<p>I mean, the dining hallis right out of Harry Potter and a couple old buildings have some charm, but the campus doesn't seem that special to me? Am I the only one? If you do like the campus, why? Any photos that serve it justice?</p>
<p>Well, the over-riding theme is New England Colonial red brick, which is a tidy and understated architectural style that bespeaks the Pilgrims' philosophy of truth, simplicity, thrift, efficiency, neatness, and hard work and that is expressed in a beautiful but low-key style devoid of excessive ornamentation.</p>
<p>So given that, if your idea of What a College Should Look Like tends toward the ornate gaudiness of Gothic, (and I admit that Gothic does have its aesthetic pluses), then perhaps you'd be better off at Yale or Princeton. Both have gorgeous campuses. But if you want to learn in a top flight university whose architecture embodies Truth, Beauty, and Simplicity, then Harvard may be the place for you.</p>
<p>Harvard Memorial Church is the embodiment of beautiful simplicity:</p>
<p>Especially beautiful at night:</p>
<p>Flickr</a> Photo Download: Harvard Memorial Church... at night</p>
<p>Harvard is my absolute favorite campus (my degrees are from Yale and Stanford, by the way), precisely because it has developed organically over centuries as part of a community. It's not a set-apart theme park trying to be something it isn't. Every building built there was modern and cool when built, not an imitation of Oxbridge or some mission, and buildings from vastly different eras stand right next to one another, all jumbled up. To me, that's exciting and communicates intellectual energy. I also love the way Cambridge and Harvard are intermingled, with a few set-off areas for tranquility. To me, that's the tradition of great universities -- they are part of a place, not apart from it. Finally, the river Houses are gorgeous, and those are places where students actually live and hang out. The only place with comparable dorms is Yale, and it gets points taken off for the faux Gothic (even though I love that, too).</p>
<p>There are lots of different types of campuses, with different types of beauty. Lots of people love Stanford, but it feels like a golf course to me, all groomed and color-coordinated.</p>
<p>^^ Stanford and other Cali schools with stucco and red-tile roofs= "Taco Bell" style, in my kids' parlance.</p>
<p>I love Harvard's campus more than I love the school itself.
Which I will never say out loud within a hundred-mile radius of Cambridge. :3</p>
<p>I LOVE the campus!</p>
<p>I concur, it's more historic than aesthetic. For my tastes, Dartmouth is what I think of when I picture a college in New England.</p>
<p>^^ I agree, gadad. IMO, in terms of look/feel, Dartmouth is charming. Yale is gothic. Harvard is historic. Vassar is classic. Columbia is cosmopolitan.</p>
<p>My favorite campus is Caltech. Beautiful gardens that are integrated with the buildings. Bertram Goodhue's best work (though I like what he did at West Point too.) I think Harvard's Campus is pretty dull, though I am fond of Memorial Hall. I hate the the entry way system - I don't think it's at all conducive to encouraging friendships outside your suite. And Harvard's landscaping? What landscaping? If they are lucky they get some grass by reunion time. (Didn't stop me from attending Harvard.) :)</p>
<p>harvard campus is alright/pretty good, but Harvard Square is where the real excitement lies</p>
<p>um dude the people who go to harvard aren't going b/c of the campus. they're going because it's HARVARD</p>
<p>I loved the campus. visited it and was in complete awe.</p>
<p>It's rather vast, which is understandable, since it is a university.
My only criticism.</p>
<p>I think Princeton has the nicest campus of the Ivies.</p>