Customer Reviews

Travel as a Political Act

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The Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has a great phrase about how Americans should interact with the rest of the world (I'm paraphrasing a bit): "We have to stop thinking of America solely as an exporter of great ideas and realize that we should be an importer of them as well" (He's a Republican??!!). If there were a thesis statement to this book that wasn't written by Rick Steves, you could not do much better than this, for this is what this book as all about: Learning to travel not just for recreational enjoyment, but intellectual enrichment as well.

The book is broken down into sections that demonstrate how different sections of the world handle socioeconomic situations differently than we do in America. He most certainly is not blind to American advantages, despite what his conservative critics will say. He speaks about how he finds it "disheartening" to see extreme theocracy being embraced in curriculums at Iranian universities, institutions he (rightly) believes should be open to challenging the status quo. He also speaks of how it is far easier to make a better profit owning a small business like his in America, as opposed to the regulatory hurdles of EU nations.

At the same time, he makes it clear that the rest of the world thinks about things globally and constantly interact with each other far more often and effectively than citizens of the U.S. do, and he's absolutely right. Some of it can be explained by American geographic isolation, but also because we are conditioned by many influences to fear or dismiss what we don't immediately know or understand. One of the greatest truisms he offers: "The very people who would most benefit from international travel - those who needlessly fear people and places they don't understand - decide to stay home." Sadly, he's right. The most pro-American, uber-patriotic people I know who constantly assert the US is the best country in the world have never been overseas, and they certainly don't plan to either. Yet they KNOW America is #1 because, well...they want to believe it. Those are the people who Rick Steves' message is intended to reach.

The best part about this book is the fact that it is not a how-to guide. It is not a book that tells you specifically how to "travel as a political act" with step-by-step instructions. Rather, it is a collection of stories and dispatches from the author's experiences that is meant to encourage travelers to make their own memories and experiences and use what they learn when they get back, both the good lessons AND the bad. If you're a seasoned traveler who enjoys learning from other cultures, you'll probably find yourself nodding in agreement constantly. I know I did, for my best memories of traveling in South Africa consist of talking to locals in pubs and other places about the recently disposed (at the time) apartheid system. Hearing the perspectives of people of all races certainly helped me put in perspective how we as Americans deal with national problems and how we can always be learning from successes and failures abroad. These are the lessons that Rick Steves asks us to apply to our lives. It shows how politics has the awesome power to shape the kind of society that we would like to see, and to also be weary of the pitfalls of misuse. The result is a book that is more inspirational than preachy, and it is far more successful and enjoyable because of it.

Thomas Jefferson said travel "...makes Americans less happy, but much wiser." Voltaire wrote that we should "Refuse to be happy on the condition of being ignorant, imbecilic, and insulated." The best use of traveling is to learn and apply, for it would surely do our country well if a broader perspective was achieved because we, and our politics, would be much better for it. Most writers outside the political arena don't dare inject politics into their work, for the understandable reason that those who disagree with their politics will be turned off and they'll lose a good deal of prospective customers. All I can say is, THANK GOODNESS that Rick Steves has the courage to throw that notion out the window.

Steves believes travel should bring us together, and ever since his first overseas trip (age 14) he's spent a third of his life overseas; for the last 30 years he has taught people how to navigate the logistics of travel, mostly in Europe.

While unapologetically proud to be an American he also enjoys learning by observing other societies, and sees travel as a way to make the U.s. even stronger. Fear of terrorism is an irrational barrier to travel, per Steves, and he cites the numerous recent years of total safety as proof. Travel has also taught him that we don't have a monopoly on bravery or grit.

Anyone can learn that half the people on this planet are trying to live on $2/day, and a billion on less than $1 - but traveling to the developing world and coming face-to-face with these "statistics" makes the problem more real.

The bulk of the book then summarizes his recent travels around the European area. The former Yugoslavia shows the psychological and physical damage left from a tragic war, the European Union is molding a free-trade zone while maintaining its cultural diversity, Denmark shows contemporary socialism and a society rated the most content in the world, Turkey and Morocco offer a moderate side of Islam within fast developing nations, Netherlands and Switzerland offer a different approach to drug policies, and Iran demonstrates how fear and fundamentalism can lead a nation to trade democracy for theocracy.

Last night I picked up a copy of Travel as a Political Act and then stayed up until midnight reading. I was waiting for this book to come out, after I saw Rick's show about Iran on PBS some time ago. I loved the way he approached his trip and separated the people from the politics, reminding us that governments (even our own) do not always represent the true values and desires of the individuals living under their jurisdiction. And even when they do, and we still disagree with the government and the people, by getting to know individuals we can gain empathy and understanding. We can agree to disagree. We can be friends with people who hold differing views and opinions. We can embrace diversity. (We Americans sometimes seem to forget that the original motto of our nation was E pluribus unum, Latin for "Out of Many, One." The Many is at least as important as the One.) I'd forgotten to keep an eye out for this book, and was pleasantly surprised to discover it was now available.

I love the idea of travel as a political act. I hate politics but I don't want to because political action and involvement is so important. For the past several years I've been searching for ways to be more political without getting pissed off or hating what I'm spending my time doing. This book has some wonderful ideas that I will be exploring further. As is my usual habit with certain types of nonfiction books, I read the introduction and the conclusion first. I was very happy to find some real, practical suggestions for how each of us can act politically through and because of our travels. I am often disappointed in books about political topics that have no real suggestions for action. This book did not disappoint me. I looking forward to reading the rest, and re-reading it, soon.

Thanks Rick!

Most of all, this book is about politics. But not the dry kind nor the angry, shouting kind. It offers light & easy reading of warm human stories (and some sad & poignant ones) that gently instill a sense of shared humanity and the logical (political) conclusions one may draw therefrom.

The author is not a radical liberal. He's not "in your face," nor does he "bash" America. He does not rant about US foreign policy, aggressive military actions, nor illegal wars. He is a Christian, family, patriotic business man who necessarily arrives at humanistic values through his wide experiences as an engaged citizen of the Earth. He expresses these values with an ease and eloquence that is instructive rather than combative, and so I hope to share this book with some of my more conservative and hawkish friends.

The book is highly readable, entertaining, and never dragging. There are plenty of short tales about ah-hah moments, glimpses into people's lives, funny stories, and poignant moments that both held my interest, renewed my hope despite these contentious times, and made me eager to hit the road again myself.

Rick's strength is his open mind & heart that allow him to mingle and to understand foreign perspectives-- to suspend judgement and appreciate "cultural relativity." He doesn't make foreigners "right" nor us "wrong," but rather suggests the lessons we can all learn to promote global peace and prosperity.

The European chapters explore EU attitudes toward such issues as nudity, sex, drugs, & prostitution from which we might learn alternative perspectives. For instance, he favors drug regulation over prohibition and rehabilitation over incarceration, citing the results achieved in Europe. He respects European's relaxed nudity at the beach and yet yanked the TV out of the kids' hotel room when it was too sexually explicit. He sees value in EU governmental regulations while also laughing at the absurdity of specifying the "proper" curvature of a cucumber in 23 languages.

The chapter on Yugoslavia examines the senseless horrors of their war; the chapter on Turkey & Morocco provides balanced insights into Islamic culture; the chapter on El Salvador provides a lens to examine globalization & corporate profits; and the chapter on Iran portrays the people as fundamentally no different from Americans. When the Iranian taxi driver shouts "Death to traffic!", Steves learns that such a proclamation is equivalent to saying, "Damn that teenager" without really meaning to sentence a child to eternal hell. So, their "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" proclamations are better understood in that cultural context as expressions of frustration, not as literal death threats.

If you're looking for travel advice, you will indeed find excellent advice here but only in a very broad sense: having an open-minded attitude, connecting with locals, and getting off the beaten path. If you are preparing for a trip, this book will help with inspiration and attitude, which is much more important than details anyway.

Being an experienced independent traveler, I read this not for travel advice but for political insights, and it did indeed reinforce and give voice to my own liberal, populist attitudes that have arisen in part from years of travel in third world nations. Rick reminds us that people are not their government and that the vast majority are just like us, in that they want to live in peace and to lovingly provide for their families. He helps to pierce the veil of false stereotypes about "evil" foreigners (that government and media often invoke to support their agendas.)

I will end with some quotes:

"I'm unapologetically proud to be an American...But other nations have some pretty good ideas, too." pg viii

"My favorite Muhammad quote: "Don't tell me how educated you are; tell me how much you've traveled."" pg 141

"...travel takes the fear out of foreign ways." pg 142

"What I learn about Islam from media in the US can fill me with fear and anger. What I learn about Islam by traveling in Muslim countries fills me with hope." pg 147

"Most Iranians, like most Americans, simply want a good life and a safe homeland for their loved ones." pg 192

"Our political leaders sometimes make us forget that all of us on this small planet are equally precious children of God." pg 193

"[travel] also shows us how much we have to be grateful for, to take responsibility for, and to protect." pg 196

"Mark Twain wrote, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness."" pg 197

"...the ultimate souvenir is a broader outlook." pg 196

Rick Steves is at it again. He used to tell people to travel "close to the ground," spending less money by staying in hostels and mingling with locals on free museum days. Now, realizing that his aging readership demands ensuite bathrooms and has more money than time, he's adjusted his guidebooks accordingly. He even runs a booming tour business, even though you just know he has no respect for people who take package tours. His heart is in the guidebooks that encourage you to travel on your own, the Rick Steves way.

And that is what he advocates in Travel as a Political Act - travel the Rick Steves way. Early in the book, he reveals that as a young tour guide, he tried to shake up his tour members by not making hotel arrangements until the last minute. Sometimes he waited too long to make reservations and there were no rooms left, so the group had to camp out. He wanted to teach them what it felt like to be homeless. While acknowledging that this was not a good practice for a tour guide, he still has a spark of that teaching-people-a-lesson attitude. In his own words, he is "evangelical about travel."

How do you make travel a political act? This is where it gets a bit vague. Get out of the bus (or cruise ship or car or RV) and talk with people. Observe how people live. Get out of your comfort zone and explore the parts of town that are less touristy. Learn how what our government does affects people around the world. Or how it doesn't affect them. When you come back home, vote thoughtfully. Talk politics with people who disagree with you. Bring up touchy subjects like poverty and drug policies. Teach people a lesson.

Travel as a Political Act is a short book (around 200 pages) with lots of photographs. Rick recycles some stories from his guidebooks, blog, and TV shows ("...zees cheese. It smells like zee feet of angels."), and mixes serious with upbeat. He is less reticent these days about talking religion. He's never been reticent about talking politics.

It's a fun read all the same. I read it on the plane going to Europe, but I'm afraid I acted like a typical tourist once I got there. Stayed at a chain hotel, shopped, looked at the sights. Had a great time. I'm probably no better than the cruise ship tourists that he mocks. I didn't change the world. Maybe next time.

I read TRAVEL AS A POLITICAL ACT (on Kindle) and was most impressed with the entire presentation of people as people. When I travel, I like to get off the beaten path. This summer I went on a Med cruise with my husband and another couple. It was agreed that we would book an excursion in each port to get a flavor of the place.

I found I got a much better flavor of the places in this book than I did on the tours. I would very much like to travel to some of the world's hot spots. When I express a desire to visit the Middle East or South America, I am met with comments like "are you crazy" and a lot of eye rolling.

Rick Steves has bolstered my estimate that given the chance, all people can and will get along. I came away from reading TRAVEL AS A POLITICAL ACT thinking that it could benefit children by allowing them to view a broader perspective than that which they get at home or in school.

A message implicit in the Rick Steves travel philosophy behind his ultra-useful Europe travel guides is at the center of this wonderful, unique book: your responsibilities as a citizen travel with you when you leave your country. Or" "Active, responsible citizenship: don't leave home (or return) without it." Traveling with your eyes open, and with an open mind and open heart, means that you will experience how people in other places do things differently--and difference is not bad. The more we learn about others, the more we learn about ourselves, often lessons that might be applied back home to improve our community, nation, planet.

The focus throughout the book is on people--ordinary (though often extraordinary) people Steves met while traveling--and how they live their lives. Drawn from Steves' extensive travels over forty years, the easily-readable small volume is chock full of examples of how people in Europe (and Morocco, Turkey, El Salvador and Iran) do things differently, from mailboxes designed to deter junk mail to approaches to soft drug use. Steves' reflections on these differences helped me understand the rationale behind them. The powerful final chapter helped me see how I might share good ideas from my travels when I return home, and contribute to the betterment of all.

To get the most out of this book requires some background knowledge of what's happening in the world (at the level of occasional TV news watching), but any reader will learn a great deal about how the world works from reading this. And you don't need to be a traveler to gain from it, but almost certainly you will be more inspired to travel--and to learn and contribute--after reading it.

I have always used Rick Steve's guidebooks when traveling through Europe, and found them much more helpful than any other guidebooks on the market. I was highly interested when I saw this book, and was very excited to read it. This book basically sums up why I believe people should travel. Steve's perceptions, stories, and strong writing make the places he writes about come alive. A very good read, but expect to have at least a few of your own ideas about life challenged.

As a side note: Steve's absolutely does not "slam" the United States, but he does criticize the government. Which is the whole point of a democracy in the first place.

For those who want the American way of travel with a five star hotel and predictable food, this book will not appeal to you. For those like my family who love learning about other cultures and respecting different ways of living, its a wonderful book.

Yes, the author has written the most personal book he has ever written where he shares his views on America and how and why some countries do not like the government. And having seen way to many 'ugly Americans' when traveling, I am glad he was so honest. And if the book helps just a handful of Americans who will travel, to stop and think before they speak when abroad, then this is a reason for 5 stars.

Much of the book deals with how to travel well as an informed traveler. We love staying away from tourist areas and always seek out quiet visits to local book stores, small eateries off the beaten path where the locals eat, small hotels or bed and breakfast style places. And we love visiting old cemeteries to do headstone rubbings.

Rick delivers a 1, 2, punch on this knockout travelogue if you will. The book is definitely a must read and very insightful, if not eye opening on what is happening in the world of travel and how life is in the EU as compared to life here on our comfortable American soil. I agree with Rick on this one (not a spoiler by any means) that both sides of the Atlantic could benefit by learning from each other and trying new things and ideas in a way that we can live with without compromising our way of life.