Spring break woes
If you are anything like me, then your grandma doesn’t have a beach house in Florida, and your flight to Costa Rica isn’t booked yet (and it never will be). You’re stuck on the Main Line for Spring Break with half of your friends away. Don’t despair, there’s a bright side—one of the most amazing cities in the country is just a fifteen-minute train ride away. Everyone wants to have a fun spring break (maybe not as fun as James Franco in Spring Breaker), but there are so many fun things you can do in the area that don’t involve sleeping and binge watching Grey’s Anatomy. Trying to have a fun spring break in a desolate, cold, suburban area with a limited budget seems impossible, but I guarantee that you’ll soon have enough inspiration to make the most of your week off from school.
There is a lot of hype for spring break, due to its portrayal on MTV and the wild film previously mentioned starring James Franco and Selena Gomez, so it’s easy to feel as though you’ll have no fun because of your lack of tropical air. As Sarah Paxton in the movie Aquamarine once said, “It’s not where you are, it’s who you’re with!” It doesn’t matter if you’re on the bleachers in Narberth Park or in a cramped, dark basement in Wynnewood—if you surround yourself with people who make you laugh, you are sure to have a good time. One of the amazing perks of spring break is that you don’t always have to rely on that one friend who has a nice basement. You can finally go outside and enjoy the sunshine!
One of the greatest things about Philadelphia in the spring is Rittenhouse Square. Marketplaces are almost always open and thriving once the weather hits over 50 degrees. Farmers markets with fresh fruits and vegetables and stands filled with paintings and jewelry border the sidewalks all along the park. A train ticket from Narberth to 30th street is usually only five dollars, and Rittenhouse Square is just a few blocks away. Grab a few friends and something to eat, and enjoy the Philly vibes while you wander around town.
During Spring Break, the spread of the disease FOMO (fear of missing out) multiplies exponentially. You can easily catch it by viewing your friends’ Snapchat stories of the beaches in Puerto Rico or a few of your friends’ Facebook pictures from Florida. There are many ways to go about dealing with the terrible tragedy of FOMO, even though you will undeniably go through the classic stages of anger, denial, and more. You can decide to turn off social media like Snapchat and Instagram for the whole week, or you can accept that your friends are having the time of their lives and try to have an even better time. For instance, if your friend tweets a picture of a delicious ice cream cone with white sand in the background, then top that with your own activity, like baking a thousand funfetti-flavored cupcakes and blasting cheesy pop songs from the mid two-thousands when the Black Eyed Peas were still a thing and Britney wasn’t throwing her children out of a car window. Do things that make you happy! Another good strategy to deal with FOMO is learning to live and let live. There will always be something going on that you aren’t involved in, so don’t let your happiness depend on other people. Go on a bike ride with your older sister, plant a garden with your grandma, ask an old relative to tell you a joke (everybody has that weird uncle who would be happy to oblige). After all, if it makes you smile, then who cares if it’s lame, right?
Whatever you decide to do this spring break, whether you are traveling or keeping it local, make sure you surround yourself with laughter, good music, and people that make you happy, because you’re guaranteed to have a great time!