Hi from Rick: It's All About the People
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| Sharing a ferry ride to Ireland's Aran Islands: "relationships are the most lasting and rewarding parts of any travel experience." |
Dear Traveler,
Imagine our Dutch tour guide, Rolinka, dressed in baggy overalls, blonde hair pulled into a bouncy ponytail, Texas-sized freckles painted on her face, walking like a bowlegged cowboy pulling his suspenders apart, hollering at me: "Eeee-haw! Is this what-cha call a hootenanny?"
For years our tour guides have helped you and me travel as temporary Europeans. So, last week — while 80 of them were in town for our annual summit and tour reunion — we decided to turn the tables on them. Encouraging everyone to dress as "old west" as they could muster, we filled a school gym for a night of barbecue and do-si-do with a local Square Dance club. The old timers with their big belt buckles, the ladies in their crinoline dresses — and the sheer fun of this classic bit of Americana — made the night special for Yanks and Euros alike. In fact, they all want to come back for more next year.
What a week it was. Saturday (Jan. 14th) was an exhilarating three ring circus of two dozen "Test Drive a Tour Guide" presentations and four big alum parties. We pretty much took Edmonds, WA by storm, filling up the big venues, bars, and restaurants with a crowd of more than a thousand rambunctious travelers. The rest of the week was filled with tour itinerary brain-storming sessions (attended by me, our guides and tour operations staff) so we can update and fine-tune each tour to perfection for 2012. I even managed to squeeze in 30 "European insider" interviews for my radio show. This week feels eerily quiet around here — now that everyone has flown back home — but it's a perfect time for Tour News.
This month's edition focuses on our four itineraries through Spain and Portugal (with bits of France and Morocco as well). You'll find a fresh, day-by-day slideshow from our Spain with Morocco tour, a guide interview with Javier Menor de las Casas, reviews from tour members, a video clip from Barcelona — even some sample dinner menus.
You'll also see a slideshow of some remarkable art that now decorates the ailing town of Vernazza (with tips on how you can help), and a fun set of snapshots from January's tour reunion parties.
The fellowship I see among our tour alums and the ways people are coming to the aid of Vernazza are vivid reminders of how personal relationships are the most lasting and rewarding parts of any travel experience.
In that spirit, I want to thank all of you who have sent your very kind wishes and condolences following the loss of my mother on December 29th. It has meant a lot to me. And I am lucky to have such a large and far-flung extended family.
Happy travels,
Rick