I had always dreamed of seeing the country, but had never taken the bold steps to visit all of the locations that I desired to see. As a nurse, I already had the skills and the training that were required to become a travel nurse. I had heard someone talking about this career path at one point, but I had never really looked into it for me. After mustering up some courage to consider the opportunity, I decided to take a job so that I could start seeing the country.

My first assignment was in a rural community in Arizona. During my stay in Arizona, I was able to see the Grand Canyon, Lake Havasu, Flagstaff, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tuscan. The Grand Canyon is simply a must see! I was able to go hiking and I took a water raft ride on a weekend off. In addition to visiting all of these unique cities, I also schedule some time for myself for some R&R in a famous Arizona spa.

My next assignment took me to central California where I spent 9 months. What can I say other than there is so much to see and do in California. Every chance that I had, I drove 2-3 hours and was able to see something new. Being centrally located in the Valley, I was 2 ½ hours from LA, 2-3 hours from the beach if I went West, 2 hours from Tehachapi or Sequoia National Park and I could drive another few hours and make it to San Francisco. What a time I had in California!! And, with my accommodations being covered by my salary as a travel nurse, it was like being on vacation all of the time without the cost.

After California, I moved on to New York. I had always wanted to live in New York but could never dream of being able to afford it, so I had never explored the possibility. The greatest thing about New York and the northeast region of the US is that it is so close to so many other states. During my time off from being a travel nurse, I visited several nearby locations. One weekend I drove through the Connecticut countryside. It is just as beautiful as people say that it is. When I had several days off in a row, I took the 2 hour train down to Baltimore and spent the day walking around the Inner Harbor area. I was also able to see the famous Baltimore aquarium. During my stay as a travel nurse in New York, I was also able to see Philadelphia, Cape Cod, the Hamptons and New Jersey.

I am not sure if I would have ever been able to see all of the places that I was able to see if I had chosen another career path. As I was already living in these areas, my travel costs were minimal, allowing me to experience virtually everything that I wanted to see and do in each new area.