As my dad exited state Route 73, I noticed a large sign by the road that read “University of California, Irvine.” We drove past the sign, and this was the beginning of my summer program COSMOS, hosted at UCI.
COSMOS is a four-week program hosted at different UC campuses, with UCI being one of them. I chose to spend four weeks of my summer at Irvine. After living on the campus for nearly a month, I had enough time to see about two-thirds of the campus.
Overall, I liked it.
After checking in to the program, I was led to Middle Earth Housing, where my dorm was located. One of my few complaints about UCI is that the housing area is rather small. That is just me – others may think that a closet, a bed and a two-feet-by-four-feet desk is sufficient.
After my belongings were unpacked and the orientation was over, I headed over to Pippin, one of the Middle Earth dining locations. This particular dining area is all-you-can-eat, so I managed to sample most of their food.
The hot cafeteria-style food already was decent, with the specials being supreme, since chefs cook the food right before serving. The important aspect is that the food was generally fresh, yet if one prefers, the University Center is about a 10-minute walk from Middle Earth housing.
The University Center contains a significant amount of individual and chain restuarants, along with a music store and dance academy. This center is an interesting place to get together with friends since there are various eateries and stores.
Another place that distinguishes UCI from other campuses is Aldrich Park, located at the heart of the campus. As with most parks, there is a bike path and a walkway around the perimeter with the pathways connecting to different parts of the campus. With plenty of shade and open areas, it is a perfect area to relax in the sun and play sports.
Aside from recreation, the classrooms and lecture halls are fairly modern and comfortable. The place where my professor lectured was a smaller classroom, for approximately 20 people. These rooms were equipped with a projector and computer system to integrate more technology.
UCI also has several libraries available for student use. As with other UC libraries, UCI has access to books from other campuses and online databases. There are also underground storage areas that hold large quantities of books.
Aside from all of these features that exist in the campus, my favorite place by far is the Anteater Recreation Center. This complex offers a rock climbing wall, basketball courts, weight training machines, a swimming pool and other facilities. My only complaint is that it is located toward the edge of the campus, and is not easily accessible. However, those who actually have a will to exercise would not mind the 20-minute or so walk from Aldrich Park.
As the home of the anteaters, UCI is one of the newer UC campuses and is a developing research facility. It is sometimes dubbed “under construction indefinitely” due to the construction projects that can often be found there.
No, I did not see any ants there.
