If you’re like me and not going home for Thanksgiving Break, here’s a list of some activities that you may wish to partake in. Although campus might seem like a veritable ghost town after everybody packs up and scrambles back to their neck of the woods, there’s still much to do if you happen to stay in your humble dormitory on East or West Campus.
Venture off campus
There is a multitude of events occurring in the next couple of weeks in San Francisco, like plays, festivals and free entrances to some fun places. This website is an excellent resource for “fun and cheap” options in San Francisco. Take the time to treat yourself and have brunch at a semi-boujee restaurant for a treat, like Dandelion Chocolate or La Taqueria in the Mission. If you’re in a mood to see paragons of horticultural excellence, you might try going to the gorgeous San Francisco Botanical Garden, to which patrons can receive free entrance on Thanksgiving Day.
Go Black Friday shopping
If you’ll be around Stanny for Thanksgiving, it’s likely that the place you call home isn’t just a hop and a skip away from campus. As a result, the Black Friday shopping scene might be vastly different. Even if you’re not out looking to procure greatly-discounted gadgets and the latest chic couture, it’s still fun to venture into the shopping districts to see all shoppers hustling to cop the best deals.
Check out Stanford’s Redwood City campus
It might surprise you to hear that our glorious university has another satellite campus in nearby Redwood City. It’s possible to get there by using the free shuttle between the Redwood City Caltrain and SRCC or even some Marguerite services. Although it might be chilly, there’s a cool rooftop pool at the Wellness & Recreation Center from which you can have a tranquil view of distant mountains and the city.
Catch up on pending work
As Stanford students, we do have a certain propensity to put some tasks (such as laundry, grocery store runs, important paperwork, etc.) on the backburner. This one week is an opportune time to capitalize on the sheer availability of washers and dryers to wash clothes, sheets and backpacks (they’ve probably been bouncing all around campus, airports and the like, getting to be a bit *grimy*). Since recruiting season has already started for software engineers and will be revving up soon for other industries, it can also be helpful to start looking into potential summer plans. Centers on campus, like BEAM, that offer appointments for going over resumes and practicing job interviews, can be helpful.
Start studying for final exams
Since Thanksgiving Break comes around pretty late this year, this leaves us with just one week of school (the sleepless and study-heavy Week 10, or “dead week”) before the inevitable Week 11, which consists solely of final exams. Usually, we have two weeks of class after coming back from Thanksgiving but not this year. As a result, having a silent room in a virtually silent dorm for an entire week might be the perfect opportunity to get some early studying in.
Contact Sarayu Pai at smpai918 ‘at’ stanford.edu.