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The Democratic Republic of Congo, which has had many different names over the past years, was formerly part of the French colony of Equatorial Africa. The Congo River was a major avenue of commerce between the coast and the interior, and because of this, it was an extremely desirable area. Explorers from France wanted full access to this land and as a result the native people experienced ruthless treatment and extreme exploitation. This included forced labor of Africans to build infrastructure, such as the Congo-Ocean railway, which cost between 15,000 and 20,000 African lives. For many years, the Republic of Congo was a neighboring colony alongside France. In 1946, Congo became an official overseas territory of France and ten years later (1956), the "enabling act" endowed the colony with an elected government. However, in 1960, the Democratic Republic of Congo established independence from France. The Democratic Republic of Congo initially created two major political parties: the African Social Movement (MSA) and the Democratic Union for the Defense of African Interests (UDDIA). These parties had very separate views based on North vs South privileges and wealth. The MSA favored a powerful state and majorly public economy, while the UDDIA favored and advocated for private ownership and close ties with France. In 1963, as a result of lack of French support and many other internal issues, the National Revolutionary Movement (MNR) became the main political party. In 1969, the Congolese Labor Party (PCT) has become the major political party in the state and to this day still is. The Democratic Republic of Congo continues to have diplomatic relations with France AND they are both a part of the United Nations, with 50.6% of the Congolese population speaking French as their primary language.

Republic of the Congo - Civil War, Oil, Wildlife | Britannica

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Christmas is a holiday that is well-known and celebrated worldwide in many different cultures. Belgium, which is both a Dutch and French-speaking country, celebrates this holiday with lights, festivities, cuisine and more. During the holiday season, many Europeans living inside and outside of the country will travel to Brussels, the capital of Belgium. The city of Brussels has over 160 streets covered head-to-toe in beautiful, bright-colored lights during the Christmas season. There is a giant Christmas tree that is set up at Brussels' Grand Place, a square in the city that is popular during all times of the year, is especially so at Christmas. During the holiday season, Winter Wonders is set up in the Grand Place. This is a Christmas market with over 200 stores, a Ferris wheel, skating rink, and a beautiful light and sound show involving the Christmas tree. After learning how to celebrate in Brussels, I wanted a better understanding of some of the differences in traditions between Christmas in the United States and Christmas in Belgium. First of all, in Belgium, children are visited by two Santas: Santa Claus and St. Nicholas, which is different from the one Santa Claus we have here in America. Another interesting difference I found was that children leave shoes by the fireplace instead of stockings for Santa. I really enjoyed researching Brussels and I hope to be able to enjoy a Christmas there one day!
Why Brussels is the perfect place to celebrate Christmas | Visit Brussels
Christmas in Brussels (brussels-belgium-travel-guide.com)

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Photo taken from the ballet production of "The Nutcracker."

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From age three up until I started college last year, I have been taking dance classes and learning the art of ballet. The vocabulary, steps and terms used in ballet is majority French; even the word ballet is a French word that derives from the Latin word ballare, which means "to dance." Ballet originated in Italy as it was popular in the 15th and 16th centuries in the Italian courts, and it was eventually brought to France by Catherine de' Medici. France eventually came to house the now oldest ballet school and company to exist, which at the time was called "The Royal Academy of Dance". Later, it was renamed The Paris Opera Ballet. When this dance academy was established, King Louis XIV was under rule of France and absolutely loved to watch Ballet. Nowadays, the Paris Opera Ballet Company has over 180 performances per year, many of them being for the classic "The Nutcracker", which is an extremely popular ballet based around Christmas and performed during the holiday season. A few commonly used French ballet terms are "Changement", which means change and is a type of jump, and "Pas de chat", which means step of the cat and is also a type of jump.
Paris Ballet | 2023-2024 Calendar | Paris Insiders Guide
Discover the French Origins of Ballet (liveabout.com)

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The beginnings of French cuisine date way back to Medieval times and was extremely similar to Moorish cuisine. During this time, countries such as Spain and Turkey would be known to have Moorish delicacies. At this time, the meals were also prepared and served all at once, or "Service en confusion." These meals were comprised of a multitude of spiced, smoked, and salted meats. The French cuisine began to develop greatly from the influence of Italian chefs during the 15th and 16th centuries; Italian cooks were more advanced than French cooks earlier on. Italian cuisine would have never been introduced to France at this time if it was for Catherine de' Mecedi marrying the man who later became King Henry II. During the 16th and 18th centuries was a period called the Ancien Regime; the Ancien Regime constituted a restriction of where food businesses could reside. As a result of the restrictions, the advancement of French cuisine was haltered. In the late 17th and early 18th century, there was a grand advancement in high cuisine for France; this was due to a French cookbook written by gourmet specialist La Veranne, which is now considered "the first true French cookbook." These meals were focused on being more modest and less extravagant, which was quickly picked up by many other gourmet specialists. The next major event to bring change to French cuisine was the French Revolution; this was very important for the food industry, as boundaries that kept certain people from cooking in certain places were broken down. In the late 19th and mid-20th century, there was an even greater amount of noticeable modernization. Georges Escoffier Auguste was a culinary specialist who is majorly to thank for the French cuisine we have today; he pulled many aspects of his formulas and recipes from Marine-Antonie Carême.

A Brief History of French Cuisine (ecpi.edu)

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The Province of Quebec during the Quiet Revolution

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I was unsure of what to research so I decided to "stay close" and look at the History of Quebec. Within Canada, there is only one majority French speaking province and that is Quebec. As a matter of fact, in 1974 French was declared the official language of Quebec and was adopted in education, workforce, administration, etc. While doing research, I came across information discussing the difference between "Traditional French" and the French that is spoken within the province of Quebec. The origins of Quebec's French speaking culture dates way back to the early 16th and late 17th century when French explorers arrived and settled in this region. The province was part of "New France" until the British signed and passed the Treaty of Paris in the year of 1763. Afterwards, there was little to no Francophone culture to be seen in Quebec; that is, up until the Quiet Revolution. The Quiet Revolution was active from the 1950s through the 1970s when French was made the official language in 1974. The revolution was characterized by a rise of francophone nationalism, a fight for secularization and a push back against anglophone dominance. After the Revolution, Quebec become highly independent, secular, and industrialized.

Quiet Revolution (canadahistory.ca)
A Brief History Of Québécois (a.k.a. Canadian French) (babbel.com)