Bookstores are undeniably the best. While all my friends think I love bookstores only because I'm an English major, I've loved bookstores long before I even thought about studying English. Ever since I was little, I always loved to spend hours wondering around an obscure bookstore. While this rarely happened, I did try to spend as much time in them as possible. Most of the time I don't have any money to spend in the bookstores, but I can still spend hours walking around and looking at books. While most people would find this to be just a time-wasting activity (which it partially is), being in a bookstore just calms me.
Many bookstores literally have thousands of books to pick from. Whether you're feeling fiction, crafting, non-fiction or anything in between, you can certainly find a book that interests you. While you may not want to dish out the money to buy it (because let's be honest, who has enough money to buy a nice book in college?), you can certainly remember the title for a later date. Whether or not you end up getting a book doesn't matter, though. It's all about the experience. You can literally spend hours on your own adventure around the bookstore. It's truly amazing how many books and how many possibilities there are. You can explore topics that have never even interested you before. I, personally, think that's pretty cool.
New books also have a great smell. It's almost like getting a new car. I know saying a book has a good smell is kind of weird, but it's so true. I love walking into a bookstore and smelling the new book smell. Maybe it's the English major in me, but I think it's a beautiful smell. A lot of large bookstores also have cafe areas that serve coffee. While not always the best coffee, coffee is coffee. It's not surprising then that a bookstore would be one of my favorite places when it has my two favorite things: books and coffee. There is nothing more relaxing than doing your work with a coffee surrounded by books. It's a perfect place to get your work done. Usually, libraries stress me out when I try to do work because they just seem so professional. A bookstore, however, is much more chill. While it can be distracting to have a lot of people around you when you're doing work you don't want to do, it's better than sitting in a library for hours. It also reminds you that there is a world outside of school, which is great.
While it may be weird to say that bookstores are relaxing, they're seriously one of my favorite places. I mean, who can go wrong with books and coffee?
