Destin, FL.

This is the location of many family vacations throughout the years. We go to the beach every year, and when we don’t stay in Destin we spend a lot of the time traveling there. This place has crowded beaches but excellent shopping and tourist attractions.

Destin Commons is a chain mall consisting of about 70 outlet stores. Their sales are always good no matter when you visit so it’s on the must visit list. Nike, Gap, Earthbound, Journey’s, and American Eagle are the stores I beeline it to once we get there (I once got $170 worth of clothes for $60 at Gap, not to brag or anything).

Fisherman’s Wharf is also a location we visit every year. The guys go on their 8-hour deep sea fishing trip and us girls will pick them up around dinner time. The boat dock is located behind the restaurant, Fisherman’s wharf, where they have the catch cooked and we enjoy dinner as a family. We usually go on a Wednesday night before the Fourth of July and enjoy fireworks on the patio outside the restaurant while we eat. Last year we went on a shark fishing trip and the guys took turns reeling in a 300-pound tiger shark. We couldn’t keep it since tiger sharks weren’t one of the breeds able to be kept. My friend, Emily, caught the first shark of the day, however. I just caught a bunch of mackerel!It’s always a good time with the family, some waves, and a fishing trip. This year we will repeat our vacation routine and have a great time doing so!

 

Hot Springs, Ar.

On April 21st, I will be taking a trip for Spring Break weekend to Hot Springs! I didn’t have time to plan a long distance trip packed with activities due to the massive load of course work I took on this semester (BUT THE PAYOFF IS GRADUATION!!!!). So I decided to settle for a small 3.5-hour drive to our neighboring state. The main attraction to Hot Springs was the presence of an amusement park but upon further investigation, I found there is a lot more to experience.

Magic Springs is going to be our main priority, but I have been told there are a few places we must check out.

1. Brick House Grill. This will be the location for dinner our first night there, due to positive word of mouth from family and friends.
2. Alligator Farm. My mom says this is a must see attraction. We’ll see how we feel about visiting it once we get there.
3. Bath House Row. A massage is just what the doctor ordered. What better way to relax during Spring Break than a hot stone massage in Hot Springs?
4. Hot Springs Moutain Tower. I stumbled upon this gem during research on our stay. This seems like a cheap enjoyable sightseeing adventure!
   I’m not sure how I’ll feel about being 1,256 feet high but it’ll definitely be an experience for the books!
5. Garvan Woodland Gardens. I’m not too sure how receptive my boyfriend will be towards a stroll in the garden but I’m sure it won’t take too much convincing! 210 acres of flowers and shrubs sounds like a beautiful way to spend the afternoon.

Memphis, TN.

Home of the famous Beale Street and Elvis Presley. I initially visited this city because a man I briefly dated was attending school there but I kept coming back for the experiences the city had to offer (he really wasn’t worth the drive).
I never really took part in the Beale Street shenanigans but I have been a faithful attendee of the Beale Street music festival two years and counting. I love a good music festival and this isn’t one to dismiss. Three stages and three days of non-stop music right on the river is what’s to be expected here. Some of my favorite performances included Ed Sheeran, Hozier, Bastille, The Front Bottoms, Train, Panic! At the Disco, The Struts, and much more. I’m looking forward to Soundgarden, Taking Back Sunday, and Kings of Leon.

We are celebrating my friends 21st so Beale Street shenanigans will be inevitable. There are so many unique restaurants here. A few I tried out were Automatic Slims, complete with a 100 oz. mimosa tower (yum) and a Bloody Mary bar, Kooky Canuck, a famous Canadian restaurant that had the best maple bacon burger on this earth, and Central BBQ, which is on pretty much every street in Memphis, and while it is good I do consider is a bit overrated.

You have to love an outdoor festival with your best friends.

 

 

Bull Shoals, AR.

Bull Shoals was the city that hosted my first camping trip. I had such a great time here. We stayed at a campsite and our lot was right on the bank of the White River. Every morning we woke up to the peaceful sounds of nature, from the river running to the birds chirping. We set up a hammock in the trees and relaxed every night after a barbecue. I learned how to play poker and make the most of a trip with no electronics.

The biggest part of our trip revolved around a 12-mile kayaking trip. The water was a freezing 30 degrees even in the heat of summer. This was because it is the home of major hydropower dams. We had to leave early in the morning and be sure to make it half way before the first surge of the morning. This kayaking trip included the most beautiful scenery. From the emerald rocks at the bottom to the tree tops above we had our breath taken away. If you like kayaking or if you just want to try it once this is the place to do it.

I was disappointed I couldn’t stay in the water longer than 30 seconds before I lost feeling in my toes, but it definitely didn’t ruin my trip. I would like to try the Buffalo River just to enjoy swimming, even if the scenery doesn’t live up to that of White River.

Austin, TX.

The capital of the Lonestar state had the best atmosphere I have ever experienced. The locals were nice and the activities available were infinite. This is the city I hope to lay my head by the end of the summer.

My first and only time visiting was for the Austin City Music Festival. I love music festivals and this is the one that set the tone for the rest. If you have never been to a music festival, or even if you have, I highly recommend this one. The location is large, the food is amazing, and the local merchandise booths are seriously one of a kind. 

Since I was under 21 we did not get to test out the famous Sixth St. However, if we did there was a high chance we would’ve seen Shia LeBouf since that being the weekend he got arrested there and all. Poor Shia.

We spent a lot of time walking and it made me appreciate the city in a different way than if we would’ve been driving to every location. I love Austin because of the healthy lifestyle it promotes. Every corner has healthy food options and most of the time you don’t know what you’re eating. That was me during our trip. 75% of the food I ate I had no what it was, but 100% of the food I ate I loved. A place you must visit is Gourdoughs, a gourmet donut food truck. It was one of the first food trucks in Austin and because of the popularity, they had to expand to a building at another location. Warning: The image below may cause your mouth to water. Don’t let the food and donut combination scare you. Embrace it!

If you haven’t been to Austin I highly recommend it. The trip was long because of heavy traffic but it was well worth the wait! I highly recommend bringing your best friends to make the experience more enjoyable.

 

St. Louis, MO

Visiting St. Louis was quite the journey from my home in Monroe, La. It’s 8.5 hours on a good day and, of course, we caught a bad one. We got there, though, and it was fabulous. St. Louis was beautiful.

St. Louis was beautiful. Of course, we visited the arch and it was terrifying. I figured we would go to the top in an elevator but I was wrong. 4 of us were placed in a little spherical pod that crept its way up the sides of the arch accompanied by a very disturbing sound and shakiness. We did make it to the top, regardless of the disturbing hydraulics, just like many of visitors before us. The arch included quite the view from 680 feet in the air. We could see the St. Louis Cardinal baseball feel and the Budweiser Brewhouse. We could tell from way up there that those locations were huge.

St. Louis was fun but I’m not sure I’ll return. It was definitely a landmark I wanted to scratch off viewing from my bucket list.

Something I wish I had known before I went is the fact that there is a restaurant solely dedicated to the condiment ranch. My friends and I are some sauce lovin’ fools! We would’ve definitely visited it for a meal had we known.

Twisted Ranch has its own website! Check it out here.

Kansas City, MO.

Kansas City is quite the lengthy road trip, but at least there is a beautiful view along the way from Louisiana. I love traveling through Arkansas because of the mountainous trip. My roommate and I took a trip there to scope out the city since she was wanting to move there. We bought tickets to a concert so we would have a fun reason to go. My favorite band was playing at the historic Uptown Theater. We didn’t do a lot of tourism activities but we did enjoy our time. We spent a lot of it in the downtown area called the “Country Club” which has strip malls up and down the road and many nice restaurants.

Something I loved about being in KC was the encouragement of physical activity. At the parks or along the walkways there is various workout equipment for activities such as pull ups, crunches, etc. The designs of this equipment fit in perfectly with playground equipment.

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San Antonio, TX.

San Antonio is in south central Texas that included quite the commute for me and my friends. My first visit was with my Spanish Club for a school trip scheduled on my 16th birthday. I had such a great time I loaded up the car on my 18th birthday complete with my 3 best friends and we went back. Hoping to experience more of the city than we did on a school trip we had high expectations.

An 8 hour drive easily turned to 10 with all the traffic congestion, which leads me to tip #1… Always plan for delays, especially in Texas. We weren’t crunched for time so we enjoyed the radio and each others company.

A trip to San Antonio is not complete until you visit the River-walk, and it’s smart to plan that visit around dinner or lunch. There are many nice, elegant restaurants but there are also more relaxed atmospheres available such as Rain forest Cafe, or an atmosphere completely different than you’ve ever experienced at Dick’s Last Resort. TIP: Don’t visit Dick’s if you’re easily angered or can’t take a joke. Everything the server does is at the customers expense. At night the river-walk is lit at your feet and by strings of lights hung overhead. It’s a very relaxing place to take a stroll, especially at night. Also available are River-walk boat rides!