Time to Go Back

Putting the key into the yellow envelope brought back memories of the other yellow envelope that I received the Sunday I checked in. I felt like I was putting a part of my soul into the envelope as well: the memories, the class, the friends and the campus. Then I relinquished the key into the Residential Life mail slot—I was officially done at Summer@Brown−and I started to feel homesick for my dorm.

After depositing our luggage at Hotel Providence, our next stop was Harvard and Cambridge.

Cambridge is comparative to San Francisco; they attract attention from all over the world, have tourist attractions, and are filled with too many people. Cambridge is urban, but there are different styles of urban. For instance, Boston is urban, but it has a moderate amount of people coming to Boston University and to MIT. Then there is Providence; it is urban, but the people come out at night on Saturdays, otherwise it is practically empty. I prefer cities that are not necessarily “bustling,” but comfortable enough where I am not encountering salespersons and other people on every corner. Cambridge is a city that should be visited once in a while, but living in that environment would cause me too much stress.

Harvard is an interesting school. It has an intricate network of alums, which helps students in the future when they are looking for jobs. The center of the school is filled with brick houses and enough trees to shade everyone on the hot day. It was a discerning that there were so many people. To imagine that would be an almost normal crowd at the yard, I was intimidated and rethought the size of the school I would apply to. I admit that Harvard would be a great school to get into, but I am not a student that fits the Harvard character. I especially enjoyed the 55 mile long shelve of books; to get lost in that kind of library or to sit down among so many rows of books.

I missed Brown while touring Harvard. I was even tempted to put on my Summer@Brown lanyard because it felt so natural, but I would have probably gotten sneers from prospective Harvard students. I was reminded of Brown when I saw a lawn that looked like the Main Green. Yet Harvard has its own style—a colonial style with every building having a je ne sais quoi quality that just inspires awe.

Harvard was an excellent ending to the college tours on the East Coast. It is the most majestic and the oldest, so I received a complete history of important East Coast schools. I am going to miss Providence and its late Saturday parties, especially the parade that just occurred.

It will be different coming back to California; I will be more appreciative of California, but open-minded to other states and their quirks. I am a change person thanks to the program, and I am honored to have been part of the cohort.