Hey y'all! My name is Natasha, and I am a junior at Dartmouth College. I'm majoring in history and minoring in public policy and Chinese. In my free time, I love to watch New Girl, hang out with my friends, and explore the Upper Valley. Dartmouth is a pretty neat place— I hope you enjoy reading my posts about life here!
Academic Program
History Major and Minors in Public Policy and Chinese
No Summertime Sadness Here: A Reflection on My Sophomore Summer
As people are beginning to trade in their tank tops for sweaters and iced coffees for pumpkin-spiced lattes, I can't help but reminisce about my summer term at Dartmouth, commonly known as sophomore summer. This summer was particularly special to me because I hadn't been on campus in over a year due to the pandemic. Seeing all of my friends in-person and taking part in fun activities on campus was nothing short of surreal.
In one of the blog posts I made before the summer started, I had written down a bucket list of things I wanted to experience by the end of my sophomore summer. I can gladly say that I was able to accomplish all the items on my bucket list and some more! One of the highlights of my summer was joining Ujimelt, a summer dance group.
Me and some members of Ujimelt!
As someone who did not have any hip-hop dancing experience going in, Ujimelt allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and try something new. In addition, I was able to meet so many cool people I had never met before. Although I probably will not be asked to be a backup dancer for Beyoncé anytime soon, being in Ujimelt was such a fun and memorable experience.
Another highlight of my summer was doing all the summery-activities that the Upper Valley has to offer. From hanging out by the Connecticut River to eating delicious ice cream at Ice Cream Fore-U and basking in the sun on the Green, my friends and I truly embraced the summer season.
My friend Emily enjoying some delicious ice cream!
I also really enjoyed my classes this summer. One class in particular that I took was HIST 96.37, Topics in Economic History. The culminating assignment in this course was a 20-25 page paper on a topic of our choice. While daunting at first, this paper was so rewarding to work on because I was able to sharpen my historical researching skills and dive-deep into a topic I was passionate about.
Sophomore summer has been my favorite term at Dartmouth so far. It was amazing to be back on Dartmouth's beautiful campus and to be face-to-face with my friends again after such a long time. As I begin my fall term, I will hold dear in my heart all the wonderful memories I made this summer!
