Beyond a Burlington Bus Ride

Hello, readers! After a long and busy summer (and spring), my blog is back up and running. I really enjoyed writing about what I did, but since it is a new school year, I'm going to change things up a little to keep it interesting. Two of the changes you can (hopefully) look forward to:

• Starting next week, I will be posting every other Wednesday. I may post on other days (like today), but unless I really feel like things aren't working, there will always be alternating Wednesday posts. 
• I'm currently playing around with some new ideas for my material. I'm still going to focus on things to do on campus and in the surrounding area, but you might see some photo or SMC-oriented posts that are less centered on activities. Bear with me and we'll see how things go!

As many of you may know, last weekend was Family/Alumni Weekend. My family drove up all the way from New Jersey, wonderful people that they are, and we spent the weekend doing as many "Vermont" things as possible. Of course, I'm not a Vermonter, so I could be entirely wrong about that, but we still had fun.

Most of my posts focus on my on-campus adventures and Burlington outings, but this is going to be all about what you can do outside of Burlington - hence my somewhat creative title. So, when your parents come (or your aunt flies across the country) to visit you, here are a few ideas for a short road trip.

Shelburne Farms

Shelburne Farms was founded by Lila Vanderbilt Webb (yes, those Vanderbilts) and her husband as a farming estate - today it is a nonprofit run by their descendants. The farm is only a short drive from the Burlington-Colchester area and has a little something for everyone. With cows, cheese tastings, gorgeous views, and even a precocious chicken or two, what more could you ask for on a gorgeous fall day? (Nothing.)

By precocious chickens, I mean this one, who hung out under a table and watched me eat lunch. There is a food stand that sells awesome salads and hot sandwiches at the main barn - everything comes from the farm.

Brown Swiss cows are the source of Shelburne Farms' amazing cheese - try the smoked cheddar!

Shelburne Farms is certified humane - in addition to the legal requirements that they follow, their cows even come in for breaks in the air conditioning in the summer! A major part of the farm's efforts go to education about healthy living and the environment. They have camps in the summer, school programs throughout the year, and a host of other resources in what they call the Farm Barn - including a place to learn about cheesemaking and meet baby animals.

This cutie will grow up to join the milk herd eventually - but she's only a month old right now.

If you're wondering why I know all of this, Shelburne Farms offers wagon tours, which take you through most of the property. Tickets to the farm and tickets for tours are very inexpensive - $11 total for both. Definitely dress warmly - they gave us blankets in the wagon but the breeze was still a bit... brisk. The farm is open from about May to mid-October - October 16 this year, to be specific, so hurry on over and check things out! 

The tour takes visitors all the way up to the Inn at Shelburne Farms, which sits at the edge of Lake Champlain. Originally the family residence, as much as possible has been maintained in the original style. The view hasn't changed much, either.

Waterbury, VT

Just a half-hour away, there are plenty of good food opportunities in Waterbury. In addition to the main attraction - the Ben and Jerry's Factory - Green Mountain Coffee's headquarters is here, and there are also Cabot Cheese and Lake Champlain Chocolates outlets down the road. Lake Champlain Chocolates sells factory seconds (as well as everything else) there, and Cabot Cheese has samples of around twenty cheeses (that's a very rough estimate) to try. 

This is the original ice cream bus - no longer in service, it's a great picture spot.

Ben and Jerry's can take as much or as little time as you'd like. There is a factory tour - which includes samples - the old flavors graveyard, the souvenir shop, and of course, the scoop shop. There are also some truly interesting displays about the company and ice cream in general. I will caution and say that the wait for ice cream grows exponentially right after a tour lets out, but that's to be expected. I enjoyed visiting the factory at age five or six - that hasn't changed a bit, especially since there's now non-dairy ice cream for your lactose intolerant blogger!

There is obviously much more to do near Saint Mike's besides the few things I've mentioned here. But these are favorites of mine that will probably be repeated, and are proof that we've got way more than just ski mountains. Shelburne Farms may be closed during the winter, but there are other things in Shelburne and Waterbury is not a seasonal town. So when your non-skiing family makes the trek to visit you, fear not! They can't help but be entertained.

One last picture - Lake Champlain and the Adirondack Mountains from the Inn

I already have my next post lined up - I'm just working some of the details out, so stay tuned! Did you like my pictures? Check out my Instagram under @lauralinsanity.

Until next time,

Laura

Why I Love Being a Purple Knight

A year ago today, I committed to four years as a Purple Knight! I can't believe that this time last year, I was gearing up for AP tests and high school graduation - crazy. Regardless of the chaos and stress I was dealing with then, I am very glad I made the decision I did. That being said, I decided to break form this week and do a list post of some of my favorite parts of Saint Mike's. 

• No-pressure community - First, for any parents reading this, I would like to emphasize that this does not mean that the classes are a breeze! Rather, I love that there isn't a Saint Mike's "type." Even though we're a little prone to wearing flannel, there isn't a mold you have to fit or a specific way you have to dress to be a part of the SMC community. I was a little skeptical when students would bring this up during tours and student panels (thank you, Founders Society!), but it's true. As a non-skiing first-year who isn't a huge partier, I can attest to that. So for all my fellow tea-loving homebodies out there, we have room for you!

• Small classes - We may have some classes in a lecture hall, but I have never felt like I was just a number in a seat. This blends into my next point, but all of my professors knew my name within a few weeks, if not earlier. Some even had us do fact sheets so they could get to know us better! The class atmosphere is always whatever you make of it, but I like discussion-heavy classes, so it's perfect for me.

• Awesome professors - Maybe this is part of the small school vibe, but I love my professors! I genuinely feel like they value me as a person rather than just a student in their classes. Office hours may start as assignment help but half the time turns into a discussion about something else - at least for me they do. Clearly, teaching is more than a job for them, and I definitely appreciate that.

• Location - In case you haven't noticed from my other posts, there's a lot to do around here, on campus and off. Even though there are some weeks I love not having to leave the Saint Mike's world, I also like that I can go to Burlington any day and find something to do, be it dinner, a show, or just Ben and Jerry's. That's even leaving out all the outdoorsy opportunities we have; the potential is endless.

• Friends - I've only been here about seven months, but I have connected with an amazing group of people that I'm glad I met so quickly. The majority of them are fellow first-years, but (going back to the no-pressure benefits) I know people in other grades through clubs and never feel talked down to. I may live in a single, but I'm certainly not by myself!

At some point, I'm going to have to spend some serious time contemplating why I hate finishing things on odd numbers but ending on five is perfectly acceptable. But for now, it's a convenient ending point, because although there are many other things I love about my school, those are definitely the highlights. At the risk of sounding cheesy, I'm extremely grateful for everything I've done so far and looking forward to everything I'm going to do. See you next week!

Laura

Dance the Night Away

Hello! Life is busy-busy as usual, hence my very delayed post. We're slowly getting ready for next year here on campus; housing selection has started (which is exactly as you would expect it to be), and we hosted prospective students the first weekend of March! Hopefully we'll be seeing them in the fall. The overnight host program is done through Founders Society; not only do the students get an awesome sleepover (plus ice cream!) with current students like me, but they also get to spend that Sunday afternoon in Burlington, so that they can experience Church Street. I was informed by my guest that they went bowling and had dinner at New Moon, with live music that was definitely appreciated. 

That weekend I also discovered the wonder that is a mac and cheese bar, courtesy of Residence Life!. I only have a picture of the mac and cheese table, but there was also another (much messier) table with at least four different kinds of toppings. Rest assured that this was not your Kraft mac and cheese from a box; it was the real deal, and I want more now that I'm writing about it. 

Last Friday night was the Dance Team's spring show, and man was I impressed! I wasn't really sure what to expect, but their performances surpassed all of my expectations. Everything is student-choreographed - not that I could tell - and they do a great job mixing new dancers with those girls who've been dancing since age two. You know the type. Although there were more serious contemporary dances, the team still clearly had fun, especially with their ending number: Sorry, by Justin Bieber! Overall, a great time and definitely something I look forward to going to again next year!

To close out my post, enjoy this picture of Friday's sunset, complete with a pink cloud:

Enjoy your week!
Laura

Melons, Mountains, and Music

I honestly make an effort to not do the cheesy titles too often, but sometimes you just need a little alliteration in your life! Besides, everything in that title is relevant.

Saturday I had the opportunity (with a few other people of course) to table for Love Your Melon at Jay Peak, a ski resort with an indoor water park. As I'm not a skier, this was my first time to a "mountain," so to speak, and I was very impressed. I also had not realized how close Jay Peak is - only an hour and a half away. Smuggler's Notch (or "Smugg's," to all you snowlovers) is even closer than that, and I'm sure there are other ski mountains around that I just haven't heard of yet. We are certainly not lacking in mountains up here!

Anyway, I think we had a very successful tabling session. We raised some money, talked with some really cool people, and spent a lot of time watching all of the cute ski-children so wrapped up you could only see their eyes. We also may or may not have consumed a number of lollipops that we'd brought for our table, but I'm pleading the fifth on that one.

That covers mountains and melons, leaving... music! Professors can sometimes get tickets to the Flynn (in a process unknown to me) and take their students to see productions, free of charge for the professor and the students. Wicked awesome! My philosophy professor got us tickets to hear the Ying Quartet, a string quartet, play Beethoven's Opus 131. We have been studying what truly makes up truth and beauty, so this was our firsthand experience of "the beautiful." Preceding the performance, Soovin Kim, a violinist who also founded the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, walked us (the audience) through the piece with the help of the Quartet. As a musician (fun fact: I play both the piano and the flute!), I found that really interesting. I don't know a lot about strings, so to have a string player explain certain aspects of the sound and dynamics of the piece, as well as other features, really helped me appreciate the piece more. Yet another amazing Burlington afternoon, this time courtesy of a professor.

I know this is a tad brief, but unfortunately I have a midterm tomorrow (no, they do not magically disappear in college), so I should probably concentrate on that. Next post: A Midsummer's Night Dream, courtesy of Saint Mike's theater program!
Laura