Rediscover Your Hometown This Spring Break

Are you heading back home for spring break? Not going on some crazy beach vacation with all your friends? Because girl, same. While I’d love to go to the beach or go on some extravagant trip across the country, that’s just not in the books or the budget for me this year. For spring break I’ll be heading back to good ‘ole Knoxville spending my days at all the doctors appointments I can squeeze in. While I’d usually be down about not doing something fun for spring break, this year I’m looking at the whole staying home for spring break in a new light.

Knoxville has a lot to offer in terms of the hipster vibe that I know and love. I’m talking local coffee shops, cute little restaurants, outdoor activities, and so much more. I’ve never really truly explored Knoxville in this way before, so while all my friends at UT are still in school slaving away at midterms, I’ll be falling back in love with the city in which I became who I am today.

Spend an Afternoon in a Local Coffee Shop

Bloggers and coffee shops go together like peanut butter and jelly. I know there are tons of local coffee shops in Knoxville, but I’ve yet to venture away from my local Starbucks. I am making it my mission to hit up at least one while I’m back at home.

Luckily, I found a fellow Knoxville blogger (say hello to Lou in Knox!) and I reached out to her on Instagram to see if we could schedule something for the week I am back in town. And guess what?? She said yes! So, I can’t wait to meet up with her, talk all things blogging, and visit another local coffee shop while we’re at it.

Go on a Hike

Here’s the sad truth. Knoxville is only 45 minutes away from the Smokies, and although it’s so close, I never go. March is a prime time for hiking in the Smokies because the weather is not frigid, and the poison ivy has yet to start growing. The outdoors were a huge part of my childhood, and I still love spending my days outside.

Meet Up with Old Friends

I can’t go back home and not hang out with some of my old friends from high school. A majority of them stayed in Knoxville to attend the University of Tennessee which is only a 20 minute drive from where I live. Hopefully I’ll be able to meet up with a few of them one night, grab some dinner, and catch up with each other. While I only keep up with five or six people from high school, I find it so important to hang with them whenever possible. After all, they’re the one’s who were by my side during those awkward middle school years.

Photoshoots

See, here’s the issue. I go to school in Columbia, South Carolina, and since it’s 60 degrees on average here and the flowers have already started to bloom, I think it’s 60 degrees with blooming flowers everywhere. But, when I head back to K-town, it’ll be a good 10 degrees cooler and the flowers are not in bloom so those fun spring photoshoots prove to be a challenge. I do need, however, new spring profile pictures, so I’ll make do with what I can.

Oh, and I also have a cat back at home so you can count on like 1093402398 cat photos to be taken.

Grab Lunch with Family

A part of growing older and moving out on my own is not seeing my family as often as I use to. My freshman year, I swear I went home at least once a month, but this year I rarely go home. I guess that’s a good and bad thing. I’ve found my home here at Carolina, and I don’t feel the need to head home every few weeks. But, that means I don’t get to see my family and be a part of their life as much anymore. I’m definitely going to try to grab lunch with my mom and my granddad at some point throughout the week.

Spending one meal with a family member really goes a long way.

What are your plans for this year’s spring break? Anything thrilling or are you just heading back home?

~abigail gray