The Best Spots in Chambana

I've been in Champaign-Urbana for what feels like an eternity. While it's not the town that I see myself staying in forever, it has been home for nearly five years--and now that I'll be leaving in about a month, I'm realizing that there's so much of it that I'm going to miss. Since my first summer down here, I've loved going on walks and bike rides just to see what I could see, finding little nooks and crannies around town, exploring festivals and events. There are many spots around town where I absolutely love the vibes, the food, the art or the music, but here's a list of my top four favorite places in my city:

Sipyard

My roommate and I discovered this little place downtown not too long after moving to Urbana. We've watched it go from an alley covered in ever-changing graffiti art to an outdoor bar and hangout spot situated in an alleyway between a pizza place and a community arts center. For two or three years, it's been a place of live performances, hangouts and photoshoots.

Boneyard Creek

Another one of my favorite photoshoot spots is the Urbana portion of Boneyard. To be honest, I'm not one hundred percent on whether or not that's the name because there's another place on the other side of town with the same name--but I've been referring to this little nook as Boneyard, so it'll stay that way. Up top is a set of unused train tracks and a performing arts building called the Station. More recently added was a sculpture on a bridge. Down below is a small creek and walkway (hence the name Boneyard Creek), where you can cross underneath the bridge and see a couple of other sculptures in the heard of the Urbana arts district.

Allerton

It's not technically in Champaign-Urbana, but it's close enough where it made it onto the list. Allerton is a large park in Monticello, about twenty minutes outside of Champaign. In one area of the park is some sort of theater--for the life of me, I cannot remember the name, and couldn't find it on the park website, but anyway--it's designed so that if you whisper from one end, someone standing at the opposite end of the theater should be able to hear you. The park is about 1,500 acres so I haven't visited each portion of it to date. I have, however, had the privilege of pushing my roommate's car out of a mud puddle in this park in the middle of a photo shoot earlier this year.

Downtown Champaign

Always poppin' in the summers, and beautifully lit up in the winters, downtown Champaign has been a favorite of mine ever since discovering the Wednesday night comedy series at Soma Lounge a few years ago. Classy bars, delicious food, perfect photo spots, summer concert series, beauty supply--what's not to love?