ASB Virginia 2011

Hello!

It's now been over a month since my last post, and I realize that I have been slacking heavily, so first of all sorry about that. A lot has happened in the past month, so I'm gonna start with this post and maybe do a couple more today too, we'll see.

Spring Break has come and gone this semester, and I don't know if I've ever enjoyed one as much as this year's. I made the decision to go on an Alternative Spring Break back in the middle of Fall semester, and didn't really think much about it after that, to be honest. When I found out that not only was I placed on an environmental-themed trip like I wanted to be, but also that a good friend of mine would be going on the  same trip, I knew it was a great decision.

We left for Virginia at 5 A.M. on Sunday, March 6th with two minivans, 11 people, sunglasses on (ok, that was just me) and high hopes. We still really didn't know what we were going to be doing other than that we were headed to James River State Park to help them build a "natural playground" (none of us really knew what that meant), but we were all excited to find out. On the 13 hour car ride we got to know each other a little (and mostly slept), but once we got to our destination is when the real fun began. We got to our cabins, which were brand new and extremely nice, around 9 P.M. and unpacked. We then realized that none of us had eaten dinner since we planned on going grocery shopping once we got there. However, the nearest grocery store was about 45 minutes away! We finally ate at about midnight and went to sleep, ready to find out what was in store for us the rest of the week.

To sum up what we did without going over every detail of every day, our main task at the park was to dig out and build a walking trail that would go around the natural playground. With 3 days of hard work under our belts, we were poised to finish the trail on Thursday, however an unfortunate rainfall prevented us from working that day. The day was not lost though; we went to Appomattox Court House (see picture) in the morning and after a wonderful lunch cooked by the James River State Park staff (thank you Mama Jo!), we toured the National D-Day Memorial in the afternoon. I didn't expect to do that much sight-seeing on the trip, and it was a bittersweet surprise considering we couldn't finish the trail. We packed up Friday morning and headed out, none of us wanting to leave the serenity of the beautiful park we had called home for the week.

The most amazing part of the trip was the people who were on it with me. I have never felt more comfortable in a group of strangers in my life. Upon arriving at the cabins, it seemed like somehow we were all on the same page for everything. Jokes were carried out until they had died, came back as ghosts, and died again. I don't know if it's possible to laugh for a week straight, but I came pretty damn close. The friends I made in the Middle of Nowhere, Virginia are what I'll value most about this trip, and it was an experience I'll remember forever.

To Bobby, Joey, Derek, Spencer, Chelsea, Jamie, Kate, Katie, and Abby; thank you for making this trip to fun, and I hope to see you all soon!

To anyone else who is reading this; go on an Alternative Spring Break next year!