Five places that made me: 60 Minutes cameraman Nicholas Lee

JERUSALEM

The old city has such a dynamic history. It's chockers with ancient architecture, markets, religions and discontent. The religions and discontent can never be understood, but the history is extraordinarily exciting. The markets and architecture have hardly changed in 2000 years. Wherever you aim a camera, you can't lose. Every frame a Rembrandt. The Dome of the Rock from the Mount of Olives is a must see. When the sun hits the dome, the golden glow screams "look at me". Another great experience of Jerusalem is the intensely beautiful 110-year-old American Colony Hotel. Lawrence of Arabia, Winston Churchill and Bob Dylan have all experienced the "Colony's" charms. These days it's a hangout for journalists, Arab, Jewish and Christian, with vigorous discussions all-round and none of the discontent down the road.

PARIS

Beauty, beauty, and nothing but beauty. Well, that's what I thought. I went to Paris many times with my beautiful wife and many times with not-so-beautiful work colleagues. I shot stories on beautiful models, La Tour d'Argent, Helmut Newton, Moulin Rouge, and every time Paris was stunningly beautiful. Then … the dark side, the 2005 Paris riots. What an eye opener. With widespread unemployment and constant police harassment, the ignored and forgotten in the suburbs had had enough. It was like a war zone. Turns out beautiful Paris has all the problems of every other successful city in the world. And why wouldn't it.

ROME

The Roman Forum, the Colosseum, the food, the people, the easy manner, Vatican City and … the Sistine Chapel. I was lucky enough to have the Sistine Chapel to myself for two hours. No one. Just me. I suspect even Michelangelo was never alone in there. Having finished filming his masterpiece I lay on the ornate floor and stared at that incredible ceiling, mesmerised at what's considered the greatest work of art to have ever existed. What an experience.

SWAZILAND

Mbabane the capital is not a great-looking town, but it's full of great-looking, very happy, easy-going people. It's hard to figure out why. Most are poor, the average life expectancy is 50, and the country has the highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the world. Swaziland is an absolute monarchy, yet the vast majority of the population not only respect but adore their king. I don't know about adorable, but when I met him he seemed like a really good bloke, friendly, charming and funny. If you must have a king, you'd want a good bloke.

COSTA RICA

Vividly coloured frogs, toucans, beautiful rainforests and progressive environmental policies. Today, more than 27 per cent of the country's land is protected but, best of all, there is no army. There has been no army since 1949. The president told us they were such a small country there's no point in having an army, so the budget that was previously for the military now goes to education, culture and security. Seems like a great idea to me.

Nicholas Lee spent 30 years travelling the world as a cameraman for 60 Minutes. His memoir, All This in 60 Minutes (Allen & Unwin, $ 32.99) is out now. See allenandunwin.com