Started Out as a Dream, Ended like a War Zone

Maybe it was all the drunken college kids. Or maybe it was being only 30 miles away from Mexico.

I’ve been to South Padre Island before, but things never got this bad in the past.

After a 14-hour road trip, we finally made it to our condo in South Padre Island, Texas.

My friends were tired from the long drive but I convinced them that we were on vacation and needed to go out and dance!

Padre has become a top destination for spring breakers, especially after they banned alcohol in other places like Panama City Beach.

It has also become a huge source of revenue for not only the city, but also businesses like Rockstar, Redbull, and many others.

The next few days were spent on the beach, listening to music, meeting new people, and getting a little sunburnt on our shoulders because we forgot to reapply.

On St. Patrick’s Day we went horseback riding on the beach. This was hands down one of the coolest things I’ve ever done.

Our last three nights in Padre were spent attending a music festival.

Ultimate Music Experience, or UME was the name of the festival. 

Music festivals are my second happiest place to be. The first is on a beach, and I was doing both.

At music festivals everyone is dancing, having a good time and being so friendly. Music festivals are a great way to escape from “real life” for a few hours, and just dance the night away.

I felt so free.

But things quickly turned sour.

We heard news of a drunk driver running over four people and killing them. Someone else was stabbed. There were shootings all throughout the city.

We were driving up and down the streets in a golf cart and it looked like a war zone. There were cops everywhere with their lights on. It was nighttime and the officers were walking around searching for something with their flashlights.

I also survived a near death experience with the biggest shark I’ve ever seen.

Who knew there were sharks in the Gulf of Mexico?