Each year in May the Eurovision Song Contest gives entertainers from even the smallest nations a chance at an international spotlight

And they will say always the same things. I just want to thank everybody for what a fantastic evening this has been it's been the best

euro vision ever and then everybody claps and they go yay coming up on travel with Rick

steves Jonathan Grubert lets us in on the glamorous fanfare and the catch of this annual European

Extravagansa and for a change of pace on this side of the Atlantic you first

need to let yourself slip into a lower gear when you arrive in Mexico.

Relax, don't plan ahead too much, and be open to whatever happens.

The biggest thing is to be open to people.

So many gringos go through in their own little world.

If you look at people, if you smile,

you're going to start making friends.

The authors of the People's Guide to Mexico

share tips from their one-of-a-kind guide to enjoying life south of the border.

It's all coming up pronto on Travel with Rick Steeves.

Today on Travel with Rick Steeves, we're getting intimate perspectives from American travelers who've spent years enjoying life abroad.

A little later in the hour, an American journalist recommend some of the fun places he and his family enjoy in the Netherlands.

Plus, he plugs us into a European tradition that he still can't seem to figure out even after 20 years of living on the continent.

We'll hear how the over-the-top Eurovision song contest

makes a big splash every year in May.

Let's start out with two season travelers who specialize in Mexico. Carl Franz and Lorena Havens actually helped me get started as a guidebook author back in the 1970s

when they started writing The People's Guide to Mexico.

It's become a classic on how to travel well in many cross-cultural settings.

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