Burlington

Burlington


It's parents weekend at Saint Mike's and that means two things. Every one's room has to be cleaned so that their mom doesn't reprimand them. And that Saint Mikes is crawling with parents that want to take their kids, their roommates and friends out to every meal conceivable. Which I benefited from greatly and got me thinking. How does Burlington play a role in life at Saint Mikes and what is Burlington like?


The number one best thing about Burlington is that it is so close. Its about a 20 minute bus ride to the bus stop downtown that is directly on Church Street. And since our Knight Card works as a bus pass and with the bus running every 20 minutes past campus that basically means we can get to Burlington whenever we please. The Knight Card also can work as a debit card for students at tons of off campus locations and those include many places in Burlington! So as a student at Saint Mike's Burlington is an escape, a fun playground or a place to pick up the necessities.

Church Street- The hub of the city of Burlington itself, Church street is a melting pot of college students, old hippies and huge dogs. During the warmer months there are street vendors and hundreds of people meandering enjoying eachother's company. In the colder months Christmas lights give those bleak, grey December days a touch of sparkle. Walking Church street one is likely to run into a vibrant shimmering community of people, interesting shopping, and tons of musicians. Its hard to describe because it is somewhere that needs to be expierenced.

Restaurants- While Vermont itself is famous for its locally grown, organic food, there no other place that this can be experienced more perfectly and in more different ways than Burlington. Most of the restaurants get some if not all their food from local farms and the quality comes through in their food. Want to make a good impression on a date? Three Tomatoes. Looking for a great place to celebrate a birthday? American Flatbreads. A quick yet delicious burrito? Bolocco. My secret obsession aka crepes? The Skinny Pancake. I could go on but I think I am getting my point across, Burlington has some great food.

Champlain- Now I grew up a 7-mile stretch of beach so I am always weary of any lake for the main reason that it is not an ocean. But I have come to love Champlain and not just because it reminds me of home because it is a large body of water. I love it in the fall during the first few weeks of school when one can go to North beach and actually jump off the cliffs and go into the water without getting instant hypothermia. I love it in winter when the water reflects the Adirondacks so well its hard to tell where sky ends and water begins. I love spring when there are little kids learning to ride their bikes on the bike path on the first nice day. I love it in summer when it seems like every person that lives in Burlington descends on the beach.

Learning Opportunities- Burlington means something a little different for many Saint Mike's student than for other people. Many classes, usually in the Social Science Liberal Studies Requirements (Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, etc.), have service requirements to the class. My first introduction was with Professor Delaney's Introduction to Anthropology class last semester. We were asked to do two hours a week in a classroom or youth center that was culturally different from our own. Burlington and the surrounding communities have a high percentage of refugees within communities so it is not a hard thing to do. I started volunteering at King Street Youth Center's Teen Futures Program. I tutored teenagers ranging from 6Th to 12Th grade with anything they might need help with. After they finished their homework, they usually beat me in basketball for the remaining time. Now, I happened to love working with the kids so I continued to do it past my required time but some students choose not to. Regardless, Burlington as a city presents the unique possibility for students to be engaged in their community. Beyond shopping and eating, Burlington allows students to give back to the community through service learning for classes or through MOVE or many other ways.