To say I lucked out with my first year dorm is an understatement. As the proud owner of a single in Whitman college, I felt like I had it all — A/C during the unbearably humid September days, gothic architecture in a new building, and (my personal favorite) a jack-and-jill bathroom. Yet, as my first year at Princeton flew by, I was confronted with the very sobering reality that my 100 square foot home would not be mine for much longer.

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Having drawn for a quad, I knew that during my sophomore year I would have to conquer a challenge that I had never faced before: living with other people. For me, the biggest worry was that I would no longer get any time to myself. Where would I go if I wanted to call my parents? Where would I go if I wanted to hide from the rest of the world? Where would I go if I wanted to cry? These questions plagued my mind in the weeks leading up to move-in day. However, after living with three other girls for 6 months, I have come to realize that I enjoy living with roommates a lot more than I thought I would.

My roommates keep me accountable. When I wake up in the morning to the comforter neatly tucked into the bed next to mine, I feel like the least I can do is make my bed and tidy my shelf. (Though, when my roommate goes home for the weekend I catch myself slacking occasionally). In the evenings, my common room is silent, save for the sound of keys clacking and pages turning. Being surrounded by such a productive environment, I feel inclined to work a little harder myself. So, I begrudgingly pick up my notebook and begin my problem set.

I’d like to think that I also hold my roommates accountable. One time, my direct roommate told me that the reason why she gets up promptly in the morning is because she feels bad that I have to hear her alarm every five minutes. Funnily enough, despite my complaints at the beginning of the year, those alarms are now the primary reason why I am never late to my morning classes.

DEspite those examples, we also keep each other accountable for more than just school and work. When I see the last of the lamps turn off in the common room, I know that it is also my time to retire to bed, no matter how much work I wish I could have gotten done. When it’s 2 am and we somehow find ourselves in the U-Store, I know it’s my duty to stop my roommate from buying a Monster energy drink.

One night, I accidentally fell asleep while doing my readings in bed. The next morning, I woke up disoriented and in a panic. I patted around my bed for my laptop, only to find that it was no longer there. Confused, I stumbled out into the common room to find my laptop and my iPad on top of my desk, both plugged into their respective chargers. On my desk there was a bright green sticky note with the words: “Bozo! Devices charged for you.”

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In some ways, living with roommates is different to living alone — on most days, I wake up an alarm that is not my own and I am extra mindful of being quiet at night. However, in the grand scheme of things, not much has changed. I still call my parents at my desk and I still hide under the covers when I don’t want to see anyone. Sure, perhaps I don’t get as much alone time as I used to, but my roommate is there to drag me out of bed to a multitude of fun adventures from eating club parties to board game nights with friends — and that seems like a much sweeter deal to me.
 

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This past September, I started working at the front desk of the New College West Office — the one-stop shop where you can get answers to any of your “Westie” questions. It’s also home to many of the valuable people and resources that are available to help students throughout their Princeton journeys. Besides getting to earn a little extra money, this job has given me unique insight into the behind-the-scenes operations of my residential college and how one office helps keep the whole community running.

If you’re not a Westie, don’t fear! Each residential college at Princeton has an office just like ours. This is where you can find your college’s specific leaders, such as your Director of Student Life (or DSL for short), Dean of Studies, Residential Life Coordinator, and the Head of College. They all serve different purposes, but ultimately are there to support your needs, both academically and otherwise.

To find out more about your college’s team of awesome staff, click one of the links below! :

• Butler: https://butlercollege.princeton.edu/people/college-staff 
• Forbes: https://forbescollege.princeton.edu/people/staff 
• Mathey: https://matheycollege.princeton.edu/people/college-staff/central-office-staff 
• New College West: https://newcollegewest.princeton.edu/people/college-staff 
• Rockefeller: https://rockefellercollege.princeton.edu/people/staff-0 
• Whitman: https://whitmancollege.princeton.edu/people/staff 
• Yeh: https://yehcollege.princeton.edu/people/college-staff/central-office-staff 

Over the past few months, I’ve gotten to see people come into the office for a variety of reasons. For example, at certain times during the week, the deans will have Drop-In Advising Hours, where any students can walk-in and meet with their respective dean to discuss academic concerns, like picking classes or managing workloads. I’ve also experienced students coming in to propose a community-building or club event that they want to see happen. And more often than not, we have students simply pop in the office just to grab some free chocolate or say hi!

My favorite part of working at the NCW office has to be our weekly res college tradition: Coffee in the Commons! Every Friday, as a study break, we help organize an event where students can gather and enjoy free coffee, tea, and some sort of treat or pastry. Most of the residential colleges do some variation of this event (like Yeh College’s “FriYEH” or the weekly “Teahive” for Butler College Bees), but Coffee in the Commons will always hold a special place in my heart. Most recently, we did a Mardi Gras-themed Coffee in the Commons, complete with king cake and donuts!

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The colleges and their offices are truly another community within the Princeton community. I would highly recommend stopping by to meet the friendly staff members and mentors that will guide and support you throughout your four years here (and, while you’re at it, maybe consider applying for a job there, too!).

While it is fair to say every Princeton student has toured Palmer Square at least once in their time here, far less have toured its next door neighbor Library Square. I had to look at it on a map to ensure I was naming the right area. While Nassau Street does have all my favorite restaurants and stores, I rarely find myself venturing there. The world beyond the FitzRandolph Gate always feels like a mystery to me, unless I’m grabbing a slice at Proof Pizza or buying the occasional mango green tea at Kung Fu Tea. This weekend though, my friend and I decided to skip our biweekly cycling session and explore Library Square. We had set our plans to grab a bite at my favorite restaurant in Princeton–Lan Ramen. (If you find yourself around here, I would definitely recommend getting their vegetable potstickers and Lanzhou braised beef noodle.) I’m getting ahead of myself here so bear with me. 

One lovely thing about Princeton (the town) and the University is the amount of construction that will most definitely detour your normal commute. The optimist in me remembers one of my life mottos: everything happens for a reason. I think one of the reasons that the left sidewalk was blocked was so I could find one of the best croissants I’ve ever eaten. This might be a bit of an exaggeration because I have been to Paris and eaten some of the best croissants ever, but the buttery-flaking missing hole in my life says that Bread Boutique is a close second. My friend and I walked past the store and immediately turned our heads back to the warm atmosphere and all of the amazing options available. The croissants were calling out my name so I knew I had to enter and buy some. They were absolutely delicious and I’ve officially marked it as my go-to place when I’m missing a flaky buttery pastry that used to be available at late meal. 

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I should also add that the weather in Princeton has been on the colder side. While my west coast friends almost always find some reason to complain about New Jersey weather, today was unlike the cold week we’ve been having. The sun was shining brightly and the air was positively cool–a perfect day to be outside. So, we took our croissants to go and sat outside at one of the many tables available. This was definitely an opportunity for a good photo session so we did take a lot of pictures but we also took in our surroundings. We noticed this cute little store hidden behind a huge tree and saw that there were sweaters hanging outside. This brings us to stop number two, Shop the World, a fair trade store. We entered the store and were amazed by how much they could fit into this tiny store. The person working told us that the owner travels the world to fill the store and with every object we picked up was able to tell us where it came from. My friend found a Mexican Baja jacket and instantly knew she had to buy it. We also found these cute animal figurines that were painted on with such intricate designs–we had to grab a few. If you’re looking to explore the world in one place, I recommend checking out the shop and supporting the workers who make everything there!

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Finally, we ended our expedition with a delicious meal at Lan Ramen. I’ll allow the food and atmosphere to speak for themselves but I’m truly glad that I decided to take a break from my highly organized Google Calendar schedule. Sometimes it's hard to find a moment of spontaneity when you feel like you have to schedule every minute of your life to feel productive, but a day like this is important. Something everyone says around here is that you have to make time for things that matter to you and that’s true, a day of relaxation is equally as important as a three-hour problem set cram session or a full day stuck in Firestone Library. This Galentine’s Day, make time to be spontaneous and have fun, I promise it’ll be worth it.

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When I was applying to Princeton, I heard a lot about campus being only a short train ride away from New York City. As someone from Central Florida, though, this meant absolutely nothing to me. I had never been on a train before so the thought of figuring out how to navigate the trip to New York was extremely overwhelming. I also did not know how short a “short train ride” really was, and train-talk aside, the thought of going into a big city was equally terrifying.

My first time going into the City was at the end of my first semester at Princeton. Classes had just wrapped up, and my freshman seminar professor had planned a class trip for us to explore New York from the lens of American identity, as this had been the topic of our course. It was a memorable experience, but by the end of it, I realized I had been guided the whole time. 

This simply would not do–I had to conquer New York City on my own.

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In September, my sister visited me over the weekend. At nine in the morning we walked to the “Dinky” (our beloved train that takes us from Princeton Junction to Princeton Station, the shortest passenger train route in the United States), and in less than an hour and a half we had made it from Princeton Station to Penn Station. After a short ten minutes of walking in the opposite direction, we spent the day exploring shops that piqued our interest and walking through Central Park. By 6 PM we were back on campus, eating cheese fries while I did some of my work for the next week.

Over winter break I braved the Dinky and NJ Transit once again, this time with two of my close friends, Tara and Lucia. It was the Friday before classes started and the perfect goodbye to break. By 10:30 AM we were already drinking hot chocolate and eating delicious bagels in New York. After a quick stop to eat banana pudding and take pictures, we made it to the Museum of Modern Art, where we spent hours exploring the various floors and taking advantage of Lucia’s knowledge on modern art as our own personal tour guide. 

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Afterwards, we stopped for gelato, explored a bookstore, and grabbed a quick meal. By sunset we were already on our way back to Princeton.

Oh, and did I mention we never got lost?

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As much as I love campus, it’s good to get away every now and then. The occasional day trip is a great and accessible option, not only to New York, but other nearby cities as well. This means that you can experience the city whenever you choose while still enjoying the small-town feel of the surrounding Princeton area.

I may not do this every weekend, but all of this is to say: New York City really is only a short train ride away.

One of the topics that incoming students most frequently have questions about is residential life at Princeton. While Princeton prides itself on its superior academic program, residential life is an important component of the student experience here.

I am a Residential College Adviser, or RCA, at Butler College, one of seven residential colleges. My role is to foster and build community among students, as part of a team of Butler College staff, RCAs and other peer leaders within the residential college. One of the ways we do this is by putting on a variety of events for all students in the Butler community, to connect, have fun and take a break from studying. 

 

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My favorite event is the Butler Teahive, a weekly study break that the Butler College staff organizes for all students. At 3:00 p.m. every Friday, one of the rooms in the Butler basement is transformed into a social hub where students connect with each other over a cup of tea and a selection of delicious desserts and berries from a rotating cast of local bakeries and restaurants. I’ve gotten excellent academic advice from the Butler college staff in a low-pressure environment, I get to see some friends and even make new ones, and there’s always plenty of delicious treats for everyone. 

In addition to the weekly events put on by Butler College staff, the student-run Butler College Council, and RCAs like me, there are also one-time events held regularly. Resident Graduate Students (RGS) or Butler College Council often plan these fun, community building events that try their best to include every type of student. If you’re itching to burst out of the so-called ‘Orange Bubble’ you can join your residential college for a Broadway show or a Six Flags trip. Those with an artistic bent might enjoy the many arts and crafts nights, from paint and sip (with boba) to karaoke night. Or if you prefer a laid-back kind of vibe, there’s always game nights and watch parties (most recently for the World Cup). 

 

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I’ve spoken about my experience at Butler College, the residence college I work for and have lived in for all of my time at Princeton. But all seven operate in the same way and offer the same amount of programming and community building that we at Butler do. No matter which college you end up in, you’ll have plenty to do and many friends to meet!

CA, OA, DDA. These are acronyms that all incoming first-years come to know as they embark on their college journey at Princeton. Community Action, Outdoor Action, and Dialogue & Difference in Action, respectively, are three of the main orientation programs that new students are assigned to upon arrival to campus. While all three programs have their unique merits and focuses, I’d like to talk about my amazing Community Action experiences, both as a first-year student and later as a leader. 

I remember arriving at Princeton and, like many incoming students, wondering how, when, and where I’d make friends. Surely, you’ll meet peers through your classes, your advisee “zee” group (AKA the people that live on/around your floor), and through clubs. However, CA, and orientation in general, presents a special opportunity to meet a random assortment of fellow first-years that you may otherwise never have met anywhere else. It also is an opportunity to connect with communities nearby and engage in service.

My first year, I absolutely loved my CA group. Even though we were still in our COVID-era and could not do the typical overnight orientation trips, our group bonded quickly. One of my favorite memories was going to the Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC) and getting to do team-building games and go canoeing together. Another would be doing a gardening service project at the local Grounds for Sculpture. These activities really brought our group together and, to this day, I’m still good friends with many members of my CA group. And even with those I’m not, it’s nice to have a familiar face around campus to say hi to. Coincidentally, my CA trip is also where I met one of my best friends (shoutout Kelsey!). Though she was in a different group than me, we were both at the same service site and got to talking. We found out we shared a lot of similarities, like being from New Jersey, living in what was then First College, and also enjoying our CA experiences so much.
 

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That is partially what inspired that very friend and I to become CA leaders together this year for the Class of 2026. Our CA group (shoutout Group 17~38!) quickly became like a family, and the energy and positivity our first-years brought was absolutely palpable throughout our entire trip. Now many weeks past the end of this year’s orientation program, we still find ourselves sending jokes in our Group 17 chat, grabbing dinner together on Nassau St., and studying with them on our floor. I can safely say that becoming a CA leader was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and our CA trip this year was one of, if not the, best 4 days of my Princeton experience thus far. 

All this to say, orientation and Community Action is one of the many ways Princeton helps foster community amongst the incoming class. From the start of your Princeton career, you’re able to build strong connections with your peers — connections that will hopefully end up lasting a lifetime!
 

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New Jersey is known as the Garden State, and you truly appreciate how the state earned its nickname when visiting a summer farmers' market. The abundance of fresh produce and flowers harvested just several miles from campus is astounding. Grab your tote bag and sunhat as I take you on a tour of the vendors at the weekly Princeton Farmers' Market, open at the Dinky train station from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Thursday through November.

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Our first stops at the market are the produce booths to stock up on fruits and vegetables.

The offerings from the multiple produce vendors, including Chickadee Farms and Terhune Orchards, change weekly depending on what is in season. Several of my June favorites are the strawberries, kale, and lettuce. July is when the market really shines, as the peaches, plums, blueberries, tomatoes, beets, cucumbers, and summer squash are ready.

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After getting the produce essentials, it's time to find some decor to spruce up your dorm room or apartment. There are several vendors, including Longview Flower Farm, who sell a variety of cut flowers arranged in artful bouquets. I think that the July sunflowers would make a cheery statement centerpiece on a dining room table.

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Next up are the specialty vendors. Davidson Exotic Mushrooms sells, you guessed it, a wide variety of mushroom types, while Pickle Licious sells traditional pickles (of course) in addition to pickles on a stick (not my favorite, but must be appealing to others) and olives.

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Following these unique booths are several stops for prepared foods, like fresh-baked bread from Lost Bread Co., granola from the Granola Bar, and soups from the Soupeteer. There are also several vendors selling hot empanadas.

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To round out your shopping trip and add some pomp to your cooking and dining, you can select among different olive wood serving spoons and cutting boards from Mediterranean Delicacy. A more affordable option to bring the Mediterranean home with you, though, might be to purchase one of their olive oils instead.

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Lastly, Barking Good Bakery sells treats for four-legged friends. If you know any dog owners in Princeton, you could pick up some gourmet desserts for their pets here.

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This concludes the market tour! I'll load my finds into my bike basket and pedal back to my apartment. Visiting the market is a great way to take advantage of living in the Garden State during the summer.

 

On a recent Sunday, my friend Hannah took the train from New York City to visit me in Princeton. In planning our itinerary, I considered what sites would be essential to give her the complete Princeton experience. I wanted to show her the traditional Princeton sites and give her a feel for what a typical day of traversing campus for classes, meetings, and activities is like for me. These are the locations I decided to include on the tour, and we had a lovely time exploring them throughout the afternoon.

1. The Dinky

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The first stop was meeting Hannah at the Dinky train station. The Dinky is a short rail line connecting campus to Princeton Junction, which is a major train station hub with connections to cities like Philadelphia and New York. Once off the Dinky, Hannah entered the Wawa there to grab a coffee while she waited for me to arrive (who was caught off guard by how fast the Dinky was, and consequently late!)

2. My residential college

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After leaving the Dinky station, our first tour site was naturally Forbes college. Forbes, my residential college, is located just across Alexander Street from the Dinky. I explained that the building was formerly the Princeton Inn, and I showed her where my dorm was.

3. Nassau Hall, Firestone Plaza, and Blair Arch

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Next up on the tour were several historic sites without which no Princeton tour would be complete. We walked up to Nassau Hall, the iconic ivy-covered building just past the front gates, passed through Firestone Plaza, and posed for a photo in front of Blair Arch (cover image of this blog), the famous steps of which used to welcome visitors off the train (the train station was moved a quarter mile south, to its current location near Forbes, in 1918). With my camera and map in hand, I think I looked much more like a tourist than a student here!

4. Fountain of Freedom

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It was a very hot day, so we decided to cool off by the Fountain of Freedom. The breeze blows a spray of water as you pass by, which was cooling and much appreciated that afternoon. There's also a reflecting pool in which children play and swim, and it was so hot that I took off my shoes and decided to wade in too! It was a much-needed refresher.

5. Eating Clubs

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I'm not a member of an eating club, but I still felt a Princeton tour would not be complete without a stroll down Prospect Avenue to see the eleven historic buildings. We appreciated the architecture and peeked through the windows to see inside the (summer-emptied) clubs.

6. Palmer Square

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After exploring campus, I took Hannah down Nassau Street to see the town. We window shopped in Palmer Square (a high end shopping and dining square in the heart of town), and we actually shopped at my favorite thrift store, Nearly New. I'm pleased to report I found some Princeton socks for $3.

After exploring campus and town, we walked back to the Dinky and Hannah departed suburbia to return to the big city. There are certainly more sites to see, but I think my tour provided a nice overview of the campus and town.

Before Princeton changed its residential college system and transformed all of its residential colleges into four-year colleges, the tradition was for juniors and seniors to move out of the hallowed halls they had called home for the past two years. Room draw for the 2022-2023 academic year was the first year this change was implemented, and while my draw group and I had hoped to stay in a residential college for our final two years at Princeton, we ultimately drew a room in junior and senior housing.

There are a lot of moments where I reminisce about my time at Forbes College, the far but cozy residential college known for its community and Sunday brunch (though I would argue Saturday brunches are better!)

I miss not having to walk in the cold during the winter to get to the dining hall, rolling out of bed on the weekends and walking six feet to the most popular weekend brunch spot, watching movies in the Forbes theater and sitting in the backyard and doing work while watching the sun set over the golf course with the graduate tower in the distance. 

Forbes felt like a home, and I missed that community aspect of my dorm as I migrated further up campus for my junior year. Don’t get me wrong, I love being able to share my living space with people outside of Forbes (a perk of junior and senior housing) and the shorter commute to my classes, but every now and then I do find myself thinking of my old residential college.

Just my luck, at the end of September, Forbes held an Oktoberfest event for juniors and seniors –– where we were invited to the home of the Head of Forbes College, Maria Garlock, to have dinner and mingle with our fellow Forbesians. Once again, I found myself trekking across the lawn in front of the Lewis Center for the Arts and crossing the familiar crosswalk where familiar pillars welcomed me. 

The event was held in the string light adorned backyard, where my roommates and I indulged on pretzels and currywurst and the like. Throughout the hour-long duration we were there, I saw many faces both familiar and unfamiliar, and realized the durability of the Forbes community. Some of the seniors there hadn’t lived in Forbes for over a year but were still present and chatting with the deans and staff.

Little events like this made me feel like an integral part of the community. My roommates and I (one of my current roommates was also a Forbesian) had a great time reminiscing about our time in Forbes, concluding that we should come more often for weekend brunches. 

I realized then that it really isn’t that difficult to stay connected with your residential college as a junior or senior. Read your email, make the walk on weekends to use your dining hall swipes and never forget the memories you made there as a first-year or sophomore. And maybe you’ll be lucky enough in your room draw to keep living there as an junior or senior. 

Navigating your way around campus can be intimidating during a visit or just after move-in, but after several weeks, you'll likely find yourself realizing that the campus is actually quite compact. Traversing the Orange Bubble for your various classes throughout the day is quite doable on foot or on bike, which is why very few students have cars on campus (that, combined with the lack of practically any place to park one). Additionally, Princeton's buildings are becoming increasingly accessible. For instance, Naomi Hess '22 has a wonderful blog on the recent renovations to Nassau Hall that allowed her to be the first person using a wheelchair to enter the building without assistance. In short, getting around campus without a car or shuttle is easy, and the impromptu conversations that occur while entering, leaving and traveling between campus buildings are an unsung but vital part of the Princeton experience. 

For example, after working on a paper or problem set for several hours, I might summarize verbally what I've been doing to a friend I pass on my way out of the E-Quad or library. The simple act of condensing the main points of my work can be very helpful in synthesizing and organizing the material in my mind. Other times, the walks between classes provide an opportunity to catch up with friends when we don't have the time to organize a formal meet-up or get-together. Even though we might not have the time for a concert or event together, we can always chat as we walk from class to class. I really appreciate the moments with friends as I get around campus, as they've been the start of both great ideas and friendships.

Campus is very self-contained, but there may be times when you need something from a destination farther away. For those moments, you can take the Tiger Transit shuttle bus. This bus is free and drives around campus daily, and on the weekends it follows the Weekend Shopper route. This route proceeds down Route 1 to stop at the various shopping centers that include a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Staples, Home Depot and other stores. I've taken the Weekend Shopper to buy groceries, and my friends have taken it to buy supplies for their art classes. 

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Weather permitting, it's also possible to increase your mobility on a bike. Many students have bikes on campus, because they make it possible to get from New South to the E-Quad, for instance, when you only have a 10-minute change-over between classes. There is also a biking route down Alexander Street and Canal Pointe Boulevard that you can take to reach the shopping centers previously mentioned. When it's nice outside, I like taking a bike ride along that route to get to the Whole Foods to buy groceries. Most students store their bikes outside on the numerous bike racks outside the dorms. I cover mine with a plastic tarp when it rains. It looks a little ridiculous, but it does help prevent rusting!

 

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Getting around campus and town is one of the most enjoyable parts of my daily routine, and I never fail to appreciate both the buildings and the friends around me as I get from place to place. Furthermore, campus is becoming increasingly accessible to everyone, which you can find out more about from the AccessAbility Center. Additionally Parking and Transportation Services also provides information on accessible pathways and entrances on campus.  In summary, traversing the Orange Bubble is a simple everyday treat.