Driving in Barcelona, on the other hand, sounds like torture, because so many of the old streets were built crooked, narrow and with no rhyme or reason. Plus, searching for street parking? Why waste your time when you could be eating tapas and dancing instead!

I have very fond memories of walking through Athens for 3 hrs in 38 degrees C heat in 2007, lugging a fully-laden backpack. I could appreciate how it was probably torturous and I didn’t really recover until a few days later, but at the time, I felt more connected to Greece than at any time during my month-long tour of the mainland and islands. Vehicles may the the quick way to get around, but they put the world at arm’s length – you feel it less. Particularly in cities.