This summer, many students stayed home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but sophomore Maddie Musgraves went on a careful vacation to Orange Beach, Alabama with her mom, Christina Sevaggio. The two planned the trip in February, before the pandemic had gotten too severe in the United States. When the time came to decide whether it was worth it to travel or not, they decided that it would be nice to travel for a week.

“I would say, overall, it was worth it,” Musgraves said. “With all the precautions we took, we made sure we were really safe and no one got sick.”

The two rented a car for the week and drove to the beach. Sevaggio would have usually bought plane tickets, however, considering the pandemic, she came to the conclusion that it would be significantly safer to drive.

“I’m definitely not comfortable flying with COVID,” Sevaggio said. “At least when we’re driving we can spread out and we’re not with other people.”

The two made sure to be extra cautious with everything they did throughout the trip. Sevaggio made a bag they called “the infection control bag” including a box of masks, two boxes of gloves, hand soap, hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes and spray. They wore masks everywhere except for when they were in their condo by themselves and when they were on the beachfront. The only part of the trip that varied was eating out. Most of the restaurants didn’t have the option to dine-in so the two would bring the food back to their condo to eat it there.

“Everyone was so suspicious of each other,” Musgraves said. “No one wants to get near each other and everyone is worried and questioning each other all the time and it’s very odd.”

Despite COVID-19, the pair had an amazing time going to the pool, beach, and even go-karting. Musgraves will never forget the time she saw a jellyfish in the ocean, freaked out, and then realized it was dead. Seveggio and Musgraves both cherish every moment they have at the beach and call it their happy place.

“My favorite part was definitely just being by the ocean and beach,” Sevaggio said. “It’s just beautiful there and it was nice to be a beach bum. I definitely don’t regret it now.”