It’s time for a crazy bar hopping weekend. Crowded pubs with friendly drunks; greasy pizza begging for a drunken hand and even house parties just waiting to get a noise ordinance. Oh, not feeling the bar vibe? Reload… It’s time for a weekend of hiking and movies. No? How about a study fest instead? Netflix marathons? Well, whatever weekend vibe you’re feeling, Ohio University students have just the one for you.
- “I usually like to go out and see the liveliness of the campus. I just like to go outside and go hiking up Bong Hill, which is super steep, but it’s amazing to see how it overlooks the entire campus. It’s really pretty at sunset.” —Shealyn Hollingshead, freshman
- “With my major, I can’t go out every night, so sometimes I have to stay in and study. But that isn’t too bad, especially when my roommate will have friends over. We’ll hang out and watch Pitch Perfect and eat popcorn. You need nights in every once and a while.” —Kristina Workinger, freshman
- “I start my Friday by going to my only class. Then I’ll head back to my apartment and pass out until about 3 p.m. I’ll wake up and go down to the bar and get a pitcher of beer with my roommates. We live near Courtside bar, which is always kickin’. Then we’ll go to the rest of the bars until they close at 2 a.m. I’ll wake at 10 a.m. or so and hang around. Once it hits 5 p.m., I’ll usually go to a friend’s apartment and pre-game there with them, then hit the bars again until they close.” —Brandon Lucarelli, junior
- “I would go to Stroud’s Run, which has a huge lake and is a beautiful place to hike. Then I’ll go to Casa Nueva, a locally owned organic restaurant. They have the greatest tofu there. I once got their tofu tacos and they were perfect. I actually started crying.” —Macy Merle, sophomore
- “I would pack a picnic and hike to Bong Hill and just spend the whole day up there. If I don’t pack a picnic, I usually eat at Bagel Street. It’s a little hole in the wall that serves bagel sandwiches that you can get practically anything on. I would recommend the Kimmie Gibbler, which has avocado, cream cheese, sprouts and tomatoes.” —Andrea Wurm, freshman
- “My friends and I will go to PING, OU’s gym, and take a yoga class to de-stress from the week. Then we start pre-gaming and head out to friend’s houses or bars. The bars have high energy, and you’re with people you know so it’s always fun. I always try to make it to Court Street Diner for my favorite hangover food, eggs or anything really greasy. Some weekends, my friends and I like to go the Ridges, the old insane asylum. We would go up later at night and play spooky games like splitting up and trying to scare each other.” —Christina Brosovich, freshman
- “I like to relax over the weekends. I’ll get together with friends that I didn’t see during the week and just watch movies or play video games. Sometimes we have family dinners, where we cook food together and just have a great time.” —Maan Alharbi, senior
- “Athens has a great music scene. There are a lot of house shows if you’re into more Americana or indie rock. I usually go to the open mic nights at the Front Room and Donkey Coffee. They both have really different atmospheres. Front Room’s has more students that play pop or Broadway styles of music. At Donkey, there is a lot more singer/songwriter style and residents of Athens that’ll play there.” —Katie Pinter, junior
- “Sometimes I would go on a hike to the Ridges and Radar Hill, which is a spot where you can see a ton of the beautiful parts of Athens. Other times I would go to Athena Grande because they have $5 dollar movies, some of them being new releases.” —Nick Stapleton, recent graduate
- “Sometimes I go to the bars, house parties or I’ll kick it back with friends in the dorms. What’s most important about having a good weekend at OU is having good company. It makes great stories at the end of the day and you’re just making memories. That makes all the difference.” —Silken Habtout, sophomore
- “I’m on the field hockey team for OU. In the fall, we usually travel by plane or bus to the games. We’re also on the field for roughly four hours each weekend day, so we don’t really get any weekends per se. But the best place I’ve played at is Boston because it’s a gorgeous campus, so it isn’t all that bad.” —Megan Silveira, freshman
- “Most weekends I like to sleep in because it’s the only time I can. Sometimes I go to the dog shelter to walk dogs, but most times I’ll be at home watching Netflix or on Tumblr. Sunday evenings I’ll go to Alpha Phi Omega, a co-ed national service fraternity.” – Shanti Epp, junior
- “I love to take an afternoon run around the Ridges. Afterwards, I’ll meet up with my friends and go to Jackie O’s, which is like the Shire and a warm glass of beer. There’s tons of woodwork and small barrel tables. It all looks super Irish.” —Abby Shewalter, Junior
- “If I stay in my apartment, I usually finish up homework and work on short stories, essays or one of the books I’m writing. Occasionally I’ll head down to campus to just enjoy being on campus, in the library or in town when it isn’t crowded like it is during the week.” —Jordan Williams, junior
- “My average weekend would include waking up at noon, getting with friends, and if you’re really trying to take on the day, just start drinking. We love to go to Popper’s for happy hour. Even though it doesn’t look like it’s been updated since the 1980s, it has a great atmosphere and popcorn, which is a nice bar snack.” —Nolan Gilbert, senior
- “I’ll relax and maybe play some guitar. I’ll also hang out with whoever is down to hang out. We’ll go see a play or go to a house show together, which usually hosts local bands or traveling bands. My favorite band to see is the Sunshine Bandits at the Pink Mistress, which is an awesome show house. Other days I’ll just fill my time until the evening, and maybe do something chill or maybe go to a rager.” —Ryan Powers, sophomore
- “I have to work a few hours at PING each day, but afterwards I’ll start drinking with my roommates and go out to a party or bar. If I drink during the day, I’m asleep by 8 p.m. If later, I’ll go all night. Besides that, I love to eat at Fluff Bakery. My favorite is their breakfast sandwiches because of the hummus they put on the egg sandwiches. Also, since I have a sauna in my house, I’ll usually utilize that a lot.” —Sam Cross, senior
- “Depending on the weather, I would go to Stroud’s Run or Old Man’s Cave in Logan. It’s incredibly scenic. At night, I might go out to a house party on Mill. And for anybody looking for a good time, the Smiling Skull bar is the way to go.” —Pat Mulligan, sophomore
- “If I don’t work, I’ll probably go out to Bronies, which has a deejay on Friday nights so it gets pretty packed. It’s a good environment and diverse; you have a lot of people from different backgrounds. If I don’t feel like going out, I just usually stay at Kappa Alpha Psi, my fraternity house, and drink a few with friends. We all live together and stay with each other and just have a good time.” —Rashaun Brown, junior
- “Most weekends, it’s just three of my friends and me at the dorm watching a movie. We usually watch horror movies like “VHS.” During fest season, I’ll go to Milliron Fest. Sometimes I’ll hang out in my friend’s apartment above Whit’s, which is a frozen custard shop. This friend came here from Saudi Arabia. It’s his first year in America so we usually hang with him and he’ll talk about his culture.” —Katie Moore, freshman
