I think Couchsurfing is such a genius idea! Not only does it allow you to travel for significantly less than you'd spend staying at a hotel, but it affords you the opportunity to meet local people in the cities where you stay, and potentially create life-long friendships!

In no particular order: Music: Coldplay, Relient K, Death Cab for Cutie, The Alabama Shakes, Tegan and Sara, Jack's Mannequin, Dashboard Confessional, The Killers, NEEDTOBREATHE, Regina Spektor, & Ingrid Michaelson. Movies: Dumb & Dumber, Tommy Boy, The Shawkshank Redemption, Napoleon Dynamite, Patch Adams, The Garden State, Shrek, The School of Rock, P.S. I love You, Mulan, Zealander, & Clueless. Books: The Harry Potter Series, It's Kind of a Funny Story, The Screwtape Letters, Beloved, & Winesburg, Ohio.