional ingredient of the cuisine of Lorraine. It is used in various traditional dishes of the region, including the famous quiche Lorraine.

The mirabelle plum of Lorraine is the emblematic fruit of Lorraine. It is used in pies and other desserts, as well as in alcoholic beverages.

Traditional dishes in the region include:

• Quiche Lorraine
• Pâté lorrain (chopped pork and veal flavoured with white wine and baked in puff pastry)
• Potée lorraine (a stew of smoked meats and sausages, with cabbage, potatoes and other root vegetables)
• Andouille (tripe sausage)

Traditional cheeses of Lorraine include: Carré de l'Est, Brouère, Munster-géromé, Tourrée de l'Aubier.

Desserts from the region include: madeleine, macaron, rum baba, plombières ice-cream, various pie recipes (brimbelles bilberry, mirabelle plum, rhubarb, quark etc). The Christstollen is also popular in Lorraine during the Christmas season. The use of the potato in Lorraine can be traced back to 1665. It was imported to Europe from South America. It is used in what developed as various traditional dishes of the region, such as the potée lorraine. The Breux potato, which takes its name from the village of Breux in the north of the Meuse, is considered to be excellent because of the perfect conditions of the area for its cultivation.

Wine: The most well-known wine of the region is the Côtes de Toul. There are vineyards in the valley of the Moselle, the valley of Seille, the valley of Metz, and the valley of Sierck.

Beer: The Champigneulles brewery, founded in 1897, is the last remaining large-scale brewery. In 2016, it was the second largest brewer in France, after Kronenbourg.