Rick Steves' Travel Blog

Here you can browse through my blog posts prior to February 2022. Currently I'm sharing my travel experiences, candid opinions, and what's on my mind solely on my Facebook page. — Rick

Thanks for all of the great stories you shared yesterday about language barrier fiascos you’ve experienced during your travels. I enjoyed lots of laughs.

Let’s keep the laughs going — I’d love to hear your travel stories about the unfortunate (but funny) medical snafus you’ve had on the road. Here’s mine: While traveling through the Middle East in my vagabond days, I had a serious and persistent case of diarrhea. I finally went to a doctor who put me on a strict diet of plain, boiled rice and tea. It worked really well. In fact, after several days on that diet, I became horribly constipated. I kept plugging along, and I remember actually being nostalgic about the runs I no longer had. (The end of that painful episode, while unforgettable, is one story I’ve never told…an experience that never made its way into the “anals” of Europe Through the Back Door lore.)

How about you? Have you had any medical experiences on the road that you look back on and laugh about now?

October 23, 2017

“Lick me!”: Your Funniest Stories about Language Barrier Fiascos

Yesterday, I put a call out for your funniest travel stories about running into the language barrier. It was so much fun to read your responses, and to realize that this experience is shared by all travelers. I kept thinking, “been there, done that.” And even more embarrassing language mistakes I’ve made came to mind — like how, for years, I used to tell people in Italy, “Io sono capa gruppa.” This always seemed to get people’s attention in a bemused kind of way…and then I learned I was saying something like, “I am a female tour guide.”

Here are a few of my favorite stories that you shared:

Hage Mofin wrote: “Once in Paris many years ago when I was being bothered by someone in the street I told them: ‘Léchez-moi!’ They looked at me confused and then went away. It was only afterward, when my nieces were giggling at me, that I realized I should have said ‘Laissez-moi!’ — ‘Leave me!’ — not ‘Léchez-moi!’ which translates as ‘Lick me!'”

Keith Petrus wrote: “I was crossing the street in Amsterdam after visiting the Van Gogh Museum when I was accosted by a man on a bike. He was yelling something that sounded crazy…like ‘Yow Hoot!’ As I attempted to escape this crazy person, a second bike rider appeared, shouting ‘jouw hoed’ (‘your hat’) — which I had dropped while crossing the intersection.”

Shawn Walsh wrote: “While on vacation visiting family in Germany, to my surprise, I truly enjoyed liverwurst. But when I asked for some ‘Leibe Wurst’ (which means ‘Love Sausage’) my relatives responded with giggles.”

Jennifer Wood Leslie wrote: “In Milan, while filling up our rental car with gas, I asked the cashier where we could find a laundromat. We had next to no Italian; he had no English. He gave us directions and drew a map. We ended up at a car wash.”

Karen Ebling wrote: “I always remember a large ad in a magazine in Australia, where the slang for lips is ‘pecker.’ This was advertising some sort of lip balm, asking: ‘Is your pecker dry, chapped, or sun-burnt?’ We traveling Americans got a kick out of that.”

Janice Garcia wrote: “In my mom’s only trip abroad, she was perplexed as to why people were handing her a beer when she requested the ‘cervesas.’ Of course, she meant ‘servicios.’ After several of these experiences, she started carrying a roll of toilet paper in her purse and flashing it as she requested her beer…did the trick.”

You can see all the responses to yesterday’s post on my blog and Facebook. Which ones did you think were the funniest?

October 22, 2017October 20, 2017

Travel Stories: Language Barrier Fiascos

I really enjoy the traveling community we’ve built here on my blog and on Facebook. It’s a true joy to get to know you, hear about your travel dreams, and read your travel stories.

Is anyone up for some laughs? Over the next few days, let’s share our funniest travel experiences. Each day, I’ll suggest a topic and kick things off with my own funny story — and then you can take it from there in the comments. Let’s start with stories about language barrier fiascos we’ve experienced. I’ve certainly had a few — but for me, it’s all part of the fun of travel.

Over the years, I’ve given myself countless chuckles because of my inability to speak local languages. I’ll never forget the bus ride in eastern Turkey where, at each town, ladies kept coming onto my bus with handfuls of nuts saying, “Buy them.” I thought of it as rude, until I learned they were saying the local word for almonds: “badem.”

In Scotland this summer, I took a huge gulp of something the locals call “double cream.” I figured it was yogurt…but it turned out to be very rich cream, and I nearly gagged.

And on one trip in Spain, I went through a period when I’d order a glass of hot milk in bars by bellying up to the counter and boldly saying, “Leche caliente, por favor.” I got strange reactions…until someone told me that’s slang for “sperm.”

Okay, now it’s your turn…

October 20, 2017

Community, Commitment, and Compassion at Trinity Place

Photo: My Edmonds News

I’ve already consumed all I really need. And as a business owner, I feel it’s a responsibility to make a real commitment to my community. So, earlier this year, I gave a $4 million apartment complex for homeless women and kids to the YWCA.

This donation has brought me such joy. Yesterday, I was honored to meet some of the residents of Trinity Place apartments and attend a dedication ceremony for a Japanese snowbell tree planted in my name.

It’s my hope that this project can inspire others to think creatively about how we can make America a more genuinely compassionate place.

October 18, 2017

500 Radio Episodes! Thank You, Producer Tim Tattan

While perhaps not as well-known as my guidebooks and television show, my weekly public radio show is one of my favorite endeavors. Rather than being the guide, I get to be the curious traveler — acting as a conduit between experts and my listeners.

Thinking back to the roots of the show, I remember enjoying fascinating conversations with tour-guide friends and guidebook researchers. We’d debate the fine points of European travel and tour routes, and I’d think, “I find this so interesting…I wish more people could enjoy this conversation. If we simply had recorded this, it would have been great talk radio.” I asked my friends at KUOW whether they’d run a show if I produced it — and they said yes.

So, I gathered my staff and announced that we’d begin producing a public radio program. I found a great producer, Tim Tattan, and we designed a show. Twelve years later, Travel with Rick Steves can be heard weekly on 424 public radio stations, online, and as a podcast.

Last night, we celebrated our 500th episode with a surprise party for Tim. In this little clip from a longer video we shared at the event, you can see just how much I depend on Tim and his editing and production crew, Sarah McCormic and Isaac Kaplan-Woolner, to produce a beautiful show.