Hello to my tribe with the thriving vibe! It feels good to be called back to the spaces that make me feel healthy and encouraged. Naadia J. here reminding you that as long as there are writers, there will be readers. On this edition of travel diaries i’ll be sharing my weekend experience in Nashville, Tennessee. Courtesy of my oh so fly hairstylist connecting with me for a girls trip. This post is meant to be a brief yet informative writing exercise.
American Airlines Round trip ticket: $117
Shared AirBnB located in Midtown, Nashville: $250 pp (3 night stay) I love airbnb, however! thoroughly read reviews. Our room was directly near the janitors closet and elevator shaft. Very disturbing first thing in the morning took us awhile to find out what the noise was.
Food: about $50 a day ($150)
Transportation: Shared Lyft to and fro throughout the day $60 over 3 days (nothing is in walking distance)
Excursions: Shopped till we dropped! Or at least I did anyway lol not gonna lie this is where the bulk of my budget went $300 give or take a bit - just being honest!
I tend to write travel expenses of this sort as “business” deductions. If you want to know more about this let’s connect, happy to elaborate.
total deductions:~ $877
experience: priceless
Day One (Saturday)
I was happy to divinely be seated between two Nashville locals on the flight who gave me a full list of to-do’s. Broadway is where they play. After we touched down & glammed up we headed that way. Lyft experience was one for the books, but I digress. Welcome to Nashville! Needless to say neither me or my soul sista are party gals so that was not quite our arena for a Saturday night. We did however run into a 24 hour Sun diner which did not disappoint . I’m a sucker for comfort food and the banana pudding while you wait, yummm!
Day Two (Sunday)
Sometimes the best plans are the unplanned. I really enjoy travel for the way it slows down time and breaks me out of the mundane of my routines. So , change clothes and go sums up my weekend. The day deliciously began with a meal from the Pancake Pantry, while waiting in line good conversation with a pleasant family gave us highlights on the city and a few other rooftops and vegan spots as options.
Please, save yourself the hassle of booking an AirBnb experience. The fancy ones with “Instagrammable worthy photos.” Instead get you a friend that says “nope, not that pose” and helps you find your angles. We literally walked from breakfast, to Posh, to UAL Nashville on 21st and snapped flicks to our hearts content. From there the mall at Green Hills was a Lyft ride away.
The nightlife led us back to Broadway for a decent meal , rooftop views and live music. Culture is a big deal to me, you do not have to “listen to country music” to catch a vibe. Its enjoyable in its own right. Tennessee is known for its music venues, home of the grand ol’ Opry house and such. Crossed paths with some fellow creatives as well always a pleasure.
Day Three (Monday)
We woke up on a mission, bomb a** workout to start the day. Poolside chilling, content killing, inspo gettin’ type of mood. By now, a local store run had been made with some pantry items to hold us over and satisfied. More shopping commenced with a walkable route to Buffalo Exchange and a vintage store Smack, sooo in love with my items from there and back to the pool we made it.
Another highlight is the overlap that allowed me to connect with a nearest and dearest colleague of mine. We were able to meet at Acme exchange stories over sushi, career path and encourage each other on our next pursuits. A stroll to the riverfront and a nightcap of Mikes handmade ice cream keeps this woman pretty satisfied.
Tuesday
Home sweet home.
Initially everyone asked, why Nashville? Food, fashion and fun is my thing, mission accomplished! I would add some tourism into the mix and a bit more nature sightseeing if I were to return. My next out of office experience will definitely be mommy and me involvement we are overdue. But mama gotta have a life too! I hope this excerpt serves you well, until next time.
Passionately me,
RWD
