I’m constantly being asked where my favorite country to visit has been. Easy question. Long answer… That would be like picking a favorite sibling. Uh...On second thought, maybe it’s tougher than that.
The locations that we chose to shoot Three Sheets in are places that have rich drinking cultures, customs and traditions. So they’re all great to begin with. Also, it’s also very subjective. Just because I like a place, or had a good experience there, doesn’t mean that you will.
For example, I had a great time in Croatia. The weather was great, the people I met were amazing, and the food and drinks were top notch. But you might happen to visit there when it’s cold and rainy, run into someone who’s having a bad day and hit up a restaurant on the chef’s day off. If I recommended going there, and that was your experience, you’d think I was nuts.
On the other hand, I got my camera stolen in Barcelona, came down with the flu in Wales, and was hospitalized with amoebic dysentery in Bangkok, so they wouldn’t be at the top of my list. But you might have met your wife in Barcelona, tracked your family’s roots in Wales, and seen something completely unbelievable done with a ping-pong ball in Bangkok, so they may be some of your favorite places.
As far as drinking destinations are concerned, I found the obvious ones, like Scotland (whisky), Ireland (Guinness and whiskey), Belgium (beer), and Champagne (duh) surpassed my expectations. But places that I wouldn’t have thought would be great places to do episodes in, like Hong Kong, Croatia, Lithuania and Manila, ended up being some of our best shows. I can’t say that I had a better time in Croatia than I did in Belgium. And I can’t say that Manila was any more fun than Ireland—or vice versa.
I could say that one of the best places to drink beer is Belgium—but that would be with the caveat that you also visit the Czech Republic.
The South Koreans were a blast! But so were the Germans. Tahiti was beautiful, but so was New Zealand. Amsterdam was wild, so was Las Vegas…
Often people will turn it around on me as say “OK, fine, where would you go back to?”. For what? Beer? Wine? Sake? Whiskey? Whisky? Vodka? The city? The country? The jungle? The beaches?
See? By asking me my favorite place to drink, you’ve turned me into a politician. I’m forced to give you an answer, qualified by a few more answers, and then a few more.
While shooting Three Sheets (and Have Fork, Will Travel), I’ve been to over 100 cities in more than 50 countries. Wanna know what country’s my favorite? The one I live in. Sure, we’ve got our problems, but so does everyone else. If given the choice, I’d choose to live here over anywhere else. In fact, I have.
Wanna know what city’s my favorite? That’s another long answer...
Zane
