You drove to Hawaii?

Sounds pretty cool. I've been to half the states including Alaska and Hawaii. Europe, South America. Always glad to get back home, though. Kind of a deep relief, like feeling free again. Traveling's one kind of freedom, but you've always gotta be a little wary.

You've never been to Israel?

I have a couch in Jerusalem just waiting for you! (Although you probably would be more comfortable at one of the hotels nearby!)

North Dakota has the world's largest drag line, and the world's largest earthen dam. It is a beautiful place and Theodore Roosevelt National Park is right out of the 1950s. You can drive right up and try to pet a bison, and I've seen the wackos do it. During rutting season. I urge you to go on your way out of Chicago.

And don't forget ND is the world's third largest nuclear power. I spent three years of my life tending to those beasts.

As a former (thankfully not current!) ND resident, I can feel safe in asserting that Dan hasn't missed much. TRNP is ok, and looks even better in comparison to the rest of the state, in that is isn't flat. Still, I find ND's best virtues were (1) it's a good place to put nuclear missile silos, since any counterforce strikes wouldn't hit anything of particular value and (2) it's a relatively flat and painless way to get from, say, Minnesota to Montana, states that one might actually want to visit.

Or if you're really hardcore, create a map of all the U.S. counties you've been to:

http://www.mob-rule.com/counties/

Never been to Ireland? You are missin out!

What Tom said. You know what Custer's last words were?

"At least I don't have to go back to North Dakota!"

My first time in ND I was staying at the Holiday Inn in Bismarck. I checked in at 2 p.m. and immediately went down to the resstaurant only to be told it was closed. I was told that there was an A & W across the street, so I went there and went to the front counter, where the young woman working there advised me that I should choose a table and sit down and she would come take my order.

I sat at the opposite end of the restaurant from the counter and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, I glanced in her direction and saw her gesticulating wildly with a phone in her hand. I suddenly noticed a small receiver on the table. I picked it up, whereupon she asked me for my order. A few minutes later she skated up to me with one of those change makers on her waist and delivered my food. I was the only person there at the time.

This was five years before Fargo.

Hey, I've been to one country Dan hasn't! High school field trip to Nuevo Laredo. Sadly, that's the only foreign country on my list. Gotta work on that. And more states, too - I've seen Texas, most of the Southeast (born in Bama) and Kansas and Missouri almost simultaneously.

I use the "visited nations" generator to map all the nations represented on my blogroll - about 40 of 'em.

Dan, when were you in Belarus? And Kazakhstan? Out touring Soviet missile-launching places while skipping North Dakota?

You've never been to Mongolia? Mongolia has many warm and friendly yaks to visit with.

You've been to every single country in Turkestan?

Fistful of Euros guys: I travelled all around the FSU during and after my stint as a lecturer in Ukraine in 1993.

I haven't been to ALL of Turkestan, however -- I missed Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan.

This is so funny because my brother and I just played this game last week--limiting it to the US because my international travel far exceeds his. We did have one criteria: you had to sleep in the state. A drive-by doesn't count.

Would your US map still be so colorful? (Who sleeps in DE?)

Dan -- you've never been to Israel??

Come see us in the United Arab Emirates. (American University of Sharjah.) Or have you been to Dubai or Abu Dhabi and is it just too small to see the contrast?

If you visit just one city do you get to color in the whole country? Then go for Saudi and Brazil next. That would make a big impression.

From the UAE it's easy to skip over to India, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Oman, Yemen. Yemen's next on my list. Spring Break in Sanaa. Ah. Jordan is lovely this time of year, too.