Program 673a: Visiting Antarctica; The Journeys of Trees; Italy's Northern Lakes

Look at the forest, and the trees, and you'll notice the growing impacts of a warming climate.

On the Arbor Day edition of Travel with Rick Steves, journalist Zach St. George explains how some tree species in North America are having to migrate to more suitable climates.

Julian Sancton tells us how a trip to Antarctica, helped him see the continent through the eyes of the early polar explorers he was writing about.

And we take a dip into the big resort lakes of northern Italy, where sports and celebrities compete with the scenery for your attention.

• Julian Sancton, author of "Madhouse at the End of the Earth" (Random House)
• Journalist Zach St. George, author of "The Journeys of Trees" (W. W. Norton)
• Tour guide Patricia Fannon, based at Lake Garda, Italy
• Tour guide Donald White, based at Varenna (Lake Como), Italy

• Julian Sancton writes about the journey of the RV Belgica into the Antarctic winter in his book, "Madhouse at the End of the Earth."
• Julian Sancton talks about his trip to Antarctica with fellow Penguin author Maggie Shipstead.
• Julian talks with Rick about the voyage of the RV Belgica on Travel with Rick Steves program #656 from November 2021.
• Zach St. George is the author of "The Journeys of Trees."
• Zach writes for Yale Environment 360 on the impact climate change is having on plant life around the world.
• Rick writes about the romance of Italy's Lake District.
• Donald White talks about why he moved to Varenna, on Lake Como.
• Patricia Fannon Avolio (e-mail: [email protected]) offers private tours in the area around Lake Garda and the Dolomites.

• "Please compare Lakes Como, Maggiore, and Garda, in terms of beauty, cost, things to do, etc. What's the best city to use as a home base for a week?" (David in Houston)
• Caller is flying into and out of Milan for 10 days of sightseeing. "The plan is for three days in Milan and then…help! Heading to Lake Como. I hear Varenna is the place to stay. Are two days enough? And want to do a train into the Alps. What do you think about Lake Garda?" (Jeff in Scottsdale, Arizona)

• Mark Isham, "Mr. Moto's Penguin," Vapor Drawings / Windham Hill
• Daniel Blanchet, "Ellievel L'harmonie des mondes," Au-Delá du Rubicon (Beyond Rubicon) (collection) / Disques Rubicon 
• SON_SCD_0883_00801_Arctic_Splendor_A_APM
• Dave Harris and the Powerhouse Five, "The Penguin," Cocktail Mix vol. 1: Bachelor's Guide to the Galaxy (collection) / Rhino
• Hector Zazou, Silabuk and Nooveya, "Song of the Water," Songs of the Cold Seas / Columbia
• London Symphony Orchestra, Michael Tilson Thomas, cond., "La Boite a Joujoux:  I-Prelude (Debussy)," Almanac 1992 Highlights of the Year (collection) / Sony Almanac
• * Ryuichi Sakamoto, "Chanson," BTTB / Sony Masterworks
• Dragon Lounge, "Saigon Sundown," Buddha Deluxe Lounge (collection) / Mainfold Records
• Alison Brown, "Deep Gap," Americana (collection) / Putumayo
• Robert Powell, "Truckstop Mirage," Desert Beach / Blue Yonder Music
• Miles Davis, Michel Legrand, "Au Bar du Petit Bac," Ascenseur pour l'echafaud (soundtrack) / Poll Winners
• Bruce Cockburn, "If a Tree Falls," If a Tree Falls (collection) / EarthBeat!
• KOS_KOS_0412_01001_Serene_Forest_APM
• * Ad Vielle Que Pourra, "Un Quebecois a Caracas," Kicking Up Dust: The Dawson City Music Festival, disc 2 (collection) / (custom)
• London Philharmonic Orchestra, Franz Welser-Most, cond., "'Italian' Symphony No. 4 in A-allegro vivace (Mendelssohn)," Schumann and Mendelssohn Symphonies / EMI Classics
• PRM_PRM_0140_00101_Sweet_Life_APM
• Chet Atkins, "La Dolce Vita," Travelin' / RLG-Legacy
• I Musici, Felix Ayo, cond, "Violin Concerto in E RV 271 'L'Amoroso' I:Allegro (Vivaldi)," Vivaldi for Valentines (collection) / Universal International Music BV
• Cincinnati Pops, Erich Kunzel, cond., "‘Di Provenza il mar, il suol’ from ‘La Traviata’   (Verdi)," Bella Tuscany (collection) / Telarc
• Xavier Cugat, "La Dolce Vita," Most Popular Movie Hits as Styled by Cugat / Mercury

* Indicates filler music used during internal breaks on the broadcast

• At 9:50, Julian says there were 55,000 tourists a year visiting Antarctica by 2010. He adds at 10:10 that there are a few people living at the South Pole station year-round, to study the effects of long-term isolation as a model for exploring Mars.
• Zach raises the issues threatening the health of giant sequoia trees in California, starting at 21:05.
• At 29:57, Zach says different species of ash trees in the US are being threatened by beetle infestations. At 31:16, he says the worst effects of fires are happening in the American West.