Pensacola, Florida

Oh my goodness! I cannot believe I am finally making things happen, and moving forward with my future plans. If you have been a reader since the beginning of my blog, you know that I have been wanting to move to Pensacola, Florida for about six years now. I have been on a journey of tossing around ideas and "should I" or "should I not?" and after visiting the wonderful town of Pensacola, Florida, I have decided that I am moving! It is a huge step in my life, and a huge investment, but I know that this is the right path for me to take. I feel in my heart that this is right, and perfect for me.

I arrived back home yesterday afternoon from a wonderful trip to Pensacola. It could not have been more perfect! I scoped out the town, and I visited University of West Florida to get a feel of what it would be like to live down there. The moment I stepped on the campus of UWF, my mood was lifted. It is such a pretty campus (I failed to take pictures, I was just trying to take it all in without technology in the way). I was given a tour from a previous student of UWF, and saw the science buildings where I will be spending most of my time. It was so refreshing, and motivating to see the campus with fresh eyes. Along the main campus rode, there were banners hanging from light posts that had motivational and inspirational words on them, and the one that stuck out the most to me was one that said "ambitious." Moving across the country is super ambitious, and I love claiming that word for myself. 

Photo above from UWF's Instagram 

I absolutely loved the campus, it was gorgeous! But I did not just visit the campus, I visited Pensacola Beach, Florida, and Downtown Pensacola, along with various spots around town. I even visited Gulf Breeze Zoo! That was so much fun! 

I discovered that this town is perfect for me. While I love Portland, I feel that Portland is prideful about empty things. This may seem silly, and possibly untrue, but after living in Portland all of my life, I can only see Portland being prideful about "being weird," live music, coffee shops, microbreweries and our hippies. Not that any of that is wrong to be prideful about, but I feel Pensacola has fulfilling things to be prideful about, such as their navy and the Blue Angels, their university, and the fact that it was America's first settlement. Also the fact that Pensacola is a small town, and so many other factors! Pensacola is also home to some of the best hospitals nationwide (which is something that I am definitely interested in!). It is such a beautiful town, and I felt so at home there. 

I have so much support and love behind my big decision, and those factors really add to my decision. It makes it feel even more fitting. For the next few months, I am going to be working, and organizing to get everything in order for my big move. This is such an exciting time in my life, and I am going to prepare myself to the fullest. For those who would like updates, I will be posting about my progress here on my blog as often as I can. 

I fell in love with the town of Pensacola, Florida, and I fell in love with the University of West Florida. I knew I would, but I am glad that I visited to confirm and make a solid decision based on physically being in the town and physically seeing the university for myself. It was such an exciting trip, and I am excited to go back and be a part of the Pensacola and UWF community. 

The awesome picture above was taken on my flight home as I was minutes away from landing in PDX. This is majestic Mt. Hood, and the nice man in the window seat offered to take it for me. The mountain looked so close, almost close enough to reach out and touch it. This photo does not do the real view justice.