Writing Exercise
Set your timer for 1 minute and write a list of places that are within 500 miles of you. Write a road trip short story.
Side Note
I will be using places in Tennessee for this exercise since O now live here. I will also be using Scout and her parents for this exercise, give them a much needed family vacation.
Places in Tennessee
- Tennessee Safari Park in Alamo
- Adventureworks Zipline Forest in Whites Creek
- Nashville Zoo at Grassmere in Nashville
- Knoxville Zoological Gardens
- Dollywood in Pigeon Forge
- Pirates Voyage Dinner and Show in Pigeon Forge
- Georgia Aquarium
My Story
Scout practically bounced off the plane once they were allowed to get off the plane. Her parents laughed as they followed behind her into the Nashville airport. The Tennessee warm spring air greeted them as soon as they had collected their bags and headed outside. They walks over to the car rental building to pick up their car. Mr. Jenson filled out the paperwork, took the keys, and led his family to their dark green Kia Sportage. They packed the trunk of the car with their bags, hoped in, and drove their first hotel in Nashville since they wanted to drop their items off so they could go to the Zoo first.
Scout dropped onto her bed in their hotel room, letting her bags fall to the ground. Her excitement for their first family vacation in a long time had worn her out and all she wanted to do was take a nap. Their flight had been later in the day so they couldn’t do a lot before bed. They decided to get some food at a near by restaurant and call it an early night so they would be ready to get up early the next morning.
The next morning, they packed up, checked out, ate from a fast food place, and headed off to the zoo. They spent the morning at the zoo, only stopping for a quick lunch, before they headed back to the car. They drove to the Adventureworks Zipline Forest in Whites Creek Pike for an afternoon of zipping around the tres.
Scout snapped pictures of her parents as they waved at her from their lines, zipping to the sides of her. She laughed and took a few selfies of herself and even was able to get a few pictures with her parents all the while ziplining. Scout put her camera away in her bag with no issues thanks to her training and enjoyed the last few miles of flying. She couldn’t wait to upload the pictures she had taken so far from the zoo and the zipline park. And they still had more places to see that she couldn’t wait to record them all through the lens of her camera.
After an afternoon on a zipline, Mr. Jenson drove the two hours to their next hotel in Alamo, Tennessee. They checked in, dropped off their bags in their room, and headed back out to find a place for dinner. The family was exhausted but they did a little shopping afterwards then retreated to their room for the night.
Scout sent a few pictures she had taken on her phone to Jennifer, Katlyn, Shawn, Nathan, and Aidan before she went to bed. She rarely got to enjoy Spring Break, including family vacations, because her family usually had to help out with demon hunt or something else. But this year was different. This year her parents said that they weren’t going to help and took Scout on a adventure in Tennessee.
Now Scout lay in her bed in the hotel room, exhausted, full, and happy. She stared at the ceiling, not having felt so calm or relaxed in a while and she wasn’t going to let it go to waste. She fell asleep to the strange sounds of the Tennessee night with a smile on her face.
The next morning, Scout was the first one up dressed, and had gotten breakfast and coffee for her parents and herself, minus the coffee. She had it all set up when her parents woke up and they ate quickly, chattering about where they were going to go that day and what they had planned. Mrs. Jenson gave Scout a quick peck before she wen to take a quick shower while Mr. Jenson cleaned up with Scout’s help.
After the car was packed, Mr. Jenson too his family on a fun trip through the Tennessee Safari Park where Scout took hundreds of pictures. the family had a great time with the animals.
“This is so cool,” Scout said as she fed a zebra.
“I agree. I’ve never done anything like this before and I am having so much fun,” Mrs. Jenson said as she fed a camel. “We have to come back and do this again. Or find other states with drive-thru safaris like this one and do them all.”
Mr. Jenson agreed and finished driving through the safari. He parked and the family walked through the other parts of the zoo. They spent the day at the safari park and returned to the hotel room with food. They ate and collapsed in the beds, exhausted from such a fun day.
The following day, they were packed early and drove the four hours to Knoxville for their next stop, The Knoxville zoo. the family checked into their next hotel room towards the afternoon and went out sightseeing and shopping.
They went to the zoo the next day and enjoyed a morning with the animals. The weather was sunny and it wasn’t too crowded which made the day even better. After the zoo, they headed off to do some more shopping and even found a few antique shops. They enjoyed dinner, a movie, and a few games before they headed to bed. They stayed one more day in Knoxville before Mrs. Jenson drove her family to Pigeon Forge the next morning. It took them 40 minutes to get to Pigeon Forge and their hotel.
Scout ad been looking forward to going to Pigeon Forge because they were going to be going to the famous Dollywood theme park. She couldn’t wait to go on the rides and enjoy the park food. Scout made sure she downloaded all of her pictures on her laptop while her parents relaxed and watched some TV in their room.
Mrs. Jenson had wanted to stay in the hotel and rest for the day. They would be going to Dollywood early the next morning and spend all day at the park. Scout didn’t argue because she could download the pictures and write a few blogs about her vacation. The family went out for lunch and then again for dinner, but they mostly stayed in the room. They played games, read, and watched TV while Scout also wrote blogs, emails, and texted her best friends.
Dollywood was magical, fun, hot, and thrilling. Scout and her parents had a blast riding the rides, listening to music, and eating the food. They vowed to return again soon but they left as the sun went down so they could make their reservations to the Pirate Voyage Dinner and a Show. Scout couldn’t wait to see the show since she had found it online after looking up fun things to do on their vacation.
The show was incredible and the food was delicious. The Jenson family went back to their room full and exhausted. They slept in the next day and did some shopping on their last day in Tennessee. Scout lay in her bed again, going over the show in her head as she drifted off to sleep. In her dreams, she was older and was working the show. But it was interrupted by a demon and she had to fight the demon. The people thought it was all a part of the show and she enjoyed it. The three slept in the next day and did some shopping on their last day in Tennessee.
Early the next morning, the family piled into the car and drove the four hours into Georgia, the last place they would visit before they flew home to California. Scout read, played on her phone, and slept on the car ride into Georgia. Mrs. Jenson drove the last hour until they reached the hotel.
They went out for an early dinner and went to a few shops before calling it a night. The next day, they drove to the aquarium and enjoyed a calm day there. The bought a few things from the gift shop and added them to the extra bag they had brought just for the items they bought.
After the aquarium, they drove around to see other shops, but made sure to stay close to their hotel. They found a nice restaurant for their last meal before they flew home the next morning. They talked about the vacation and about their favorite parts. Scout looked at her camera and showed her parents a few of her favorite pictures. They enjoyed their meal and went back to their hotel. They packed and placed everything by the door so that they were ready to head out in the morning.
The next day, Mr. Jenson drove to the airport. He returned the car while his wife and daughter walked into the airport to find the gate they would be leaving through.
Scout stored her carry on once she was on the plane and watched as Georgia disappeared under the plane. She didn’t want to leave, but she couldn’t wait to be with her friends and tell them all about her trip.
