AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands – The city is an intoxicating jumble of old and new, a place where street art, sex shops and cannabis cafes coexist with world-class art museums, well-preserved Golden Age architecture and traditional bruine kroeg. 

​COUNTY DONEGAL, Ireland – Up here in the northwestern tip of the country, not quite sure where exactly. If there’s a town name we haven’t seen it. Anyway, it’s a desolate place this time of year and the wind is bitter cold. I begin to understand the appeal of the heavy wool sweater I just bought at a farm a few miles back. We walk into a tiny store and buy a postcard and some tea and candy. Seeking to strike up a conversation, I ask the storekeeper, “So, how cold does it in the winter here?” He looks me over for a minute or two, takes my euros, and then offers and opinion. “This is it,” he says.