A Random Q&A

I was recently asked these questions, and thought you might enjoy the answers:

We’ll be traveling abroad with our kids in 2013. Is there one must-have item for an international family vacation?
I believe kids should have their own money belt, an expanded “vacation allowance,” and the responsibility to manage their funds and understand the foreign currency. They should also keep (as a precondition for getting the expanded allowance) a trip journal with meaningful thoughts and observations. That will end up being their favorite souvenir.

I’ve noticed that on your PBS show, you often carry a day bag. What’s inside?
In my day bag, I carry a camera, a sweater, an extra pencil, travel notes, my script (when making TV), a small water bottle…and, very often, a small ham-and-cheese sandwich swiped from the breakfast buffet.

When traveling to a foreign country, how important is knowing the native language? Are there any apps or books that you recommend for translation?
While I wish I spoke a foreign language (and Ireland is one of my favorite countries partly because, when hanging out with locals there, I have the sensation that I’m understanding a foreign language), I find that speaking the local language is not important for the basic needs of a traveler. For the same reason, I personally haven’t used a phrase book much, and I don’t think I’d bother with an app. A bold spirit of adventure, a dollop of common sense, and a big smile are all I need to communicate in my travels. These days, you’ll find anyone who’s young, well-educated, and/or working in tourism very likely to speak English.

What new places will you be visiting in 2013?
The West Bank (Palestinian Territories), Alexandria in Egypt, and Reykjavik. This summer, I’ll be taking a Rick Steves’ Scotland tour and expect to learn plenty as I visit some exciting new places with our Scottish guide. I’ll cap my travel year by taking a cruise on the Baltic Sea (working on our new Northern European Cruise Ports guidebook — coming out in its first edition this July). I’ll jump ship in St. Petersburg, Russia, where I’ll spend about five days, then stop by Iceland on my way home for my first-ever visit there.

Comments

9 Replies to “A Random Q&A”

  1. I agree. A smile, genuine interest in the location being visited, a localized demeanor ( few care for a loud mouthed obnoxious tourist, a few words in the local language, and you will be welcome!

  2. We absolutely loved Iceland and hope you do too. So much history and nature to see. Just wish that we had more time and could have circumnavigated the island.

    We loved Hotel Grimsborgir: a guest house right on the Golden Circle.

    Dog sledding and seeing where the European continental plate pulls away from the American plate as well as puffins and volcanic activity were amazing.

    (We thought that the Blue Lagoon was an overpriced tourist trap.)

  3. I would agree that translation apps are close to useless for interpersonal communication, but they may come in handy when you need to understand written text. Examples might include figuring out how a bus system works, paying for parking via an automat, or some of the country-specific road signs whose meaning may not be intuitive. I’m sure the meaning of the “Einbahnstrasse” sign would be fairly obvious to a non-German speaker, but signs like “Umleitung”, or “Staugefahr” might cause confusion without having a translator app.

    My Dutch-speaking wife always laughs at this one… Before I learned the language, I asked her why so many buses in Belgium seemed to be headed to the town of “Geen Dienst”. Run those words through Google translate to see why she found my question so amusing.

  4. Great advice on traveling with kids. Last year we traveled with children 9 and 11 years old through Germany. They weren’t excited about keeping a journal (I hope that will change), but they loved collecting pins from each location and wearing them on their jacket or hat. The pins made relatively inexpensive souvenirs that they could easily show off to their friends back home.

  5. I’m glad Rick is expanding his travels to include Iceland, Egypt, and other lands.

    He is so great about researching everywhere he visits and his advice is for regular folks.

    Der Doppelganger
    WEDU TAMPA

  6. Hello All:

    I agree completely with the money belt for kids for a few reasons: Mainly, it helped to keep the “Can I have…?” question at bay. We told our children that your allowance is all you get for souvenirs and such, so think carefully. Instead of trying to buy everything and anything that they saw, they learned to budget (slowly). Even our youngest (7-10 years old at the time) got better at understanding how money worked. Also, they came to understand a little bit more about cultural differences and perspectives. Explaining to them why exchange rates are different and money not equal everywhere was a learning lesson itself. They still have foreign notes and coins as keep sake items.

  7. Recently I have received a number of official looking letters from Italy (I was there early last summer and did rent a car for a short time) informing me that I have broken some traffic laws and need to send money, from a low of 2.50 Euro to 100+ Euro to satisfy the fine. An Italian I know looked over the letters and said they appears not to be real. Have you had any such experience?

  8. Hey Rick – I love your shows but I often wonder why you say that, “Learning another language is not important when communicating with Europeans?” Or you say Europeans usually speak some English. Nothing is better than interacting with other people and when you attempt to speak another person’s language you not only learn the language better, but you build trust and friendship. I learned French and a little bit of Flemish in Belgium, and while I am far from fluent, it made my experience a lot more enjoyable. Best wishes.

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