Foreign correspondents have much to report on the U.S.

Leentje De Leeuw was born and raised in Antwerp, Belgium, and has lived in Chicago since 2014. She works as a foreign correspondent in the U.S. and a member of the Association of Foreign Press Correspondents (AFC-USA). Her career also includes experiences in other fields. In parallel with her work as a foreign correspondent and writer, Leentje also works as a private tour guide and business consultant. She is the founder of Via Americana, an alliance of 9 Belgian women tour guides in 9 American cities, and the president of the Belgian American Club of Chicago. Every weekend, she hands out food and care packages to the homeless in Chicago, a project her son started during the COVID pandemic. Leentje spoke to the Foreign Press about the reality of travel journalism/consulting and how the pandemic affected tourism in Chicago. 

As a travel journalist and founder of “Chica-GO Off the Beaten Path Tours" how has the pandemic affected your ability to conduct stories and tourism in America?

Of course, it has had a significant impact! First of all, my last international visitor came on March 12th of last year, so almost a year ago. There have been some domestic clients depending on where we were with the curve, but nothing like before. I have made two trips in a year, and usually, there is a lot more. It’s a lot more desk work. I’m trying to report on positive stories for Belgian media about how Americans and Belgians here in the U.S. positively deal with the pandemic to inspire others. These are things you can do over Zoom or Whatsapp, so I’ve been focusing on that. Things are going pretty well here in the U.S. I must say. Numbers are good here in Chicago, so I have high hopes that I will travel more, report more, and speak with people in real life instead of on a screen. I think we are all in the same boat, and I started to work as a communications consultant for an accounting firm that deals with European countries setting up shops in the U.S., because of course, you have to go through whatever means to make it work. It was a nice change, and I love that job too, so I may have a problem when everything picks up again time-wise. 

What drove you to be a foreign correspondent in the United States? 

Ever since I was a late teenager -I am 44, almost 45- I used to travel to the U.S. a lot, mainly to New York. I discovered a lot about the country, and the people are so diverse. There is so much news at literally almost every corner of the street, so I was able to work as a correspondent for Belgium’s largest newspaper. In the beginning, I was the editor for Belgium at night, and I would cover all the news not just from the U.S. but also worldwide…The U.S. has so much news to report as a foreign correspondent!

How have your communication and media skills helped you as a tour guide in Chicago?

I have two degrees. One is in tourism, and one is in journalism, so for me, it is like the perfect combination because they require a lot of the same skills. You gather information, and you communicate it, either through a newspaper, a blog, on T.V., or straight to your audience that you are walking in the streets of Chicago with. You have a live audience, and you can interact with them. That’s, of course, the difference, but it’s also what makes it exciting. 

What are the greatest misconceptions surrounding travel writing or consulting?

Travel writing sounds like a very exotic job where you get to travel for free, get paid for it, stay in luxury hotels, and all of that. Years ago, when I first started, they would invite you to fly on a private jet to whatever remote location in Norway or an island, but times have changed. There is not much money left in both journalism and leisure, so you don’t get free airline tickets anymore. You may get a media rate, but it’s not like they throw it at you. You have to work and do your research, and you still have to pay. The salaries have become less in journalism. I still love it, but people who can do it full-time are very scarce. 

You are part of the Bilingual Advisory Committee at Skinner West, and Chica-Go offers touring services in Dutch, French, and English. What are the advantages of being a bilingual tour guide and correspondent?

Leentje De Leeuw

Speaking three languages helps when people are visiting from abroad. Also, having that European background that you share with your visitors, that’s even more important. Being part of the local community allows me to share my view on life in the US with my visitors and readers. It also allows me to share small cultural differences. That’s the most significant advantage of having that bicultural background. A very common example is tipping. People don’t know that if you see a restaurant menu here in Chicago, you add 10% tax and 20% for tips, and people will be offended if you leave some small change as a tip like they do in Belgium and most other European countries. 

Lastly, what are the places or areas of Chicago that interest your readers the most?

Talking about Chicago, it’s a city of 77 neighborhoods, so people know about the diversity. Of course, at first, people are interested in architecture, culture, and food, but people want to experience more variety in different neighborhoods on a deeper level. As a correspondent in the U.S., people ask me about the different cultures. And that is one of the things I want to show people because you can have your idea about a place or people, but you could be entirely wrong.