Paris/France: Pinnacle of My Dreams
Paris was the last trip that I took before I got THE job, and had the opportunity to go to so many different places and seeing all of these different people and different lifestyles, Paris was my first experience learning about other cultures and other countries.
I went to Paris for the first time when I was in high school with my mom. She reserved the Four Seasons George V, and bought me this little, tiny Louis Vuitton bag to carry around. It was this whole thing, celebrating me becoming fluent in French. We went in July, and I literally just became obsessed with Paris. I was enamored by the culture, and the lights, and the food, and the ambiance. It was everything!
My next visit to Paris was in my early twenties. We were travelling to the South of France for my Aunts 50th Birthday party. But because I was so obsessed, my mom and I spent a couple of days in Paris before the festivities began. So, she did the George V, and of course we did the whole tourist experience again – the Louvre and all of that.
Then we went to Roquebrune, an absolutely gorgeous town in the South of France that’s 15 minutes from Monaco and overlooks the Mediterranean. As we roamed about the South of France, I remember just the difference in culture. Very similar to the U.S. (like the Midwest vs. the West Coast), the more you explore in France, the more you experience different temperatures and cultures. The culture of this country is just so intriguing to me, and the way they speak with different accents just like in my country.
My third trip to France was in 2009. I went from London to Mexico to Paris to Ghana. Paris was also my third trip in the White House. Can you imagine that? Crazy! I will never forget this sequence in my travel because it was my first. That trip was so important because it was so exciting, and we were literally just piecing it all together.
On the first leg, it was my first time in London, and it was just… different. I didn’t even know what I was doing there. And then we jumped to Mexico and there was a Justin Bieber concert in Mexico City near the hotel we were staying at and it was just madness.
Jumping into Paris on the third leg was just like WOW. When we were there, we also went to Normandy for the 65th Anniversary of D-Day. During our advance trips for President Obama, we had to drive, so we were literally driving all around France from city to city. We’ve done Cannes, Caen, Roquebrune, Nice, and Deauville for the G8 Summit in northern France. A complete whirlwind!
Traveling throughout France was the realization of my dreams. It’s every little girl’s big dream, and I’ve definitely always dreamt of France and being in Paris. So, being able to actually do it was magical.
Have you ever seen the movie French Kiss? (My mom and I love romcoms, especially if they have Meg Ryan in them.) Kevin Kline had this horrible French accent and Meg Ryan chased some man to Paris – it was great! I would watch this movie in 7th grade and say, “I can’t wait to go to Paris!” I was obsessed with French culture. My first time there was like “Oh my God!” Going by myself the third time, we were there for 10 days because we were on advance. I just felt like Meg Ryan in French Kiss. I was free, gallivanting all over Paris and France. Art literally imitates life sometimes. Traveling throughout France was the realization of my dreams. It’s every little girl’s big dream, and I’ve definitely always dreamt of France and being in Paris. So, being able to actually do it was magical. I got to see the Eiffel Tower and do boat tours on the Siene, and to me, it never gets old. Paris is the most exciting and intriguing place. But beyond the touristy stuff, I think it’s so cool that the neighborhoods in Paris are numbered. And they’re all so different but also so uniform, like Chicago’s neighborhoods. I just love how Paris has such a… je ne sais quoi if you will!
I always speak so fondly of France, not only because of my personal connection to it, but also because at the White House we always had a productive and professional experience there. We had an incident where a colleague of mine fell ill and she ended up having to stay longer in Paris. I was one of the only people she told, and I ended up talking back and forth with her doctors and embassy personnel trying to coordinate and get her back home. Honestly, it was some of the most supportive care I’ve experienced overseas. When you travel far from home, you want to feel a sense of safety and comfort, and I’ve always felt that in France. There’s this sense of similarity between the U.S. and France. There’s mutual respect, professionalism, and a sense of pride that they have in their culture that I believe is important. My experiences in Paris and France in general will always be highly recommended, whether you’re there for presidential-like travel, or to just simply live out your dreams.
C’est si bon!
Dedicated to Peggy Suntum, who spent countless hours with me on a bus through the countryside of France. Rest in Paradise.
