By NICK DILL, student reporter
I woke up at the crack of dawn with the rest of my family as we do for every road trip. Spring break 2020 has begun, and we were on the way to Orange Beach, Alabama.
The road trip was a long exhausting 12-hour ride, but I found some good music to listen to, some Netflix shows to watch, and I also slept some on the way there.
We made our traditional stop at Bucees. Which is by far one of the cleanest and largest gas stations, and is like a mansion compared to most gas stations.
Clean bathrooms, tons of snacks and drinks, and the best fudge ever is why stopping at Bucees is such a highlight of every road trip.
The whole way there I was anxiously thinking of how COVID-19 was going to affect my spring break trip. I thought everything was good because the beaches were still open.
I love the beach and I couldn’t wait to feel the sun shining on my skin and to feel the waves crashing into me as I swim in the ocean.
What made this trip even better was that my teammate from my college Stephen McCluskey was coming along. Everything was good and was set in stone for a successful trip.
After driving what felt like an eternity we arrived at the condo Sunday afternoon. My dad checked us in, and then we immediately started to unpack everything into the condo.
I tried to carry as many bags as possible like I’m an Olympic powerlifter because I wanted to get to the beach as fast as possible. I looked out at the beach from the balcony and just smiled because we finally made it.
The first beach day is here and I woke up and started to pack the beach bag and apply sunscreen, and headed down to the beach with my family. We were all shocked to see how many people were on the beach, and how close everyone was with the coronavirus going around.
People are swimming, lounging in their chairs, and enjoying the sounds of the waves crashing the shore. Life is normal as usual and no one is concerned about anything.
Although life isn’t normal. The deadly disease COVID-19 is spreading all over the world during this time.
Social distancing was not being followed at the beach.
College students filled the beach in groups way more than 10 people. I noticed how all the beach chairs and umbrellas are less than six feet away too.
Although the beach was still open. My spring break trip that I looked forward to was still happening.
I was able to enjoy the beach and appreciate a break from the busy semester. Life was all good until Thursday afternoon.
On Thursday afternoon, McCluskey and I were hanging out in the hot tub, and we saw a guy post a sign on the door. We were curious about what the sign said.
I had a suspicion that it was a sign saying that the beach was closed because some of the beaches near us we’re beginning to shut down.
“ Nick, are you going to go look at that sign and see what it says?,” McCluskey said.
That’s exactly what I did. I started to scan the sign and, sure enough, I was right. The beach was closing. We had to be checked out of the condo by the next day before noon.
My heart dropped, and I was devastated that we had to leave the beach a day early. It showed me how real this disease was becoming.
I went up to the condo to tell my parents, but they already knew because my dad received an email. We were all in shock and uncertain if we were going to leave Thursday night or leave early Friday morning.
The scene was crazy in the lobby after the news was out that everyone had to leave tomorrow, and everyone was rushing and scavenging to get luggage carts. The parking lot was filled with people packing their cars up as if there was a hurricane coming.
The line at the front desk was stretching to the entrance of the lobby because guests were asking about refunds for the nights that they’re not going to be able to stay there. Clutter and chaos is how I would describe the scene after everyone figured out that they would have to leave due to the coronavirus.
My family and I decided to leave Thursday night to avoid traffic. We enjoyed our last couple of hours by packing everything up and enjoying time in the condo before we got on the road.
I stood on the balcony before we got on the road and observed how empty the beach was. I noticed the two police trucks patrolling and shining their headlights to make sure that everyone was off the beach.
The beach was deserted and not one footprint was seen on the sand. This was the new reality due to COVID-19.
We began the long 12-hour trip back home on Thursday night. All I could think about on the way home was how this virus is going to affect the rest of my sophomore year at Northwestern Oklahoma State University.
We drove all night through the dark and through some rain showers, but finally arrived early Friday morning. We finally made it, and I was curious about what was next the minute I got home.
Am I going back to school this semester? Will there be spring football? How long is this pandemic going to last? These were all the thoughts going on in my mind.
I was supposed to return to school on April 3, but I suspected that would be unlikely due to how dangerous the disease was becoming. My suspicions were right and I received an email from the university that the rest of the semester will be continued through online classes only.
I enjoyed my trip even though it was cut short. This trip opened my eyes to the reality and seriousness of this pandemic.