American teenagers and young adults are known for partying, drinking and going crazy, particularly over Spring Break. This much anticipated “recess” has gained its reputation as a party-goer’s frenzy, mostly through MTV, which parades young gals and boys with the perfect “beach bods” clad with a heavy tan, cool shades and a bikini or trunks. All this is sealed with a live concert and an alcoholic beverage at a sunny beach resort.
But one could argue that this perception of young Americans is not entirely accurate and allows the world to feed off of the impression that they are a shallow minded, unambitious group of people without a care in the world. While to some Spring Break and partying literally mean the same thing, for others it’s a time to rest and reconnect with family and old friends or an opportunity to volunteer and help those less fortunate. It really is a much-needed break from college life. A chance to have fun without the worry of assignments and class attendance.
For most college first-years, Spring Break is the ultimate party. Possibly the best week of their lives. The biggest decision becomes where they decide to spend it. The most famous spring break destinations have been Fort Lauderdale and Daytona Beach. At their peaks they welcomed over 350,000 and 200,000 students respectively. Other popular destinations include Panama City Beach, Florida, South Padre Island, Texas, Lake Havasu City, Arizona and Las Vegas all popularized through MTV. This year MTV will be at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. Attendees will be allowed free entries to concerts and celebrity pool parties. Special promos and discount deals are available online. For those interested, attending casting events might be required to guarantee access.
Sara Allison Myles, a second-year fashion design student, sees these spring flings hosted by MTV and its supporters such as Budweiser and Coca Cola as a marketing gimmick. “They want to make more money, and people will save up so that they can go on a spring break vacation when it’s not that big,” said Myles. Although this popularizing of beach resorts through live television broadcasting of concerts and parties with celebrity guests is essentially for profit, it helps boost the economies of the destination cities.
Apart from beach parties, other students plan to catch up on lost time during the break. “I’m a typical busy SCAD student with no life,” said Robert Hughes, third-year visual effects major. “I’m gonna be spending my spring break catching up on errands, maybe watching a few movies that came out this quarter,” Hughes went on to say. Some plan to spend time with family. “I’m planning go to New York to spend time with my sister,” said Julian Guzman, first-year advertising student. “Because I’m international, for me, it’s time to spend with my family,” he said. His friend Andrew Sisk, a first-year photography major, concurs: “I’m going to California to visit my brother cause he just moved there, and we’re taking a day trip to San Francisco.”
Spring break is not just a time to go crazy and get wasted. It can be good family time or maybe a fun road trip with some friends. But if you do plan to go wild with a bunch of perfect strangers, the reality is there’s a life to get back to after spring break. Remember the essentials of staying safe:
– Be careful about taking open drinks from strangers.
– No drinking and driving or texting and driving.
– If abstinence is not your preference protect yourself.
– Respect private and public property; causing damage could get you in trouble.
– Try to have fun without ruining it for others.
So what are you waiting for? Get planning and have a happy, safe spring break.