Month: December 2015

The Holiday Season is Here

The Holiday Season is Here

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Although we have not had much snow yet, many festivities have happened here at Loyola University to ring in the holiday spirit! When you set foot on campus, you will see tons of fresh beautiful trees decorated with lights and ornaments as well as garland and wreaths. Without a doubt, when snow comes, our campus will look so beautiful.

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Last week, Loyola had their 2nd annual tree lighting in Damen! Along with the lights, Loyola students celebrated by skating on the synthetic ice rink located adjacent to the tree. Hot chocolate was served and Santa made his appearance! Holiday music was played and without a doubt, people enjoyed themselves and began to feel the spirit of Christmas. The day after that, LUC’s orchestra, jazz ensemble, and choir came together for their biggest concert, Joyola. Christmas songs were performed in unique melodies and harmonies- it is something I recommend seeing (for next year).

Throughout the week, the Student Hub, located in Sullivan Center, had free hot chocolate available to the students! The people of the Hub wanted to wish the students well as they prepared for the finals in the upcoming week.

On the weekend, Polar Palooza kicked off the holiday season by offering the residents of Rogers Park (and the general public), more synthetic ice skating, live music, hot chocolate, and a variety of vendors selling holiday nick-naks and food (of course).

There’s a lot of fun things that happen around Loyola University! There’s always something to do and keep you on your feet and enjoying yourself. You’ll never get bored living in the city and the things that happen around Loyola University Chicago!

Getting in the Christmas Spirit with Lincoln Park Zoo Lights

Getting in the Christmas Spirit with Lincoln Park Zoo Lights

I love this time of year. And especially all the traditions that come with it. Visiting family, exchanging gifts, and baking way too many Christmas cookies, then come the Chicago traditions: ice skating at Millennium Park, visiting the Christkindlmarket, and heading to the Lincoln Park Zoo for the ZooLights.

On Saturday night, a group of my friends enjoyed a little bit of Christmas magic at the zoo. I was blown away by how many light displays covered the zoo. I would love to know just how many hours it took to set up and just how many light bulbs light up each night. They sure have a way with turning the whole zoo into a Christmas wonderland.

If you get the chance to visit I’ve got some advice for you:

Don’t drive. Traffic near the zoo is absolutely insane. Who knew other people wanted to see the ZooLights too? I would strongly recommend taking the L or the bus to avoid all that, it may have taken us just as long to find parking as it did to see the lights. But if driving is your transport of choice, be sure to have good holiday tunes and snacks handy so that you can at least enjoy the extra driving around.

Dress warm. This should be obvious, because it is winter in Chicago after all. I underestimated how long we would be outside walking around, especially because of our far parking spot. Bundling up and wearing comfy shoes will make your lights experience all the more cheerful.

Let yourself be like a kid. The ZooLights is very much a family oriented environment, so take a hint from all the kids that are bound to be running through the crowds. The lights look absolutely magical all through the zoo, enjoy it! And don’t be scared to pose by your favorite animal made of lights–the swans and I enjoyed our photo shoot.

Be cheerful. Sure it’ll be cold and there will be crowds, but keep in the holiday spirit. My friends and I strolled through the zoo while singing along with the Christmas carols playing over the speakers, eating chocolate covered pretzels, and drinking hot chocolate. We may have been a little too cheerful for our own good.

This city is full of all kinds of holiday events and I’ve loved having them become college-holiday traditions for me. Thanks Chicago, for spreading so much Christmas joy.

Flashback to High School

Flashback to High School

High school was the best time ever for me. Those four years of schools went by so fast because I enjoyed hanging out friends (some I can consider life-long), I was a good academic student, I participated in a lot of fun extracurricular groups. I miss the prep-rallies, retreats, dances, prom, fundraising- everything. High school was the time when I got to be more independent, understand more about myself, and learn tons of cool things from really fun teachers.

I began taking AP courses during my junior year and started looking into colleges and learning about loans, financial aid, scholarships, etc. One thing I should have done more of, was to actually go to the college campus and take a tour. Visiting college websites and seeing an admissions counselor at a college fair isn’t enough- trust me!

Anyways, I enjoyed my senior year of high school the most. As National Honors Society president and class secretary, I had a lot of things to do and plan for. Many of the student council members and I had a cupcake war to see how many people could bake and sell the most cupcakes- fun times! As NHS president, I help tutor students in all subjects and inducted the next NHS class towards the end of the year.

(Picture caption: Leticia Z., Olga S., Daniel R., and Chris L. (me) at the Gordon Tech National Honors Society Induction Ceremony)

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For prom, I did most of the planning and managed to hire a limo for my particular group, taking care of the funds and calling up the limo company. Anyways, my friends and I had a very good evening of fun- something I cannot forget.

(Photo Caption: Prom picture at Buckingham Fountain -May 3,2014)

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All in all, the main message I  am trying to get across is to enjoy your high school years! Once you are in college, things will be a lot different. The inclusiveness of high school and all those memories will not be found in college. In college, you will be exposed to more things than you can expect. Everything is open to you and it will be up to you whether or not you make good memories.

Prospective LUC students- cherish and enjoy your time in high school!