Day One: Providence

What A View!

Well here we are. After a long day of travelling we have arrived in Providence, Rhode Island. This is my first time in the smallest state of the country, but lets start from the beginning.

My day began like any other... well not quite. I dragged myself out of bed at three in the morning, showered and headed out with my dad to meet the others of the Yale cohort at El Cerrito High School. We took photos, went over details, said our goodbyes, and before I knew it we were driving to the airport. We had to wait in a long line to check our bags, I think because we got to the airport before it actually was open. The wait was not that bad though, and once we checked our bags security was a breeze. We got a pastry each for breakfast, and arrived at the terminal just in time to board the plane. I was exhausted for this entire process, but far too excited to notice.

The "Security Camera" in our Room

The plane rides and layover are a blur. They were full of reading, doodling, napping (only on the second flight, I was too excited on the first one), and socializing with my neighbors. I met two people, one on each flight. The first one was a middle aged woman who was travelling to Chicago on a business trip. She was a lawyer, and explained to me her take on the ups and downs of her profession. This was great because law really interests me, and it was good to hear from a professional lawyer what law school and practicing are like. The second person I met was a man who did not divulge much about his personal life or why he was travelling, but we had an interesting conversation about the book he was reading, Plato's Republic, which was a central reading to the ILC course I took last year at Cornell. It was great to get to interact with adults as equals. All good things must end however, and before I knew it we had arrived at the Providence airport.

J'aime filet mignon

We exited the plane and retrieved our luggage without incident. I was expecting blazing heat and uncomfortable humidity to strike me the second we stepped out of the airport, as was my experience previous times visiting the East Coast during summer. I was wrong, the weather was perfect. A clear blue sky and temperature in the low eighties with no wind. I hope this weather continues!

Yum Desert

I am sharing a room with Damian at the hotel, and it meets all the standards that I have come to expect from the ILC. The room is spacious, the beds are comfortable, the bathroom is large (and clean), and there is a great view. There is a rather disconcerting fixture on our ceiling that looks like a security camera however... and its pointed right at my bed. I will just have to sleep facing the other direction.

Josh took charge on finding us a place to eat dinner and did an excellent job. It was a small, but fancy restaurant called Cav about a half mile away, easily within walking distance. The atmosphere was excellent, and I had a lot of fun getting to know my cohort better. We ordered a crab cake and lobster dish as appetizers, and were so hungry that we forgot to take pictures before we dug in. Then I ordered a steak dish for dinner followed by a slice of chocolate cake for desert. The meal was an excellent way to start our week of fine dining.

Now I am back at the hotel room with Damian, the only sounds are of both of us furiously typing away and the air conditioning in the background. Tomorrow we head off the Boston to tour Harvard and visit the city, although I am not a fan of large cities I am looking forward to visiting it and I really appreciate all the important history to our country that took place there. It is getting late however and I am exhausted. We have another early morning tomorrow; we leave the hotel at 6:30 AM! Come back tomorrow to read about our trip to Boston and my impressions of Harvard!