I’m a bit of a homebody.

So it’s a little ironic how much I enjoyed Rick Steves’ new travel book, On the Hippie Trail. I’m fascinated by people like Steves, who told the New York Times:

“Some people, their wisdom is, don’t get on a bus if it’s too crowded. You might get pickpocketed. I love to be on a bus that’s so crowded that there’s people hanging outside the door when the bus takes off and then they settle in like cornflakes settle into a box, and there’s always room for one more body.”

At age 23, Steves made enough money teaching piano lessons to spend summers in Europe. He assumed piano teaching was his life’s work. But by 25, he gave up lessons altogether and turned his recital hall into a travel lecture hall. Soon, he was leading tours across “the best 3,000 miles Europe had to offer.”

And the rest is history.

What struck me most was his perspective on the power of travel to connect us:

He says, “Culture shock is a constructive thing. It’s the growing pains of a broadening perspective. To me, there are two kinds of travel: escape travel, and reality travel. I want to go home a little bit different, a little less afraid, a little more thankful, a little better citizen of the planet.”

I’ll give that some thought. In the meantime, I highly recommend his book. Happy trails.