Going home after a stressful two weeks of finals at the end of the fall semester is always a relief: no more schoolwork for at least three weeks (unless you take a January term course), sleeping in as late as your heart desires, spending quality time with family, seeing friends from home, and eating home-cooked meals. But, as wonderful as each of these things are, I always find myself counting down the days until I can return to Charlottesville and my UVA routine. Besides reuniting with great friends (of course that goes without saying), here are some other things that I am always excited to return to after a long winter break:
Coffee. Coffee Everywhere.
As lame as this may sound, I love having places with good coffee available for me within a five-mile walking radius at all times. Being from a small town outside of Richmond, I have to get in a car and drive at least 15 minutes to get to the closest Starbucks (the coffee in the nearby gas station just doesn’t cut it). In Charlottesville, coffee houses, cafes, shops, wherever you like to get your coffee, are an integral component of the Charlottesville lifestyle. Even if you don’t drink coffee, coffee shops are still great places for meetings and for simply catching up with a friend.
Walking
Sometimes it takes a lot of effort to get myself out the door in order to walk to class (especially in this cold January weather), but, whether I realize it or not, I always feel rejuvenated and more energetic once I reach my destination. Again, being from a small town, I have to get in the car and drive whenever I have to get anywhere while at home. There’s something special about the fact that, in Charlottesville, I can get to most of my friends’ apartments within a five minute walk. While walking, you just notice so much more around you. I often find myself running into people I know while making my way to class, making the trek much more pleasant. I think I take this beautiful city for granted a lot, so while walking I’m literally able to stop and take in the views, smell the flowers, and think about how thankful we are to go to this incredible University.
Basketball Games
If you haven’t been to a U.Va. basketball game yet, please do so as soon as possible. I say this not only because the season will be over sooner than we think, but also because I can’t imagine anyone not having experienced that yet. John Paul Jones Arena absolutely oozes with school spirit; and now that our men’s team is 5-1 in the ACC, and the women’s team just put a stop to the University of Maryland’s 14-game winning streak, the energy and that Wahoo pride is just electric.
The Academical Village
Strange, I know, but when I say I miss the Academical Village I mean that I miss everything it encompasses: the people that make this University what it is, the Lawn in all its beauty, the activities that come in the springtime…I could go on and on. Returning to grounds for the spring semester is always exciting because of all the things the Academical Village has to offer.