Doing an Appalachia Seminar this fall has been one of my favorite experiences at Notre Dame. I have always considered myself adventurous, but I really struggled meeting new people and felt a little trapped in the ND Bubble after my freshman year. Because of this, I decided to push myself outside of my comfort zone and go on an Appalachia trip over fall break. I signed up by myself and was randomly assigned into a group of 11 ND kids going to the Blue Ridge Parkway in Sparta, North Carolina. Overall, the experience was absolutely amazing. It was a whole week of adventuring, making new (awesome) friends, dancing, singing and laughing. This seminar definitely needs to go on every ND kid’s bucket list. Here are 10 ways to make Appalachia memorable:
- Road Trip Properly
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I’m talking snacks, playlists and lots of car games. Driving to Sparta, North Carolina was a 13-hour adventure each way, and I had so much fun both times. However, remember that you don’t really know your fellow group members on the way to your site, so it’s important that you have games and activities to keep the conversation rolling and make sure things don’t get awkward. Plus, 13 hours is a long time! Gotta keep busy to avoid getting bored.
- Don’t Be Afraid to Get Dirty
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During Appalachia, you do a lot of outdoor service work. It is much easier to sit down in the mud and pull weeds rather than trying to avoid getting messy. A lot of the projects that we took part in involved painting, and it was way more fun to let loose and paint each others’ faces a little bit in a playful way than to spend time avoiding getting paint on your clothes.
- Dance (a lot)!
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One night, we went to the Alleghany County Jubilee, and all of the locals taught us how to two-step, flat foot, line dance and square dance. This was definitely the best part of the whole trip for me. It was so much fun to spend the night dancing with my new friends and the locals to live music! Dancing and bluegrass music are important parts of Appalachian culture, and embracing them is such a fun way to immerse yourself into the true Appalachian lifestyle.
- Listen to the People of the Community
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For me, the most rewarding part of the service that we did was getting to engage with the different people in the community. The first night of the trip, we went had dinner in the home of a woman named Una. Una is a 96 year-old woman who has lived in Sparta her entire life and watched the city change throughout World War II and the Great Depression, all the way up until the present day. By connecting with people like Una and other citizens of Sparta, the work that we did became so much more meaningful.
- Try to Make Friends
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We all know that the dorm system can make it kind of hard to meet people outside of your dorm and major. That is why seminars like Appalachia are such perfect opportunities to meet new people that are different than you. Plus, you all already have similar interests that attracted each of you to Appalachia, so you will hopefully get along. Also, once you make a friend on your Appalachia trip, keep hanging out with them when you get back to campus! #friendshipgoals
- Enjoy the Nature
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The Appalachian view is unlike any other. Whenever you get any free time, go on a hike or run outside. At least step outside and breathe in the fresh air. Not to trash on South Bend, but… Appalachia just hits different. We went on a sunrise hike one morning! Even though I accidentally fell asleep while trying to enjoy the sunrise, I was still so thankful to have that experience.
- Star Gaze
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Because most of the sites are very rural, the stars are absolutely unreal. We were lucky enough to visit a man who was extremely into astrophotography and even built an observatory in his backyard. Even just looking up at the stars at night was absolutely breathtaking.
- Live Simply
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One of the most common goals of many Appalachia trips is to live simply like the Appalachian citizens do. For our group, this meant being vegetarian when we cooked for ourselves, limiting our time in the shower, limiting our use of electronics and creating as little waste as possible. This helps you reduce your carbon footprint and even helps you be more present in the moment and conscientious of your actions.
- Play Games at Night
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Working all day can get tiring, so I think it is important to spend at least a little time at night with the others to play games, listen to music, snack and be together. Playing “Secret Hitler” and snacking on cocoa puffs with my new friends were some of my best memories on Appalachia and are some of the moments that I miss the most!
- Sleep as Much as Possible
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Between working all day and hanging out with your friends at night, it is hard to fit in enough sleep. But trust me, you’ll need it! So at least try your best (even if that means a mid-hike nap) (:
Overall, my Appalachia trip was absolutely incredible. It was so much more fun and meaningful than I expected it would be, and I really bonded with the other kids on my trip. I would 10/10 recommend this trip to other ND kids, and I hope that I have the opportunity to go again someday. You can find more information about the Appalachia seminar (which is offered over fall and spring break) on the Center for Social Concerns website!