Seventeen students boarded a charter bus funded by the Campus Activities Board (CAB) for a “Mystery Bus Trip” last Saturday. The event cost $30.
According to CAB staff member Kelsey Johnson ‘19, the price of the event covered all the activities for each participant. CAB did not fundraise from the event.
The bus departed campus at 11 a.m. nearly full. The “mystery” was revealed to be an excursion through Buffalo. First, the group stopped at the Third Annual Larkinville Ice Festival, held in the South Buffalo business and entertainment district, Larkin Square. According to the festival’s website, activities included an ice throne, sledding, food trucks, vendors, and alpacas. “[I] got to sit on an ice throne and it was then that I realized that I was true royalty,” said Hunter Gregory ‘17.
After the ice festival, the group boarded the bus again and drove to the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center to eat their fill at the Buffalo Soup Festival. Gregory said the soup festival, which according to the festival’s website featured 30 area restaurants and over 75 soups, was “a dream come true”.
The finale activity of the night was ice skating at Canalside. Courtney Walters ‘17 ice skated for the first time. “It was so frightening, but once I got the hang of it, it was amazing.”
While Walters felt that “the mystery bus tour will always hold a special place in [her] heart,” Gregory had a critique of the event.
Overall, the event met his expectations “only because of the time spent with friends.” He continued, “The event ideas were really good, but we had nearly three hours to enjoy about an hour’s worth of entertainment at each destination, so there was a lot of sitting around.” The trip lasted from 11 a.m. until 11 p.m.
However, “all in all it was worth [the price]” Gregory stated.
Walters agreed. She said she would attend the Mystery Bus Trip again “in a heartbeat. It’s one thing I know I will miss once I graduate.”