By Johny Martin, Contributing Writer
With only a few weeks left in the fall semester, many students are looking forward to a long winter break. Whether they are going home for the holidays or to some extravagant vacation spot, the Wildcat community is planning for break.
“I am already over the cold,” senior Molly Johnson said.
Some students are taking the initiative and getting away from the cold, such as senior Mary Markos, who is going to Pompano Beach, Florida, about an hour outside of Miami.
“It will be a nice change of pace from the harsh whiplash of New England weather,” Markos said. She will be going down right after Christmas with her parents and boyfriend to visit her grandparents.
Though it may seem odd to some New Englanders to visit a tropical place instead of hope for a white Christmas, some reports say that a tropical beach is not that surprising of a place to spend the holiday.
In October, Travel Leisure magazine reported that one of the best places to spend Christmas is on the coast of Brazil in the small colonial town of Paraty. It offers friendly locals, crystal clear oceans and some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. The article titled “Best Places to Spend Christmas” claims that this extravagant paradise will “offer a true escape, and it may make you forget what the holiday is all together.”
Freshman Maddie Manning has decided to take advantage of the long break and will head over to Sweden.
“I’ve decided to go outside the United States for Christmas this year,” she said.
Manning has never been to Sweden, but she feels as though experiencing the holiday in a different country would give her an idea of how other countries celebrate the holiday.
Why and where students travel to over break varies from person to person. Some students are traveling for an experience and others for fun. Senior Sera Stackpole is traveling to experience something like never before. She is traveling to Nicaragua on a Global Brigade trip to help communities that don’t have resources for basic public health, such as functioning toilets.
“It’s one of the poorest countries in Central America, so the community will really appreciate the benefit from anything we do, whether it be making cement floors or building hygiene stations for families in the community,” she said.
While some students are traveling to distant places and experiencing new things for this years holiday, many student are sticking to their annual holiday destinations and traditions. Many UNH students seem to have their annual traditions of going to a family members house to celebrate the holidays. But afterwards, the calendar is open.
“I will be a ski bum,” senior Jake Renner said. “I mean, of course I will do the holiday stuff with my family, but after that I plan on hitting the slopes all winter and possibly spending New Year’s up at Jay Peak with the boys.”
“Being home with my family and friends” is what freshman Kerrin Aherm said is most important to her. “It’s the first Christmas I will finally be able to drink the adult eggnog and be considered an adult.”
