The more times I travelled to France, I realized that I had just been scratching the surface and there was a whole layer of fascinating places and people that tourist didn’t know existed and if they did, could not access. The guides I found the most interesting were the historians who could bring to life the amazing characters of French history in the surroundings in which they lived.
After many years of working in the media I realized I had found out what I wanted to do when I grew up. To start my new career I knew I needed the relevant qualifications so I enrolled full time at university to study History.
I finished my degree studying French History at the Sorbonne in Paris. It was challenging but the most exciting thing I had done career-wise. I studied three different periods and was thrilled to find the lectures were being conducted by professors whose books I had devoured.
In my tutorial class I took the assignment of presenting the “Policing of Prostitution in the Chatelet in 1770”. It was an analysis of a report written by the Lieutenant General of Police in Paris at the request of Marie-Antoinette’s mother, the Empress of Austria. (Not surprisingly none of the other students had chosen this topic from the available list!).
I can honestly say it was the thing I was most proud of. The other students, who had ignored the old Australian lady until then, stood and applauded. At the end of the semester they all wanted to know my mark, which turned out to be the highest.
If I needed convincing this was my calling, that was it. The apartment I was renting overlooked the Luxembourg Gardens so that I was a short walk from the Sorbonne. More than ten years later I was still there, and French Travel Boutique had become a reality.
I was pleased to find that my approach to tourism based on the people and places of French history found a niche. People who were regular travelers to France were seeing new places and gaining new insights on the old favorites. Many of them returned each year.
Five years ago I bought an apartment overlooking the Seine. It is filled with books on French history. I am opening them up, as well as my notes from tours to inspire people to travel to France (when we can again) and get close up and personal with the fabulous characters of French History.
We’ll start with a more personal introduction to the Kings, Queens, Mistresses and others in Beds and Boudoirs.
