OVER 1,000 people, including about 800 French residents, took part in a party to celebrate the national day of France at the Sofitel Jinjiang Oriental in Pudong on July 14.

It was the fifth celebration party held by the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China and the French Consulate-General in Shanghai.

"The atmosphere of the annual gala party has always exceeded our expectations," said Annick de Kermadec-Bentzmann, vice-president of the Chamber of Commerce at the party.

It is estimated that there are somewhere over 5,000 French people and about 400 French companies falling under the purview of the commercial chamber in Shanghai, according to Annick.

She said that this year the chamber's annual get-together ball, in October, will be held on the same day as the opening of the Sino-French Culture Festival. For that occasion, the chamber will invite famous Chinese artists to attend and aim to promote economic and cultural communications between China and France.

"I am fond of Shanghai," she said, having witnessed the rapid development of the chamber as well as the great changes occurring in Shanghai since arriving in the city in 1990. "Because of its history, it is an open city, continually welcoming varieties of foreigners and their different cultures. There are also a lot of similarities between Shanghai and Paris, such as the atmosphere and the geographical situations, which attract increasing numbers of French people to come here and eventually love this land.