MARTINIQUE
(French Caribs, French West Indian, French Antilles, Antilles.)

Capital: Fort-de-Frans
Population: 385 551 persons.
Area: 1,128 sq.km.

HISTORY

Martinique (it is sometimes written as Martiniban) this island state. Existence of "nation" in Martinique is a dispute subject. After final cancellation of slavery in 1848 (earlier liberating act of the French revolution was repealed by Napoleon), the dominating colonial policy became assimilation: full expansion of the French education, language and the civil rights all that who lives under the French flag This policy came to the apogee in 1946 when at insistance of representatives of local population (especially the member of parliament of AimeCesaire) the National assembly in Paris voted for that Martinique overseas department of France. Being full citizens of France, martsinist are members of the European community.

GEORGAFIYA

The part of the archipelago of Antilles Martinique is located in the Caribbean Sea about 450 km (280 miles) to the northeast from the coast of South America and approximately in 700 km (435 miles) to the southeast from Dominican Republic. It is directly to the north from Saint Lucia, to the northwest from Barbados, to the southeast from Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic and to the south from Dominica.
The total area of Martinique is 1100 square kilometers (420 sq. miles) from which 40 square kilometers (15 sq. miles) are water and other earth. Martinique is the third largest island on the Lesser Antilles after Trinidad and Guadeloupe. It stretches for 70 km (43 miles) in length and on 30 km (19 miles) on width. The highest point - Monte Pele's volcano at the height of 1 397 meters above sea level.

FOOD

Until supermarkets and the imported common kitchen extended (including a stake big-head and chains of fast food), the daily martikansky kitchen was characterized by a unique combination of the French and Creole cookery which often is laced up to side curls (hot pepper). The markets in the open air still deliver the fruits which are grown up on the place (bananas, cocoes, a guava, pineapples, mango, love apples and passion fruits) and vegetables (a breadfruit tree, a Chinese cabbage, a yam, a gumbo and cassavas). The big kitchen of Martinique is prepared from seafood and mollusks, including a salty cod, lamb (sink), an octopus, блаф (boiled fish with an onion) and a national dish, soup broth (fish in spicy tomato sauce). Nevertheless, a quarter of the average budget of households is spent on the basic import meat and a bird, especially beef now. Restaurants don't cultivate the same air of refinement and hospitality yet, as in France.