Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Narthex:
The area (portico or foyer) between the main entry and the nave.
Nave:
The long, central section of the church (running west to east, from the en-
trance to the altar) where the congregation sits or stands through the service.
Transept:
In a traditional cross-shaped floor plan, the transept is one of the two
partsformingthe“arms”ofthecross.Thetranseptsrunnorth-south,perpendic-
ularly crossing the east-west nave.
West Portal:
The main entry to the church (on the west end, opposite the main al-
tar).
Today, the main political issue in France is—like everywhere—the economy. Initially,
France weathered the 2008 downturn better than the US, because it was less invested in
risky home loans and the volatile stock market. But France, along with the rest of Europe,
is now struggling. French unemployment remains high (over 10 percent) and growth has
flat-lined.Francehasnotbalanceditsbookssince1974,andpublicspending,at56percent
of GDP, chews up a bigger chunk of output than in any other eurozone country. Abroad,
the entire eurozone is being dragged down by countries heavily in debt—Greece, Spain,
Portugal, Italy, and Ireland. The challenge for French leadership is to address its economic
problems while maintaining the high level of social services that the French people expect
from their government.
France has its economic strengths: a well-educated workforce, an especially robust
services sector and high-end manufacturing industry, and more firms big enough to rank
inthe global
Fortune 500
than anyother European country.Ironically,while France'seco-
