I didn't ride a bicycle on a paved road until I moved back to Nebraska in 2002. I learned to ride on dirt, mud, sand, and gravel when I got a single speed bike at 5 or 6.

I took a truck or tractor after I could reach the pedals and the horses a lot to get through the terrain.

I've been to all but a handful of states in the northwest and sotheast US, 2 other continents, and 8 European city/states. Europe is so small.

The US is basically the same everywhere with urban core population, suburbs, and then rural areas. With some different chain stores. You can fly into most cities and get to middle of nowhere looking farm ground in an hour or less driving. Minus one or two cities that plug up with excessive traffic and slow you to a crawl. Fly in well before rush hour there.

I prefer more rural settings. Cities are too dirty and crime ridden for my liking. Even the one I'm in now which is very, very safe and clean by most standards. I can fly to different places to see new things if I want. Day to day quality of life for the family is important. That's why I moved back here.

Couldn't pay me to live in some cities I've visited for work and travel. Trenton, NJ is a horrible place. I stayed on the PA side and drove in every day. Philly I could pass on too. Chicago, DFW, etc are just huge expanses of the same looking suburbs. Chicago is mildly interesting downtown but no different than other skyscrapper cities. Denver is a pass through to get to Moab or skiing. LA to San Diego is a parking lot with a high cost of living. I've been to NYC and DC several times. Wouldn't live in either.

Got me thinking of the next trip now. The last one was Alaska. Nice place once you get out of the city. Anchorage was full of homeless people.