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
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