Greetings from Boise, Idaho! I am 350 miles down the road from where I was yesterday, on the way to the RVing Women’s convention in Oklahoma City. Tomorrow I will tour Boise before heading to Salt Lake City, which leads me to wonder: When is it reasonable to consider a place “seen” and “done?” Can a location ever really be scratched off a “to do” list?
You see them on RVs everywhere – decal maps of North America with peel-and-stick states and provinces to populate the skeleton as you roll along. Many RVers glue them to the side of a slideout, which can be seen only when the slide is open. Camping World sells the map, and it is very popular with children.
In lieu of a decal map, I hung a small canvas of the United States above the bed in Nellie. I considered push pins or self-adhesive stars to indicate that I visited a state. But, what does “visited” mean?
This is not the first time I have been to Idaho. When I was in law school at Gonzaga we frequented Coeur D’Alene, which was across the border from Spokane. I went to Sandpoint for a summer concert, where I’ll never forget seeing the Count Basie Orchestra, and Ben Stein walking on the beach. (“Bueller!”) My boyfriend and I went to Wallace for a getaway weekend. I toured the Lewiston/Clarkson area with my adopted Washington family, and we took a speed boat down the Snake River. And, while I have never visited Boise per se, I have certainly been through the airport on layovers. (By the way, it really bugs me when people say they have visited a city, when all they did was sit in its airport. Nope! Try again!)
When I leave Boise on Sunday, can I affix a foil star to Idaho on the canvas above the bed?
I don’t even consider Oregon “done.” I have seen a lot of it, having lived just to the north for the last 20 or so years, but I do not deem it “completed.” I have never been to Astoria. I have not attended the Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. I have yet to visit the Oregon Coast.
It is so typical of us Americans to obsessively banish things and experiences to our rearview mirrors. Check! Another item off the bucket list! A friend recently returned from a trip abroad, stating she would never need to go back because she had been there. I, on the other hand, am bereft after each vacation, feeling I saw so little and wanting to return, but reluctantly accepting that there is only so much time and many places to see.
I know for certain that I will not consider Utah to be “done” simply by visiting Salt Lake City. To the south are many places I want to visit, including Bryce Canyon, Arches, and Moab. I also feel pretty positive that I will mark Kansas off the list after visiting only Wichita! (Sorry, Kansas folk.)
What about you? Do you ever feel that you have fully seen a place or location? Or, was there a particular experience which made you feel you never wanted to return?
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Nicely done Tammy.
I feel exactly the same way. Especially when citizens of the USA, say they have been to Canada.
Canada, it’s bigger than the USA, and yet they have only just crossed the border for a quick visit.
So, yes please don’t check the place off to quickly but speak well of what you have seen, as everything is different.
Not always what we thought it would be like, but sometimes it could be much better than you could of imagined too.
So, enjoy all you see and I will be happy to go along with you during your travels and posts.
i will be your OSF (Oregon Shakespeare Festival) buddy!
Yes! Yes!
Hi Tammy, love your blog, love you!
I feel, every city has it’s offerings. Hailing from the dusty brown town of El Paso, I know that there are wonders to be seen, amazing food and fabulous people to be experienced there, that are certainly not on the map, or the surface, as one drives through.
So it seems to me, that someone like you, Tammy, who can make friends in a hot minute, should definitely do, the tour, where your RV friends and maps and tour guides suggest and another tour that might take you to a farmer’s market or a cool dive bar, where you can pick the brains of the locals as to what is cool there.
In my humble opinion, of course there are reasons to re-visit a city. Sometimes things pop out at you, once you’ve got your bearings in a town. I just would avoid, the “last time I was here” activities and search for something underneath the surface, that may have been missed or perhaps it could just be that a city is asleep during certain seasons and comes alive during others.
xoxo
Read William Least Heat Moon’s _PrairyErth_ and I’m pretty sure you will not mark Kansas off your list with just Wichita.
Thank you for the book recommendation! I lived as a teen in Oklahoma for one year, and that’s when Kansas got its bad rap for me. I’ll look at it with fresh eyes as I travel through!
Loving reading your blog Tammy, and the journey has only just begun. I think you need to drive all around each state before you can check it off. Go see Craters of the Moon. Jazz festival in Sun Valley, Each State has sooo much. Take your time and have fun. ( although I do know you have a conference to go to).
Personally, I don’t think I can count any “done” …I check off that I have visited a village, town, state, or county. This summer we visited 20 states and drove 11,000 miles in the lower 48 U.S. States, but don’t consider any of them done. I have visited every country in continental Europe but it certainly isn’t done! Guess it is up to the perspective of the traveler!
So – almost 5 years later – what is your take on “been there done that” now? Having had the pleasure of wandering with you for a day in Oxford, MS as well as “doin Clarksdale” – I know you take in soooo much when you visit a place. Have you marked any place off as not needing or wanting to go back?