Spree intern Amanda Waas engages in a little Buffalo boosting after playing tourist in another town for a while:

Growing up, my father would constantly drill into my head how great Buffalo is. Even when met with my typical teenage impudence and eye rolls, he persisted. It wasn’t until I left the area for college and returned home that I realized that he was right.

As I move through my young life and expand my horizons, I also have realized that very few places can hold a candle to all that Buffalo has to offer. Recently, I went to Boston for the first time to visit a friend. And don’t get me wrong, I like Bean Town just fine, but I couldn’t help thinking that there was a lot more to do when I play hostess to my friends.

In Boston, we ate at the Cheers Bar and walked around Fanuiel Hall and Harvard Square, but in Buffalo, my friends were treated to a ton of options. Free outside concerts virtually every night, the Elmwood Strip, and let’s not forget one of the Seven Wonders of the World: Niagara Falls.

Being a native of Western New York, we will never know the thrill that our friends know of “going to Canada.� To us, it’s a run-of-the-mill, everyday thing. It took my friends visiting to realize: hey, that’s a whole different country. It seemed to have slipped my mind.

Back in Boston, we drank beer and watched Last Holiday, starring Queen Latifah. And hey, I love Queen Latifah movies as much as everyone else does, but even the Queen herself couldn’t compete with the arts scene on Elmwood, the bright lights of Clifton Hill, or the roaring rapids of Niagara Falls.

So, the next time you’re trying to figure out where you’re going to spend your precious vacation days, take a look in your own backyard. It’s cheaper. And a lot more fun.