35 Down, 15 to Go

I’m 35 states into my quest to visit all 50 states by the time I’m 50. Since I made this goal a few years ago, we’ve traveled to a few unexpected places, and I’ve researched countless more to strategize future trips. Recently, during trip to New York I realized something that I’ve learned along the way: I love an underrated city.

Maybe it’s because I’m closer to that “50” than I was before and tastes change with age, but I was walking through the streets of Manhattan after sipping a perfectly roasted espresso latte at a cafe, listening to the dogs barking and the traffic honking and the strangers ignoring one another while talking into their headphones on the street. An odor wafted my way as I crossed on a red light with a crowd of pedestrians, avoiding cyclists. Weed and pee. I stuck to the middle of the sidewalk, away from the piled up trash and mysterious puddles and strolled into Madison Square Park where the first greenery I found lay untouchable beyond fencing. “Keep off grass” posted in regular intervals ensuring every shrub, flower and blade of green remained just out of reach. The greatest city in the world. All of the sudden I thought of Boise Idaho.

I thought of the farm we visited where the boys got lost in a corn maze so vast we actually started to worry we’d never find our way out. The river that wound its way through the city, bending just a few blocks from our Airbnb rental where the kids made good use of the fishing poles we’d brought with us. The French fries that came in more than 5 different potato styles, salted to perfection.

I thought of Canon Beach Oregon, with its boulders stretching to the sky and the diverse array or sea life on display during low tide. The Tilanook factory tour we took that ended with ice cream cones.

I thought of the cabin in the tiny town of Kanab Utah, and the sunset views over red rocks a short drive to Zion and Bryce Canyon, or the smallest airport I’ve ever seen coming into Montana near the entrance to Yellowstone and Grand Teton. The shrubs, the grass, the trees, the flowers, all untethered with no barrier to keep them off-limits. 

Don’t get me wrong, New York is a great city. But what I love about the challenge I’m trying to accomplish is finding out what all the other cities have to offer in their own way. The food, the scenery, the culture and the little gems you discover by accident while exploring. And in a country filled with landmarks and mountains, I guess now I prefer the mountains. I prefer to touch the grass.