Journey in Princeton

We spent today in Princeton, New Jersey to visit Princeton University. The day began early as I woke up at 6:30 so I could call to check if everyone else was awake. We then left for the train station and after a short ride we arrived at Trenton, New Jersey. The plan was to take a train to Princeton Junction Train Station and then take a train to campus, but the local cab drivers at Trenton told us that it would cost $40 or more to get to Princeton Junction and then $2 per person to get on a train there whereas $45 dollars would bring us to the gates of Princeton University. We decided to just take a cab and we arrived at Princeton early. However, we ended up waiting for awhile because Eric left his camera on the cab and luckily, the cab driver gave Alex a card with her personal cell phone number. Eric called the driver and soon, the driver came back with Eric's camera.

We then went to the information session where I learned that I really like Providence. Unlike Columbia, students at Princeton can take a wide variety of classes to fulfill the diversity requirements. Like most universities Princeton allows students to hold off on declaring a major, or concentration as it's called at Princeton, until the end of their sophomore year (excluding engineering majors). What makes Princeton unique is that even after a student declares a concentration he or she can still change majors and graduate on time or close to on time. Also due to the fact that Princeton allows a variety of classes to fulfill requirements, most students graduate with two minors, or certificates as they're called at Princeton. Another reason why I like Princeton is that the certificates don't have to be related to the concentration at all.

Princeton campus

Princeton campus

Inside of a cathedral

Princeton campus

Following the information session, we went on a college tour that wasn't that informative because there was only two groups and each group had about 40 people which  made it difficult to hear everything the tour guide was saying.

After the tour we had lunch at an Italian restaurant, walked around Princeton, then went back to Newark to catch a train back to Philadelphia.

Our dinner at La Croix was sublime. For my appetizer I had foie gras because I knew it's going to be banned in California and because I wanted to see why it was a considered to be a delicacy. Foie gras is weird. It has the look of spam and the consistency of canned tuna. The foie gras was followed by lobster with pasta which was amazing. What put the dinner over the top was the conversation. While we couldn't have and admissions officer or students with us for dinner, our cohort really seemed like not  just some people who had to be together for a trip but a group of good friends.

Tomorrow we're off to Cornell!

Tuna and mushroom bite

Lobster and pasta