The Escape to Music City

As noted by my post yesterday, the stress of college and campus life can prove overwhelming at times. In such occasions, it is perfectly acceptable to simply run away from all your problems and forget they even exist.

No, in all seriousness, a detox from the business of life is necessary at times.

Luckily, my Grandma lives only an hour away in Nashville, TN. So, in a spur of the moment decision, my good friend Jordan and I threw some clothes in a duffle bag and hit the road. We were in desperate need of some relaxation, home cooked food, and the comfort that only comes from being at ones Grandma's house.

 marvelous sunset on our way from Bowling Green 

After a peaceful night of sleep, we woke this morning to the smell of freshly cooked bacon coming from the kitchen. This morning made me realize one very very important part of life: Home-cooked food is the greatest thing in the universe. No, seriously. Compared to my normal routine of chowing on a granola bar on the way to class, breakfast at Grannie's was a feast.

After devouring breakfast, Jordan and I were fueled for adventure. Nashville is an amazing city, and we were ready to explore. So we made ourselves look presentable and made our way downtown.

Our first pit stop was to Crema coffee shop on Hermitage Ave.

Upon entering this establishment, we realized just how very non-hipster we are. There was not a person in sight who wasn't wearing Chacos, flannel, skinny jeans, or a very hipster pair of glasses. We bravely approached the counter, trying to blend in to the sea of hipster-folk around us. 

We asked the (very cute) barista his favorite drink on the menu, and subsequently ordered a cortado (a shot of espresso with 2 oz of steamed milk.)

The verdict: delicious. Ridiculously strong, but very delicious. 

We decided not to finish the entire thing, as we knew we had many more pit stops on our journey. So we left this quaint little coffee shop and made our way to the next destination: Peace, Love, & Little Donuts. 

Before we even made it to the door, the sweet sweet odor of fresh donuts was beckoning us inside. It was a tiny shop with wonderful (little) treasures inside. 

Jordan ordered the chocolate chip cookie dough donut. 

The verdict: rich and (in her very own words) "Great!" 

After devouring this tiny, delicious donut, we ventured back down 4th street and wound up on Broadway. 

                    

 

Broadway St. is the place to be if you want to experience Music City in its truest form. From every single restaurant or bar you walk past, live country music is pouring from the open doors and windows. The sidewalks are teeming with people with warm southern smiles and cowboy boots. As we maneuvered our way through the crowds, we saw Savannah's Candy Kitchen and decided we simply had to go inside. 

              

We didn't buy anything from Savannah's. We did however, sample the praline candies. 

The verdict: divine. Rich and sugary, but divine. 

We headed back out onto the street, and this sign caught our eye. 

How could we pass up a local coffee and ice cream bar? We couldn't, so we ventured inside. The line was to the door, a very telling sign that this place was delicious. We ordered a single scoop of coffee ice cream and tried it out. 

The verdict: amazing, Incredibly creamy with the perfect amount of coffee flavoring. This was a good decision. 

At this point, our stomachs were dying for some real, healthy food. So we set out to find a local restaurant that served real, healthy food and that wouldn't break the bank. This proved more difficult than we thought. You wouldn't think so, but there are virtually NO local restaurants open for lunch on Saturday. Dehydrated and exhausted after walking  around approximately 6 or 7 blocks in the mid-day heat, we stumbled upon Puckett's Grocery & Restaurant.

We were ushered to a table by the very friendly staff and ordered very large glasses of ice water. While the menu offered some hearty options like pork BBQ and cheeseburgers, we both settled on the Strawberry Fields Salad.  

The verdict: wonderful. Fresh, light, healthy, and oh so yummy. Once again, a good decision. 

After enjoying the air conditioning and the fantastic meal, we decided to bid farewell to the city and head back to Grannie's house. Our adventure was a complete success. 

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I am currently sitting on my grandma's couch, wearing sweatpants, and feeling so very refreshed and peaceful. A weekend away from the chaos and stress is exactly what Jordan and I needed. 

I think that's something that we often forget. It is OKAY to retreat. It's OKAY take time for yourself. It's OKAY say "no" to things. It's OKAY to not always go, go, go. 

That's something I need to remind myself of more often. Because when you do take the time to detox, it is SO worth it.