A priest professor at El Salvador’s prestigious University of Central America once told me “when I hear the word democracy, my bowels move.” They drink sangria in Spain. Ireland is the Emerald Isle because it rains a lot. The people there are friendly. Foie gras, while outlawed in Chicago, is the primary reason so many Brits travel to the Dordogne in France. For a travel writer, can you imagine which ideas are most challenging and rewarding to share? When I travel, I’m hungry for experiences and lessons that challenge us…that confront us. This politicizes my writing. It makes it much more fun for me. And, lately, it’s getting me more media exposure than ever. I’m giving a talk tonight at Seattle’s Town Hall called “Travel as a Political Act.” I’ve had several TV, radio and newspaper interviews leading up to this event. Yesterday, the Seattle Times ran a feature story on me with Mark Rahner. Mark wrote that “Travel as a Political Act” may sound about as bourgeois as Yachting for Peace. It was a fun-loving, Colbert-esque interview which caught me by surprise time after time. He pointed out that I’ve cultivated a trademark Winkerbean look…which somehow led to discussing famous rock stars hanging babies out windows in Berlin. With questions like “When you bring up ‘travel as a political act,’ won’t you be talking exclusively to prospective shoe-bombers,” I had no choice but to get into uncharted waters. Read Mark’s interview here: Travel Guru Speaks his Mind on Foreign Policy
Travel Guru Cultivates Winkerbean Look
Comments
Great interview – sounds like you both had some fun. SO agree that more Americans need to travel (but it’s hard to even get a passport right now!) Will you be posting the transcript of the Seattle talk?
Rick, I Enjoyed the Rahner interview.
We are not Pollyannish about our travels, but there is no place where we have visited in 70 countries and Islands that we would not be happy to revisit. Some are more interesting than others, but when we travel we know it is their home, if we don’t like it we can leave. We are there to learn about their home and way of life, and we try not to tell everyone that our home and our culture is best, even though we are positive that it is.
Our experience, “A clerk in a grocery or bakery is thrilled to meet an American, a waiter and a bell hop are thrilled to get a tip.â€
Rick said, “ The less you spend the more you experience.â€
In 1989 a Visa bill corresponded with our month in Italy, including Sicily. All of the charges for that month were included. Including prorated cost of plane fare and RV, Sweetie and I spent a month in Italy and Sicily, for about $15 or $20 per day, more than just staying home. Trip was 115 days.
Rick I don’t know if you thought about this when you decided to continue writing your blog, but since you have I find myself hitting your site twice a day just to see if it’s been updated. I use to visit your site just to get travel info or buy tickets. That was once every 6 months to two years. Yours is the only blog I read and I find it fascinating. Just wanted to let you know in case you find it a bit tiring to keep it up with everything else you have to do. I believe it will continue to draw folks to your site and that has to be good for business.
Thanks, Rick, for the years of travel delights. I have often thought I would much rather spend my money helping my children travel the world than to spend it on their college tuition. I believe our own freedoms depend on it.
Bob, lighten up and take the interview in the light tone in which it was conducted while giving some valid and reasonable opinions. I wouldn’t pretend to be able to give a “expert” opinion on what Europeans think as I have only spent a total of 9 weeks there in the last 8 years. I think Rick’s time there qualifies him to give his opinion with some weight. I don’t hear him saying that I have to agree with him. Less flame, more fun! Thanks for keeping the blog going, Rick. Like, Pat, I check at least twice a day.
Rick, Thanks for sharing your philosopies on the value of travel for perspective on ourselves and the rest of the world. This interview reminded me of a Mark Twain quote: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” – Innocents Abroad keep up the good work!
John, I am plenty light. If Rick is going to put forth his world views, and his views are based on stupid assertions with no basis in face — then I am going to point that out. Can travel make us better world citizens? I think so. If you think so, too, then make an argument as to why that is so. Don’t make stupid, baseless anti-American comments. The comment I pointed out was but one of many that Rick made in the interview. He came across as immature and uninformed. That’s all.
his views are based on stupid assertions with no basis in face [sic] – seemed to me quite a lot of facts were involved in the interview. Or are you sure you’re not complaining about views you don’t agree with rather than views not based in facts? Although I found the Iraq comment initially confusing, I think it has to do with bombing a wedding party in the mistaken belief that it was a terrorist group.
You’ve got some interesting challenges going for the Town Hall talk this evening. :) I know you’ll do well. Happy talking!
Rick, thank you for posting the interview. I don’t always agree with you on your view of things but I admit even my own views have changed because of traveling. I think the point you are trying to make is that we need to take time to listen and understand one another. It doesn’t mean we have to agree. Each of us will form our own opinions. But if we take the time to listen to one another, bridges can be built across cultures even when we disagree. After all, best friends, husbands and wives, and even men like Bush Sr and Clinton can become great friends and care for one another even though they don’t always see eye-to-eye. I read the comment about Thailand and I just want to let you and others know that my wife and a team of women are leaving in January on a mission trip to Thailand to try and make a difference and help these young children that are involved in this child prostitution.
Dear Rick I don’t always agree with some of your ideas, but you better send your interviewer on a few trips. He sounds really ignorant. Really wants to pin you on the Marijuana issue. Good luck tonight!
So “Muslim fanatics are about as exceptional as Christian fanatics”. Wow. I know that Christian fanatics have bombed some abortion clinics and murdered abortionists, and Timothy McVea was arguably a “Christian fanatic”. However,I don’t recall the last time “Christian fanatics” blew themselves up at wedding receptions in the Middle East, bombed London subways or Spanish railroad stations, filmed themselves as they cut off journalists heads, bombed nightclubs in Bali or Germany, or hijacked planes and flew them into buildings. You are certainly allowed to express your opinions freely, and I am allowed to stop reading them. I will buy your travel guides for their useful information, but I’m through with your blog. I don’t read George Will and Paul Krugman for travel advice, and I’m not reading Rick Steves for political opinion, especially when it is so simple-minded as to totally deny the very real danger of Islamic fanaticism. I’ll take my chances with the “Christian extremists”.
One of the more pleasant discoveries in reading these blogs has been that you are largely politically correct (at least you seem to agree with me most of the time).
Rick, thanks so much for adding the link to the interview. I’m really shocked at Bob and Joe’s response. While reading the interview I thought the interviewer was mildly immature trying to pin you down on marijuana use, but I thought you handles yourself extremely well as usual. My husband and I really enjoy reading your blog and listening to your radio shows. I believe your are extremely intelligent and Bob doesn’t quite “get” you. I know sometimes I have to read things a few times to get what you are really saying. I thought you did really well on the fly. I agree that traveling opens minds. I am proud to say that all of my children have been to Europe at least twice. My 13 year old has been 5 times and I know it has really changed his world view. Thanks for all you do!
Haven’t had time to read the article yet, but did any of the disagree-ers pay attention to the post? Rick said it was “Colbert-esque” and kept catching him by surprise. For those who watch The Colbert Report, you will know that he interviews serious people on serious topics by asking completely stupid questions in an attempt to get the serious person to say something stupid for a laugh from the audience. Therefore, I know going in that this guy was trying to trip up Rick for some sort of amusement, and obviously Rick wasn’t bothered by it. Maybe we should all take it in that spirit too. I’ll read it on my lunch hour though. Just my thoughts…
What I appreciate about Rick is that he offers perspectives often not available in the mainstream media. Sometimes Europeans are kind of charicatured in the press (be it as “surrender monkeys”,”anti-American” or what have you), but the reality is much more nuanced and thought-provoking than those stereotypes. Rick provides a service by trying to explain why the French are not the cowards that they are often portrayed as, why other cultures might approach problems differently, etc. It’s okay to disagree with Rick’s views, but ad hominem jibes win no points. If someone disagrees, they should ask for clarification and then offer a rebuttal. What is a “political expert” anyway? And how do I get one of those shiny badges? We are all political experts in the democratic marketplace of ideas –at least until people stop buying our fruit. Happy travels & keep the discussion alive!
I agree completely Karen – the interview was characterized as “Colbert-esque” and that was a perfect description. I love Stephen Colbert and that interview with RS was just as fun. Good reading. If you don’t get the humor of Colbert, you won’t get the article. Rick, if someone offers you a “wrist strong” braclet – take it!
Uh, Kathy, Rick suggested that the USA bombs wedding parties “just because one guy was tall.” That is stupid. That is not based in fact. That is an immature comment that a 4th grader would make in an argument when he knew he didn’t have a point. The USA does not bomb wedding parties just because one guy at the party is tall.
Thanks for your comment in the Article that people don’t hate Americans, they hate the war. I’ve been living in Canada for almost a year (for work, not a political reasons) and find that everyone here assumes that the world hates Americans. I have never had any bad travel experiences because of my nationality and have never hidden my nationality. People throughout the world recognize, much better than we do, that there is much more to the world than what you see on TV. The more we can travel, the more we can eliminate prejudices and hopefully make a better world.
Sigh. Bob, I doubt that Rick literally meant that the wedding party was bombed because one person was tall, but that one reason for bad intelligence (and God knows we have had enough of that) is lack of understanding of other cultures. Seems celebratory rifle fire (common in that part of the world) was mistaken for anti-aircraft fire. I grew up in England, although I’ve lived in the US for over thirty years, and one thing I had trouble adjusting to was that irony (and for sure sarcasm) just seem to go right past a lot of people here. Not sure if this a cause or result of another thing I’ve noticed – everything is black or white and compromise is a dirty word, instead of valued technique for actually getting things done.
How do you justify your drug use to your children? Surely you do not advocate this to your 17 year old daughter.
I think Rick may have been referring to the fact that Osama bin Laden is supposed to be tall and US intelligence may have been targeting people who looked taller than average. It certainly is an oblique reference in any case. I don’t know if the editing of the newspaper article was bad or that Rick is speaking in shorthand these days. On a different note, I’d like to add my vote for a blog from Anne on the upcoming Greece trip, just for a different point of view.
Thoughtful comment, Kathy. It’s interesting that a few readers did not “get” the tongue in cheek nature of the interview. I’ve found that Rick frequently makes statements which shed light on his political views. It fascinates me that there are regular readers who find Rick’s political views to be “stupid” and “unAmerican” (I remember one individual who even believed that his message to travel abroad was “anti-American”!) Yet these same folks are just as religious about reading his posts as those who share his views. Now that is a sign of a successful writer I think! Rick’s posts and the comments that follow makes this blog evocative, stimulating and fun to read. Thanks for continuing the blog, RS. We’re off to Europe tomorrow and then will start on a RS tour in Italy in another week. I hope it’s as good as the last one we took in France several years ago.
Now that I’ve read the article I find all the controversy on this blog a little hard to figure out. I thought the article’s tone made it clear that the conversation on the whole was lighthearted, yet dealing with some serious topics. There were several points in the article where Rick laughed at the questions or some provoking statements. Personally, I don’t think any wedding parties should be bombed and I don’t only believe that because I happened to get married this year. Let’s face it, war is hell. And healthy, informed debate from good people of all political points of view is what makes this portion of the world where we are so fortunate to live a great place. Gosh, I’ve spent more time & thought on this blog today than I have on my actual job. Thanks to all for making this blog more interesting than my everyday grind.
I have never posted twice on the same subject – but have now read the interview and I must say, “I also don’t understand what all the fuss is about.” I had no trouble understanding who said what, and what they meant when they said it.” And, once again, perhaps because I agree (most of the time) with Rick’s point of view on people, places, and politics – I can only assume that more people need to travel more often, hopefully on the less well traveled roads of the world. I always dress down and wear my grubbies, don’t flash my US passport, do as the locals do, and blend in with the woodwork. I was in downtown LA last week watching the tour busses disgorging Japanese tourists at Olvera Street (birthplace of Los Angeles). The boxes of artifacts to be sold to the tourists were clearly labeled “made in China.” I want to be a smart, savvy traveler who enjoys learning about a worldview that is bigger than “made in USA.”
I want to answer Alice’s question about Rick’s children and drugs. When I was in Edmonds in March, I was lucky to talk to Rick personally. I asked him if he heard about the parents that gave a two year old a joint. This was on the new often around that time. Rick said, “yes, that’s wild isn’t it?” Rick’s viewers are mostly older adults. If Rick were talking to younger viewers, he would not talk about his view on drugs. He wants Adults to have a choice if they want to smoke pot or not. He is not for children taking drugs. These choices are for mature adults only. When his children grow up, they can make their own choices.
I don’t recall Rick ever actually admitting to marijuana use. In any event, how he conducts himself in his personal life is really none of our business.
Rick (or should i say Winkerbean? ha!), your interview was a real hoot to read. it had me lol at times. thanks for the link.
Nicely done interview. I appreciate your honesty. I agree with you that more Americans should travel. I work with a guy who hasn’t been on vacation since 1994. I have been to Europe 3x in 3 years. While he enjoys his Budweiser I am enjoying my Trappist Ale and French Cheese. Honestly, I am glad people dislike the French goods, It’s a shame. More for me. Fred in Atlanta
Holy Snap! Talk about overreacting to a very humorous, and yet thought provoking interview. “Travel” people, travel. Heck, go live in a different culture for awhile. It’s the absolute best “cure” for blindness ever….. :)
Ditto to the previous comments regarding “all the fuss.” The interview should be read for the intent and style with which it was written. Rick, I rather enjoyed this interview. That being said, I will admit that my initial reaction to the “wedding party” comment was to interpret it as simplistic and glossed over too quickly in the interview (though that may be a result of editing, as H commented earlier), but I was not disturbed by it. To learn more, I did a simple search via Google News Archives with the key words wedding party bombing Osama tall Afghanistan. I found interesting information from such credible sources as the Washington Post, BBC News and CNN that provide basis for Rick’s statement (See the links in my next post).It was enlightening to find out more on this topic and to find multiple, accidental bombings/attacks by the US/Coalition Forces on various wedding parties, homes villages, etc. from the last 5 years, resulting in numerous civilian casualties.
Here are the web addresses for some of the articles I found that I mentioned above: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A55268-2002Feb10?language=printer http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2115496.stm http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1001062,00.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_casualties_of_the_War_in_Afghanistan_%282001%E2%80%93present%29
I read and enjoyed the interview,I didn’t attend your talk and I regret that. I do agree with your POV on our need to travel, very much so, and our need to behave like diplomats when we do. But here’s the thing that’s bugging me. I don’t think the Europeans have the answers and I suspect you are gilding the lily a bit much. Observe our integration of immigrant cultures vs. how European immigrant cultures. Wow, that’s a big nasty fly in the Euro-ointment. Paris riots, crucifixes and pork only lunches in Austrian public schools, popular, openly racist politicians… Europe has it’s share of flaws. I come to this from living there on and off for the last ten years. Europeans have a thing or two to learn from Americans. And believe me, I am acutely aware of our flaws. A recent European house guest was stunned at how America was not what she expected – in a good way. We need to open our doors to our neighbors in addition to getting out of the US ourselves. Diplomacy goes two
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH SMOKING POT. If you want to worry about your kids using drugs, worry about whether they’ll guzzle a quart of Jim Beam and wrap their cars around a tree. That’s what’s killing them, not the pot. I just got back from Amsterdam a couple of days ago, and noticed the young pot smokers were a hell of a lot more calm and quiet than the beer drinkers in Brussels. In Amsterdam, they just seemed to be hungry. For God’s sake, its just a damned plant…let people smoke it if they want. I’d rather have my teenaged kids smoke pot over mindless booze-guzzling any day. THINK about it…PLEASE.
Rick, keep up the great work. We really DO want to hear your opinions. If the SUV-soccer mom crowd that’s criticizing you could lighten up a bit or even take some of your advice, they’d understand how their perspectives might change. There are many Americans out there who have benefited from your message – one that goes beyond travel tips and tries to make a difference in the world. Don’t listen to the skeptics – there are millions more who support you and your cause. Keep it up!