I went to Hilton Head over spring break and honestly it reminded me of how much I hate living in Naperville. I sometimes can’t believe that vacation spots for some people are homes for others. Although I have heard people constantly say that a vacation spot only seems like paradise due to the short time spent there and for the people that live there, it is boring everyday life… I would rather have a boring everyday life in tropical weather with palm trees and beaches everywhere than the never ending sight of parking lots and cornfields in the Midwest. I liked Hilton Head since I was able to bike/walk almost anywhere. I felt so good physically and my mental health was also at new highs during the trip. Biking and walking around in such good weather helped me clear my mind and I felt less overwhelmed and stressed.

All I could really do on a bike was enjoy the perfect weather and I traveled down the streets. I have always been jealous of people who live in walkable cities (so basically everyone who

lives in Europe). I constantly see travelers on Tik Tok posting about how when they moved to Europe, they felt so much healthier and happier due to the healthier food and the biking/walking lifestyle.

Our flight to Savannah/Hilton Head airport was not a direct flight. We had a 5:20 am flight to Dallas with a thirty minute layover before getting on a flight to Georgia. All of my friends came to my house the night before, in the time range of midnight and two am. We dragged my tv into my room and tried to stay awake until three, so we could get to the airport without being drowsy and sleep on the flight to make time go by faster. That’s a hack I have discovered and I have been using it on any trip I have gone on. I pull an all-nighter and sleep on the car/plane to my destination. When I was in middle school, my family drove to Texas which was almost a seventeen hour drive. I fell asleep when we were pulling out of my driveway and woke up in Oklahoma. It makes traveling so much easier!!

Our first day in Hilton Head, we settled in our huge airbnb. Our airbnb was meant for seven people and there were only four of us. We had tons of space in the living room and an extra king sized bedroom just to put our luggage in!

After we unpacked, we went to get rental bikes. One of the main reasons we chose Hilton Head was due to the fact that we could bike/walk literally anywhere. This took the ppressure off of us to find a rental car dealership for eighteen year olds or the money to uber/lyft everywhere. Our first meal on the island was at a seafood shack, and it was probably my favorite meal on the entire trip. I got buffalo shrimp with a bunch of sides, and even though I am not a big seafood fan, I loved every piece on my plate. We biked around for a while and explored the town and plaza we were in. We also biked for like thirty minutes in the rain because we  could not figure how to get back to our airbnb oops. We picked up sushi for dinner and biked to the beach despite the thunderstorm alert once again.

 Then, we picked up our lovely friend Grace Carsello and kidnapped her!! 

We all went to Moo’s, the ice cream store on the island with the most flavors! I think they had over ninety two flavors, it was pretty crazy. I usually get chocolate but I forced myself to get a very different flavor (like black cherry) just to allow myself to experience things outside of my comfort zone and habits. We spent the rest of the night playing games and watching movies at our airbnb before calling it a night in. 

The rest of the days we spent there were spent lounging at the beach, biking around different areas and exploring different towns, and just eating good! It was such a good trip for my mental health with friends and I am really glad I was able to experience everything Hilton Head had to offer with the most adventurous and funny people I know!