The first thing to hit you after stepping off the plane is the intense humidity and the extreme heat, coming from Boston the contrast was severe. From the plane we headed to the rental centre and as I drove last time this was Bens turn. Like last time we selected the cheapest range of cars; compact/economy. Now whether they simply had no cars available from that range or whether this was Miami’s version of a compact/economical car, I’m not sure. What we ended up with was a 3.7litre Jeep Liberty. With Ben driving (if that’s what you call scrapping alongside a [View Full Entry]

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With very little sleep from the overnight greyhound journey we arrived in Boston at around 9am.We boarded the metro train and headed towards out hostel. ‘Just a short tube journey from the city centre’ it touted. Yes and a 30-minute bus journey to the tube station which it failed to mention. We checked in and showered before we headed back into the city. Unlike where we were staying, which was very industrial and run down, the centre of Boston was very beautiful, situated on the coast; this heavily Irish influenced city had much to offer and was overflowing with history, much [View Full Entry]

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On the journey to Toronto we learnt more about Andrew an Australian traveller who was going to be staying in England for a year or so whilst interspersing trips to Europe. He was currently visiting friends in New York and Toronto for a few weeks and, as what was becoming somewhat of a habit, we discussed travelling, the world and our mutual bewilderment and all things American. Upon arrival in Toronto we all checked into a HI hostel and shared a bottle of Cointreau. The hostel, part of a chain across the US called HI or Hostel International, was very expensive [View Full Entry]

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The 14-hour journey to Niagara Falls from Philadelphia first stopped off at New York City. We were able to stretch our legs and get our first glimpse of the city that would eventually mark the conclusion of the trip. The long journey across New York state gave me and appreciation of the sheer size of American states, practically countries in their own right it is an impressive tribute to the founding fathers, whose initial spirit of co-operation and trust first bound these huge states together to form one nation. The passenger rail network in the US is very minimal. Commercial freight [View Full Entry]

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The short journey by train to Philadelphia meant we arrived at about 3pm. We made our way to the HI Hostel near the centre of town, and as we arrived the hostel was just opening. Inside it was very clean, the common areas consisted of a TV lounge and a pool table. The hostel put a film on every night at 9pm, this at first sounded like a good way to meet other travellers but we found out that people don’t talk they just watch the TV. For dinner we ordered a pizza and took it back to the hostel. We [View Full Entry]

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After a terrifying flight I was glad to be on he ground. The initial descent over DC was spectacular; I was able to get a great view of the white house, the capitol building and the Washington monument. DC had a good public transport system and we were able to easily navigate the underground system and find our hostel. Named the Hill Top Hostel it was about 20 minutes out from the centre. Despite being a little grotty the hostel had a real grungy feel about it and was quite a welcoming place. In the cellar was a foosball table, a [View Full Entry]

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As we approached Las Vegas, daylight was quickly fading, the lights from the Vegas Strip illuminated the evening sky and we were able to identify some of the larger more unique hotels. We eventually located our own hotel just a short 5-min walk from the MGM grand off the strip. Ben, tired from the days hiking and travelling, headed to bed but I decided that Vegas on a Saturday night could not be missed. The strip at night, with all the lights, hotels and attractions is a beautiful vibrant place and lives up to the images you see on the TV. [View Full Entry]

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We arrived at the Grand Canyon at about 3pm and eager for a backcountry pass so that we could head down into the canyon and camp at the bottom, we headed straight to the backcountry office without even seeing the canyon itself. When we got to the office we were informed that the last backcountry pass had gone only moments ago. Extremely disappointed we started to discuss with the ranger what other options were available. He said that he could put us on the waiting list for Saturday- two days away when we planned to be in Vegas, so this was [View Full Entry]

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We finally arrived in Joshua Tree National Park at about 10.30 in the evening, the park rangers had gone home so we drove straight through into the park, …well we could always pay when we departed. We drove to a series of campsites before finding a site that was not full up. We pitched the tent and went to bed not knowing what sort of scenery was surrounding us. In the morning we found that we were encircled by large boulders, these provided some shelter from the strong desert sun. We packed up and started to explore the park. We started [View Full Entry]

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The journey to San Diego was relatively quick, we stopped a few times along the way once for Ben who was still feeling unwell and once for fuel (gas), that was an experience in itself. The hostel at San Diego was very luxurious compared to the LA hostel we had stayed in previous and was set up in such a way as to encourage socialising. We checked in and, in preparation for the overnight camping we had planned, went shopping for camping gas and tents, (after Ben ham-handedly destroyed mine in Australia). The following day we crossed the US boarder into [View Full Entry]

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