I like the sound of New Zealand!
I 'did' Europe with a car and a tent. Mostly slept in the car but we put the tent up if we fancied staying for a while. It was probably less stressful than backpacking.
Having said that, we certainly encountered the odd weirdo - car or no car.
(Probably me! - Steve
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I think spending so much time abroad was really beneficial. It's wonderful to soak up other cultures and, like Czymra mentioned, you can't really compare your own country to others unless you've been about a bit. What may seem like utter poo is clover compared to some places
The backstreets of Naples springs to mind here
Living in Israel was perhaps my most insightful journey. It really isn't what it seems via the news.