A reply from the French President (In French!)

Jacques Chirac

Reference date: July 14th






To my great regret, I speak only one language, my native English. I should have paid more attention while taking language classes in high school. It would have especially come in handy today, when a letter arrived in my mailbox addressed to "Monsieur" Chris Lucas. It was a personal letter from the President of France himself, which is fantastic, except that it was written entirely in French. (What did I expect?) It looked like a nice letter, hand signed on his personal stationery, but I had no idea what it said. Twenty years ago this would have been a problem, requiring me to search high and low for a translator. Not today. Thanks to the internet, I was able to find a program which instantly translated the letter from French to English. It sounds awkward in spots, but I'm sure that's the "lost in translation" part. Here is what the letter said:

My Dear Monsieur Lucas,

As the President of the Republic of France, I have read well your letter to me and am pleased to answer you.

I appreciate your expression of interest in our country and our culture and I sincerely thank you for it.

While I cannot answer directly your query about my favorite places to visit in France (there are just too many) I can tell you that if you wish to satisfy your curiosity about France, you can always visit the Consulate-general France 934, Fifth Avenue in New­York (www.consulfrance.newyork.org), or the House of France, 444 Madison Avenue (www.franceguide.com) since you live so close.

I thank you again, My Dear Mr. Lucas, for the considerate words of kindness about me and my country.

Sincerely,

Jacques Chirac
President, Republic of France


I sent him a thank you (in English) the next day.