Stuff to do in Cal

<p>Hey - I'm an incoming freshman for Fall 2006 - I'm arriving in Cal on 15th August, when move-in day is only on the 19th.. I'm an international student and we have a couple of information sessions before the 19th thats why I'm arriving early. I'll be staying in a hotel till the 19th.. I know theres a lot of stuff going on in Frisco and lots to see, but what exactly is there to do on campus for those four days.. Are there any interesting places to see, things to do etc. etc. which I could do before move-in day?</p>

<p>Thanks a lot!</p>

<p>OH, man. This thread will be good.</p>

<p>I know - but for all the wrong reasons.</p>

<p>^^ I'm lost...</p>

<p>Prepare to be overwhelmed!</p>

<p>A'right I'm ready... Bring it on folks</p>

<p>There's a chocolate factory which gives free tours in Berkeley. </p>

<p>There are hundreds of great places to eat, many quite fine and many fairly cheap. </p>

<p>There are musuems all over campus, but it would probably make more sense for you to seem them when they're free for you with a student ID. Some will be free, but some will charge.</p>

<p>The sunsets from the top of the campinile or Barrows is quite stunning. </p>

<p>I've yet to go up to Lawrence Berkeley Lab- I do hope they have tours. Do they? </p>

<p>If going to parties is your thing, I'm sure many frats and co-ops will be active. </p>

<p>If the co-ops or frats or sorrorities interest you, I'd check them out, or you can do that later in the semester. </p>

<p>I'd hang around IHouse and play some chess with people sitting outside, or just talk to them. </p>

<p>Going to Strada or another cafe such as Romano or the classic music cafe and reading or talking to random people can be good.</p>

<p>Relaxing on Memorial Glade or Faculty Hill can be fun, and you might just be asked to join a game of some sort, such as ultimate frisbee, at the glade. </p>

<p>I'd check out the main library, and maybe also whatever specialized library your department has, such as the French library or the math and statistics library.</p>

<p>Find where your major department and classes will be, explore buildings in general. </p>

<p>Get lost in Dwinelle- that's always fun. :) </p>

<p>If you like playing soccer or ultimate frisbee or other sports, you can locate the fields. </p>

<p>Interested in business? Walk around Haas. </p>

<p>Hang out by the Strawberry creek at various points, such as behind Dwinelle near Valley Life Science Building under the trees. </p>

<p>Walk around the mini-forrest behind the extension to VLSB. </p>

<p>Observe how awesome the Berkeley squirrels are.</p>

<p>Check the Berkeley calendar of events and see what is going on. Departments that interest you may be </p>

<p>Berkeley has a list of suggestions of what to do when visiting, and there are many lists on the internet of what to do in the city of Berkeley.</p>

<p>Why not go to San Francisco a bit? :)</p>

<p>I like walking to different departments because they have cool displays in windows, such as the building next to Le Conte with physics stuff. It has information about microtechnology, and really cool pictures!</p>

<p>Relax by the garden in front of Le Conte. They have weird, cool trees.</p>

<p>Admire the architecture- there are a lot of buildings in all different styles.</p>

<p>Walk around Sproul when its busy. Refuse some flyers, take others. Read a paper and magazine or two. </p>

<p>Relax on the grass on Sproul.</p>

<p>Listen to the old guitarist who plays in front of Dwinelle- that guy is pretty good. He's sort of like a Bob Dylan who never broke.</p>

<p>See a movie or two, particularly the indie films at the indie theater.</p>

<p>Go to the book stores and music stores- Amoeba and Rasputin, for instance.</p>

<p>CalX or others might have some good suggestions.</p>

<p>Read material in the student book store- a lot of stuff has advice about what to do around Berkeley. You can also buy some random stuff which might help you, such as a key-chain and ID card holder.</p>

<p>Thanks a lot Drab.. very helpful! And as a matter of fact I know one of the senior scientists in LBL (Lawrence Berkeley Labs) so I'm definitely gonna check that out whether they have tours or not! :)</p>

<p>But seriously, thanks!</p>

<p>I second the sunsets thing. During Welcome Week, they have this "watch the sunset from the Campanile" thing that you should definitely do, because generally the Campanile is closed by the time the sun is setting. But, yeah, during the school year, if you're ever stressed out or sad, just go up to the 8th floor of Barrows, go to the balcony, and watch the sun set against the Golden Gate bridge. Gorgeous. </p>

<p>The Cal Sailing Club offers free "open house" lessons every couple weeks or so. Look up the dates at their website. Or just go to the Berkeley Marina, it's lovely. </p>

<p>Take a hike up to the Big C, especially at night (but someone bring a flashlight!) Oh and don't lose your keys at the top. Because, uh, that's what I did and that was the first time I was ever locked out. </p>

<p>Walk around the 4th street area of Berkeley. It's like, the antithesis of Telegraph...lots of really nice (read: expensive) shops, tree-lined streets, etc. </p>

<p>Feel incredibly scholarly and college-y while sitting in the North Reading Room in the University Library </p>

<p>Browse through used books at Moe's</p>

<p>Eat pizza at the Cheeseboard, which is down Shattuck (north)</p>

<p>Haha, Frisco.</p>

<p>I got some questions too for anybody that can answer them...
Are there any Fry's or anyplace like that around for the tech freaks? Where's the closest DDR place or arcade? Are any of the gyms or fitness centers open on campus? Do you have to sign up for classes to get in?</p>

<p>Sadly the closest DDR machine isn't...very close. <a href="http://www.ddrfreak.com/locations/locations.php?zip=berkeley%2C+CA&radius=50&action=search%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.ddrfreak.com/locations/locations.php?zip=berkeley%2C+CA&radius=50&action=search&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>There's a gym on campus called the RSF (Recreational Sports Facility) that has lots of classes (aerobics, yoga, kickboxing, etc) and squash courts and machines and weights, etc. It's $10 per semester now, I believe. </p>

<p>Dunno about the Fry's or tech places. There's a Best Buy in Emeryville?</p>

<p>I thought I saw a Best Buy a little south of Cal near a Macy's.</p>

<p>There's one in Emmeryville.</p>

<p>Take a quick toke at the top of Campanile tower or a leisurely one at one of the creeks that run through campus. Then head off to Top Dog and eat 5 different sausages. Just kidding. The campus and surrounding area are so awesome you will never be bored. Heck, you can spend the whole 4 days on Telegraph and never get bored.</p>

<p>sweetdreams... I guess the Underground/Bearcade no longer exists at Cal? I'd think they'd have DDR machines.</p>

<p>No, Bearcade closed, and there's a gelato shop in its place (Gelataeria Naia)</p>

<p>Aww... that sucks. I mean SuperNOVA finally came out after all these years.</p>

<p>But anybody interested in a DDR Club? We'll get a sweet set-up going.</p>

<p>why was bearcade shut down?</p>

<p>don't really know why; I think 'cause it wasn't profitable at all, was probably losing money...</p>