Perhaps you caught this interesting Associated Press news item from last month: “The world’s most-visited museum shuts down with staff sounding the alarm on mass tourism.” Yes, we’re talking about none other than The Louvre in Paris—that would be Paris, France…not Illinois.

It wasn’t pretty. Thousands of stranded and confused visitors to the Louvre were told to take their tickets and form lines by the I.M. Pei’s glass pyramid. The frustrated, and feeling rejected, tourists said, “No communication, no explanation.”

And it wasn’t just in France! Around the same time, coordinated anti-tourism protests swept across southern Europe. Complaining masses rallied in places like Mallorca, Venice, Lisbon, and elsewhere. One report claimed that in Barcelona, activists sprayed tourists with water pistols — to “cool down” runaway tourism.

Whoever heard of such a thing?

Like many states, Illinois has an Office of Tourism, and they spend a pretty-soon-to-be-non-existent penny to woo travelers to see the splendid sites in the Land of Lincoln. Chicago alone has over 60 museums. Some of the best include the Art Institute of Chicago, the Field Museum of Natural History, and the Museum of Science and Industry.  Plus, several museums in the city are free!

Of course, all throughout the state there is much to see. In Livingston, you can enjoy the Pink Elephant Antique Mall featuring oversized statues. In Alton, we find the American Oddities Museum, which features taxidermy, a “mermaid,” vampire-killing kits, and “other bizarre objects.”

But wait—there’s more! Plenty more. There’s the Cahokia Mounds in Collinsville: they claim to be the largest prehistoric Mississippian settlement in North America. Back in Chicago, you can also see Walt Disney’s birthplace. Mickey Mouse may or may not invite you in.

Prefer the outdoors? One of our favorites is Starved Rock State Park in Oglesby. A great spot to see canyons, sandstone cliffs, and waterfalls. Travel to southern Illinois and discover Shawnee National Forest. This area features a variety of landscapes, including forests, bluffs, and unique rock formations. In the same area, there’s the Garden of the Gods—a scenic area with unique rock formations and hiking trails.

We offered our 15 year-old grandson a week anywhere in the U.S. to travel with his grandparents this summer. Know what he chose? Chicago! This California boy wanted to eat deep dish pizza and go to Portillo’s. A visit to “The Bean” was on his list. Hanging out with cousins—and his “cool” grandparents, of course. He even passed on a trip to Navy Pier to hang out with a mentor-friend who works in the city. Our young grandson rode the train into town with us but came back by himself! A true adventure.

My wife and I have been to all fifty U.S. states. We rather resonate with the Johnny Cash song, “I’ve Been Everywhere.” We’ve been to Israel four times and I’ve seen roughly forty other countries. To me, nothing quite compares to the place we call America.

Mountains. Deserts. Theme parks. Oceans. Big and small lakes. Beautiful rivers. Miles and miles of open highway. We even have a huge hole in the ground people from all over the world come to see: The Grand Canyon. Plus some of the greatest cities in the world. You name it, we’ve got it.

Looking for action? We have every major sport. We have protests. Prison riots. Long TSA lines at airports. Pride parades with the wildest stuff you could hope you’d never see.

Step right up, folks. It’s all right here.

Truth be told, despite all its beauty, America is also a place of damaged goods. And that’s because the land is filled with damaged people. In the “religious” world, we call them sinners. In fact, you can find them all over the world. They’re even in our many churches!

If you are looking for “utopia,” don’t look inside our borders. Or anywhere else on this planet.

Instead, consider God’s vision of an eternal home for you:

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” (Revelation 21:4, NLT)

How about that for a vacation? It’s free when you turn to Jesus in faith. Why, it’s even better than Disneyland! And no lines.