When you're on the road for a long time, you notice a lot of things. And though every country is unique, common images persist.
Patterns ebb and flow.
We notice these sometimes trivial nuances because they stand out and contradict what our eyes are used to seeing. That is the beauty of travel. During our trip around the world, my wife and I were struck by a phenomenon that started mildly in northern Europe, gained considerable strength in southern Europe, peaked in the Middle East, endured throughout Asia though on a declining scale, then petered out in Australia and New Zealand. A perfect bell curve. Imagine driving around the sun-baked countryside of Tuscany, or dropping in on little whitewashed villages in southern Spain.