This was my alma mater’s reunion weekend, and at my college’s luncheon we honored the “dean of travel experts”, Arthur Frommer, from the class of 1950. This coincided with the 50th anniversary of his guidebook “Europe on $5 a Day”. (To get in that law angle, after going to Yale Law School, he was a litigation associate with Paul Weiss before he left to pursue a career in travel.)
Why is he a hero? While in the U.S. Army in Germany, he figured out how not to be the Ugly American – be respectful of the people and places visited, go off of the well-worn track to obtain authentic experiences, and of course, have your money go farther and smarter. In my experience taking trips overseas starting in college, I’ve tried to take these principles to heart. Fifty years later, he still has a lot to teach us.