Is There Really Any Difference Between Dancing and Badminton?

We got up on time this morning, but after getting breakfast we arrived at the bus station at 8:40, and by the time we got to the front of the line it was 8:45--the time the bus was supposed to be leaving. By this point Jenny was getting very annoyed when the lady giving us our tickets seemed to be going very slowly. This is why I normally like to arrive early, especially if I'm going somewhere I haven't been before, so that there's no chance I'll be late. However, as it turned out, the computer system on the bus was malfunctioning (luckily?), so it didn't leave until 9:30.

Mmmm snow cones!

We then got stuck in traffic for an hour, making the ride take even longer. Considering this, it was surprising that we arrived in Nashville only an hour after we were scheduled to. We went straight to the hotel, but we couldn't check in until four, so we left our bags there and went to lunch. We went to a deli, which also had free ice cream. (We were all pretty psyched about that. How could we not go there for lunch?) After lunch we walked over to the Parthenon, which looked amazing, but unfortunately we got there twenty minutes after it closed, so we're planning on visiting again tomorrow so that we can go inside.

Then, because it was way too hot, we bought snow cones from a vendor and walked around a small lake. I got lemon-lime and blue raspberry, which was delicious, but it also turned my teeth, tongue and lips vivid shades of green and blue. (If there was a contest for weirdest mouth color, I would have won. Although Arnold did say that my teeth were his favorite color (teal).) 

Sitting on the Vanderbilt sign

On our way back to the hotel, we went to the bookstore to get Vanderbilt sweatshirts. I also had to get brush markers, because they looked like they would be so amazing to write with (update: they are!). We put on our sweatshirts and took a lot of pictures by the Vanderbilt sign, and let me tell you, posing with black sweatshirts on in the sun in 95 degree weather is a real struggle. But we managed. (Because we're awesome, of course. Our superpowers are heat resistance.)

Hummd and I at the dance

We walked back over to the Parthenon at around seven, because Jenny had found out that there was live music and dancing nearby every Saturday evening. We found the pavilion, and the event was already underway. We just watched for a while, then joined in even though we had no idea what we were doing. In the first dance we participated in, everyone was sort of swirling around in a semi-organized way. Then Katherine and I, watching the dancers' feet, realized that the steps were exactly the same as badminton footwork, just done with a partner. We grabbed each other's hands and joined in, and we were excellent. I swear, anyone who saw us would have thought we were pros (because we were... pros at badminton). That was just the first dance, though. We stayed for about an hour, and Arnold taught us all some cool dance moves he knew that may or may not have matched the beat of the music. We also bought shaved ice there, and though it was twice as expensive as the snow cones had been, it was way more than twice as good. It was amazing. The ice was so soft and delicious.. I just can't do it justice.

This is our last night in a hotel (and I'm sure this hotel bed is nicer than the dorm beds will be), but I'm really looking forward to the start of our programs (though technically that's Monday, but really, we'll be in the dorms already tomorrow evening, and that's exciting).