Hello friends! My name is Diana D'Souza, and I'm pursuing a double major in Government modified with Economics. On campus, I'm the summer Co-President of Women in Business (WIB) and a Chinese language research assistant. I'm also involved in the Dartmouth Outing Club (DOC) and will be leading a fly fishing first-year trip in the Grant. In my free time, I enjoy paddleboarding, curating Spotify playlists, and baking with friends.
After grabbing my daily smoothie and breakfast sandwich from Collis and chicken noodle soup and sandwich from FoCo, I sometimes find myself craving food from back home. When I get the urge to eat non-DDS (Dartmouth Dining Services Food), I venture to Main Street in pursuit of a new restaurant to try.
I have only been here for six weeks, but I have become quite attached to Tuk Tuk Thai Cuisine's Drunken Noodles and Pineapple Fried Rice. A lot of clubs will set aside part of their budget so members can eat Tuk Tuk takeout during meetings. I also highly recommend Molly's if the parents are in town. Although it is a bit pricey, their freshly baked bread and loaded nachos make it a worthy investment. However, if the wallet is looking a little empty, I suggest heading to CVS or Domino's for a snack run. Other "must tries" include Lou's (peep their Country Breakfast in the cover picture), My Brigadero, and Swirl and Pearl's Thai bubble tea.
A lot of students from the city and suburbs share a common concern: "What will I do in rural Hanover?" As someone who grew up near New York City, I also weighed location as a major factor in my decision to come to Dartmouth. Fortunately, between classes and clubs, I am constantly busy doing something. The Collis Programming Board also makes sure that is never a shortage of events happening on campus–from Trivia Night to concerts to trips to Boston, Vermont, and New York. Most convenient of all, Main Street, just a ten-minute walk from the Green, allows students to go beyond the Dartmouth bubble and to explore other aspects of college life.
Being in DC this summer and participating in the Rockefeller Center's First Year Fellows program, I've been able to really see just how special the Dartmouth alumni network is.
During a recent conversation with my HS friend who also goes to college in the US, we discussed what it's like experiencing culture shock especially as international students. I'd love to share the tips we developed to combat this feeling.
Every time I travel, I wear one article of Dartmouth gear. Yes, I have school spirit and love the Big Green, but I wear my school's green colors for a different reason.
Being away from the Dartmouth's campus and some of my closest friends has given me an opportunity to reflect on the community I was able to find at Dartmouth during this past academic year.
I recently finished my first year at Dartmouth. Now that I've had time to reflect, I realize just how much I've come to learn about myself in the past year. Hint: Dartmouth has a big hand in that.
