Weekend fluff: places I have been

My brother and mother had a race to see who could visit all 50 states first. I forget who won, but I think both of them got there. I'm way behind, but I'm 15 years younger than Fast Fizzy, so that's not such a big deal. He says I should make my goal to visit them all by the time I'm 50 (which is when he got his last, I think). I told him his new goal should be a marathon in all 50 (plus D.C.). I'm not going to compete in that particular contest!

Anyway, here's a map of the states I've been to. In June, Bullock and I are going to a wedding in Portland, OR, so I'll add another. I like how a number of the states I haven't been to are conveniently grouped in pairs or clusters, except for Alaska, of course. And if I just go to the Four Corners, I could get Utah and New Mexico in together.



create your own personalized map of the USA

And now here's a map of the places I've been in Europe. I like the bare space of Switzerland in the middle of western Europe -- like its political stands, it's neutral. (I've been to the airport in Geneva, but in my rules that doesn't count.) But I really do need to get to the eastern parts of Europe, don't I? That big wash of sickly grey on the right of the map is just sad. And Iceland is calling to me. Hmmm...maybe I should study Old Norse there on a sabbatical year?



create your personalized map of europe

And finally, here's a view of the whole world, which makes me seem (appropriately) much less traveled in perspective -- I've only been to 8% of the world's nations, after all. But I think it's hilarious that it makes it look like I've been to all of Canada, all of Mexico, and all of China, when I've only been to Toronto and Vancouver, the Baja peninsula (not T.J., at least), and Beijing, Shanghai, Xian, Guilin, and Hong Kong. And you know I haven't been to all of the United States, either.



create your own visited country map