August 29, 2005

• well i'm sure you can crash with one of us monkeys in LA (and probably elsewhere) for a while (we could pass you around!) as for travel, i haven't done it myself, but da shiv (from mefi, in SF) reccomends the rideshare thingie on craigslist...that's how he gets to LA when he wants to visit...doing it cross country might be a chore, but maybe you do it on the east coast, fly west, and use it out here... (oh, and ps...I'd give new orleans a miss...just a huge awful strip mall full of drunk suburbanites at this point...i'm from around there...)
• oh and jet blue often has really cheap flights (not as good as ryanair, but then, who does?) sometimes as low as $99 one way nyc to LA...
• The MoFi wiki has a page where short term accommocations are offered, though I'm not sure they're in the places you want to go. But, if you network well, you might find places to stay in most of the areas you've mentioned. Your biggest problem, I think, is that you want to see places on coasts which are 3000 miles apart. Bus travel is the cheapest, but it would take a long time to get from the east coast to the west. Train travel is almost as expensive as air, and while there are pockets of good train routes, they're not really as convenient as I think you're used to. Maybe your agenda is too large. If I were you, I'd limit my exploring to the northeast for your first trip. Plus DC, if you have the time. (The train from various points in New Jersey to DC has a good schedule, and it's easy to get from NY to NJ. The northeast, in general, is more train oriented than the rest of the place. Unfortunately, we don't have anything like the Eurail Pass, to my knowledge. DC has really good subway connections to Maryland, where hotel costs might be cheaper than in the capitol. If you're into "getting to know us" the Smithsonian museums are treasures. George Washington's and Thomas Jefferson's plantations are within driving distance, but I'm not sure that rental cars are in your budget. Though, there might be bus tours that would work. On the other hand, if you're into less serious stuff, you could probably spend the whole time in NYC, with maybe a side trip to Boston. Or, fly into San Francisco and bus to LA (about 400 miles.) SF has a pretty good rapid transit system, so you could stay out of the high rent district, and local busses. I haven't been to LA in a while, but I think their transit system can get you where you want to go, as well. SF is much more condensed, but it has a lot to offer. LA is spread out, but has its own character. And a trip to San Diego, with, maybe, a day in Tijuana, Mexico, is worthwhile. On preview, I see you've gotten some good advice already. Maybe someone will come up with a program that will make it easier.
• Auto Drive Away free cars, you pay gas.
• Green Tortoise Adventure Travel
• Greyhound's got a Discovery Pass thingy that would get you around the country, but it's still several hundred dollars, even with the student discount. I spent 19 hours on a bus with a migraine, once, too scared to fall asleep in case I missed my stop. Never doing that again. Hate buses. But Amtrak is expensive as all hell - you might as well take a plane. I would definitely try to find a cheap flight over the middle part - we call it flyover country for a reason... (and, yes, road-tripping through it is an experience, but the hours spent driving through nebraska just to get to carhenge are almost not worth it...) I'll be in Seattle by then, if you need a place to crash.
• I've bused across Canada (not quite as far as NYC to LA, because I wasn't going diagonally) and I loved it. Stretched it out to 7 days or so (when Toronto to Vancouver is usually just 3), which makes it nicer (also took a night in a hostel). I saw so much of my own country, and met people and went places I wouldn't have been able to - like Portage and Main in Winnipeg, and to their art gallery and to the West Edmonton Mall - I'm just sorry I missed Saskatoon and most of Saskachewan, as it was night. Big flat places are so cool, so unlike what I grew up with. If you want to say you've seen the States, it's a great way to do it. How many weeks do you have? In about 4 weeks, you could probably go from NYC to Washington to New Orleans and then onto California. But you wouldn't just hop like that of course - stop in Philodelphia for a look around, see some of the South on your way into Louisiana, see the south-west and Las Vegas on your way across the country. And you can save money on hotels by sleeping on the bus and having the day to see the next city.
• Discovery Pass
• thursday - URL not found for the discovery pass.
• doh! thanks jb & path... i must add, buses aren't nearly as bad with a companion.
• Blaise - be sure to check out the "time between cities" link on Discovery Pass.
• Hey, NYC to Los Angelos is only 64 hours! That's so doable. (Actually, that's close to the time for Toronto to Vancouver - the lakes take a while to go around.) If you can get to the point where you think a three day drive is no big deal, then you have truely groked North America. I had a friend who used to do five days on his own - east coast of the US to Alaska. Okay, he was crazy - but I was jealous - the scenery on the Alaskan highway kicks upstate New York (which I have passed through in the middle of the night too many times). The more pleasant way to do busing for that kind of distance is not to think of it as getting from point A to B, but as a journey in and of itself - going to see interesting things, taking days off to tour, and when you get really tired and sore, get off where there is a convenient hostel for a hot shower and a good bed. Hostels are also great for meeting people - and I have to tell you, if you are hanging around the US you should put your accent to good use. That bit in Love Actually about the effect of a British accent on North American girls is totally accurate.
• Independence air (FLYi) also has some dirt cheap flights throughout the east (some west coast stuff too). For instance, you can get $39 each way to florida from Washington DC when they have sales/promotions which happens fairly frequently.
• Car rentals can be cheap in the US too. If you can skip the insurance, companies like Enterprise routinely offer cars for less than $20/day with unlimited mileage.
• Seattle might be worth a look-see just so you can say you made it to the nortwest tip o' the country but as far as advancement goes I would give Portland, Ore the nod over Seattle these days. Seattle's become really 'stick in the mud' vs. Portland which is fashioning itself after Vancouver B.C. these days (1st or 2nd most livable city in the world, depending on how you look at it.)
• Come to Austin. Seriously, it's awesome. And we'll always have a place on the futon for a holy man like the Reverend Studly Mayhem.
• As someone who has lived in Seattle for the past 15 years, I would agree that it's become much more "stick in the mud" these days. But in terms of experiencing what I would consider "the Pacific Northwest" as a tourist, I would choose Seattle over Portland: the (relatively) quick interstate trip east or west to the mountains and state parks; the ferry system to get you anywhere from just across the Puget Sound all the way up to the gorgeous San Juan Islands; the Hoh Rainforest; the mere 2 hour trip to the Pacific Coast; etc. There's just a lot more bang for your buck at your fingertips, so to speak. But Portland's very cool too!
• Regarding car-rental companies, be aware that some will not rent to someone under the age of 25 and/or someone without a credit card.
• Thanks a lot for all the offers/advice. We're thinking of spending a few weeks in the states, so a cross-country trip is quite possible. We'd like to rent a car, if it were possible: we've both got full driving licenses but at the time of the trip we'll only be twenty, so I guess it's not very likely. Has anyone had any experience with the Camp America work thing?
• As Sexyrobot said, most of New Orleans is tawdry, but some of it's nice. Don't skip the rest of Louisiana, though, it's unique. We'd love to have you spend a night with us.
• My road trip piece of advice: when renting a car, make sure that is comes with unlimited mileage (although this probably comes standard nowadays)! My college roommate and I planned a big 'ol U.S. road trip a year in advance. He prepped his car for a good three months before the big day. Everything was in grand order. The night before we were set to depart, his car completely died! Not to be dismayed, we ran off to the nearest cheapo car rental place and got ourselves a nice reliable auto. Heh, in our haste, neither of us even thought about the "unlimited mileage" factor. To our shock, we realized during the second day of our journey. After the initial 2000 miles, each mile cost us 25 cents! At first, we watched the odometer tick by in horror, but after a while we just laughed it off: "fuck it!" We drove about 7500 miles in our ten days of road trip glory. Needless to say, when we returned the car - the car rental guy's initial shock turned to laughter as he handed us the bill. Oh, we suffered dearly for the remainder of the summer (it cost us every penny), but was it worth it?? HELL YEAH!! Also, coffee is your friend
• ps when you come SF-way, email me, address is in the profile. We'll do whatever it is you college kids enjoy these days.
• Weed and video games?
• Hmm, yeah the garden could use some weeding...and well, I do have a rather stirring game of video chess.
• Heh, thanks a lot for the offer, and if our plans take us that way, I may well be in touch.
• I haven't been to LA in a while, but I think their transit system can get you where you want to go, as well ha. Not unless where you want to go is the four or so miles between downtown and North Hollywood. Rent a car.
• Some places might rent to under-25s, though often they are a bit more and the insurance can cost more. It will take some research - the one I'm thinking of is a) Canadian, and b) rents to 21 and over. Not much help there.
• drjummy11 - Have they done away with busses in LA? I'm sure the red line of trollies is gone,but there used to be lots of busses.
• I spent my first 10 months in LA sans car and while it can be a pain, it is definitely possible to do. Especially if you don't plan on taking a lot of trips between the east and the westside. The east-west voyage can take forever (just ask sexyrobot who used to make the commute every day for work). LA monkeys were very kind in giving me a ride home or a place to crash if it was too late for little single female me to get home via ye olde bus. If you need a place to crash, you and your friend more than welcome to stay with me. I'm westside, yo. 5 miles to the Santa Monica beach. 1 mile from Beverly Hills, if that's your thing.
• it is possible to take the bus in LA, I admit, but not pleasant or easy. Incidentally, I recommend renting a car or finding a ride to check out Zuma or some of the beaches way out PCH... Venice beach is skippable unless you REALLY like tacky t-shirts and incense. Melrose Ave. on a Sunday gives you the same type of experience in a more pleasant atmosphere and with more tasteful things for sale. The Walk of Fame is a sidewalk, often with cigarettes and urine on it. Why anyone has ever considered it a tourist attraction is beyond me. Hollywood (the geographical area, not the state of mind) is a big dissapointment to most people. The only good reason to go there is nightlife, and even that has gotten tacky in the last year or two... if you want to see some Hollywood history and nightlife at the same time, check out Bar Marmont at the Chateu Marmont on Sunset Strip. Expensive drinks but very little attitude considering the location... same goes for the Trocadero across the street.
• *or, if you're a hipster and wouldn't be caught dead in a place that serves $9 drinks, do to Los Feliz/Silverlake. Drinks will still be overpriced, but you'll get to see a lot more clever t-shirts...
• On preview: yes. As far as I know, you simply can't rent a car if you're under 24. I've never tried (not that old quite yet), nor have I done research. The Pacific Northwest is idllic, if you want to go camping, rafting, hiking, etc. If want nightlife, no so much. And when you get to New England, notice how fucking PROUD people are of things that are almost 150 years old. It's kinda cute, compared to standing next to any cathedral in Europe
• "If want nightlife, then bad. Hulk smash!"
• Well, we've taken a look at our options, and the current plan is to start off in Chicago, then take a trip to Boston, and work our way south through New York and Washington, and maybe making our way to New Orleans. We'll see how that turns out.