The Vydra River winds through the Sumava Forest in Southern Bohemia. After dropping off our bags at Hotel Zámek Zdíkov, it’s the first place we went. We hiked along the river, taking in the scene. The trees along the trails are the sort of green saved for children’s picture books; the water babbles like it’s fighting for a spot on Enya’s next record.

The water was cold and–wading, tip-toeing, jumping–we went in. We dried off on the rocks, knowing that it doesn’t get much better than this.