I'm Kalina, a '27 from Sofia, Bulgaria. I love books (I love reading and writing them), and I particularly love fantasy (i.e., I'm an expert on Middle Earth and Hogwarts studies). I'm fascinated by the human brain and the real-world magic of science. I also love hiking, bird-watching, climbing, and em dashes.
Instead of taking a normal Writing 5 course, I decided to fulfill my first-year writing requirement by taking HUM 1. This course helped me strengthen my relationship to literature and writing. It changed the way in which I thought about classics, both books and movies (we saw Wall-E, by the way). And it also changed the way I thought about academic writing and literary criticism. A third of the course was made up of lectures by professors from different departments, while the other two thirds were discussions with a single professor and a small group of 15 students.
Intro to Neuroscience was the first course I was truly excited about. It wasn't an easy course; we had a weekly quiz of ten to thirteen questions covering the lectures from the past few days, but it was very interesting and also very funny (Professor Winter's humor is legendary). We learned about the human brain at the level of individual cells. We also studied it at the level of different systems, from the olfactory system to the parasympathetic nervous system. And last, we learned about cognition: learning, attention, language. We saw a real human brain with formaldehyde dripping from it. We saw a real sheep's brain. And a rat's brain. And we pocked each other with paper clips to determine the sensitivity of our touch receptors.
Journalism with Professor Alexis Jetter was an enjoyable class, sometimes challenging but very satisfying. We covered a lot of US history through the lens of the media, and we started every class with a discussion of the current news and events (thanks to these discussions, I feel like a real adult now—not so lost when the conversation turns toward politics). Several guest lecturers—from former students of Professor Jetter who're now journalists to a New York Times war correspondent—brought us real stories from the field. In the middle of the term, each of us had to find someone over 30 years old in the Upper Valley, spend a day with them, and write a profile.
SummerSofia, Bulgaria
I'm spending my first summer back home, helping my family care for my newborn sister. In my free time (changing diapers takes a lot of time!), I'm doing research for the cognitive neuroscience lab FINN Lab, preparing for my classes in the fall, and working on a new book.
Once upon a time, there were three chubbers (Cabin and Trail jargon for CnT members) that hiked for 8 miles, from Hanover to a Dartmouth Outing Club (DOC)-owned-and-maintained cabin in the woods. They saw tens of wild-flowers, crossed a few brooks, and saw many birds. Then they spent three hours reading and napping on the cabin porch until the sun set behind the tree line and the stars stormed the sky. Once night had fallen and all they could hear outside was the singing of the nearby brook, they retreated inside to meet Mr. Misha (a friendly mouse that scurried around the cabin).
Hrishik, Duda, and I, aka the usual suspects
It's a lovely narrative, isn't it? It's based on a true story.
The three hikers were Duda, Hrishik, and I. This Saturday, we left Hanover on foot and hiked to Harris Cabin (also known as Class of '66 Lodge), one of many cabins owned by Dartmouth. It was just the three of us on one of many DOC trips! Duda was the trip's leader. Hrishik was her heeler (a leader in training in Cabin and Trail jargon). And I was their only trippee. We joked that I was SUCH an important person and that I needed a personal escort to and from the cabin.
Duda, about to cross the brook
Duda, Hrishik, and I turned out to be a great team. The intro question–every DOC trip has an intro question–for this trip was "Do you prefer the beach or the mountains?" Duda, Hrishik, and I all turned out to be big sand haters (sand gets everywhere! In your hair, in your ears, in between the pages of the book you're trying to read!), and we all loved going to the mountains. We also soon realized that neither of us could sing. We all came from countries that start with the letter B (Brazil, Bangladesh, and Bulgaria). We all love mango. The one thing that broke our perfect streak of things we had in common was that Duda loves beets! (Neither Hrishik nor I shared her enthusiasm for beets hummus.)
The inside of the cabin, aka Mr. Misha's kingdom
Once we arrived at the Class of '66 Lodge, we had lunch (the regular tortillas, hummus, and bell peppers that often accompany DOC trips), and then we pulled out a few mattresses on the porch, and we all read. As a friend put it, three introverts are doing their own thing. It was paradise.
In August, I participated in the First Year Summer Enrichment Program, a pre-orientation program designed to help FGLI students adjust to life at Dartmouth!
I'll argue why my dorm, French Hall, is not only the best in the River Cluster and West House but also the best dorm you can get as a first-year at Dartmouth.
What a wonderful summer! From joining a summer dance ensemble to regularly canoeing along the Connecticut River, I reflect on the aspects that made Sophomore Summer one of the most memorable Dartmouth traditions I've taken part in.
Hola chicos! Do not worry I know I might be making you a little hungry but I promise it'll be worth it! Come and take a seat with me at the cookout table:)
