Thoughts on Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine – Rick Steves’ Travel Blog

 

Nowadays is a profoundly unhappy day. Russia’s intense motion is heartbreaking for the demise, struggling, and economic turmoil it will bring about in Ukraine and, indirectly at the very least, beyond. Below at Rick Steves’ Europe, we hope that a diplomatic alternative can be discovered and peace will return to that fragile and extensive-suffering aspect of our planet.

Our mission at RSE is to aid People greater know and realize our neighbors through journey. But when we deliver travelers to yet another nation, we also convey their pounds — dollars that would support Putin’s aggression. Hence, as of nowadays, we have canceled all 2022 tours that incorporate a quit in Russia.

Of program, we will continue to keep a near eye on unfolding events and monitor any vacation impacts by the relaxation of Europe. But it is significant to hold geographic realities in head and try to remember that a war in Ukraine is as much from our European getaway goals as a war in Guatemala would be from Texas or Florida. For 40 many years now, we have lived, labored, and traveled via a lot of periods of tragic warfare in lands much from wherever we direct our excursions (and some closer). And at this time, we see no rationale to change the relaxation of our journey and touring ideas.

The tragic truth unfolding in Ukraine only reminds me how significant it is for People in america to retain on traveling and to do so in a way that helps make us greater and additional engaged citizens of our world. I’m flying to Europe up coming month for a 40-working day excursion via a dozen fantastic metropolitan areas from London to Athens — and I’m very pleased that thousands of my fellow vacationers will expertise the European journey of their dreams while acquiring abundant finding out ordeals significantly from residence on a 2022 Rick Steves tour.

In the meantime, let us be grateful for our blessings, aid our nation’s leaders as they do their finest to navigate this crisis, and keep the troubled corners of our planet (Ukraine, Russia, Afghanistan, and a lot more) in our feelings and prayers.

—Rick