Travel With Rick Steves

British travel writer Richard Grant discusses the sporting sense of humor he's observed (and appreciated) behind the distinctly American talent for over-the-top bragging. Then tour guides from Madrid let us in on their favorite places to take visitors in the Spanish capital. And we ponder our place in the planet's history with author Robert Macfarlane, who shares insights gained from a decade of investigating, from a perspective of geologic time, humanity's relationship with our landscape. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicholas Kristof has witnessed his share of danger and strife as a foreign correspondent. Listen in as he reflects on his career and helps us look for hope beyond the headlines that bombard us daily. Plus, get a taste of the culinary delights of Paris with a foodie so enamored of France that he moved there from Australia. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Get ideas for visiting some of Paris' unique, under-appreciated small museums, as well as tips for tackling its massive grande dame, the Louvre — and an author's insights into the former palace's remarkable history. And French tour guides tell us what they love best about the cities along the Mediterranean's sparkling Cote d'Azur. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Get a taste of the hearty, homespun cuisine of the American South from a writer who has documented our nation through the foods we celebrate. Then hear about a man's quest to trace the travels of Ben Franklin — and to uncover the founder's life lessons. And listen in as callers recount meaningful travel experiences close to home in North America. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

A Newfoundland musician lets us in on the sights he recommends to best enjoy the rugged beauty of his Atlantic island home. Then an award-winning Canadian TV personality shares his own favorite places and things to enjoy across Canada. Plus, a culinary historian raises a glass to New Orleans and unveils how to appreciate the history of America's most "spirited" city through its distinctive cocktails. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Hear about the slower pace of life on Bowen Island, just offshore from bustling Vancouver, British Columbia. Then get tips for exploring Alaska beyond its cruise ship ports. And vicariously experience a summer hike across Iceland's dramatic backcountry. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Hear from a scuba diving enthusiast how the scenery beneath the surface can be breathtaking in unexpected ways. Then get tips from a tour guide for enjoying Italy's gorgeous Amalfi Coast in spite of the crowds. And discover how you can enjoy a ramble on one of England's most popular hiking trails, the South West Coast Path. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

The Iberian Peninsula takes center stage as tour guides tell us what they like best about the scenic Algarve region of Portugal, and recommend where to find the charming parts of Spain's crowded and touristy Costa del Sol. Plus, futurist Kevin Kelly tells us what traditional aspects of Asia have impressed him the most over fifty years of photo journeys across the continent. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

A self-described "Rome nerd" helps us picture what it was like to live in the Roman Empire and explains how much we can learn about the era from its now 2,000-year-old rubble. Then a tour guide from Bulgaria sings the praises of its cultural capital, Plovdiv — one of the oldest cities in Europe, possibly in the whole world. And listeners share serendipitous stories from their European travels. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Historian, novelist, and legendary editor Michael Korda invites us to look back on World War I through the eyes of its soldier poets, whose works — often composed in the trenches — offer an unusually personal and uncensored perspective on the horrors of "the war to end all wars." And a Turkish tour guide takes listener calls while offering advice for finding a friendly welcome in the rural villages of Turkey, where the main attraction might just be…you. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Rick and his senior writer discuss why so much of what Americans have long called "Eastern Europe" is better termed "Central Europe," especially with the Cold War now several decades behind us. Then a tour guide from Oslo explains how Norway cleverly uses its oil-industry revenues to maintain a flourishing society. And German-American journalist Michael Scott Moore tells us how he survived nearly three years as a hostage of pirates in Somalia. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

A pair of tour-bus drivers offer their expert tips on what to expect when navigating the highways of Europe. Then we discuss ideas for exploring two of Europe's most scenic regions: the lush Irish countryside and the floral landscapes and villages of southern France — and pop into a Dublin pub for a wee sing-along. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

A German journalist shares some timely thoughts on what his fellow citizens find appealing about America, as well as his insights into the intriguing differences between our two societies. Then a London "mudlarker" who searches the River Thames at low tide for buried objects describes how discarded items can connect us with life in the Victorian era, and even as far back as Roman times. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

A Dutch guide invites us to imagine a day on the water exploring Amsterdam's iconic canals. Then a historian shares what little we know of the elusive Sentinelese — likely the most isolated, least contacted people on earth — and what he learned by traveling to nearby islands in the Bay of Bengal. And a tour guide from Portugal tells us why the venerable university of town of Coimbra is such a delight to explore. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

Celebrate Earth Day by considering the ways you can address climate change at home, with practical advice from a scientist who's seen its effects around the world. Then hear from a culinary historian about the crops, farm animals, and agricultural traditions that we risk losing in America. And mark Shakespeare's birthday by learning how his works have played a key role in shaping Africa's newest nation and by getting tips for enjoying a visit to his hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

We admire the seafaring prowess of the Polynesians and hear how a cultural faux pas led to Captain James Cook's fateful encounter with 18th-century Hawaiians. Then tour guides from Athens and Thessaloniki recommend attractions to visit in northern Greece, and The New Yorker’s "Comma Queen," Mary Norris, explains what an appreciation for Greek language and mythology can add to your own Greek odyssey. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

We learn some surprisingly useful Italian phrases from one of Italy's most popular newspaper columnists, then consider why certain places have fostered more than their share of world-changing innovations, and hear about Timbuktu's history as an important center for scholarship. Plus, we find out about the thrill of dropping in on a choir practice in small-town Wales. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

A nature filmmaker and self-proclaimed "umbraphile" shares tips for viewing the next total solar eclipse, when the moon will cast its otherworldly shadow on a narrow band across North America on April 8 — and explains why he thinks it’s worth a trek to the totality zone. Then the "Paddle Pilgrim" returns to tell us about the unexpected challenges along his month-long Southeast Asian adventure kayaking down the Mekong River, where he was forced to learn to "linger with the lotus." And Cecily Wong from Atlas Obscura describes some of the strangest potions and fermented foods concocted before the era of refrigeration. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

An American expat in Oslo shares some of the quirks and customs of life in his adopted home. Then, a wilderness and history author recounts what he found exploring four blank spots on the US map. And an ethnobotanist describes the healing properties of different kinds of herbs around the world — some of which might be growing in your own backyard. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.

In this all-Irish hour, tour guides describe some of the intriguing sights you'd encounter on a walking tour of Dublin and explain why the rugged Aran Islands, off Ireland's west coast, are such an exciting place to explore Irish traditions. And author Timothy Egan delves into the legacy of 19th-century America's most famous Irish immigrant. For more information on Travel with Rick Steves - including episode descriptions, program archives and related details - visit www.ricksteves.com.