In 2007 the last leg of my round the world trip was from Boston to New York City. I was looking around for a cheap bus service between the two cities and stumbled upon the Fung Wah Bus Company. For a budget traveller it was top notch as the three and a half hour bus journey only cost $15! To put this into perspective, the cab fare from the hostel in Boston to the bus terminal was the same price.

I travelled at about 11am and the bus was completely full but I guess this all adds to the atmosphere right? Despite the cheap price, you may have to put up with mediocre on board entertainment which for us happened to be a low budget martial arts movie, so I just put on the iPod and closed my eyes (what a party animal). However, after a little research on the web, I found that my Boston to New York price could be beaten by the Lucky Star bus company. They could offer the same journey for as little as $1 if you were prepared to travel at 6am, or competitive prices at other times of the day.

It does seem that these Chinatown buses from Boston do offer very good rates travel and beat the Greyhound services hand down. It is always wise to shop around online for alternative bus companies to the Greyhound as you may be surprised by what you find. There are other cheap services operating down the East Coast to Washington, Philadelphia and Georgia to name a few so always consider these before you pick the tempting yet pricier option of a budget airline. For a comprehensive list of alternative bus services at competitive prices so be sure to take a look here.

If anyone else has bagged a transport bargain on their travels please leave a comment so we can all ‘tap that resource’.

Most young people dream of becoming an astronaut before they realise the qualifications and training necessary to have this chance. As the majority of people do not make it into orbit, the next best thing for any space enthusiast is visiting the Kennedy Space centre in Florida. I visited the Space Centre this time last year as a pit stop while travelling from Miami up to Orlando. It was a 45 minute detour from our route but I thoroughly enjoyed the day out. It should be noted that the visitors centre is only accessible by car because there are no public transport links.

Once at the complex there are numerous activities, shows and tours to keep you occupied. It is best to plan your day well, especially if it is busy to ensure you fit everything in. The first thing I did was to jump on the next available tour bus. There are a couple of routes you can take depending on what you want to see, but as I thought time was on my side I went for the whole lot.

The first stop was to the launch pad view point. The bus takes you passed the rocket construction building where the rockets are built or repaired before launch. I was lucky enough to see the enormous mobile platform which takes the rockets the launch area, and also a rare viewing of a rocket actually on the pad ready for a mission in the coming week. From the lookout point you can see the launch pad even though it is still a fair distance away and you can also see across to Cape Canaveral where take off used to take place. There are coin operated binoculars on the tower and as you can see in the photo below I captured the rocket through the lens.

The next stop was the labs to see where parts of the International Space Station were being created for the eminent launch. From the overhead walkway, you can see scientists working below on the new additions to the Space Station and the next experiments to be taken up. This is also the chance to see the normal amenities of the space station such as the living quarters, on board labs, and of course the toilets. It is then only a short stop from there to numerous exhibitions about space travel through the ages. There is a show about the first moon landing, interesting artefacts and hands on attractions.

Once back at the main visitor complex there is still much to see and do. You can get on board a retired space shuttle and look at the cramped conditions astronauts live in for weeks at a time, and experience the closest thing to a real space launch. This is a very popular new attraction and will get busy so make sure you leave plenty of time for this. There are also short movies showing at the 5 story iMax cinema which gives the viewing an extra edge. I have not mentioned all that is available as I did not get round the whole experience as I did not have a full day. For more information please visit the Kennedy Space Centre website.

Admission costs $38 for adults and $28 for children plus that pesky tax. I think this is a reasonable price as it is a whole day out and is one of the only places in the world to give you a working day insight into live space exploration programmes. If you would like to look at some of the photos from my day out visit my Florida photo gallery.

I highly recommend a visit if you are in the area because where else can you have lunch with an astronaut, see a rock from Mars, and board a space shuttle all in one day?

When you think of the Statue of Liberty your mind immediately turns to New York City and the towering statue off the coast of Manhattan. However, this is not the only place in the world you can see this famous monument. Before I took the ferry out to climb the statue I had already seen it twice before on my travels in two other countries. Can you guess where they were?

The first one I saw was standing in the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris. I caught a glimpse of it while traveling past on the Metro and have since learnt there is another in Paris on an island in the Seine called the Île des Cygnes. It was given to France as a gift in return for the original built and placed in New York to commemorate 100 years of American independence, and as recognition of their new government. They are both relatively small compared to the monster in the USA but still worth a photo.

The second one I spotted took me a bit by surprise. It was standing in Tokyo on the riverside near to the Rainbow Bridge. It was placed there in commemoration of “The French year in Japan” in the late 1990’s and has stood there ever since (see the photo on the left). Apparently this is one of the larger replicas overshadowing those in Norway, Peru, Argentina and Oklahoma.

Another interesting fact is that the reason why you cannot climb right to the top of the Statue of Liberty in New York is because of fire regulations. Apparently to adhere to the regulations only 5 people would be able to climb every hour and it would not be profitable to maintain or provide support staff for this experience. According to the security guard it will never be climbed by a tourist again.

Let me know if you have seen any other replicas by leaving a comment below.

I went travelling back in 2007 for four months and touched down in 4 continents. I took over 2500 photos and printed them all costing only £60 which I thought was quite a bargain. However, the photos of Niagara Falls at sunset stood out above the rest as being the most stunning, and I am actually quite proud of the shot.

It was taken from the American side looking over to Canada, and shows the American Falls on a very crisp winters evening in December. I use a normal point and shoot camera, so nothing flashy (no pun intended), but think I got as good a result as any SLR. At the risk of sounding a bit pretentious and artsy fartsy, I do like the way the fading light catches the spray coming off the falls.

The picture beat close contenders from the Grand Canyon at sundown, a view of the mountains across Lake Tekapo in New Zealand, and the lagoon on Muri Beach in the Cook Islands.

Once upon a time the San Francisco Bay harboured America’s most hardened criminals including Al Capone and Robert Stroud. The infamous US Penitentiary nicknamed “The Rock” was operational from 1934 – 63 before closing from the lack of funding. Today Alcatraz is considered a national treasure and tours of this illustrious island operate from Pier 33 at Fisherman’s Wharf.

The tours vary but I chose to do the night tour as it includes special programmes and presentations featured only at night. As I took was in San Francisco in late November early December the night tour started with Alcatraz in the daylight, then faded to sunset over the Golden Gate Bridge and finally you got a view of the lights in downtown from aspects rarely captured by the average visitor.

Alcatraz at the best of times is a creepy place, but especially at night. The rows of cells are dead quiet, still, and everything is untouched and as it was from when it was a working prison. You get a 45 minute audio tour telling you tales of the escape attempts, riots and day to day life on The Rock. The tour draws attention to bullet holes, half dug tunnels and blood stains from events that unfolded at Alcatraz. If you are quiet you can hear music and traffic from the bay area and can imagine the torment the prisoners must have endured everyday knowing that freedom was only a stones throw away. You get to wander the prison at your own pace visiting the cells, kitchen, solitary confinement, the hospital and the officer’s quarters. If you walk down Broadway (the central row of cells) you can imagine what it must have been like to be an inmate being led into your cell for the first time with hundreds of eyes on you. If you have ever seen The Shawshank Redemption you may have a clearer picture of what I mean.

After the audio guide you can head to off to the special presentations only available on the night tour. The guides give talks about topics such as the most famous residents at Alcatraz, everyday life, escapes, riots and much more. They will also be happy to take any questions.

The night tour is slightly dearer at $30.50 (adult) than the day tour but only by $6. It lasts for around 2 hours 30 minutes and is the number one thing to do in San Francisco. In peak season tours are normally sold out so book in advance or go off peak to ensure you get a place. Oh, and there is a gift shop on the island for all your Alcatraz merchandise.