Before letting my actual journal engulf you, I give some practical details regarding my trip, in case someone would want to do something similar to my trip. You will also find more information within the actual journal.
When I was planning my trip to the US of A, I tried to make it as flexible as possible. I chose to do this by buying a 30-day Ameripass with Greyhound. This works very fine, with the huge number of places trafficated by Greyhound, at a very decent price. Europeans pay (paid) $289 for this ticket, which enables you to travel whereever you want whenever you want for a 30-day period, starting the date you travel your first distance. Americans will have to pay 30-40 dollars more. This ticket should be bought from your travel agency in Europe, OR could be bought at the "European price" at Greyhound International's offices in New York City and Los Angeles.
Another very good alternative to Greyhound is to travel with Green Tortoise . This company is run by the kind of people you find at youth hostels, and even if it can't compete with Greyhound when it comes to places it can take you, it definitely outcompetes Greyhound in most other ways. They have buses going between some of the major cities, mostly on the West Coast. The best one is possibly their New York to LA 14 days trip. Worth considering.
Yet another alternative is travelling with Amtrak. I didn't, as it was close to impossible to get any information about where and when their trains go. After having seen the US trains, I must say I am glad I chose to stay away from them. Most important, Amtrak isn't even close to covering the whole US. Besides, their schedules aren't very impressive, and travelling with a backpack means you won't get to see your luggage at all while you're on the train. But hey! Feel free to chose it if you really, really like travelling by train. #8D)
Trans-Atlantic flights entitles you to carry up to 70 kg of luggage. Don't let this fool you into bringing more than 20-25 kg's if you are travelling with a backpack. Greyhound has a limit of 45 pounds which they just might throw in your face if you meet one of their most eager employees. Travel light!
Errrrrr... I haven't mentioned the whole truth about Greyhound yet. You see, they tend to put their stations right in the middle of the seediest part of any town or city. Sooooooo... You might want to be very careful with what you do when you arrive at a Greyhound station, especially when it is dark outside. Still, as long as you are at least two people going together, and you don't look like real suckers, it should be possible to get around, unmugged. If you're kinda uneasy about it, you could also take a cab from the station to somewhere safer, it'll most often be within 5-8 dollars distance.
As of today, June 18 1996, I am still looking for a travel partner to go with me through South East Asia and Australia/New Zealand during the autumn and winter which is approaching Norway. If you're going and like what you read here, why not join me? Just drop me a mail.
Now, let's get down to the fun part!