Grace Jordan, arts & living editor 

Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching and many are getting ready for the holiday. Valentine’s Day originated as a Christian holiday around 500 AD and has since become a holiday to celebrate love in all its forms, but specifically romantic. Whether one is flying solo this year or has a significant other, there are numerous ways to celebrate this holiday around Rome and on Berry’s campus. 

Honeymoon Bakery 

Candy and chocolate are common Valentine’s Day sweet treats and Rome has the perfect places to find some. Honeymoon Bakery on Broad Street have a wide selection of cakes, truffles and cookies. Available from Feb. 1 to Feb. 14, Honeymoon Bakery is offering Valentine’s Day Cookie Kits. These kits come with 12 cookies in various shapes: hearts, lips, flowers and the word love. They also include four tubs of buttercream, six cups of sprinkles and four icing bags with rubber bands. The kit costs $25 and one must order 24 hours in advance. Truffles will also be on sale, and the flavors include Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Peanut Butter, Coconut Cream and Birthday Cake. Pick up for the truffles is from Feb. 8 to Feb. 14. Honeymoon Bakery also offers cupcakes, cookies and cakes with numerous Valentine’s Day themed styles like roses, hearts and ladybugs. 

Sweet Bar 

Sweet Bar is another bakery in downtown Rome that typically sells doughnuts, cakes, etc. For Valentine’s Day they are offering two different types of Valentine’s Boxes. The first is a $15 box that includes a small heart shaped cake, two chocolate bears and two chocolate covered strawberries. The second box they are offering is called the Breakable Bear Box and costs $27. The box contains one breakable bear filled with candy kisses, a tiny mallet to break the bear with, six chocolate covered pretzels, six red velvet cookies and two heart shaped cake pops. The second box can also include a specialized note fit under the bear. Sweet Bar is also selling buttercream sugar cookies with sayings like “bee mine” and bees drawn with icing. 

Aventine 

For an upscale dinner to go along with dessert, Aventine is hosting a Valentine’s Day meal on Saturday, Feb. 12. For that day only, there will be a different menu featuring two multi-course meals for a fixed price. Aventine’s regular menu will not be available that day. The first is Prix Fixe for $95, this is a four-course meal with two options for each course. The second is a six-course meal called Chef’s Tasting for $150. This meal features food like Panna Cotta and Halibut. Aventine also offers wine pairings and only takes reservations. 

nes. The Rome Area History Center is hosting an art experience Thursday, Feb. 10. Artist Andi Byer will teach a class on how to make a collage on a wooden panel. The piece is a “Key-to-your-heart” and features a red, paper heart in the middle of a wooden panel with a key in the heart and various music sheet and newspaper clippings and buttons surrounding it. It runs from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and attendees are allowed to bring their own adult beverages and snacks. 

There are also Valentine’s Day events around campus. KCAB is hosting “Love is in the Air” in Krannert Ballroom. The event will have cookie decorating, canvas painting, trivia, stuffed animals and candy. It will take place Saturday, Feb. 12 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. 

The Black Student Association (BSA) will be putting together a booth that students can grab some treats from in Krannert lobby on Valentine’s Day. Sophomore Kristina Hilton is the president of BSA and wanted to take a new approach to the holiday.

“I have never seen a BSA table like this for an event so I wanted to do something different,” Hilton said. “I also wanted to meet more students and let them know about BSA and all that we do.”

This booth is for anyone in a relationship or single, just stop by to pick up candy. The booth will be in Krannert from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“We planned this before the school semester started,” Hilton said. “We wanted to spread love in the air because most people tend to be sad on Valentine’s Day. We will have a candy gift bag and a cupcake and flyers detailing what BSA is.”

Season’s Harvest, a student enterprise, partnered with the Shipyard to provide the Berry community with bouquets for Valentine’s Day. Senior Isabelle Hill is a general manager of Season’s Harvest and had a hand in organizing the sale of bouquets. 

“Season’s decided to partner with the Shipyard for Valentine’s after flowers for graduation last May went well,” Hill said. “We thought it would be something nice to add to our usual sales and would give access to flowers for students who may not be able to get off campus or faculty who may want to pick something up after work.”

Bouquets have already been preordered and the flowers have already arrived on campus. However, according to Hill, there should be extras for students to purchase at the Shipyard.

“We have a pretty good supply of flowers,” Hill said. “We hope to have lots of extra options in addition to those bouquets that were preordered.”

Valentine’s Day isn’t just for couples, but also for celebrating friends. Sophomore Kristy Moss will be spending the holiday with some of her best friends. 

“A few of my gal friends are all going to get together on the Sunday, the 13th, and just have a good brunch and hang out as friends,” Moss said. “For us it’s a celebration of friendship and welcoming community. It is also a great excuse to all get together and hang out.”

Others will be spending the day with their significant others. Sophomore Carly Stewart will be spending the evening with her girlfriend in Atlanta. 

“My girlfriend and I are going to dinner in Atlanta,” Stewart said. “Where we’re going and what we’re doing after is a surprise.” 

Sophomore Alyssa Lancaster will also be spending the day with her significant other. 

“I’ll be going down to see my boyfriend and I’m planning on cooking a nice breakfast for him,” Lancaster said. “He’s planned for us to go out to eat at a place called Teriyaki Box. Aside from food we plan to do some fun stuff together like go see a movie or bowling and possibly go walk around a park during the day.” 

Whether one is spending the holiday with their significant others, their partner or themselves, there is something to do around Rome and on campus.