Saint Pierre and Miquelon

Full name	Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon.
Capital City	Saint-Pierre.
Language	French.
Currency	Euro.
Religion	Roman Catholic.
National Anthem	"La Marseillaise".
Newspaper	L'Echo des Caps.
Places to Visit	Saint-Pierre Cathedral, Pointe aux Canons Lighthouse, Pointe aux Canons Battery, Les Salines Fishing Stations, Galantry Lighthouse, Saint-Pierre Post Office, General Charles de Gaulle Square, The Cross, The War Memorial, The Fort and The Lebailly Blacksmith Shop.
Transport	Airways: Air Saint-Pierre flights have services that connect Saint-Pierre, Miquelon and other parts of Canada; Waterways: ferry services are frequent and efficient between Saint-Pierre and Newfoundland.
Shopping	Codfish-skin items; cloudberry jam, blueberry jam and other local berries; intoxicants made of cloudberry and blueberry; scale boat models;, local paintings and drawings; perfumes from France and other regions of European; and regional food products.

  Introduction :
  The Saint Pierre and Miquelon is the last remnant of the North American assets of France, who arrived in Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the 17^th century. However, Saint Pierre and Miquelon's specialty lies in the fact that it holds a five-century legacy of the French-north American tradition. It is one of France's off-shore territories.

Location of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
Located in the northern region of the Atlantic Ocean, Saint Pierre and Miquelon belongs to the continent of North America. The closest political neighbor to Saint Pierre and Miquelon is Canada, whose Newfoundland province is just north of it.

Physical Map of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
Most of the terrain of the Saint Pierre and Miquelon islands comprise of rugged and barren landscape. As a result, there is scanty vegetation. In fact, Saint Pierre and Miquelon is the product of joining three islands with sand dunes. The highest region in the island nation of Saint Pierre and Miquelon is called Morne de la Grande Montagne.

Flag of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
Though the French flag is officially used, Saint Pierre and Miquelon has quite a complex flag of its own, that nevertheless expresses the country's identity to the fullest. The rectangular flag is divided into two unequal parts. Most of the flag, in a square area to the right, is occupied by a golden-yellow ship facing left, riding on undulating waves of the same color, against a blue background. The rest of the flag that forms a vertical band to the extreme left is horizontally divided into three equal squares. The top part has an "Ikkurina", which comprises of a red base with a diagonal cross on it, which in turn is superimposed by a white cross that further divides the square into four equal sections. The middle square has the pattern of Ermine on a white background. The bottom has two black-outlined yellow lions, placed vertically, on a red base. These three is symbolic of Basque, Brittany and Normandy (top to bottom).

Climate of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
Saint Pierre and Miquelon is a group of cold, damp and foggy islands, with windy autumns and springs. However, it is not that Saint Pierre and Miquelon does not have its moments of sunshine; it is just that the weather in the island-nation is rather volatile.

The islands receive precipitation in the form of both rainfall and snowfall. The summer months are pleasant and last from June to September; then autumn and winters take over. Snowstorms are a common feature in the winters.

Flora and Fauna of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :

Flora : the rugged and barren terrain of the Saint Pierre and Miquelon disables anything else except sturdy and weather resistant plants from growing in the country. The island-nation, however, lacks any special or distinctive flora within its borders.

Fauna : the animal fauna of the Saint Pierre and Miquelon isn't all too diverse, with just rabbits, hares, deer and seals inhabiting in the land. There were also foxes once, but they are now extinct. The chief fish found in the waters around the island is the cod and migrating whales. However, Saint Pierre and Miquelon has a wide variety in the avian section. The birds in the island-nation includes common ground dove, mourning dove, rose-breasted grosbeak, common black hawk, white-necked jacobin, green-throated mango, caribbean martin, orchard oriole, pine siskin, white-throated sparrow, tree swallow, gray-rumped swift, cocoa thrush, black-and-white warbler, prairie warbler, downy woodpecker

People of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
Generally called French, the residents of Saint Pierre and Miquelon are a mix of Basques and people from Brittany called Bretons. Most of them belong to the French fishing community.

Arts, Culture and Music of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :

Art : art of the Saint Pierre and Miquelon revolves around the things that the people of the island-nation can fashion out of codfish skins and fox fur. However, making jams and liquor out of locally available berries like cloudberry and blueberry if a traditional art passed down from generation to generation.

Culture : though the composite culture is referred to as French, there is an element which can be called "Basque pride". In display of this pride, Saint Pierre and Miquelon hosts, each year, a Basque Festival. The purpose of the festivities revolves mainly around the display of "Harrijasotzaile" or stone heaving skills, "Haitzkolari" or lumberjack skills and "Paleta" which is a game that determines concentration and perseverance.

Music : though lacking a distinct musical tradition, which is not too different from the musical tradition of France, Saint Pierre and Miquelon's chief attraction lies in the fact that it hosts numerous music festivals. Some of them are Basque Festival, Snow crab festival and Les Déferlantes Atlantiques Music Festival.

Economy of Saint Pierre and Miquelon :
The only naturally available resources that can sustain the country are its fish reserves and its natural harbors. Even the industries revolve around them. The chief industries of Saint Pierre and Miquelon are processing and packaging of fish and supplying fishing fleets. Aside of these, tourism too is a budding industry. Exports from Saint Pierre and Miquelon include fish, mollusks, crustaceans, animal food, soybeans and fox and mink furs.