You’ve never even heard of Greenough, and you don’t remember Pennypacker being one of the historic dorms they said you’d live in when you took a tour of campus. Hurlbut’s name couldn’t be less appealing, and you haven’t the faintest idea where Apley Court is.
But don’t despair quite yet: life outside of Harvard Yard isn’t so bad after all. It’s true that you will often have to leave a little sooner to meet a friend for lunch, or walk a little further to make it to the T, but you will quickly discover that living away from the hustle and bustle of the Yard can be a great experience. Here are ten reasons to love life in exile from the Yard:
1. A place to call home: Unlike your classmates residing, taking classes, studying and partying in the Yard, you will have a real home to escape to at the end of a long day.
2. A bigger room: Chances are your friends in the Yard will be crammed into bunk beds and closet-like rooms, but most of the rooms outside of the yard are bright and spacious. My freshman year in Greenough, I lived in a corner double with five windows; it was bigger than any room I will have for the next three years.
3. Escape the bells: What a waste to plan a schedule of 11 a.m. classes only to be woken up every morning at 8:40 a.m by the Memorial Church bells. Luckily, outside of the Yard, the early ringing won’t interrupt your pleasant slumber.
4. No tourists: As much as we all appreciate the attention, sometimes it’s nice to spend a Sunday morning away from the masses of tourists trooping across the yard with expensive cameras.
5. Food in the square: Cambridge is renowned for being a vibrant college town, but grocery stores are nowhere to be found near the Yard. If you land in a union dorm, you’ll be just a short walk from Broadway Market, an overpriced but well-stocked and delicious supermarket. And on your way to class, you can grab a cup of Starbuck’s around the corner.
6. Food delivery. Students in the Yard will quickly discover that most delivery people are not so amenable to finding their way along the paths in front of John Harvard to bring you a late night snack, but you will have no problem finding innumerable restaurants willing to provide the food you crave to your dorm outside the Yard.
7. Exercise: Even though life away from the John Harvard statue is full of delectable food, don’t worry about the freshman fifteen. The exercise you will get walking to and from the Yard is a sure way to keep off the extra pounds!
8. Proximity to classes and Lamont: Your room may be far from a lot of places, but if you land in the union dorms, you’ll pleasantly discover how close you are to Lamont, where you’ll be spending many late nights cramming. You’ll also find yourself close to the academic part of the Yard, where you will be catching up on your sleep during lectures.
9. Cab drop-off: Though as a broke college student you will quickly learn to use the T, when you do splurge on a cab home from a late night, you can actually give your address to the driver rather than vaguely indicate “the Yard.” This is particularly useful when carrying large, heavy bags.
10. A sense of community: One big aspect of college life is learning to get along with your classmates. Just like the far-away quadlings do, you will find that by living off of the beaten paths, you will quickly build a tight-knit small community with those around you.
—Staff writer Claire M. Guehenno can be reached at guehenno@fas.harvard.edu.
