By the Sea
Hey loves!
Life takes you to interesting places and I still can't believe that by now, I am living in California for two months! I am currently attending the High School Summer College at Stanford University. This program gives high school students the opportunity to take college courses and complete one quarter at Stanford University. I moved in last weekend and have been attending courses for one week.
I am enrolled in the courses "Genocide and Humanitarian Intervention" and "Introduction to International Relations". I love attending my classes because they are incredibly interesting and I am looking forward to learning more about the topics. I am still in the process of learning how college courses are organised and what is expected of you in college. To me, the main difference seems to be that there is more work that you are expected to do on your own without anyone checking whether you did it or not. Your teachers do not tell you what your homework is, you are expected to check the syllabus and do your readings and write your papers on your own. I like this way of working, because it allows you to structure your work over the week on your own and you are treated more like an adult.
Stanford University is a beautiful place and I am very grateful to be here today. The campus is amazing and whenever I am walking around campus, I am discovering new places. I have never visited other universities before coming here and so this is my first time exploring a campus and acknowledging how big such a campus can be. Some of the buildings on campus remind me of old castles and is an incredible feeling to have class in them.
The program is open to residential and commuting students. I live in one of the dormitories and have a roommate. I am very happy to have a roommate again, because after leaving boarding school for summer break, I felt a little bit lonely when I was in my room alone. After months of living with three roommates, it is hard to be on your own again. My roommate in Stanford is super nice and we get along very well. We have mentors who are students at Stanford and whose job is to help us adapt to college life. Our mentors are helpful and are always there for us. They really put a huge effort into this program and make it fun for all of us.
They organised today's trip to Santa Cruz for us. We left Stanford in the morning and spent a few hours at the beach. The beach in Santa Cruz has a boardwalk with rollercoasters next to it. We explored the boardwalk, enjoyed some candy and rode a few rollercoasters. If you guys ever get to California, I would recommend visiting the boardwalk in Santa Cruz. It is a great attraction to visit for a day. You can hang out at the beach (which is incredibly clean) and then get some cotton candy and ride a rollercoaster.
Lots of Love,
Elena
