A 65th-Birthday “Hamilton” Tribute to Travel-Guru Rick Steves From His Travel Center Staff!

Guidebook author, television host, and travel icon, Rick Steves, is — under normal circumstances — always in Europe for his birthday (May 10th). And he’s a workaholic, you could say. But that’s just because Rick loves his job and believes deeply in travel as a perspective-broadening force for good in the world. In fact, Rick’s passion for his mission is so strong that he normally celebrates each May 10th by working! Every spring, he’s on the ground in Europe, carrying out guidebook research, scouting for upcoming television episodes, or fine-tuning his popular tour program.

RSE Birthday Traditions

As one of 100-plus staff working at the headquarters of Rick Steves’ Europe in Edmonds, Washington, I can report that we are as mission-driven as our travel-guru boss. And the integrity behind the decisions Rick makes and the endeavors he undertakes is not lost on us. Simply put, we appreciate Rick! So when his birthday rolls around each May — although he’s far away (usually somewhere south of the Alps!) — we want it to be a good one.

Going back some twenty years, it’s been tradition at RSE to send a birthday-fax greeting to Rick, wherever he is in the world. Yep, a facsimile! It’s a quirky, old-school tradition, but that’s part of what makes it special, unique, and fun. The scenario unfolds thusly: on the morning of his birthday, at some random hotel in Europe, Rick heads to the reception. The staff then hands him a fax full of hand-written birthday wishes from his biggest fans: his office staff!

Rick Steves Celebrates in Self-Quarantine

This year, thanks to COVID-19, that birthday-facsimile tradition has been shredded. Guillotined. Blitzed. Sent packing on a trip to nowhere! Or, more likely, on a trip from the bedroom to the loo, where it’s been flushed away. Or possibly tossed — into a medieval-style chamber pot and emptied out a second-story window. (Garde à l’eau!)

With travel on standstill, and with the entire office staff of RSE currently working remotely from home, what on earth were we to do about the beloved birthday tradition?

Plan B for Birthday

Well, we opted for creating a virtual greeting! My coworker, Julianne, edited together a fantastic company-wide video for Rick. Like the old-school facsimile tradition, it combined greetings from all the staff (just in video-clip format!).

But earlier this week, a new plan came to me. As I watched Lin-Manuel Miranda execute an epic Zoom performance of “Alexander Hamilton” on SGN (Some Good News) with some of the original “Hamilton” cast members, I was struck by inspiration! My new mission? To re-write the “Alexander Hamilton” intro — à la Rick Steves!

That’s when I decided that “I am not throwing away my shot!” And clearly had to start writing like I was “running out of time.” (Which I was! The “Hamilton” cover idea came to me on May 3rd, not leaving much time to pull it all together before Rick’s birthday on the 10th!)

A “Hamilton” Birthday Tribute to Rick Steves From His Travel Center Staff!

I’m happy to say that with the help of my super-duper wonderful, talented, and all-around awesome Travel Center coworkers we accomplished the mission! And we sure hope you enjoy the results! (Especially you, birthday-boy Rick Steves!)

As always, thank you for stopping by! Please subscribe below, and tell us what you think of the the video in the comments section! 🙂

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Corona Quarantine Chronicles:

For some sweet slices of life during these challenging times of Coronavirus, check out the “Corona Quarantine Chronicles” interviews:

• Corona Quarantine Chronicles: What’s Life Like for a NYC Met Opera Performer These Days?
• Corona Quarantine Chronicles: Granada, Spain

Coming soon: I’ll be posting more “Corona Quarantine Chronicles.” The next one up will feature friend and professional musician, “Harry the Pianist” — on lockdown in London. Then, heading way, way, way south, we’ll hear what life’s like in New Zealand these days for Rick Steves tour guide, Colin Mairs. See you then!