It dawned on me this weekend that I only have seven months left before I graduate. There is definitely a part of me that is ready to get back to having a full-time salary, but there's also a big part of me that's saying WAAAIIIITTTTT!!!! I HAVE SO MUCH MORE TO DO HERE!
It's that latter part of me that's been thinking about a Darden bucket list for a while. I first started thinking about it on the second year camping trip when I hiked Old Rag for the first time since I was little. I then promptly forgot about it. Then it popped into my mind again this weekend when I visited Monticello for the first time with some friends that came into town (practically a crime for a UVa student to have waited this long).
It's that latter part of me that's been thinking about a Darden bucket list for a while. I first started thinking about it on the second year camping trip when I hiked Old Rag for the first time since I was little. I then promptly forgot about it. Then it popped into my mind again this weekend when I visited Monticello for the first time with some friends that came into town (practically a crime for a UVa student to have waited this long).
As I thought about it, there really are a lot of things that I'd like to do before I leave Charlottesville in May. My plan is to write through my progress on these and maybe add some more. If you have any suggestions, I'm all ears!
Darden Bucket List
(In case you're wondering, I've left the following off because I already crossed them off, but they're still pretty critical ones to hit in my opinion:
Darden Bucket List
- Go to a UVa basketball game
- Run all the way around Charlottesville on the Rivanna trail
- Visit all 31 vineyards in the Charlottesville inset of the Virginia Winery Guide (10 down, 21 to go!)
- Get good enough at golf to at least make it through 9 holes
- Make it out to Duner’s for dinner
- Visit Ashlawn, James Monroe's house
- Take afternoon tea at Keswick Hall
- Get my money's worth from a Wintergreen student season ski pass
- See the lighting of the lawn
- Check out the starry sky at the UVa observatory's public night
- Take in a different kind of Starry Night at Veritas Vineyard and Winery
- Run into Dave Matthews around town
- Enjoy a polo game at King Family Vineyards
(In case you're wondering, I've left the following off because I already crossed them off, but they're still pretty critical ones to hit in my opinion:
- Visit Monticello
- Tour along Skyline Drive to see the fall foliage
- Eat at White Spot, Little John's, and Marco & Luca's dumplings (preferably late night)
- Check out the Charlottesville farmer's market
- Hike Old Rag mountain
- Take a visitor to Bel Air Market to be surprised by amazing sandwiches from a gas station
- Camp in the Shenandoah Valley
- Get a tour of the UVa lawn from an undergrad
- Watch the kiddos trick-or-treat on the lawn
- See the UVa football team win at least once (took a few tries...)
- Venture into Belmont for good eats at Mas, The Local, and Tavola
- Revel in the good ole South in the largest tent at Foxfield)