Eckerd

Tears actually welled as I sat to dinner in St. Petersburg, reflecting on my day visiting Eckerd College. I loved it that much.

They say you have "the feeling," and I think I got it. I could actually see myself there, thriving, enjoying, enhancing my life.

It wasn't just that the campus was located on a bay, because, let's be honest, the "beach" they speak of is so small it hardly counts (to explain, they're on a large bay, so the bay is huge, but the actual area on the bay, with sand, is pretty tiny. There's also the waterfront, though, and that's the area where all the action happens.) It was just a feeling.

sail team in the distance

All of my fears about the school were completely allayed after my visit. Everyone I met there was kind and enthusiastic about their school. Most students we passed yelled "come to Eckerd, it's amazing!" Whereas all the other schools I visited Fall 2010 had students that acted as though I was just a little kid. As though, because they were in college, they had no interest in anyone younger than them.

Our tour guide was really friendly and honest. He put up with all my questions. ALL of them. And there were a lot. Ranging from: "how's the manageability of the workload" to "do students here walk around barefoot often?" And he talked about more than just the facilities... in fact he talked very little about the facilities, probably because the facilities are kind of run down. But honestly, that gave me a weird good feeling too. I didn't like how the other colleges were so pristine... like the patches of grass seemed so calculated! It's hard to explain. I guess this campus felt more lived-in.

There were students riding on skateboards everywhere you looked, there were a bunch of different nationalities (our guide was even Hawaiian but lives in Chicago) and personalities walking around, the food was not bad, there was a ton of wildlife everywhere, tons of creative outlets randomly strewn throughout campus, fire-pits behind every dorm complex, plenty of activities, the professors doors were on the outsides of the buildings, it was a very outdoor campus, it was 10 mins from a large beach, 10 mins from downtown St. Petersburg...the list is endless.

Example of said wildlife.

example of said creative outlet

And one of the home-runs was that during this whole year I've been plagued with both the desire to go to a small liberal arts school, but also go to a school in the city... and those just didn't exist. At least, I thought they didn't. Eckerd is so close to St. Pete's I could bike there. And I love the city! It isn't overwhelmingly big and cramped like NYC. It's much more similar to Portland, except with a few more options for the under 21 crowd.

My mom and I ate at an organic food restaurant and it was delicious! Some of the best food I've had in awhile. And then we stopped to get some Gelato, which was also divine. The other neat thing, a characteristic of FL that I actually like, is that everything is outdoors. There is indoor seating, but the majority of people venture to the sidewalk, where there are chairs and tables all over. You walk down a block and you see all these places to eat on one side, and on the other, all these people sitting out, eating good food, havin a good time.

Also, while we were eating, one of my favorite Sufjan Stevens songs came on, and I knew the fates were trying to tell me something. ;)

I may have found my dream school, but I'll have to visit Hendrix first, to see if I get the same vibe from it.

And then, unfortunately, there are finances.

I was awarded Eckerd's highest scholarship: $16000 a year! It's an incredible honor! But that's still just a small chunk of just the tuition, which is set at around $32000.

This decision is not going to be easy...