<p>I'll take a stab at answering some of worldchanger's questions too, though I think that cclu did a pretty good job already.</p>
<p>"What do students usually do on a Saturday afternoon?"
For starters, most people wake up kinda late, though I have a few friends who woke up early and would lock themselves (figuratively speaking) in the library. a lot of people do work, many get brunch, which is a really common thing at colleges - esp. Lehigh. there is a bus that goes to the mall, and in the fall of course, there are the football games. you may know that the stadium is on Goodman Campus, and since you won't have a car, you'll need to take the shuttle bus. as cclu said, taking the bus is awesome...you will see things on that ride that you have never seen before in your life. other than studying and mall trips/football games, my friends and i watched movies, napped and hung out. we also played sports (basketball/football/soccer) etc. at the gym or at the court which was right across from our dorm.</p>
<p>"Or after a long day of classes?"
As I said, I did a lot with student government, so I had to attend a lot of meetings with peers/admininstrators. I also got involved with a cultural group of which I am a part on campus. My advice would be to get involved with at least one on-campus activity. Some examples (besides student gov.): ASA, which is the Association of Student Alumni. They are the group that gives tours and they do a lot of spirit-related things for the school. It's not easy to get into, but if you are interested, you should definitely apply when you get to campus. Another group is Leadership Lehigh. They do community service and leadership activities...it's a little easier to get "into" than ASA, but it is also a good experience from what I have heard. Other things that may take up your time after class are your fraternity/sorority if you are pledging, intramural or club sports (games and/or practices), and of course, homework, etc. If you are looking for a list of activities, you can find one on the Lehigh homepage under "Student Life."</p>
<p>Is there a student hub that attracts the student body to hang out?
Lehigh is what's known as a "Village System." There is not just one student hub that has everything (food, mailboxes, bank, etc). Rather, there are a group of buildings that make up the student hub. Again, to reiterate cclu, there is the Hawk's Nest...it is really close to all the freshman dorms and its the place to go late on weekends or during finals when you are up late studying and get hungry. there is also the University Center (aka "the UC"), which has some admin offices, one of the two major dining halls, and also a quick place to get food (called the "Upper UC" or just "Upper"). It is this place that has the bank, Pandini's, and the LGBTQA room, which is more or less a room and office for the gay/straight alliance. in Ulrich, you will find mailboxes, a post office, where you should go if you lose your ID, the office of student leadership development (OSLD), and the community service office. it is also homebase for lehigh's own radio station, WLVR. the downstairs of Ulrich is Taylor Gym, where the wrestling meets and volleyball games are held. the intramural/club sports office is there, as well. </p>
<p>How often do students venture out into the town?
because of the conditions that cclu mentioned, it is somewhat cumbersome to go into the town. South Bethlehem and North Bethlehem are separated by the "New Street Bridge." you will definitely figure out what that means in just a few months. the South area is where Lehigh is, and there are some really cute "moms and pops" stores on 3rd and 4th streets, which I would definitely encourage you to explore. a lot of them are boutiques, and even if you aren't buying anything, get some hallmates together and explore a little bit -- Bethlehem is where you are going to be spending the next 4yrs of your life. North Bethlehem is a little bit "nicer." That is where Moravian College is located. They have a really nice bookstore, which is on Broad Street, and there are some nice restaurants and little shops located there, as well. There are also trips to NYC and Philly which are not too expensive, though they are not every weekend. If you want to go somewhere when there is not a bus going which is sponsored by a campus organization, there is a bus stop just a few blocks from campus which is very convenient.</p>
<p>sigh! I know I just wrote a lot, and I hope you guys aren't too overwhelmed. Lehigh wasn't my 1st choice either -- I was deciding between Columbia and Lehigh, but after a year, I know I made the right decision.</p>