Oh no, the numbers are stacked against me here. I haven’t been to the “Heartland” of America.

H is for Hawaii

YES! With an asterisk of course.Hawaii is still my favorite state. Just thinking about it makes my heart flutter. 2 trips so far and hopefully more in my future.  The first trip was  to the Big Island. This trip was amazing. It was the first BIG trip I’d ever taken. The first trip where I’d used my time share. The first Luau I’d ever been to…The Island is amazing, half rain forest and half desert. We explored both and I loved Volcano National Park.  In Hilo we explored the Tsunami Museum and went to the Zoo. Just north of Hilo was a beautiful botanical garden.

We even got to walk on a black sand beach.

Trip two was to Oahu where we made a visit to Pearl Harbor, beautiful and emotional. This is a must- see stop on anyone’s bucket list. We visited Waikiki and the Polynesian Cultural Center. We climbed Maka Pupu Point and shopped at the International Market Place. We drove up to the crater of Diamondhead but didn’t climb to the top. Maybe another trip. 🙂 Next up is Maui and the road to Hana!

I is for Idaho

No. But it sounds like there’s couple of must do things. Lava Hot Springs for one and Craters of the Moon National Monument, 618 square miles of lava field.

I is for Illinois

NO. Although I did go to Chicago once for a work seminar. It was probably 30 years ago and I don’t recall much about the city at all.

Of course there’s Chicago itself  and many travelers get into Illinois via O’Hare International Airport, one of the busiest in the country. I do remember being there. I was stuck on my way to Wisconsin. My plane out of Boston had been delayed so I missed my connecting flight. At the time OJ Simpson was still a football hero and  was running through airports in a Hertz Commercial. I remember thinking I felt like that as I raced to my gate only to see the plane taking off as I got there. It’s one of those moments seared into your brain! 🙂

RT 66 is in Illinois. I saw part of the iconic highway when I was in Arizona. I’ll have to look up how many states it crosses or maybe I should say crossed as many parts are closed now.

There seem to be a lot of scenic drives in Illinois and I saw something about a Japanese Garden. So More research needs to be done to plan the visit to this state.

I is for Indiana

No. Once again I have to say I don’t know much about this state. The tourism web site lists National Parks and Monuments, and I know racing is big there; Indianapolis Speedway. It’s the boyhood home of our 16th president so I could certainly include a visit to the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial.

I is for Iowa

No. I am really lost when it comes to Iowa. It’s broken up into so many sections it’s almost like states within states. 10 different sections to research just to decide what I want to visit! This too will requires some digging and reading on my part.

Boy, I didn’t do well in the “I” category at all!. I’d say that breaks the tie. It’s now 6 visited and  9 on the “not seen” side of the ledger. I really need some suggestions of the  not to miss places for the “I” states. Have you been there? Or maybe you live in one of those states? What is the most important thing to see/visit?

But on to J, K & L.