For my Memorial Day Weekend, I went down the shore with my friends. I missed school on Friday so we could leave early, put our belongings in the car, and travel to our destination in Seaside, New Jersey.

Friday:

When we arrived, we claimed our rooms, put our belongings away, and gathered in the main bedroom to discuss our plans for the day. We considered all the possibilities and decided to shop at the stores in Lavalette, just five minutes away from where we were staying. 

Our first stop was a popular store among teenage girls called Hazel Boutique. This place serves fun drinks like refreshers and coffee, but then towards the back of the store, they sell trendy items like mocknecks, sweatpants, matching sets, jewelry, and much more. When we arrived early in the afternoon, there was already a line forming outside the door! One of my friends and I purchased mocknecks that were around the same price range—I forgot to mention that these clothes are pretty expensive. 

After that trip, we walked in and out of different small shops that consisted of more clothes, gemstones, candy, and basically anything you could think of. It felt great to get out with my friends without the worry of schoolwork flooding my mind. 

One of our routines for the four days we were there was watching Jersey Shore. It was funny to see how dramatic reality TV can be; the show was very enjoyable to watch, especially with my friends commenting on all the humorous parts. 

When we finished our episodes, we walked to the boardwalk, which was pretty dead and not crowded with people just yet. For us, Friday was a day of shopping; we went into almost every store on the boardwalk, finding cute things to purchase and bring back to the condo.

We finished the night with K Pot for dinner in Toms River, which was very exciting for me since I had never been before. Also, tuning into more episodes of Jersey Shore and researching what we should do the next day. 

Saturday: 

Everyone woke up early, and we started the day with bagels. We looked outside from the balcony and saw that it was pouring rain. This wasn’t a huge surprise since we knew beforehand the weather would be awful, so we planned on going to the Ocean County Mall. 

The mall was pretty small, and we spent time browsing stores, buying from brands we are all familiar with. (The food court was pretty disappointing.) 

After that, we scheduled a ceramic painting appointment at Color Me Mine. The wait took a while, but we finally got seated, and we painted plates, mugs, and bowls. I searched different creations on Pinterest, and I was set on painting Snoopy and his dog house. 

While driving around Toms River in the pouring rain, we got pretty hungry and made our way to Chili’s. It was a great time filled with stories, memories, and laughter. 

Since the weather was depressing that night, I decided to stay at the condo and watch a movie while my friends made their way to the boardwalk—my only request for them was to bring me back a caramel apple!

Sunday: 

The weather was not better on Sunday. We wanted to make a reservation at a café called Mila’s of Seaside. As I called, they told me it was an hour wait, but since a couple of friends and I were ready to go, we waited to secure our spot at a table. 

Even though we waited for a long time, the food and drinks surprised me! I ordered a strawberry matcha latte and a Greek omelet with a side of fries. I think I finally understood what the hype about this place is! 

During the day, we had a lot of downtime due to the weather, and later on, a few of my friends wanted to stop at Goodwill to see if we could find any good deals.

When we returned to the condo, I was “forced” to go to the boardwalk even though it is not really my scene. However, I knew that if I were with my friends, I’d be just fine. 

We all got ready to go around eight, and it ended up being a good experience for me. I liked exploring the boardwalk, taking pictures, playing arcade games, getting food, and talking to people until the time struck ten for boardwalk curfew. 

Monday:

This was the day to start packing and cleaning everything up. After we put our belongings in the car, we decided to get breakfast before heading back to Emerson, New Jersey.

We took separate cars, and we went to a place called D’Amores in Lavalette, which served different versions of toast, smoothies, and more.

I ordered the vanilla banana peanut butter protein smoothie and Bacca’s BEC, which had bacon, eggs, and parmesan on sourdough bread. This place did not disappoint!

After we ate, it was time to leave the condo. The ride home was horrific; there was tons of traffic, rain, and extra time added to my navigation. But, in the end, I think my trip went very well; it was great to get out of town and enjoy the time that I had with my friends and the memories we made together along the way!