Skip to main content

a visit to UC Berkeley

One of my classmates in high school, Hanna, is taking a summer course at UC Berkeley. So one weekend, I went to Berkeley by BART to catch up with her. It was my first opportunity to visit this school by foot because the last time I was there, Biboy and I just ate lunch at a tiny Thai restaurant just outside the campus.

The campus is pretty. There were banners all over campus that had some historical snippets, probably as part of the school's 150th anniversary. For instance, Levi Strauss donated money in 1897 that became UC Berkeley's first scholarships. And then there's some flaunting of some of the university's major achievements; like having affiliations with 104 Nobel laureates.


These Nobel Laureates have their own designated parking spaces on campus. So to ensure that one gets assured parking inside UC Berkeley, one sure way to get space is by becoming a Nobel Laureate. Mere mortals probably have to travel by public transportation or to compete for parking. 

I had the impression that UC Berkeley is much smaller than UQ's St Lucia campus. But that's probably because we were just in the main campus. We didn't visit the research facilities that occupied the bigger part of the university. The buildings in the main campus were very close to each other. The Sather Tower carillon tolls, announcing the hour. However, it's not just a mere tower of bells. According to Hanna, the carillon also serves as the repository of fossils excavated from the La Brea tar pits in Los Angeles.


We stopped by the Free Speech Movement Café, named after the student protest that started in the university in the mid-1960s. This was at a time when the Civil Rights Movement was gaining significant impact and sentiments against the Vietnam War was growing. I hadn't realised that I was standing where the action was fifty years ago! 

We also walked along Telegraph Avenue, outside the school campus. The next few blocks reminded me of UPLB's Grove, a section of Lopez Avenue where shops and restaurants are located just beyond the university gate. Lopez Avenue has a small-town feel to it but Telegraph Avenue is definitely urban.

It's an interesting afternoon in Berkeley, definitely. I'm glad that Hanna had some free time for us to meet and walk around campus. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for dropping by!

Before moving on, please share your thoughts or comments about the post. :)

Thanks again!

Popular posts from this blog

10 things I learned while driving on Marcos Highway to Baguio City

I went on a day trip to the City of Pines, which was around a 700-km drive from my house. I drove  going up there and then from the city to Victoria, Tarlac. After that, my dad took over the driving duties. It was day trip with Tita Ising and Tito Sibing with us. Anyway, this trip was my first time to go to Baguio City with me behind the wheel. As everyone who drives up knows, there are three main routes to Baguio from the lowlands: Kennon Road, which ascends from Rosario, La Union. It was out of my options because it's too dangerous to use that road in the rainy season. The second route is via Naguilian Road, which makes my trip a lot longer because the beginning of the ascent is in Bauang, La Union (further north). The last route, and the one I took, was the Marcos Highway, now known as the Aspiras-Palispis Highway. This 47-km road starts from Agoo, La Union and is touted as the safest route among the three.  As I drove up and then down (on the same day; we were in Bagu
4 comments
Read more

How MALDI-TOF-MS makes mycobacterium diagnosis faster and more accurate

The laboratory I work in has plenty of instruments that help us characterise and identify microorganisms causing diseases in patients. One of my current projects is to validate an instrument called "matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometer" (MALDI-TOF-MS) in identifying members of the Mycobacterium  species. Many of these organisms are opportunistic, meaning they only cause illnesses in people whose immune systems are not strong enough to fight infections. Mycobacterium leprae  is known for causing leprosy, but we cannot grow this bacterium in culture media, so we cannot isolate it. Mycobacterium tuberculosis  complex, on the other hand, is a group of several species of Mycobacterium  that causes tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a disease that killed 1.6 million people in 2021 alone. It is a leading cause of death globally, second only to COVID-19 since the pandemic began. Identifying the Mycobacterium species that has infected a patient is
Post a Comment
Read more

a crash course on traditional Filipino houses

On Dr Jose Rizal's birthday this year, I was back in historic Manila with Ate Bing, Ate Mary , and Manuel . But instead of visiting him, we opted to soak up on Philippine culture. Our first stop: the Cultural Center of the Philippines ' (CCP) Museo ng Kalinangang Pilipino .  Aside from the musical instruments, I noticed the dioramas about Filipino homes. Filipinos living by the sea (the 'sea gypsies', Sama Dilaut or Badjao ) have boathouses; those who live in the mountains, like the Bagobos , have developed interconnected houses in the trees; Filipinos who live along the path of the strongest typhoon winds, such as the Ivatans , have developed houses of thick limestone walls; and people who live in calmer conditions used bamboo and nipa to construct their houses, like the lowlanders and the Agtas . Sama Dilaut 'lepa' and houses on stilts (in the background) Ivatan limestone house nipa hut Ifugao 'fale' Maranao '
Post a Comment
Read more