{"id":6224,"date":"2016-04-23T11:14:38","date_gmt":"2016-04-23T11:14:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/?p=6224"},"modified":"2026-10-04T12:38:42","modified_gmt":"2026-10-04T12:38:42","slug":"rick-steve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/rick-steve\/","title":{"rendered":"Rick Steves on Iran: Travel, Perspective and Cultural Context"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Archive note:<\/strong> This article was originally published in 2016 and looks back at travel writer Rick Steves\u2019 earlier visit to Iran and his reflections on that experience. It presents Steves\u2019 personal observations and interpretation, not a general explanation of Iranian society or current travel conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rick Steves traveled to Iran in 2008 while filming a television special that was released in 2009. He later discussed the trip in talks and in his Iran travel journal, using the experience to make a broader case for travel as a way to question assumptions and understand people in context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_88 counter-flat ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/rick-steve\/#what-rick-steves-took-from-his-iran-trip\" >What Rick Steves Took from His Iran Trip<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/rick-steve\/#the-%e2%80%9cdeath-to-traffic%e2%80%9d-anecdote\" >The \u201cDeath to Traffic\u201d Anecdote<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/rick-steve\/#watch-the-videos\" >Watch the Videos<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"what-rick-steves-took-from-his-iran-trip\"><\/span>What Rick Steves Took from His Iran Trip<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Stives-Why-Death-To-America.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" title=\"Rick Steves in Iran\" src=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Stives-Why-Death-To-America.jpg\" alt=\"Rick Steves with a group of Iranian women during his Iran trip\" class=\"wp-image-6240\" style=\"width:750px;height:500px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Stives-Why-Death-To-America.jpg 600w, https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Stives-Why-Death-To-America-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Stives-Why-Death-To-America-450x300.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Rick Steves in Iran. Photo credit: Rick Steves\u2019 travel journal.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Steves described the trip as an opportunity to meet people directly rather than rely only on political rhetoric or distant impressions. In his later talks, he connected the Iran experience with a recurring theme in his work: travel can add nuance to ideas that may appear simple from afar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"the-%e2%80%9cdeath-to-traffic%e2%80%9d-anecdote\"><\/span>The \u201cDeath to Traffic\u201d Anecdote<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of Steves\u2019 best-known stories from Tehran concerns a traffic jam. He recalled his driver using the phrase \u201cDeath to traffic\u201d while they were stuck on the road. Steves treated the remark as an example of how context can change the way a phrase is understood.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Steves-After-Travelling-to-Iran-Why-Iranian-Say-Death-America.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" title=\"Taxi driver in Tehran during Rick Steves\u2019 Iran trip\" src=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Steves-After-Travelling-to-Iran-Why-Iranian-Say-Death-America.jpg\" alt=\"Taxi driver in Tehran photographed during Rick Steves\u2019 Iran trip\" class=\"wp-image-6233\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.5;width:816px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Steves-After-Travelling-to-Iran-Why-Iranian-Say-Death-America.jpg 600w, https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Steves-After-Travelling-to-Iran-Why-Iranian-Say-Death-America-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Rick-Steves-After-Travelling-to-Iran-Why-Iranian-Say-Death-America-450x300.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A taxi driver in Tehran. Photo credit: Rick Steves\u2019 travel journal.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The anecdote reflects Steves\u2019 own interpretation of an encounter during his trip. It should not be used to assign a single meaning to political slogans or to generalize the views of Iranians. His original account provides the fuller context in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ricksteves.com\/watch-read-listen\/video\/tv-show\/tv-specials\/iran\/iran-travel-journal-part-iv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rick Steves\u2019 Iran Travel Journal, part 4<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"watch-the-videos\"><\/span>Watch the Videos<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first video focuses on Steves\u2019 Iran experience. The second is his TEDxRainier talk on the broader value of travel. Both are retained here as primary material for this archive article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Rick Steves After Travelling to Iran: \u201cWhy Death To America&quot;\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/T-CNuudRVLs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"The value of travel | Rick Steves | TEDxRainier\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/kYXiegTXsEs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For current practical information rather than historical media commentary, use the <a href=\"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/iran-travel-guide\/\">SURFIRAN Iran Travel Guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An archive article on Rick Steves\u2019 Iran trip, his \u201cDeath to traffic\u201d anecdote, and two videos exploring travel, perspective and cultural context.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":6234,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,306,305],"tags":[436,257],"class_list":["post-6224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tourism-iran","category-culture","category-how-to","tag-iranian","tag-video"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Video-Rick-Steves-Travel-To-Iran-Why-Death-To-America-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6224"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":200510,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6224\/revisions\/200510"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/surfiran.com\/mag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}