On the first day of finals I had two night finals back-to-back. They were tough, but my final grades in the classes reflect that I did well enough on them. The next morning at 9:00AM, I had my Information Systems final, which is the class and final that I am most proud of. I had to get at least a 95% on the final to get an A in the class, and I didn’t think that there was a chance I would be able to manage, but I succeeded, and it was the highlight of my finals week.

That same night, I had my first paper due, and once I submitted that, I was two-thirds through my finals. My biggest struggle was my Thursday night final, and I studied as hard as I could to try and do well in the class. I didn’t quite get the grade that I wanted in the class, but I’m not upset with the final result either. It was a tough course that I’m at least happy I got through.

Thursday night was when I had my last exam, but the semester wasn’t over until I submitted my final paper on Friday morning. It was a group paper for my Marketing class, one that we had been working on since the beginning of the semester. We were all nervous to submit it because we had hit several bumps along the road getting it done, but we did it and that submission concluded my junior year.

The weather may be chilly outside today, but the summer before my senior year of college has officially begun. I plan on working a lot, and getting myself back in tiptop shape because the weeks leading up to finals week led me off track. Other than that, my summer is not yet planned because I want to see what it has in store for me. It’s my last college summer before I step into the work force next year, so I hope that it’s an awesome one. I hope to blog at least occasionally this summer, so keep your eyes open for the next post!

PS: Congratulations to graduating seniors, you guys did it!

1. The Chicago Architecture Tour (Boat Cruise)- This was during welcome week for students in the Honors Program.  The cruise started downtown, and went all the way down the Chicago River.  The tour guide was great and pointed out the amazing architecture as we cruised along.  My personal favorite was the Trump Tower.

2. Seth Meyers/Aziz Ansari- I had the pleasure of seeing two of my favorite comedians.. for five dollars or less!  Seth Meyers came my freshman year; he was a part of welcome week.  Aziz Ansari came this past March.  Both were hilarious- but I have to say Seth Meyers is still my favorite.  Nothing beats him on Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live!

3. Studying Abroad-  My favorite experience at Loyola thus far has got to be the opportunity I had to study in Rome, Italy.  I have always wanted to travel, and the fact that Loyola had a campus in Rome made traveling that much easier. I was able to take core classes in Rome and I was able to go there for about the same price as tuition in Chicago is. (Besides the flight and other side trips I would take)  It was by far the greatest experience of my life as I was exposed to so many different things and wonders of the world.  I’m so thankful for Loyola for providing me this opportunity, and I encourage everyone to study abroad at some point!

4. Living downtown- Nothing beats living in the heart of the Gold Coast, where I was able to live this past year.  It was amazing- I would walk outside and the city was right at my fingertips.  Michigan Avenue was two blocks away, the beach was around the corner… everything was right there.  The fact that Loyola provides student housing downtown is perfect, as I could definitely not afford to live down there in my own apartment. (pricey!)  I will definitely miss the Gold Coast next year, but I am eager to explore a different neighborhood, Lakeview.

Those are just a few of the highlights of my college career thus far.  It was hard narrowing it down to just four, as there are infinite things that I have done that have made me so thankful for choosing Loyola and the city of Chicago.  I am looking forward to starting my senior year, although sad that I only have one year left here at Loyola.

It’s funny, because in high school, I always counted down, eager for the year to be over and summer to start. Now, it’s honestly more sad than happy.

I’m so happy to attend a school I don’t want to leave. The experiences I’ve had this year and the friends I’ve made have transformed Loyola into a second home.

I recently got the offer to stay over the summer and work full-time with my internship at Loyola’s University Marketing & Communication Department, and I am thrilled to accept it. I will be subleasing an apartment close to school from a friend for June and July, and I am pumped to spend part of the summer in the city. A lot of my friends who were as reluctant to leave as I was are staying as well, so I know I’ll have a blast.

Of course, I’m even more excited to see my family and friends back home for a month, with nothing to do but visit! While it will be hard to end my freshman year, it makes it easier going back to a place you love just as much.

I’ve realized that my life is always going to be split. No matter where I am, in Cincinnati or Chicago, I’ll always be missing someone. But, as my mom always tells me, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

So, goodbye freshman year-sophomore year, I’ll see you soon!

Photos by Chris Phutully

April 25th, or ANZAC Day (Australian New Zealand Army Corps), is a day of big celebration here in Australia.

It is a day to remember the group of armed forces from both Australia and New Zealand who served during WWI.

Australian culture is particularly proud of this day– school is cancelled, businesses close early, and all the locals gather in the city to celebrate.

Common traditions include memorial services, parades and special ANZAC cookies. I am fortunate enough to have an Australian roommate that makes these delicious cookies every year. The story behind them is that the wives all got together to bake and send them to the troops during the war. They are made with special ingredients to help them last quite a while. I highly recommend them. Here is a link to the recipe if you want to try your own: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/anzac-biscuits-i/.

Aside from the food, the festivities in the city were a great sight to see. People were heading into central Melbourne as early at 7 a.m. to avoid the traffic and get a jump start on the day. The parade included everything from little children playing instruments to military officers marching in uniform.

Although it obviously meant something different for me than it did for the Australians, it was a great experience for me to witness and be a part of as an international student.

The excitement for this year’s Damen Ball seemed to be at an all time high.  Tickets went on sale, first to seniors, at the opening of the new Damen Student Center, and sold out in just a few hours.  Tickets sold for $10.00, but the event turned out to be well worth the money.

From 9:00 to midnight, the Alder Planetarium was open exclusively to Loyola students.  The planetarium showed space presentations in their IMAX theater and allowed students to walk through the exhibits.  And after we all educated ourselves on the many facets of our solar system, we enjoyed ourselves on the dance floor!

All in all, it seemed everyone had a blast!  The Damen Ball was a great way to celebrate another completed semester at Loyola.

My friend Flannery Bohne and I outside Adler Planetarium

Dr. Bethany Barratt, McCormick Lounge Lecture, 4/26/13

One of the greatest parts of attending a university like Loyola is the many academic opportunities offered to students.  Over the past weeks, the Political Science Department has been hosting a series of lectures on various international issues.  On Friday afternoon, I attended one of the lectures.  Bethany Barratt, a research scholar and professor from Roosevelt University, presented on 9/11 and human rights.

Dr. Barratt has been working with a group of researchers on a new book scheduled for publication next year.  In it, they discuss the impact of 9/11 on American standards on human rights.  A majority of her lecture was critical of the Bush Administration’s actions following the terrorist attack on the United States.

Our country has often been criticized for its growing sense of American exceptionalism.  That is, we seem to believe that we are qualitatively better than other countries of the world.  This is often viewed as a superiority complex, where our mission to spread liberty and democracy becomes a mission to force our ideals on other nations.

The Bush regime (as Dr. Barratt refers to it) viewed the attacks on the Twin Towers as a unique event.  Ignoring the many instances of terrorism in other countries across the globe, the United States was quick in retaliation.  Human rights laws set forth in the Geneva Convention seemed no longer relevant as torture became a common practice of interrogation, as well as the suspension of rights to habeas corpus, privacy, and bodily integrity.

Research has shown that the rest of the world was shocked by our country’s response to terrorism.  Human rights as a guiding principle of our foreign policy seemed to lose much of its moral weight.  Unfortunately, there have not been many policy changes to solve this issue.  Even as the United States pulls its forces from the Middle East and elects a new president to office, these horrific practices are still implemented.  The real question is, however, what is the United States’ incentive to stop?  While popular opinion in the United States seems to be against torture, there has been little change in American foreign policy.

This lecture was one of many offered at Loyola over the semester.  They often bring to light issues that people have long forgotten about.  In light of recent events in Boston and elsewhere in the world, I believe that terrorism is a topic that should be discussed and understood.  It is equally important to be aware of the unethical practices that are often responses to terrorist attacks.  Bethany Barratt was an excellent lecturer in this regard.

We got really lucky, as we just made it for the food happy hour.  All of the food was half off.  We sat upstairs on these two couches and ordered tons of delicious Mexican food.  I got carnitas tacos and empanadas.  My friend got fish tacos and guacamole.  It was delicious, and my new favorite place, as the food happy hour is every day for three hours!

Yes, I am one of those people who instagrams their food, so of course I had to take a picture of my plates of food.  Here are the pork carnitas and empanadas.  Looking at this picture makes me want to go back there tonight… something I may just do!

They took the overnight Megabus and got to my apartment at 6 in the morning.  We slept for a few hours and then went for a delicious midday meal at Tempo Cafe.  It’s located right next to Water Tower Campus, and it has everything- from breakfast foods to burgers to hot meals.  It’s also open twenty four hours to satisfy any late night cravings.

After we ate, I took them to Millennium Park.  We of course had to take the cliche bean pictures- how could we not? Here’s one of my favorites. 

The rest of the day we went shopping on Michigan Avenue, and got Portillo’s for dinner. (delicious Italian beef) The next day, I had class, so I let them venture out on their own.  They spent most of the day tackling Water Tower Place.  I recommended FoodLife, the amazing food court in Water Tower, for their lunch and they loved it! They came back with piles of clothes, so it was a successful day for them

That night, we went to the restaurant RPM.  Its right downtown, and it’s actually owned by Giuliana and Bill Rancic. (Giuliana is the host of E! News and Bill is the winner of The Apprentice, a Chicago native and a Loyola grad if you didn’t know)  It’s a delicious Italian restaurant that is pretty reasonably priced for broke college students like myself! Also, it’s a hot spot for celebrities when they’re in town, so it’s right up my alley for pop culture junkies like me.

The next day, we conquered State Street.  It was another successful day of shopping.  We got deep dish pizza for dinner to make their Chicago experience complete.

I loved having the both of them visit, as I love acting as a tour guide and showing off the greatest city in the world.  I look forward to having more visitors next year!!

One of the most daunting assignments on my pre-finals to do list is a research paper for my class, Studies in the Renaissance.  I am researching John Donne and George Herbert, and examining how their poetry was influenced by the religious and historical events of seventeenth century England.  The paper is not due until Friday afternoon, but with all the other things I have to do I figured I would get a head start.

Unfortunately, I have had a hard time concentrating.  With hints of approaching warm weather and plans for Ghana, it has become increasingly difficult to rid myself of distractions long enough to write.  Thankfully, I am able to go to Loyola’s Information Commons (IC) to get some work done.  Though it gets pretty crowded around finals week, it is still much easier to concentrate in a library setting.

My favorite place to study in the IC is the silent room, which many people call the “Harry Potter room” due to its Hogwarts-esque quality.  The room is silent, which is perfect for students such as myself that work best without noise.  Loyola also allows students to reserve private study rooms, which can also be prime studying locations during finals.  The IC is a great place to focus on school work, and does a great job of catering to many different study styles.

So as finals week quickly approaches, I will surely be spending a lot of time in the library.  My only comfort is that in less than two weeks, I will be done for the summer!

The Megabus is one such option, and offers cheap tickets to over one hundred cities across the country.  While they advertise tickets for as low as $1.00, it has been my experience that round trip tickets usually average between $30-$60 depending on your destination.

Last weekend, I took a trip to Cleveland, Ohio with a friend to visit her family.  The entire trip only cost me $35.  The trick is to book your tickets early enough to get a good price, which is easy enough to do online.  For that price, it is hard to complain.

Yet the Megabus does have its drawbacks.  Though Megabus uses fairly spacious coach buses, it can still be uncomfortable to sit in their seats for six hours.  Not to mention that the bus often times has a hard time keeping on schedule.

All in all, however, the Megabus is a great option for college students.  After taking a few trips, you begin to recognize familiar faces.  Students from Loyola, DePaul, University of Chicago, and many others frequent the Megabus.  And for only $35, it is a great way to save some money on travel!