Venturing into a different culture can open you up to new ways of experiencing our world,

especially when you travel, as I call it, through the back door.

I'm Rick Steeves. I believe our best souvenirs are the experiences we can have when we connect with

people and cultures on their terms. It's amazing how much smoother and richer the

experience can be if we're sensitive to the cultural norms and unique perspectives of the people

we're visiting. To help us travel smarter that way, we're checking in today with

Jeff Greenwold at ethical traveler.org. Jeff's come up with a list of 13 tips for the accidental ambassador to help us in the tricky

cross-cultural situations were likely to encounter in our travels.

And later, we'll get recommendations from travel experts for exploring the South Pacific and tips and tricks for enjoying Amsterdam to the max.

Travel writer Don George joins me to start the hour as we catch up on your calls at 877 333 Rick.

Thanks for coming along.

It's Travel with Rick Steeves.

Travel with Rick Steeves

Travel with Rick Steeves

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American Airlines knows why you fly. Today on Travel with Rick

Steve's we're exploring the fine points of traveling in a way that makes our

cultural impact on the small communities in the developing world a positive thing.

We're about to learn some smart ways to be a culturally sensitive ambassador from the first world in our travels.

Later, we'll ponder the romantic aisles of the South Pacific for a little tropical adventure,

and after that I'll compare notes with a competing travel writer from Lonely Planet on some of the best back door sites in Amsterdam.

Let's open with my friend Travel writer Don George to see how you're traveling. Amsterdam. I'm Rick Steeves this is Travel with Rick Steeves. Right now I'm joined by Don George and

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