Getting Oriented in Kyrgyzstan
The goat-thing in front of me was perfect. And I was worried that I’m a bad traveler. For starters, I confess that I wasn’t 100% sure of how to pronounce Kyrgyzstan when I… Continue reading
Category Archive: travel
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European spring 2022
The night before my first tour of Europe after two years of covid-enforced sabbatical, I wrote a post about the energy filling my mind and rattling through my body. But then I took… Continue reading
It’s Time
I’ve rarely been so sorry to be right. January 2020, at our annual Rick Steves’ Europe annual guide conference, they asked me to say something about preparing tour members for the crowds. Those… Continue reading
Romania update
The Romanian people have responded to the flow of Ukrainian refugees into their country with a tide of rides given, food donated, and homes shared. In doing so, they have also given us… Continue reading
Is it safe to go to Europe right now?
To be honest, the war in Ukraine is straining my higher principles of unity, human brotherhood, and tolerance. The reptilian part of me wants to see Moscow become a smoldering ruin. It’s just… Continue reading
International Women’s Day in Cuba
The magazine’s reception desk was empty when we arrived, but we could hear voices not far away. My former partner and I had come to Cuba during the heady days of Obama’s second… Continue reading
Ukraine and What to Do About It
My friend in Kiev sounds exhausted. Her family lost everything when Russia invaded the Donbas, and she was just getting back on her feet when this current round of menace began. “Just a… Continue reading
The Salt Mines of Salina Turda
Have you ever taken one of those glass-sided “sky elevators”? Up the side of the Victor Emmanuel Monument in Rome, in the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid, and China has a doozy or… Continue reading
Taking a Moment
A former tour member and friend (the latter invariably follows from the former) just asked me how difficult my Romania tour will be. I started my reply with the medieval cobblestone streets, gentle… Continue reading
Click here first!
Romania was one big question mark when I first went, but after a couple months exploring the country, a clear chain of top notch attractions populated my mental map. Add in an incomparable… Continue reading
