I came to Mount Holyoke a year ago and am currently in my sophomore year. I chose the school for the promise of sisterhood, snowy winters, and inclusivity. I didn’t know that my biggest challenge would be getting groceries.
After the excitement of your first year recedes and you get used to campus life, the dining hall becomes a less and less appetizing option. Yet, in realizing this, there was a simple solution: getting groceries so I could make my own food. I didn’t know that it would be my greatest challenge yet. Here is a list of the realities of our little secluded gay college in the woods:
- Every grocery store is 20 minutes in either direction of the campus, and since we are literally in the woods, you can’t walk there.
- The prices for goods here are actually hella expensive, which, since I come from Texas, I had to quickly get accustomed to picking my goods wisely.
- The grocery stores in our area are almost always packed, no matter what time you go. Maybe it’s our proximity to the other colleges, but I never find everything I need in one place.
Now, I know everyone is asking, “Well, how did you figure it out and fix this problem for yourself?” Well, I didn’t, lol. It’s gotten to a point where I try a different method every time, and I cross my fingers and hope for the best. Here are various means of transportation I’ve used to travel off campus and get my much-needed groceries.
- A CAR
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Yes, having a car would make my entire life easier, but sadly, I don’t have one, and I’ve heard finding parking here is a hassle. So, alas, I had to find another option.
- Uber
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Now, if I could make this an Uber hate article, I would, because I hate Uber. When I say that, I specifically mean Uber in this area. I’ve always loved the MHC campus and it’s one of the reasons I chose the college. — the spiraling mountains in the distance and the thick forests surrounding the campus, yet when trying to get picked up by an Uber, the difficulty of transportation is the best deterrent. I have not had a single Uber experience in which someone has not canceled on me because navigating the campus is inconvenient and inaccessible. IT IS UNBELIEVABLE. That aside, Uber in this area is fairly cheap—$10-$15 each way from the grocery store—which isn’t bad, but the unreliability is why I try not to use them too often. I already have anxiety. I’m not adding to that by getting stuck in the middle of nowhere because no drivers are available, or just being stuck at the grocery store, goods in hand, with the waiting circle spinning for eternity. If you love Uber and it works for you, I’m thrilled, but realize that if you are having fun late at night (really not even late at night, anytime after 6 p.m.), good luck getting back using Uber and Lyft.
- THE PVTA (pronounced Piffta if you’re an MHC student)
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It’s the most used transportation on campus. The bus goes many routes, taking students around the many campuses in the five-college consortium. It’s free and not crowded if you choose the right time to go. Yet, the con of the PVTA is that few of the routes take you directly to a grocery store or mall, and even if one does, it’s going to take two buses and 2 hours of your time. Only after you’ll realize you’re going to have to travel that much again and this time with an armful of groceries. I’ve done it plenty of times, and 10 out of 10 would not recommend it. What the PVTA is good for is when you want to get to and from other campuses. Especially for parties, they will be your saving grace, because if you don’t have a car, it will be the only source of transportation you have to get back to the dorm at midnight. It’ll get the job done, but it is not the best solution.
- ZIPCAR
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My fourth and last option where your able to rent a car and go on your own adventures, this is the most recent option I’ve tried.
Pros
- Since you’re renting a car, you have the security that you’ll be able to go and get back to wherever you are.
- It’s affordable: $12-$14 an hour during the weekdays and $16 an hour on weekends. If you get people to go with you and you split the cost, that’s only a small amount per person.
- No potential creepy driver asking you all about women’s colleges and what goes on at them (not surprising, but I have had quite a few male Uber drivers ask inappropriate questions just because they picked me up at MHC).
Cons
- The fees. It’s $35 for an account(with the school discount for a year).. However, you are only charged the hourly + $5 fees for each ride if you opt out of damage protection. Just DON’T CRASH
- Availability: it’s not a spur-of-the-moment thing. You have to plan to take a car out, or they will all be taken on the weekends.
- Lastly, you have to have your license, and I know that many people who attend MHC once lived in the city, so they would have to find a friend with a license.
Even with all the pros and cons I’ve given you, the endless options for transportation (really just three), and a thorough analysis of said options, (word vomiting on the page), I believe Zipcar is #1. I like that I can feel safe driving myself around, have ample space to put goods, go to multiple places without worrying about how I’m getting back, and I get to blast the HSMTM album throughout the car with no side-eye.
So I’ll leave you with a bit of advice: DON’T CRASH, plan your trip, literally post on Instagram, or be bold and ask a random person, “Does anybody want to go grocery shopping?” Split those costs and use this as an opportunity not just to get your delectable groceries that will save you from sad dining hall foods, but also give you time to get out the dorm, explore the area, and CURB THAT SEASONAL DEPRESSION!