21 Illinois
You have to drive across part of Illinois to go from North Dakota to most points east, including Cleveland, so I've been in this state literally more times than I can count. Most of those were not memorable, but I do regret not stopping in Metropolis. Anyway, even if you only count visits to specific places in Illinois, I've got at least 6 major distinct trips, so I've got this one covered all over.
Major Trips:
1. In 1999 I went to my first PhiKap convention in Chicago. Other than a brief excursion to a bar on the DePaul campus that involved more Jager than any one man should drink, we never left the hotel.
2. Given the old standard "Will it play in Peoria?" it is minorly entertaining that the only time I saw Bob Dylan in concert was at the Illinois State Fair in Peoria in August 2001. Or it would be funny, except that it turns out that my memory has deceived me for the past decade. Some quick research shows that the Illinois State Fair is actually in Springfield. Due to the OCD nature of Dylan fans, I can even show you the exact set list or some reviews; I myself found it to be a fairly average show.
3. In April 2004, Mike & I drove to Chicago on Thursday night and Rachel drove down from Minneapolis. We stayed at Phil's apartment in Wrigleyville. On Friday Wayne joined us and we watched the Cubs at Wrigley Field. On Saturday we drove to Milwaukee for a Brewers game, and on Sunday we caught the White Sox. It was the only weekend that year when all three teams were home, and it was pretty much perfect. Here's a summary written closer to when it happened.
4. In 2005 I attended jenny31978's wedding in Chicago, although I didn't see much of the city itself. I did stay in a funky little hotel downtown though.
5. In 2007 Phil got married in Skokie. xhollydayx and I went. We met dmw7 and Sarah for lunch. We had tapas at Emilios. We went to the Art Institute of Chicago, which is pretty much made of win.
6. In 2009 we stayed with Wayne & Jen in Chicago and ate our way through the city. We also went to the Lincoln Park Zoo, Shedd's Aquarium and assorted other attractions.
7. In March of this year I went to Frank's bachelor party in Chicago, as alluded to here.
And that's just so far. I've got friend who have a guest room in Wrigleyville and a standing invitation, so I'm sure I'll be back in Chicago again. I can't say I'm terribly interested in the rest of the state, mind you, but Chicago is one of the five coolest cities I've ever been to (off the top of my head, the other four are Sydney, London, NYC, Portland) so I'm sure I'll be back.
As a special bonus, Illinois also gave its name to one of the greatest album titles ever, Come on Feel the Illinoise.
Scoreboard
Full Credit - 15: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, Louisiana, Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois
Partial Credit - 3: Delaware, Connecticut, Maryland
No Credit - 3: South Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont
Major Trips:
1. In 1999 I went to my first PhiKap convention in Chicago. Other than a brief excursion to a bar on the DePaul campus that involved more Jager than any one man should drink, we never left the hotel.
2. Given the old standard "Will it play in Peoria?" it is minorly entertaining that the only time I saw Bob Dylan in concert was at the Illinois State Fair in Peoria in August 2001. Or it would be funny, except that it turns out that my memory has deceived me for the past decade. Some quick research shows that the Illinois State Fair is actually in Springfield. Due to the OCD nature of Dylan fans, I can even show you the exact set list or some reviews; I myself found it to be a fairly average show.
3. In April 2004, Mike & I drove to Chicago on Thursday night and Rachel drove down from Minneapolis. We stayed at Phil's apartment in Wrigleyville. On Friday Wayne joined us and we watched the Cubs at Wrigley Field. On Saturday we drove to Milwaukee for a Brewers game, and on Sunday we caught the White Sox. It was the only weekend that year when all three teams were home, and it was pretty much perfect. Here's a summary written closer to when it happened.
4. In 2005 I attended jenny31978's wedding in Chicago, although I didn't see much of the city itself. I did stay in a funky little hotel downtown though.
5. In 2007 Phil got married in Skokie. xhollydayx and I went. We met dmw7 and Sarah for lunch. We had tapas at Emilios. We went to the Art Institute of Chicago, which is pretty much made of win.
6. In 2009 we stayed with Wayne & Jen in Chicago and ate our way through the city. We also went to the Lincoln Park Zoo, Shedd's Aquarium and assorted other attractions.
7. In March of this year I went to Frank's bachelor party in Chicago, as alluded to here.
And that's just so far. I've got friend who have a guest room in Wrigleyville and a standing invitation, so I'm sure I'll be back in Chicago again. I can't say I'm terribly interested in the rest of the state, mind you, but Chicago is one of the five coolest cities I've ever been to (off the top of my head, the other four are Sydney, London, NYC, Portland) so I'm sure I'll be back.
As a special bonus, Illinois also gave its name to one of the greatest album titles ever, Come on Feel the Illinoise.
Scoreboard
Full Credit - 15: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, Louisiana, Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois
Partial Credit - 3: Delaware, Connecticut, Maryland
No Credit - 3: South Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont