United States 1969

CN-69 - Abbreviation of Czech Cesta z nutnosti (A Journey of Necessity) to France, Luxembourg, Iceland and USA to show that my year stay abroad after the Soviet Invasion was correct for my traveling aspirations. Date of travel: Apr 2 - Aug 11, 1969 ITINERARY: I left Switzerland by train late on Apr 2. By early morning Apr 3 I got to FRANCE specifically Paris where I spent 4 days sightseeing the city including Versailles. Early on Apr 7 I got by train to LUXEMBOUG and was a day there. Overnight flight took me to ICELAND for Apr 8 and 9 (visiting its capital Reykjavik and Selfoss). Another overnight flight brought me to New York in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA in the morning Apr 10. In next 4 months I visited the following places by bus there: New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; Washington, DC, Niagara Falls, NY; Cleveland, OH; Chicago, IL; Kansas City, KS; St. Louis, MO; Huntsville, AL; Chattanooga and Knoxville, TN; Great Smoky Mountains, NC; Jacksonville, Cape Canaveral, Miami, Key West, Everglades National Park, St. Petersburg, all in FL; New Orleans, LA; San Antonio and El Paso, TX; Tucson, Phoenix and Grand Canyon, AZ; White Sands, Gallup, Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Taos, all these in NM; Denver, CO; Cheyenne, Yellowstone National Park, WY; Salt Lake City, UT; Reno and Las Vegas, NV; San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Eureka, all CA; Seattle, WA. Travel office: No specific travel office used, but a student travel agency in Zurich, Switzerland gave me number of good suggestions, which I used during this trip. Not to close my possible return to Czechoslovakia, I asked and got the Czechoslovakian government permission for travel to USA. Who took part: I traveled alone with only rudimentary knowledge of English. In spite of that I had very little problems. In Europe I used the train, to Iceland and USA I took a plane and in USA I traveled by bus. In Paris I slept in a students college, on Iceland in a house of Salvation Army and in USA I slept mostly in YMCA or on the bus itself during overnight rides.