summer in berkeley

Living in Berkeley: Ultimate Travel Guide [Part 1]

April 13, 2021
Vincent Ooi

Are you a new or prospective student to UC Berkeley? Or are you a returning student who needs new travel ideas around the Bay Area? Either way, this travel guide will give you a sense of how many options Berkeley really has to offer…I will feature my all time FAVORITE places to hike/visit, restaurants to indulge at, and more!

As an incoming student at Berkeley, you may have done your research on the Internet regarding places to visit. But you might have also wanted an opinion from a fellow golden bear. This is what I’m here for! I’m currently a junior at UC Berkeley who has lived...

Participating in a Virtual Summer Internship

October 7, 2021
Lisa Zhou

I was in the second semester of my sophomore year and had only had two jobs my entire life. Both of those jobs were not part of the fields within my major (Sustainable Environmental Design). I felt like it was finally time to try out something closer to my major and explore what was out there. I was always interested in studying abroad, so I looked into what they had to offer.

Due to the Covid19 pandemic, many programs were being held virtually or were completely canceled for the time being. But then I remembered a newsletter I saw from my college about a virtual...

Local Retail Therapy

November 9, 2021
Alyssa Hurtado

collage of photographs and cds against a green background

Not only can you get some cute finds, but you can also take cute pics and romanticize life!

Life at Cal can be rather stressful at times, and what better way to cope than with retail therapy? Lucky for the fashion forward student body, there are so many places to go and find a new favorite item. Or, better yet, a renewed favorite item! Consider this...

Making the Most of a Bay Area College Experience

November 18, 2021
Paulina Nguyen

One of the best benefits of going to a school like Berkeley, is not just what happens in school, but what happens outside of it. The Bay Area is a diverse area, full of options, from the beaches bordering the chilly northern Pacific, to cities with major metropolitan offerings, to even mountains and beautiful California scenery. With so many different adventures to choose from, I’m here to share my favorite memories.

I’m a big foodie, and I love to try new cuisines from different places. One of the places I love to go with my friends is Fruitvale, a neighborhood in...

Berkeley: A Concert-lover’s Fantasy

December 2, 2021
Alyssa Hurtado

Being a live music junkie is easy in Berkeley, almost too easy. Being located in the Bay Area, a favorite spot for many artists, makes this the perfect city for concert lovers of all types. Whether you want to attend a small show at Cornerstone, conveniently located right off Shattuck, or you want to Bart over to the Civic Center in San Francisco for a rave at Bill Graham, the opportunities are virtually endless!

Being able to buy a ticket for a friend and I to see one of our favorite artists and know that, one way or another—bus, Uber, or Bart—we’ll...

Ranking All the Boba Places in Berkeley

March 8, 2022
Lisa Zhou

To start, I am not someone with a strong opinion, especially on food and drinks. Everything just kinda blends together, so it’s really hard to impress me. If it’s cold and refreshing then it’s probably a decent boba drink. Why am I ranking drink places if I don’t have strong opinions, you ask? Well, I don’t know honestly. My housemate gave me the idea and promptly ranked everything on the spot, so I was like why not. Besides, I’m also curious as to how this goes.

Disclaimer: I am only ranking places that I have tried which is, fortunately, a whole lot. Yes, I say...

What’s “relaxing?”

June 22, 2022
Alyssa Hurtado

Since I was 7 I remember being constantly on the move, going from one thing to another. After school, I had gymnastics at least 9 hours a week and was dragged to everything my older sisters had to be at – meetings, doctors appointments, sporting events, etc. My whole life, I haven’t known anything other than hustling. After being knowingly overwhelmed in high school with AP classes, sports, school clubs, and other extracurriculars, I decided that I wouldn’t let myself put too much on my plate when I got to college.

So I didn’t… until eventually I did. Freshman...

Why ALL FIRST-YEARS Should Do Summer Bridge (coming from a former bridgee!)

June 24, 2022
Ethan Collier

Hey there! Congratulations on making it to UC Berkeley! You are about to embark on an amazing four-year journey here. Now, you may be wondering… How can I make the most of my summer? Well, I have got the answer for you! Summer 2021, I was exactly in your situation. I was doing Golden Bear Advising (GBA) and wondering what else can I do to get a head start on creating my Berkeley experience. That’s when I signed up for Summer Bridge at the very last minute. Do I regret it? Absolutely not!

What is Summer Bridge (no for real though)?

Wait,...

Cal in the Capital: A Summer in DC

July 8, 2022
Kalysta

I was never someone who had a plan to study abroad coming into college. I’ve only traveled to a few states, and have never been out of the country, so the idea of going abroad for a few months was never really on my radar. I used to think that instead of going abroad, I would do a semester at UCDC, a program that allows University of California students to study and intern in Washington DC for a semester. But then with the COVID-19 pandemic beginning halfway through my first year of college and impacting the entire following school year, I felt like so much time at Berkeley had been ripped...

A Love Letter to My Hiring Class (The Tea on Being a UC Berkeley Campus Ambassador)

August 1, 2022
Ethan Collier

To my beloved hiring class,

We made it! The hiring process, five months of training, Cal Day, and the tours we did in the Spring finally paid off. We made it to the Summer! Now comes the lock-in shifts we have together, the tours we give on the weekdays, working the Visitor Center and Campanile on weekends, and bonding in our downtime by exploring the Bay and Berkeley.

This summer has definitely been a challenge for us. For many of us, this is our first real job. We have had to break out of our shells, take on new responsibilities and adapt to what...