As a kid, most of my family vacations were to Disney World, or to visit family in neighboring states. I never really felt like I had seen a lot of the country I've lived in my whole life until this summer, when I planned on taking three different vacations to three drastically different spots across the U.S. When you live in a secluded fly-over-state like Indiana, it's sometimes hard to even imagine the reality of there being a world outside of the crossroads of America. The flat fields and woodland areas seem to stretch on for miles and miles, with scattered towns and small cities here and there.

The first vacation I took this summer was to the aforementioned and beloved Disney World. My entire family hopped on a plane and headed south for a week to experience the sunshine state. I'm always taken aback by Florida's muggy climate and abundance of palm trees. The air is so thick you can hardly breathe and the sun is so hot you can hardly be outside for more than a minute without sweating bullets.

My best advice to anyone traveling to the state of Florida would be don't bother doing your hair and always pack a rain poncho. The spontaneous rains of Florida take no pity on the thousands of people who flood into the Disney Parks every day. You don't want to be caught in the middle of the Magic Kingdom poncho-less when an unpremeditated rain shower breaks out.

Whoever nicknamed Florida "The Sunshine State" obviously never took a trip to Arizona, where my second summer vacation took place. I flew to Arizona to spend a week with my boyfriend as he was interning there for the summer months. Never having been further west than Texas, the dry desert heat was truly like something I'd never felt before. The sun's unrelenting rays show no mercy to the dusty state, as it only experiences rain a few days a year. However, the lack of humidity in the air makes it the perfect place for a good hair day.

My best advice to anyone traveling towards the true sunshine state would be staying hydrated and always make sure your car is gassed up. Arizona's long stretches of the road go on for never-ending miles. I don't even want to imagine breaking down in the middle of the desert with no water and no cell service. That sounds like a dust-covered nightmare.

While in Arizona, I was lucky enough to go visit the Grand Canyon. I'd never seen something so naturally perfect in my whole life. It looked like God had handpainted the deep reds and oranges of the canyon onto a giant sheet and pinned it against the bottom of the sky. No picture could ever do it justice. If you ever have the opportunity to experience it, it's something you won't ever forget.

Currently, I sit in the backseat of the car on the way to my third and final summer vacation to the sandy shores of North Carolina. I've never been this far east before and as we wind through the rolling hills of West Virginia. I feel the pressure in my ears change as our elevation does. I love the way the fog hangs low to kiss the tops of the eastern hills. It's certainly nothing like my monotonous home-state, but it's nice to finally get a taste at what's out there.

I think it's important to travel in your home country and learn some of the different cultures and quirks within each state. There's so much to see out there, and I feel so lucky to have gotten to experience so much of it this summer.