Wow…I cannot believe my first year of college is already over! 8 months has absolutely flown by, and I could not have asked for a better way to start my college experience. From clubs to volunteering to friends to adventures upon adventures, Rowan has given me everything I could have ever asked for. As a final goodbye to this first year of my new life, I thought I would do a quick recap of some of my favorite parts of freshman year: warning, there are a lot of them.
First Weekend
My first weekend was a perfect introduction to college- walking around until 2am with my friends, eating whatever I wanted, meeting tons of nice people, and…did I mention free food? This picture was taken my first night of college, where you can see I’m very happily enjoying some ice cream. This weekend was where I started making bonds I still have today.
Volunteering Trips
Early on, I realized how much fun volunteering was and that it was something I really wanted to try to integrate into my life at college. Volunteering took me to some amazing places, like Ocean City, NJ, where I got to clean the beaches of trash. It also took me on one of the strangest and most fond adventures of the year- thanks Naveen! I had to transport VERY heavy Koi Fish from a farm in the middle of New Jersey to Philadelphia’s Japanese Garden. So, if you take a trip there and happen to see some beautiful Koi Fish, you know who put them there.
Ocean City
Japanese Garden in Philly and some of the fish we transported there
Love
My boyfriend Neeve and I
Another great thing college gave me was my boyfriend, Neeve. We met during the first week of college and instantly connected- I knew he would end up being my boyfriend or my best friend, and luckily- as cliché as this may sound- he ended up being both! He allowed me to go on my next adventure I am going to talk about and has made my life at Rowan complete; I am very thankful to have him in my life.
Trip to Boston and Google
From left to right: Mitchell, Ashley, Tim, me, & Neeve standing in Quincy Market in Boston, Massachusetts
Picture of Google from the outside
Although I already wrote an article about this, I still cannot believe this trip was real. In November, my best friends and I had the opportunity to travel to Boston for a weekend and tour their Google site there as both an educational and networking opportunity. We got to meet the CEO of that Google site and have a private tour of the facility. It is an experience I will never forget, I wish it never ended.
Honors Play
Action shot of me being investigated
I always loved acting in musicals in high school, but it was never something I thought I would be able to do going into college. Thankfully, the Honors Program at Rowan holds a student run play every year called the Murder Mystery Dinner, where someone or multiple people are murdered, and the remaining survivors must figure out who the murderer is. Being able to be a part of this cast and acting again was so much fun- I can’t wait to participate next year!
NYC Trips
Because of Rowan’s location, I am much closer to NYC than I was at home. Before college, I had only been to NYC one time. At the conclusion of my freshman year, I’ve been able to visit the city about 6 times. From just stopping through on our way to Boston to seeing Broadway shows to visiting the MoMA and the UN, NYC feels like a second home now. Being able to see the MoMA and visiting the UN for a tour and private briefing were two of my favorite visits there. I never expected all of the opportunities that I have been given to have been available to me just as a freshman, but here I am.
Picture of Starry Night from MoMA
Two pictures from UN Headquarters in NYC
Hollybash
My roommate Ashley and I at Hollybash
Every year in the Spring, Rowan throws an awesome event called Hollybash. Food trucks, Ferris wheels, late night concert, and psychics are only some of the really fun things you can do at Hollybash- all for free! Andy Grammer preformed that night, and as you can see from the picture, I also got my caricature done on a pancake. It was such a fun way to wrap up the year and something I definitely look forward to attending every year.
Best Friends
Of course, I could not talk about freshman year without mentioning two of my closest friends. Simona and Ashley have been there since the very beginning, and we were always there for each other through the good, bad, and ugly. We went through so much together and are going to live together next year; I can’t wait to see what we do together for the next few years!
From left to right: Simona, Ashley, me
If you are someone just starting college or in college currently, I hope you have or are having as much fun as I am. College is like life- it’s what you make of it, you can make it as fantastic or bland as you want. I hope you do what I am doing and make it as memorable as possible before actual adulting begins. Goodbye Freshman year, hello being a Sophomore!