Why not go on an Alternative Service Break this year?

Kill your liver or try helping people in need

Spring break is coming up in a few weeks, and if you haven’t planned anything yet because you’re a procrastination expert, this is for you.

The traditional spring break- Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the Bahamas

Cancun, Puerto Vallarta or Cabo San Lucas. Mexico offers many opportunities for college students during spring break. So do Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. What’s better than hot weather, warm sandy beaches and a legal drinking age of 18?

Photo courtesy of Maria Noyen.

The classic trip to New York

Many students choose to go to New York over Mexico. The city has so much to offer, you definitely won’t get bored. The weather may not be like what you’d have in Mexico, but the parks, malls, museums, concerts and other shows in New York are worth it.

Europe is always a nice idea

For those of you who are really lucky, a trip to Mexico could be a lot of fun. Europe is a great combination of dancing, partying and beautiful sightseeing. So, Paris or Barcelona?

Picture courtesy of François Grenet.

Going home

Going home for spring break can be nice. You don’t have to make your own food and do all the chores by yourself. Still, it might get a little boring if your friends are partying somewhere else and if your parents are on your back all the time. Well, spring break at home is designed for those who look for at least a somewhat relaxing vacation away from the rush of college.

Alternative Service Break

If you want to take a real break from college life and slow down on your drinking habits, you might want to go on an Alternative Service Break.

The program is offered every year by BU and is great way to make a good use of your time by engaging in community service. There are a variety of cities to go to, but Boston is also an option.

Deniz Hallik, CAS’19, participated in the service break in Boston last year. She wanted to get to know Boston better, and this trip did just that.

“We went to a lot of different places,” Hallik said. “The first one was La Casa Nueva Vida in Jamaica Plains. We went there every afternoon for four days. Many families live in this house; they usually are people who just arrived from South America to the United States. We went there after the kids came back from school, we did homework with them for two hours and then played with them for another two hours.”

“We also went to The Gavin Foundation, a welcome center for former heroin addicts, and to the Women’s Lunch Place on Newbury Street and cooked lunch for them. We stayed in a church at night and we slept in our sleeping bags.”

Hallik said she used to do a lot of community service while in high school, but never had time to pursue it since she arrived at BU.

“I wanted to do something more. I wanted to experience something new. It was honestly one of the best weeks of my BU life because it taught me so much about gratitude. Those people have problems that I have never been through. Seeing how they can get through it and how their lives are affected by it, made me realize how grateful I should be for what I have. It was amazing.”

So for this spring break or one in the future, stop killing your liver and brain cells, and go help people in need.

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