I share the same traveling passion but don't have the time he does yet, selfie

[theking]

..sticks are a big no no for me too and YES, STEP OUTSIDE OF THE RICE BOWL AND OPEN YOUR MIND AND WIDEN YOUR VIEW  :

Rick Steves beat cancer. His next challenge: Teaching Americans to embrace culture shock.
Even the "Rick Steves' Europe" host uses AI on the road — but he draws the line at taking travel advice from influencers and their selfie sticks

Travel with purpose
Steves says he tells his team in Edmonds, Wash., that their mission is to “equip and inspire Americans to venture beyond Orlando.”

He’s not knocking theme park trips and beach vacations — just encouraging people to “raise the bar and travel in a way that’s transformation al,” and makes them “better citizens of the planet.”

For him, travel is about getting out of your comfort zone, not checking off destinations from a bucket list.

“Don’t tell me how educated you are. Tell me how much you’ve traveled,” Steves says. “How many preconceptions have you challenged? How many times has your ethnocentrism been humbled? Culture shock is something not to avoid, but to embrace.”

That mentality feels especially relevant right now, he says. “We live in a time in our country when we are afraid, and there are powerful forces that capitalize on that fear. They want us to build walls.”

Steves believes travel opens the door to the opposite, pushing people to engage with different cultures.

“It's so clear to me as a traveler that if you want to be safe … if you want to have a good world for your children, you can't wall yourself out from the other 96% of humanity,” he says. “You've got to get out there and get to know what you might think is the enemy. Bridges make us safe, not walls. That's not political. That's just common sense.”

Steves encourages his guides to talk about politics and religion, not avoid them.

“It’d be a shame for somebody to go to Europe and not take home any understanding of the lessons people have learned from the hard knocks of history,” Steves says.

That approach shapes the kind of travelers his tours attract — people willing to step outside their comfort zones and connect with others.

“We’ve had people fall in love, get married and come back for their honeymoon,” he smiles.

[JonniJacko]

for a long while I only been to Oregan,Washington, Nevada. And of course up and down California...A nd the vibes weren't all that different...Bu t Chicago and NYC the vibes were very different. haha Its constant high energy..but maybe its just me...It's always lively...and from the 916- we have a mostly small town vibe...in a big city...I'll be out and about and think I would be reconginazable everywhere I go...LOL

Got people from other states swinging by or through Sac, and most ask me wheres a good place to eat or go see...I say, any of the many casinos within an hour or two away...LOL I joke to people, Sac is a Gambler's city....LOL actually California is a Gambler's State...LOL

[theking]

Too bad the lobster buffet at Jackson is still out...

Been there many times and always felt their Fisherman's Wharf Buffet was a good value...I actually liked it more than its' closest competitor, Boom Town..

[JonniJacko]

Man, not been to Jackson Rancheria since I say 10 years ago..hhaha I like the drive to get there but the nostalgia is too just too much for me to handle...LOL but maybe sometime in fall...I'll wait for the grass to turn green...hahah

[theking]

Jackson's buffet was a bargain, I liked it more than Boom Town's...

[JonniJacko]

Man, I normally don't eat out much...Heard of people telling me how every race brings their own sauce though..haha

I just need lemon...and fish sauce. 

Will keep a ear out, im sure when they bring it back, words will get around quick.

[JonniJacko]

damn it, where's Duma? I can't find Harrahs Northern Ca...Dropped a relative off in Galt, and I was like wth, I got all day to kill and a hundo bill in my pocket for some reason. I open my wallet to see if it was my emergency hundo bill, and it wasn't...Noticed I don't have my debit card on me either, so I thought, why not- let me go check out Harrahs and maybe I'll see Duma there...haha look up the directions on my phone and on my way.... Well got lost, miss a vital turn...and that led me all the way to Nevada...LOL j.k just circling around all around Ione....and whatever cities in between or nearby.. Thought about stopping in a gas station and few businesses to asked, but every white person I saw  looked like they were still stuck in the old west...lol

Will try another time when I figure out how to use a GPS...LOL