California Sunshine?
This entry is part of a CCR blogging exchange between Stanford, the American University of Cairo, and Orebro University in Sweden. Students have been asked to post a "university culture" entry introducing something about their university culture (or national culture) to an audience of students across the world. Then, other students will comment and we will soon have a rich dialogue, as students develop ways of writing for international audiences and hopefully learn about ways of life across the globe.
Greetings from Stanford! Our names are Aliya, Zanny, and Meredith and we are freshmen here at Stanford. Yesterday was a big day on campus. It rained for the first time this quarter, the first rain we experienced as freshmen. We did not know how to react. “I never thought it rained in California!” “Oh my god, my bike seat is soaked!” “Yay, puddles!” Students’ reactions were a mix of horror, disbelief, and excitement. Sure, most of us complained about the wet and cold weather, but—to be honest—we all enjoyed the change of pace. Most Stanford students ride their bikes to class, and you can imagine the effect of sleeting rain on the average bicyclist. Each of us responded differently to the weather. Zanny was feeling rebellious and decided to tough it out and bike to class. She was extremely disappointed with this decision; her hood wouldn’t stay up and she was drenched from head to toe. Meredith decided to go all out with the rain gear. She put on rain boots and a raincoat and carried an umbrella as she walked to class, to scared to bike. After witnessing a spectacular bike collision as she was unlocking her own bike, Aliya decided that the safest bet was the long trudge to classes, with or without an umbrella.
The rain affected more than just our travel plans. The gloomy weather required many cups of hot cocoa, cider, and tea; incessant rain forced all of us to change out of drenched clothes several time. We communed with our peers in dorm lounges, sharing our horror stories and complaints as well as our hopes for brighter days ahead.
Aliya - I'm from Pleasanton, California, about an hour east of Stanford...I was pretty surprised by the bad October weather too! I'm probably an engineering major (Material Science? Civil/Environmental? Mechanical? who knows?) who nevertheless enjoys the humanities as much as math and science.
Hey I'm Zanny and I'm from Edina, Minnesota which is right outside of Minneapolis. Although I didn't enjoy the rainy weather, I'm happy to be escaping the snowy winters that I have grown up with! I live in an all-freshman dorm called Rinconada which is by FAR the greatest dorm on campus!
Hi! I'm Meredith. I'm from Atlanta, Georgia. I thought the rain was fun, but I'm glad we didn't have any flooding like my home town has been experiencing recently. I love Stanford, especially because I live in the dorm that is TRULY the greatest on campus, Serra!
Comments
Just wait until Winter quarter. Sorry to break it to you, but Rinc and Serra aren't nearly as good as Roble. Just saying.
Posted by: Joe | October 20, 2009 02:32 PM
A change of pace would be a light drizzle or rain that didnt soak through every layer and bag. The great amount of pouring rain at Stanford during the winter and early spring at Stanford is bad for our "california cool" image but its anything but rare.
Posted by: DrenchedRower | October 20, 2009 02:33 PM
Just a couple of days ago we experienced heavy rain as well as you did. But I think rain is much more unexpected here in Egypt than in California. We have a desert weather which is often dry or hot, and so we optimistically wait for rain to fall to soften our weather. However, it rarely falls in our country, and you can wait for it from season to season. I agree with you that there were different reactions toward the weather change. Some were excited and ran hysterically throughout the campus, girls who had their hair done hid under shades and buildings to keep their good looking, and others were extremely self protective that they took the next bus to their homes and didn’t go on with their classes claiming that they are easy flu catchers. Furthermore, since that changeable weather recommends hot snacks and drinks, my friends and I headed to McDonald’s and fetched ourselves hot crispy apple pies.
Posted by: Farah Omar | October 27, 2009 11:52 AM
I love McDonald's hot crispy apple pies too! I should have thought of that when it rained here. Instead, I drank hot herbal tea and enjoyed a warm meal.
I've heard from more and more people that it does rain more in California than its reputation suggests, so I guess I'll have to prepare for more rainy weather!
I was just getting over swine flu when the rain started. I wish I could have stayed home for an extra day, but I didn't think that my professors would let me! Walking in the rain with the last remnants of the flu was really miserable.
-Aliya
Posted by: Aliya Deri & Meredith Colton | October 28, 2009 05:03 PM