travel itch: domestic edition.

Recently, I talked about some of the places in the world that I'm itching to visit but lately, I've been thinking about what places I want to visit right here in the U.S. I've done a lot on this land - family RV trips from Texas to Colorado, home visits for college friends all over the Northeast, spring break road trips from Vermont to Florida, and the list goes on. Despite how blessed I am for all that I've already been able to do in my life, there are still some special places I've yet to see.

Places I'm dying to get to:

Austin, Texas

My dad's side of the family has a long history in the great state of Texas  - I'm distantly related to Sam Houston, there is a wing at Southern Methodist University named after an ancestor of mine, my grandmother's house (and my favorite place in the world) was an hour outside of San Antonio, and to this day I still have various family members spread all over the state. While I've been to Austin before, it was more of a passing-through situation and I didn't get to see the heart of it. I want to see everything that I've heard rumors about and seen pictures of - an amazing live music scene, a young and liberal population, unique watering holes, extremely warm weather, and duh, really good food. 

Traverse City, Michigan

This travel wish also has to do with my Dad's family - my dad and his four siblings all grew up in Lansing, Michigan and all hold a special place in their heart for this state. My parents took me to Traverse City when I was one-years-old and clearly I can't remember it but have seen in pictures how picturesque it can look. What I love about the idea of Michigan is that it's not cliché - many people try to vacation in Hawaii or Florida or Los Angeles, but who tries to go to a gorgeous little lake town in Michigan? A child of a Michigan State Spartan alum, that's who.  

New Orleans, Louisiana

This is where I want to go the most. And this one should be pretty self-explanatory. Take everything there is to love about a place - culture, art, music, food, history, and landscape - and multiply it by ten. That's how I imagine NOLA to be. As a teacher, I'm not quite sure what trips I'll be taking during the school year (ok, none, really) but I would love to get my butt out to New Orleans for the Jazz Fest at some point in my life. If not though, I'd be happy to go any other time as long as I can revel in the quirky, unique, and beautiful scenery there that I've heard so much about. 

What places in America are YOU dying to visit?