Happy spring semester, Penn State! However, a new semester means the end of break.

(Sad face)

Winter break lasted about three weeks and I don’t know about you, but while I wanted a longer time off, I was also itching to get back to State College.  Anyways, I thought I would share what my Christmas break was like, as an outside Philly native.

First of all, being from the suburbs doesn’t mean I can’t find my way around Philadelphia. As a kid and teenager, going to the city was about as common as a Wawa. So, Christmas time in suburban families probably includes time in the city as well.

 

The most popular attraction in the city is Christmas Village. It’s located right in LOVE Park, and is perfect for your Instagram and VSCO feeds.

 

 

The other seemingly mandatory Christmas activity is going ice skating at the Blue Cross River Rink. The River Rink is an outdoor ice rink that is open until March 8 this year. These two attractions are perfect for families and friends, young and old! To most people who live in and around the city, these two things are winter time traditions, and they are some of the best.

Now to include something unique to Bucks County, Pennsylvania: Peddler’s Village. Peddler’s Village is open all year round, and hosts different festivals and events in each month. For example, The Red White and Blue BBQ Bash is held in July, the Scarecrow Festival is in September, and a Gingerbread House Competition runs through November and December. Despite the wide range of events that appeal to all, winter is the most popular time to visit Peddler’s Village. The colonial style village is always beautifully decorated with lights and Christmas trees, and small town merchants line cobblestone paths selling gifts for all your family and friends.

 

 

 

 

 

The light tunnel in action

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My own Christmas experience this year was a little bittersweet. I always loved winter time in high school and as a kid. In high school, we would do the same things every year but keeping the tradition was all the fun. Being at Penn State means I can start new traditions with new friends, but being home reminded me that things probably won’t ever be exactly the way they were- which is neither bad nor good.

One of the best parts about being home for the holidays was seeing all my friends who go to different colleges. Now, I do see a lot here at Penn State. Of my small senior class of about 180 students, about 50 attend either Penn State University Park or a branch campus. Penn State pride runs deep in Eastern Pennsylvania. Something cool I thought I would share with you readers. Every one of my friends who attend a college different than Penn State said that it looks like so much fun and that they want to visit for a weekend (or visit again if they already have). So, yay PSU rocks!

Along similar lines, seeing my family- immediate and extended. I am really close to all five of my siblings and still miss goofing around with them. Each of them is so different but we all really get along and have a ton of fun times. On the other hand, I have over thirty cousins but luckily everyone lives relatively close. On Christmas Day, we all pile in our grandmother’s tiny row home in Northeast Philadelphia. It’s always funny to be around them and hear their stories. Now that a lot of us are in college, we don’t see each other as much. Most of them stayed in Philly for school, and go to Temple or Lasalle, but my cousin Maggie and I are at Penn State, so at least a little bit of that crazy family is here in State College.

That pretty much sums up how I spent my winter break, including added shifts at work. However, the absolute BEST part of being home was being able to go to Wawa. I could go on and on about Wawa but really it made me feel really nostalgic to go and see the same workers that have been there for years. There are five Wawas within a ten minute radius of my house, and each one feels like home. Haha that was way too dramatic, I apologize. I saw a funny video on twitter, where a guy walked eight blocks to Wawa in the middle of a blizzard this past month, just so he could get coffee. I admit I endangered my life and car driving on icy and snow-covered streets during a blizzard two weeks ago for Wawa coffee- worth it.

My Wawa addiction is real, even my friends know.