Traveling back in time with Rick Steves

Rick was really on to something when he got started with his early programs, and that vision continues today, along with continuing developments to what he offers, and how. I wonder if, 10 to 20 to 30 years from now, his current shows will evoke memories of how good it was back in the 2020’s. I wonder if some new development in the future will make people being focused on the smartphone in their hand, and the present selfie obsession seem quaint and charming, compared to what’s to come?

Enjoy your DVD’s - that’s quite an addition to your library!

"who needs paper maps?" there is something worth thinking about. Who , whilst engrossed in checking a paper map and not paying attention elsewhere, ever had the map snatched from their hands by a thief on a bike? Now change the item to a smart phone and ask the question in central London and various cities in other countries......

And how do you mark a smartphone with where you have been and keep it in a box of momentos....

But I agree completely with the first point! You could have added people looking out of the train/bus window to see the scenery they paid to visit instead of staring at their phones....

Found an old DVD collection of the Best of Travels with Rick Steves on sale and had to buy it.

Somewhere in a closet in a box marked "DVDs" is our RS collection of that older series.

I love the older show and the "newer" ones of the 21st century, but we've all seen that many travels shows don't age well - information wise - but I keep watching them anyway.

It's a blast to watch Rick's clothing and style evolve over decades. Still not sure about his "scarf" phase, though.

This brought back memories of traveling in the 1990s. I went to Europe (Ireland) for the first time in 1993. The next year, I read Europe Through the Back Door, changing my travel style. Some things I remember from those early trips:

1)I usually did not make reservations in advance, some times not even for the first night. I'd land, buy a local phone card, find a public phone and call recommended B&Bs in Rick's or Lonely Planet guidebooks. In 1997, I landed in Dublin and called each of the 10 B&Bs in Rick's book, none of which had vacancy. Then, I went to the local tourist information office, and a Spanish lady at the desk found a room for me. (She and I talked in Spanish.)

2)I stayed in youth hostels in Ireland, Germany and Austria for a three trips in the mid-1990s, though I was already in my early 30s. Though some of them could be noisy and all of them were smelly, they were worth the experience. The best one was staying in Castle Stahleck, an authentic medieval castle converted to hostel use, in Bacharach, Germany, in 1996. I still remember packing my own sheets in my backpack.

3)I didn't use an ATM card for my first five trips. First, I'd bring a wad of cash, find a bank and have it converted to the local currency; Europe didn't use euros until 1999. Then I used American Express Travelers Cheques for a couple trips. I used my ATM card for the first time in Germany in 2004, amazed that it worked.

4)I used shared common bathroom/showers in Germany and France several times.

5)I paid the driver for a bus ticket several times. There was no ticket machine, agent or app. As recently as 2013 in Israel, bus drivers still sold tickets.

I've spent a romping lifetime in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. I wouldn't have had it any other way.

What most impressed me with Rick Steves' early shows was his emphasis on independent travel. I don't recall any mention of group travel or paying a private guide. The concept, at least as I remember the show, was that with a bit of planning anyone could manage a budget-wise trip to Europe. In retrospect, during his earliest shows and definitely during my even earlier initial European travels, there were no personal computers so researching transportation, accommodations, entrance times and costs for specific sites, etc., was all much more challenging. And travelers' checks were a pain to manage.