Goodbye Chicago, Hello Ithaca

Today, we left Chicago to go to Ithaca. It was a bittersweet drive. I’ve grown to like Chicago and its clean transportation a lot. The transportation was always very clean. Whenever we’d go back to the hotel, I’d remember which stores were around our hotel and know we’re almost home. I've already adapted to my surroundings. It was too soon that we had to move on. Even though I’d miss the Chicago atmosphere and all the nice people, I was glad we were finally going to Cornell. As we got closer to the airport, I anticipated the Hotel Management course even more.

We ate lunch at the airport since we skipped breakfast to get to the airport early. I ate a deep dish pizza (what Chicago is known for). It was nice to get a taste of what Chicago is famous for.There were so many things Chicago is known for, from the wind, to the deep dish pizza, to the hot dog, and even to Yolk. I've found out that Chicago has so many revolving doors because it reduced the amount of wind getting into buildings. Also, they prevent doors from banging all the time as a result of the wind.

My deep dish cheese pizza

While on the plane from Detroit to Ithaca, I was very fortunate to sit next to a student currently going to school in Cornell, Okenna. Almost immediately after I sat down in my seat, he noticed that I was probably from California. This is most likely due to the tie-dye shirt I wore. He also figured that I was either an incoming freshman or a high school student taking a summer course in Cornell. It was very interesting how he could already figure out a little about me by just seeing me. This is probably because of the diverse culture Cornell has and it has affected students’ view. I couldn’t wait to start my courses in Cornell so that I too can differentiate between people from different region. 

Okenna and I on the flight

Okenna made it clear that Cornell was the perfect school for him. He even shared about some of his experiences with me. After his first year of college, he absolutely loved Cornell. His friendliness and willingness to share his experiences gave me the impression that all Cornellians were like that as well. Cornell sounded like a college full of great people.

After arriving Cornell, my cohort and I immediately got our room keys and went to our dorms. I get to stay in Risley Hall. Risley Hall is known to be the home of Art majors during the school year. All over the walls were beautiful murals. It must be a great atmosphere to be in during the school year. With the murals constantly changing, students must never get bored in the dorms. I’ve also met my RCA, Evelyn, and she seems very nice. I think that this will be a great dorm to stay in.

A few of the many beautiful murals in the halls 

Where is everyone from? The blue pins on the left represent Tomi and I

For our very last fancy dinner, we ate at John Thomas Steakhouse with Jim Schechter, Director of Summer College. It was a very nice dinner and conversation. We shared a lot about our interests in the courses we’re taking and he was very interested to hear about the ILC program. Of course we spread the word about it.We also learned a lot about the Cornell Summer Program. About 900 students are attending this year. Also, there's a group of students from Shanghai who have no way of checking into Cornell early because of travelling conflicts. This information really showed how a lot of people are interested into the Cornell Summer Program. I'm very grateful to have been accepted into it. I can't wait for class to start Monday!

My rib-eye steak and mashed potatoes

Triple chocolate cake and cheesecake