Spotlight on Vermont, the Green Mountain State

Fall is finally starting to settle in throughout New England and this marks my second year of fall in the city. As much as I love living in Boston, the city just isn't the same in regards to the many things I look forward to during this enchanting season in the country. This weekend I will be driving up to northern Vermont to a small town that holds my alma mater. The campus I called home for four years is just two miles away from Burlington’s Church Street, a few extra miles north of Shelburne Farms, and a short drive away from the best skiing and hiking that the Green Mountains has to offer.

If there’s one place that cares about conserving the environment, it’s Vermont. With farmland stretching for miles into the horizon and an active community that spends a large amount of their time whether for work, or for pleasure, in the outdoors, it’s no surprise that Green Mountain citizens want to keep the state of Vermont looking beautiful, prosperous, and natural. During my days in Vermont, I enjoyed working in Stowe, a bustling ski town known for its accommodating bed and breakfasts, gourmet restaurants, and a plethora of outdoor activities including skiing (of course), mountain biking, dog sledding, and snow-shoeing, among many others. Streets are lined with local stores selling authentic Vermont Cabot cheese, packaged jams, Cold Hollow apple cider, and organic fruits and vegetables that you were sometimes lucky to try as a free sample.

Aside from the food, it was always nice to enjoy a crisp, autumn day while driving through a mountain road that cut through the foliage. While inns and hotels were filling up during each fall foliage season, I always felt lucky just to live amongst this beautiful scenery.