Rick Steves Response

As I was reading, one passage that stood out to me was when Steves was talking about the importance of learning the history of place before you travel there writing, "Work on cultivating a general grasp of the sweep of history, and you'll be able to infuse your sightseeing with more meaning. Traveling with no understanding of the local history is like going to a 3-D movie and deciding not to bother with the glasses" (8). I have never been out of the country but I have been several placed within the US that this applies to. My dad is from Pittsburgh and before we went to visit, he told us all about the history of Pittsburgh with the steel industry and how the city is now hurting as most of the steel has gone overseas. In AP US History, we also learned about the steel industry with Andrew Carnegie in the Gilded Age and how Pittsburgh became a powerhouse. The background history helped me with talking to the natives of Pittsburgh and understanding what they have been through economically but also driving through the city and seeing a lot of old steel plants that now sit empty like large graveyards. I agree with Steves and think that learning the local history is very important in traveling to a new place.