Travel Expert Rick Steves spends an evening in Santa Barbara
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Fans of travel expert Rick Steves learned that even experts can miss connections.
“I woke up very early in Columbus, Ohio, after talking to a group like this last night, and I don’t think you’ve ever experienced the cold, the de-icing and sitting on the tarmac for an hour, wondering how you’re going to get to Santa Barbara,” Steves said. “Am I going to make my connection in Denver? Miss it and have to scramble for something else? I ended up flying not to Santa Barbara but to LAX. Thank goodness Angelique Springer Davis was down there. We even complained about the traffic all the way up here—and I swear I got from Columbus to here with 15 minutes to spare. I’m glad to be here.”
Steves arrived in time to greet supporters of TVSB, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary in June.
Steves said he recently survived prostate cancer and welcomed a new grandchild, Atlas.
“I’m in a very thankful mood. I’m thankful for so many things,” he said.
TVSB’s Erik Davis conducted a Q&A before a brief intermission and asked Steves about open streets such as State Street.
“You can hardly visit a European city without noticing that its old center is car free—apart from vehicles for residents, taxis and service trucks,” Steves said. “In many cases, the most famous pedestrian boulevards began amid great public opposition, especially from local businesses worried that customers couldn’t reach them easily. But with strong leadership from the top, those streets now command the highest rents and offer the best pedestrian exposure—and adjacent streets are following suit.”
The author of Travel as a Political Act did not shy away from discussing climate change and politics.
“There’s a new term I’d never heard before—legacy media. It’s been around, but I’d never heard it used until right-wing autocrats and oligarchs started talking about it. They’re priming us to think of it as something bad, like the ‘deep state.’ What is the deep state? It’s institutions. America is a deep state, and if you don’t know that, visit a country with a broken state and you’ll wish you had our system. I don’t know what’s so broken in the United States, because running a country is complicated—you can’t do it with a chainsaw,” he said.
The star of long-form public radio and television shows also expressed concern about media.
“They are going to come for CBS and NBC, even, because an oligarch’s favorite media is the social media they already own—that’s how you manipulate society. You need an electorate that is engaged and informed,” Steves said. “While we remain distracted by trivialities—what will they call the Gulf of Mexico next?—the ball is in our court, and we need a way to communicate with each other.”
Steves came to Santa Barbara to show his support for TVSB and other media outlets that serve the community.
TVSB Board Chair Meighann Helene said she appreciates his support. “He was completely articulate about the main issues today. Back in the 1960s and ’70s, when initiatives like this were born, we at TVSB were just getting started. Now, as we approach our 50th anniversary, our voices are being silenced and restricted. We are very grateful for his messaging and for what TVSB and all public access media—PBS and NPR—do. It’s more important than ever to fund them, especially as their resources are dwindling.”
Steves also discussed Germany, crediting the country for sharing its history with travelers.
“If you go to Germany, you’ll find a society that has learned the hard way what happens when you have an easily manipulated public. In 30 years of traveling there, I’ve found that they do more to educate people about their difficult history than anywhere else. While other nations try to cover up their past, Germany acknowledges and learns from it. It’s beautiful and inspiring,” he said.
A few people walked out during his political remarks, but most of the audience applauded.
On travel, Steves said sunbathing on the beach is fine, but venturing beyond resorts can be life changing.
“It’s not a bumper sticker. One thing I love about travel is that you can’t help but go beyond the slogans and talk to real people,” he said.
Steves wrote his latest book when he was 23. The book, On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu, was recently released and is already a bestseller. He told the crowd he would sign copies available at Chaucer’s Books at the event but added he didn’t want people lining up. Instead, he preferred a mosh-pit atmosphere. Fans circled him as he moved about, like the whirling dervish he mentioned at the end of his talk, autographing the books they held out.
The travel expert and tour guide is set to appear at the Travel & Adventure Show in Los Angeles this weekend.
For more information, visit https://tvsantabarbara.org, https://ricksteves.com and https://chaucersbooks.com.
