"Don't go to downtown Durham at night or YOU WILL GET MURDERED."

No ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Literally, those words were said to me multiple times this week.

Someone also described Durham as being the "armpit of North Carolina" to me.

^^ Aaaaand I got this snapchat from my brother 

shortly after my arrival.

But if this is North Carolina's armpit, then North Carolina must be Beyonce.

You smell what I'm steppin' in?

First off, THE FOOD.

^^ Guys, Bojangles. This place is a quarter of a mile 

from my apartment and it is the best/worst thing to 

ever happen to me.

 ^^ Dame's chicken and waffles. And MAC N CHEESE. 

 ^^ We celebrated Mom's birthday at Bull City Burger and Brewery

^^ The burgers were HUGE

Second, THE CAMPUS.

^^ Duke Chapel. The waiting list to get married here is like 2 years!

^^ It is literally made of castles. CASTLES.

Third, THE GARDENS.

(Technically part of the campus, but whatevs)

And lastly, THE PEOPLE.

Guys, southern hospitality is a real thing. Examples:

On our way into North Carolina, some guy at a gas station saw our car packed full and asked if I was going back to school. We chatted for a few minutes and he then spent about 15 minutes explaining some routes that we could take that would help us avoid traffic and get us there faster. It probably didn't save us any time in the long run but the fact that he was willing to stop and talk to us about it was just great.

I stopped not one but two different women on their runs here in Durham to ask for directions. I get so lost every time I go out because there are no landmarks (this is what I get for living near the ocean and/or mountains my entire life) and the entire city is covered in thick dense trees that hide everything. Both women took about five minutes to give me really good directions and ask me if I wanted to run hills or in the forest or in neighborhoods and then gave me several different route options.

THE ULTIMATE. Until yesterday I had no furniture in my house. On my run yesterday I passed a garage sale and decided to check it out to see if they had any decent couches for sale. Turns out they were selling everything in the house (the tenant had passed away so they were getting rid of all the furniture and everything else in the house). Not only did they give me a killer price (a sofa, armchair, two end tables and a mirror all for $200), they offered to deliver everything to my apartment so I didn't have to rent a truck! And when they delivered everything today, we talked all about the city and they gave me several recommendations for restaurants in the area. They left by saying "You've got our cell numbers so just give us a call if you ever need anything!" 

I mean, who does that?? I literally met them at a garage sale and they are hand delivering my furniture and treating me like I am an old friend!

Seriously, this place is awesome. Come visit me.

Also, classes start tomorrow so RIP Melissa.

Maybe you'll hear from me again at Christmas.

Super Seniorz, teary eyes, and goodbyes

I am currently sitting in my big girl bed (Can you say queen-sized? Heck yeah.) in Durham, North Carolina, the town I will call home for the next three years.

My parting with Provo, Utah was much more difficult than I expected it to be. Mostly because I left with the delightful taste of Provo summer on my tongue. Had I packed up and driven across the country in February, the goodbye might not have been quite so difficult.

All jokes aside, the PEOPLE are really what made my Provo experience what it was. You see, I have the best friends imaginable.

My best friend Katie told me I was not allowed to make any plans for any night during my final week in Provo because she had plans for me each night. Some people might not have wanted to have their entire final week's plans mapped out for them, but Katie knows me better than anyone, and she KILLED it.

Monday

Takeout from all my favorite places to eat in Provo (Guru's, Thai Village, India Palace, Tacos 180, Cafe Rio) with all of our closest friends.

Tuesday

Ladies night at my favorite dessert place- The Chocolate!

Wednesday

A night of celebration for two of my dear friends:

Going away party for Kev, who was moving to Arizona for grad school followed by a surprise birthday party for my friend Blake (complete with dance party)

Thursday

Squaw Peak with all my favorite boyzz. Katie kept asking me what was on my Provo bucket list and I kept telling her (jokingly, of course) that I had never kissed anybody at Squaw Peak (a well-known make out spot for locals). So naturally, she arranged for all of my boy friends (boyfriends?) to meet me for milk and cookies at the lookout point. Props to Taylor who was lying in the trunk of Seth's car the whole way up without me even knowing.

Did I kiss anyone up there? You'll never know.

Friday

SUPER SENIOR PROM!

For months, my friends and I had been wanting to relive the glory days and hold a prom. We love a good occasion to dress up (as seen here and here) but I won't be there for the Classy Christmas Party this year (I don't want to talk about it), so we created the incredible event that was #superseniorprom2k14.

The boys asked us in creative ways:

We made cheesy decorations:

We took cheesy picz:

We had this INCREDIBLE backdrop designed by Provo legend Kev Nemelka.

I won prom queen (pretty sure it was rigged... but like I said, my friends are the best).

And of course our favorite (authentic) redhead, John Jackson was king!

Our very own Blake Lewis was on the turntables

And my amazing roommate Celeste took all the pictures!

I think it is sufficient to say that this prom was probably as good (if not better... and cheaper!) than my actual prom. #superseniorz

Saturday

Classic Skating of course!

Sunday

Playing catch with my favorite peeps at Kiwanis Park

Monday

My final day in Provo. Katie planned a scavenger hunt to take me to different places in Provo to see all of my friends.

I was instructed to take a picture at every stop but I bawled through pretty much the entire thing, and forgot to take a few of them.

Stops included:

The dorms (pictured here with Jeff, Katie, and Lindsey-- the freshman crew)

Not pictured- Jessi and McCall (who left the sweetest notes for Katie to give to me)

Chandell apartments - where I met Lauren, Allison, and Alex (pardon the teary-eyed selfie...it was the best we could do)

Not pictured-- Michael (who left me A DOZEN Subway cookies. Bless you.)

Elms D313- VLADI! This apartment is where I met my very closest friends in Provo.

Rock Canyon Park- where Ryan and I had our first date. I almost lit him on fire. Oops.

Don't get too excited people... it's not what it looks like. But he did buy me flowers and that was sweet.

Some other stops where I failed to take pictures included:

The Riv Pool (where Lo and I spent our entire summer)

Megabed (see description below)

El Salvador (mine and Seth's first date)

The Isles (Super Senior prom memories with Blakey poo. He brought me an ear of corn to commemorate our first time meeting at Corn Bellies back in October!)

Corner of 8th north and 1st east (Zach Snow and me on rollerblades)

Chatsworth stoop (where I met these Grade A Foolz at book club last summer)

And finally... we finished up the night in MEGABED (the giant bed composed of three mattresses in which Lauren, Katie, and I slept all week).

Thank you to everyone who made my goodbye week incredible. I miss you guys all more than you can imagine. Please know you will always have a place to stay in North Carolina (so, like, come visit me for reals).

XOXO