For some reason, graduation seems so much closer this side of spring break. But I’m still in denial, so let’s talk about spring break instead! I love spring break; it’s the perfect break from midterms, job applications, and the freezing cold (if your friends are willing to drive down to Florida with you.)
I’ve had some great spring breaks during my four years of college, and since I can’t write them Yelp reviews, this blog will have to do. None of the crazy things Selena Gomez did in “Spring Breakers” happened, but it was kind of crazy writing this and realizing just how lucky I am.
Freshman year, I went home to New Jersey where I hung out with my sisters, high school friends and my dog. We saw “Once” on Broadway one night, and it was so great I saw it twice. Also, my parents paid for everything, did my laundry and cooked for me. It was my first year of college, so I still wasn’t quite used to being away from home for most of the year, and it was really nice to be able to just relax with my family for a couple of days. Three and a half stars.
Sophomore year, I went with about a dozen other College of William and Mary students to Myrtle Beach. It was the first week of March, and we drove six hours and paid a lot of money to stay in a hotel on the beach, and then preceded to stay in said hotel room almost the entire time because IT WAS FREEZING. However, the hotel did have a hot tub and an indoor lazy river, so it was still a lot of fun, but we could have stayed in Williamsburg and gone to Great Wolf Lodge instead. Three stars.
Junior year, to compensate for how cold Myrtle Beach was, we went to Florida. We stayed in a swanky AirBnb about fifteen minutes outside of Orlando that had its own pool, and more importantly, sixteen beds, which was necessary because there were about twenty of us. We saved money on lodgings (splitting a house twenty ways is not bad) and travel (we drove down), so we did Disney World and beach days. It was awesome and very relaxing because there was enough of us that we couldn’t get sick of each other, and I caught up on my readings and tv shows. Also, the girl I wanted to win “The Bachelor” won too, so that was an added bonus. Four stars.
Senior year, aka about a week ago, I went to Nashville for what was probably MY LAST EVER SPRING BREAK. And I know, when you think Nashville, you think country music. As an agnostic, Indian, Jewish female from New Jersey who drives an eleven-year-old Volvo, I’m not exactly country music’s Jesus worshipping, truck lovin’ demographic. But the jokes on them, because I love country music. (Or maybe the jokes on me, I don’t know how that works.) Only in country music can a single with a ridiculous name like “Drunk on a Plane” become a No. 1 hit.
The best part about Nashville was definitely the music. However, it’s not all just country music — there was plenty of rock, pop, blues, and basically everything in between. Going out at night was a lot of fun because there were live bands everywhere, and the people were warm and welcoming. If you’re somehow not a fan of music (a.k.a. you’re some sort of alien life form), there are a couple of national parks in Nashville that are beautiful to hike around. Fireworks are also legal in Tennessee, so you have some options. I would, however, definitely recommend being twenty-one to get the full experience. Four and a half stars. (The only reason this wasn’t five was because of the food. As a vegetarian, I was mostly relegated to ordering off the sides menus, but I had chess pie for my first time, and it’s delicious.)
In my head, I definitely built up my senior spring break to be this sort of magical, wonderful, insane experience, and it was. While I’ve loved my times away from college, I do know that with graduation around the corner, I’m going to miss not returning to the College after a week of vacation.
