So I took a flight, got tested before and after, respected all the sanitary restrictions, etc, etc… And it all went well (I even got another test when I came back, didn’t catch the virus in France. The only think I brought back from there is half a dozen Camembert, 4 saucissons and a ton of Haribo’s “fraise Tagada”. Don’t tell the customs…).

This couple of weeks in Paris made me realize how much everything is related to our cultural approach. Even a global problem like the pandemic we know today.

On this question, everything is different in France…

Here, we had a government that didn’t really do anything. We had to rely on our local and state authorities to have a policy to rely on, but it’s not as strong as a national stance.

France had that, from the beginning. Not saying they did everything right there but they grasped the nettle and were decisive. Here…

And it paid… You had to see the terrace in the street of Paris, the people in movies theaters, the sidewalks of the Champs-Elysées… It’s not Paris as usual, foreign tourist are not there, but it’s alive. There is life in the street.

Some people would say that it could be seen as the last dance on the Titanic deck, because of the rise of the Covid figures in France this autumn, but at least they danced… Here, I’m not so sure we still know how to dance. It’s in part because no one got a grasp on the crisis at the higher level. If we had the 2 months of firm lockdown in the entire country as they had in France, we’d be so much better off.

But things can change here. In 2 months, we’ll have a chance to make everything right again. In a few weeks, we can put this country back on its track. In about 60 days, we’ll have a chance to change all this.

Yes, I’m a lucky guy, I have a bi-citizenship, French and U.S. that means that November 3^rd, I will vote to give a chance to this country to dance again.

To learn more about Francophone culture in America, tune in to Rendez-vous d’Amérique on TV5MONDE USA. Click here for more information.

Exploring cultural diversity through movie stars and beyond, Rendez-vous d'Amérique invites you on a journey to discover Francophone culture in America. Your host on this cultural experience is Didier Allouch - reporter, cinephile, and a familiar face on the red carpet. Click here to learn how you can subscribe to TV5MONDE USA and never miss an episode!