After I got back from Ecuador, I spent 3 weeks in Nashville. This time, I stayed with my friend Daniel instead of Anne. He was going to be gone for the first 1.5 weeks of my stay, so I had the entire house to myself. Nashville is one of the cities I’m thinking of moving to, so I tried to make my weeks there as close to real life as possible.

I started by finding a personal trainer. I felt ready to start strength training again and I wanted to make sure my form was good and I was doing the right exercises. A few people have asked me how I found her. I literally Googled “personal trainer for women in Nashville” and her website was the most complete. Kristin works with 2-3 people at a time at the gym, which sounded great for meeting people. She also has an online training option that I can join if I don’t end up in Nashville. When I told her my story about my road trip and only being in Nashville for a few weeks, she was not only accommodating but also very excited for me.

I did 4 personal training sessions. They were really great! I felt good after every workout, didn’t get fatigued, I got to cheer on another woman as she got a new PR, and I learned how to use all the machines at the gym. I had told Kristin that I wanted to learn how to use the machines before I left so I would be less intimidated working out on my own at a gym. For my last 2 workouts, she included a bunch of different machines so I could learn them all. I’m taking a break from strength training while I’m on the road for the next few weeks, but I’ll get back to it when I’m in a city for a few weeks at a time.

When we were still in Ecuador, Monica convinced me to get on Hinge while I was in Nashville. I hate dating apps, so I was very reluctant, but I ended up doing it and am happy that I did. I only lasted about a week on the app and I didn’t meet any millionaires, but I did meet fun people that helped me get to know Nashville better. I also made sure to have a plan with Anne once a week and a couple plans with Daniel. Anne re-introduced me to her friend Shannon, who is now my friend Shannon. I had met her a few years ago when I was visiting Anne, but I got to spend more time with her and her dog, Dolly, this visit.

Here are some of the fun things I did in Nashville:

• I tried a bunch of new restaurants in different neighborhoods.
• I went to the Opryland Resort to see their massive indoor garden. They have a little river with boat tours, ice cream shops, and bars in there. It was amazing.
• I watched the new Spiderman movie.
• I hiked at Old Stone Fort State Archeological Park and sat with my feet in the river for a while after the hike.
• I hung out with friends while we listened to live music.
• I went to Pins Mechanical, an arcade bar.
• I learned how to use a lawnmower.
• I went for a walk in Centennial Park.

On the professional front, I started a free basic accounting course to see if that’s something I might want to pursue. So far I really like it! I also took the Motivation Code (MCode) Assessment and figured out what my main motivators are. They made a lot of sense and help explain why I enjoy certain tasks and dread others. I can’t always avoid the things I’m least motivated to do, but I can reframe them into one of my top motivators to make them a little more exciting.

That’s a wrap for Nashville! I think I would be happy living there, but I’m going to spend some time in a few different cities to figure out if I’d be happiest there. Now, I’m in Austin for 5 days for a wedding. I’m really excited to see the friends I made while I lived here.