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Why We Love Rick Steves European Guidebooks

In a May/June 2000 story for Transitions Abroad magazine entitled “The Best and Worst Of Europe—with Apologies to None,” Rick Steves writes “the area south of Edinburgh is so boring the Romans decided to block it off with Hadrian’s Wall.” In another section of the piece (still found online and worthy of a download), Steves notes, “Oxford pales next to Cambridge, and Stratford is little more than Shakespeare’s house—and it’s as dead as he is.” Then there’s this juicy tidbit: “A hundred years ago, Athens was a sleepy town of 8,000 people with a pile of ruins in its backyard. Today, it’s a giant mix of concrete, smog, noise, tourists, and four million Greeks. See the four major attractions (the Acropolis, Agora, Plaka, and great National Archaeological Museum) and get out to the islands or countryside.”

 
Best known as the host of the PBS series Rick Steves’ Europe, the man is also a prolific guidebook writer, one who is not in the least bit bashful about sharing his opinion. This is what we want in a travel guidebook, someone with an expert opinion we trust who can break down the destination for us. We don’t want a book the size of Anna Karenina detailing every nook and cranny of that country with little or no judgment (the old Lonely Planet guidebooks come to mind). Most of us have a week or two on vacation, if we’re lucky. We simply want someone to tell us you’d be a fool to miss the Sognefjord fjord in Norway or Burg Eltz castle in Germany, according to Steves. 
 
To see my latest column for Men’s Journal on how to pick a trusted guidebook, click here. 
 

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San Antonio Is a Great Option for Spring Break

While we dig out of the foot of snow in Boston from yesterday’s nor’easter, my thoughts turn to the warmth of San Antonio, where temperatures reach the low 80s the next 10 days. Lisa and I were actually thinking of renting an apartment in San Antonio this February/March and wished we followed through on our actions. The city offers two world class art museums, San Antonio Museum of Art and the McNay, sublime dining which I’ve written about for The Boston Globe and The Washington Post, great neighborhoods to roam like King William and Pearl Brewery, and, of course, all the restaurants and bars that line the renowned River Walk.  But the reason I really love San Antonio is that it’s one of the best biking cities in America. Grab a bike from the B-cycle station (the city’s bike sharing program) at Blue Star Contemporary Art Center and pedal on the 10-mile long bike trail called the Mission Reach. It’s not uncommon to find herons, egrets, families of ducks, and turtles lounging in the waters, and colorful wildflowers in full bloom. When the trail ends at Mission Road, you can turn right to visit Mission Concepcion or left to visit Mission San Jose. These early 18th-century Spanish colonial missions are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and part of a national historic park. I always bring my camera to poke around these impressive buildings and get great shots of the light and shadows reflecting off the walls. 

 
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Agar Supply Jumps on Seafood Traceability Bandwagon

An article I wrote in the March issue of Air Tran’s inflight magazine discussed the problem with mislabeled seafood in Boston. A city that prides itself on its fresh seafood was rocked to its ocean-loving core this past October when a two-part expose published by the Boston Globe revealed that a significant number of fish were mislabeled at area restaurants, grocery stores, and fish markets. Two Globe staff writers went on a fish collecting spree, sending samples of their findings to a laboratory in Canada for DNA testing. The outcome? A whopping 48 percent of the seafood was mislabeled. The good news out of Boston this week is that Agar Supply, New England’s largest independent food distributor, is partnering with Legal Sea Foods so restaurants and supermarkets can track fresh fish all along the supply chain. This comes on the heels of the wonderful work done by Trace and Trust, a group of local Rhode Island fishermen who supply their catch directly to restaurants in Boston and Rhode Island. 
 
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Conservation Efforts in the Masai Mara

Mara is Swahili for “dotted hillside,” aptly named for the wealth of wildlife roaming the valley, especially during the fall when vast hordes of wildebeests are making their annual migration from the Masai Mara to the Serengeti. Yet, it wasn’t so long ago that this same wilderness area was rife with poachers aiming to bag their rhino, Maasai warriors spearing male lions as their gateway to manhood, villagers killing ostriches and impala for their meat, and mass tourism unchecked as 20 to 30 land rovers could often be found viewing that same lone leopard. Haji Ogle, who spent the bulk of his life working for the Kenya Wildlife Service battling poachers in the bush, still has his concerns.  He worries about mass tourism and would like the number of visitors to the park each day to be limited by a national government agency, not the local county council that runs the reserve now. Yet he insists that the Masai Mara be open to everyone, keeping the admission price at a reasonable 500 Kenya Schillings or $6.25 US for adult residents of the country.  Ogle is also uneasy about the growth of large wheat farms that are encroaching on the land from the east, yet he can’t help but remain optimistic. “Coming from where I was and where I am today, this is one of the enterprises that has been a success,” say Ogle.  “Kenyan conservation is now widespread.”
 

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Cruising Portugal on a Harley

October is the ideal time to visit Portugal. The weather is still warm, summer tourists are long gone, and the wines are being harvested. If you truly want to experience the authentic Portuguese culture—tour little known wineries and dine at mom-and-pop seafood restaurants that only a local would know—and get there via stunning scenic mountain passes and backcountry coastal routes, then you’d be wise to book a trip with Portugal Motorcycle Tours. Owner Miguel Oliveira personally guides all his tours and limits the number of riders to 10. Choose between a Harley-Davidson Touring, BMW 1200GS, and Honda NC750 and then pick a trip that suits your schedule. The 5-day Douro Tour will bring you to the lush green hills of Portugal’s most famous wine region, Douro Valley. Or opt for the weeklong cruise to the southwestern most point of Europe, the seafaring town of Sagres on the Algarve. For a quick taste, take the 3-day jaunt from Lisbon north to the small surfing and fishing community of A doe Cunhados. All it takes is one trip with Miguel and you’ll want more. 

 

Quick Escape to San Antonio

San Antonio RiverwalkSan Antonio might be home to the Alamo, but it’s the Riverwalk that lends the city its charm. Take the steps down to this soothing river, shaded by tall cypress, oaks, and willows and you feel transported to a tropical setting just below the busy downtown streets. But the reason I love San Antonio is the fantastic biking. Rent bikes from the Blue Star Bicycling Company at the Blue Star Arts Complex and pedal on the 10-mile-long bike trail called the Mission Reach. It’s not uncommon to find herons, egrets, families of ducks, and turtles lounging in the waters, and colorful wildflowers in full bloom. When the trail ends at Mission Road, you can turn right to visit Mission Concepcion or left to visit Mission San Jose. These early 18th-century Spanish colonial missions are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and part of a national historic park. I always bring my camera to poke around these impressive buildings and get great shots of the light and shadows reflecting off the walls.

But there’s so much more! Two world class art museums, San Antonio Museum of Art and the McNay, one of my favorite botanical gardens in the country, and that dining mecca, The Pearl, that I first described upon its debut in this Washington Post story. Home to the San Antonio branch of the Culinary Institute of America, award-winning restaurants, and a chic boutique hotel built from the remnants of the Pearl Brewery called Hotel Emma, the Pearl is my go-to neighborhood in town. The top restaurant here is Cured, but you better love meat and reserve in advance.

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Italy, Turkey, Lake George, and Favorite All-Inclusive Resorts in our August Newsletter

In this month’s ActiveTravels newsletter, we describe our recent trip with the family to Istanbul and Cappadocia, an outfitter our clients love in Italy, some of our favorite all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean, a Quick Escape to my boyhood stomping ground, Bolton Landing, New York, on the shores of Lake George, and how Award Wallet can save all your airline mileage onto one nice app. 
 
Off to Ithaca to drop our son off at college. I’ll be back with a new entry on Tuesday. Enjoy this last glorious month of summer and Happy Travels!
 

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