By the time spring break finally rolled around, I was in desperate need of an escape from school. Everything from classes, to social events, to the daily stressors that inevitably accompany U.Va.’s “work hard, play hard” reputation had me feeling on edge. While I would like to flee home to the promises of home-cooked meals and being able to shower without shoes on, I’m an out-of-state kid who only goes home for Christmas and summer. Luckily, though, I had made plans to go northeast with some of my friends.
We started off our break with a shockingly pleasant Greyhound bus ride that took us to my friend Maggie’s house in Morristown, N.J. Over the next few days, Maggie got to show us everything she loves about her hometown, which included a popular hole-in-the-wall empanadas restaurant, her high school and Morristown’s cookie-cutter downtown that looks like it’s straight out of a storybook. We spent nights watching movies in the basement, sharing funny stories and consuming exorbitant amounts of junk food. It was the first time all semester that I had left my dorm, roommate and everyone’s favorite gourmet hotspot ― O-Hill. Even though it was weird not being home with my family for break, it was even weirder being away from the University and all of the little things that make up my life there. Regardless, there was something undeniably comforting about Morristown, and I was able to relax for the first time in weeks.
However, we soon left suburbia behind in pursuit of a grand adventure in the loud, overwhelming and always exciting Big Apple. We never had a particular destination in mind, so we stopped at any coffeeshop, bookstore or art gallery that looked interesting, and took time to simply enjoy the city’s quirks. We ate Big Gay Ice Cream, got lost in the Met and saw the Cavaliers beat the Pittsburgh at the Barclays Center. Over the course of the week, I found myself constantly laughing and I realized walks past the Rotunda were just as fun as walks through Central Park. In leaving the University behind, I had brought the best parts of it with me ― the people that make everything from lunches at Newcomb Hall to workouts at Slaughter Recreation Center fun. Even when we accidentally took the subway from Harlem to Queens and then to the Bronx while simply attempting to travel to Midtown, we managed to smile at our metropolitan inadequacies (and also managed to Uber to our destination). Now, we are closer than we were before the start of the trip — and we have a whole new level of respect for Charlottesville’s user-friendly bus system.
An unexpected highlight of the trip was that I got to spend time with some hilarious and inspiring U.Va. alumni. It was refreshing to talk to adults for once; it seemed that after so much time on Grounds, I’d nearly forgotten that everyone in the world isn’t between the ages of 18 and 22. We got to hear about how there used to be a pub in Pavilion XI, learned about old University traditions and received some words of wisdom regarding college and everything that comes afterward. After hearing about these amazing adults’ college memories, I was feeling much more eager to go back to school and make some more of my own.
Eventually, we had to leave New York and take another, much more terrifying Greyhound bus ride, during which two different passengers threatened to “throw hands” at the bus driver. But we made it back to school, and I was excited about it. Spring break gave me a chance to reconnect with friends and find the inner peace that I had been missing. I’ve now realized that even though Charlottesville is amazing and exciting and feels like one never-ending adventure, sometimes excitement is exhausting and we need a break. And that’s okay.
Being away made me appreciate everything that I love about my life at the University, and all those things that had me wanting to run away a week prior seemed nearly insignificant. Sometimes I think you just need to get out of Charlottesville to remember how much you love it, because no matter how tough things get, it’s home.
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