Nick Mansour, Explore the World
There are truly endless possibilities all around you at Santa Clara. Everyone will tell you that when you apply and even when you get here as a first year student. But it’s hard to wrap your head around and even harder to do. In college it’s easy to get in the flow and stay in your bubble. But this quarter I really tried to get out into the world around me and explore what the valley/areas around campus have to offer.
Surfing! 40 minutes from Santa Clara is some of the best surfing in the world. It’s so easy to access and renting all the equipment is relatively easy as well. I honestly never thought that I would want or like to surf. But ever since I tried it, for the first time, I haven’t been able to stop. Even if you don’t want to surf you can at least go and enjoy the beaches.
Hiking! There are amazing hiking trails all around campus. The closest hiking trails are even 15 to 20 minutes away. The views are awesome and really beautiful. If you have access to a car you can even drive to Yosemite or Big Sur for the weekend. Being able to get outside and hike with friends has been awesome this quarter and something I really recommend. Most of the RLC’s do hiking trips and Into the Wild program will do bigger trips to places like Yosemite.
Food! The food scene around Santa Clara is super diverse and all of it is really good. You can get really good Chinese, Mexican, and Italian, Thai, and Korean food all within ten minutes of campus. There’s endless places to go explore for new foods like San Pedro Square, San Francisco, and Santana Row. Getting out and trying new foods this quarter has been amazing to see what each culture has to offer.
Overall, I just want to encourage you to get out of your bubble and go do or try things you usually wouldn’t!