As part of my 24 for 24, I resolved to visit two new US cities this year. I am constantly day dreaming of other parts of the world when I have left most of my backyard unexplored. This goal will not only change that, but also allow me to connect with my friends who are now spread across the country.

The first city I settled on was Birmingham. Brooke and I have been planning and replanning girls’ weekends and getaways since we moved away from each other and we FINALLY made it happen. As soon as I got this trip in the books I got super excited. I used to live with this chick for goodness sake’s and it’s rough to wake up one morning no longer 10 feet away from the person you’ve shared a house, bathroom and countless (sometimes shameful) stories with for years.

The second city I will be off to explore in the not-so-distant future is Dallas. So if you have tips or suggestions please let me know! But that hasn’t happened yet, so back to Birmingham…

Shortly after college ended, Brooke moved to Charleston, I moved to New Orleans and her parents moved to Birmingham. Their location is great because its about halfway between Charleston and New Orleans. The perfect meeting spot if neither of us could make it to the other (which we couldn’t apparently).

Easter weekend just happened to be the most convenient for all parties involved so the matter was settled and I headed off to explore their new stomping grounds. The very first thing I noticed was how hilly it is. Boy has living in the very flat New Orleans done a number on me. I was out of breath before I reached the top of the stairs atop a nice big hill at the Vulcan. The view was well worth it though.

After getting a full view of the Vulcan in all his glory (including his fine rear view), we drove over to the botanical gardens to catch the spring blossoms.

The weather was so great that I ended up with a nice set of tan lines from my tank top. Sign me up for the next available tractor ride to the country because I officially have a farmer’s tan. My favorite part, by far, was the Japanese garden. You could probably chalk that up to the organization junkie in me.

We quickly built up an appetite with all this walking and headed to eat a delicious Mexican meal at Lime. We spent the remainder of our time getting lots of R&R, home-cooked food and gossip, of course. There’s something perfect about sitting out back and taking in every moment of the first few hot, sunny days.

We woke up on Easter morning to find baskets complete with lots of chocolates and other adorable goodies left by the Easter Bunny, better known as Brooke’s sweet mother. It was sad to go because we hardly get to see each other any more which is hard to believe since we used to be up in each other’s business every day.

Happy Easter, just a little late! And if you just got off spring break (like me) ‘best of luck to ya’ as you take the plunge back into the real world.

Update: The Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau has pointed me in the direction of an awesome mobile app developed by locals for the best places to visit in Birmingham. You can download the app here if you are planning a visit!