We left Saturday morning for Tallahassee. After a late night at Disney on Ice with Jackie Jovi – I wasn’t sure what time we’ve get on the road, but since my kids seem to be morning people (I have no idea where they got this trait) we were on the road by 9.
I’m not going to lie to you. It was a long drive.
Back in the day, a trip to Tally would take anywhere between 3-3.5 hours depending how much we were breaking the law. I feel very lucky that this trip only took 4 hours. The weather went from beautiful to rainy and the kids where not happy campers. I have never been so happy to see this sign (clouds and all):
Our first stop was a Tallahassee favorite — Po’ Boys. Thankfully, Po’ Boys expanded to North Tallahassee since we left town, and we didn’t have to fight the college kids for a table. There we met up with our friends (and Dan’s college roommate) – Brian and Trisha and their two girls.
Po’ Boys serves a variety of Cajun food – but by far the BEST item on their menu (and probably the #1 thing I miss about Tallahassee) is the fried pickles.
I have not eaten better fried pickles anywhere else. Even in New Orleans.
B said today they were his favorite thing ever. I think my mission in life has pretty much been accomplished.
After lunch, we checked in our hotel (the newly opened Four Points Sheraton on Tennessee St, which I highly recommend.), made a quick stop to Bill’s Bookstore for some FSU gear, and then got ready for the game.
One of the best parts about our hotel was that they offered a free shuttle over to the game. Score! We made it there just in time to see the Marching Chiefs march by…
We walked around the University Center for a bit before heading into to Doak find out seats.
I actually had no idea where we were sitting (Brian bought the tickets), so I was pleseantly surprised!
I think this is the closest to the field I’ve ever sat. Of course, the last time I went to a game I was a student (let’s not talk about how long again that was).
The band kicked off promptly at 6
Followed by the national anthem — where this happened (how funny is this picture?)
And the massacre began!
End of the 1st Quarter!
Now, we were playing a team who, last week, lost 84-0 — so expectations for a win were very, very high. We were not disappointed. We were there for almost 3 quarters and I’m pretty sure I have NEVER sung the FSU Fight Song so many times. The male cheerleaders run around the end zone with flags every time we score — and I was just exhausted for them.
The only thing disappointing about the game was the rain and the lightening (thankfully, we came prepared for the rain).
The game was suspended for a 2nd time (yes, we waited around during the first suspension) during the end of the 3rd quarter and we decided to head out. We ended up at Chili’s (where there was no shortage of beer, margaritas, and chips) before we realized that the game had been officially been ended for good (giving us the win — 55-0). Glad we didn’t stick around!
Of course, today we woke up to beautiful skies and perfect weather (73 degrees and zero humidity!!).
Tallahassee, sometimes I do miss you. It was just so gorgeous!
After a quick breakfast, we decided to give the kids a tour of campus. We started with a drive by of the new (to us) Medical School and Psychology Building (I majored in Psych during undergrad and had to trek allllll the way across campus to get to class. No fair.) and then made a quick stop at the dorm where Dan and I both lived our Freshman Year — Smith Hall.
This is where it all began for us!
We actually met a few Smith Hall residents on our walk back to the car last night and they confirmed that it had not changed at all since we lived there. No renovations for Smith! We then all cried when we realized they were 2-years old when we lived there. Damn it goes by fast.
After the quick stop, we parked at the Oglesby Student Union and we became extremely jealous of all of the food options that were not available to us when we were there. What the hell is up with them having Einstein Brothers, and a Chili’s? Crossroads, Rallys, and that bagel place (that I can’t remember the name of) isn’t good enough for them? Screw that.
We then walked across campus to the Wescott Fountain and took many photo stops on the way….
Landis Green (and Landis Hall)
Strozier Library
I apologize for being a complete cheeseball for a minute, but walking across campus just made me realize how much I really did love going to FSU. There’s just something about the architecture, the hills, the live oaks, and the people that made me fall in love with this school. And that feeling just never goes away. I can only hope to pass on this tradition to my kids!
After the brainwashing, we made one more stop before heading home — our first home.
Awww… It looks exactly the same. And damn, check out how big our yard was.
Thankfully, the ride back to Orlando was less eventful than the ride up and we spent the rest of today recovering. I’m not quite sure I’m ready for a busy week — but I guess I have no choice, huh?
I’m so happy we made it up to Tally this weekend — I’ve decided that 8 years is WAAAAY too long. Good thing we’ll be back up there again (adults only!) in October!!
When’s the last time you visited your college campus?