Places you will always find Berkeley freshmen
Yes, Crossroads is on the list
Berkeley is big, but freshmen tend to end up in the same places.
The study lounge
Chances are, if you’ve lived in a dorm building you’ve spent hours and hours procrastinating in the study lounge.
It’s basically where you go when you want to find friends on your floor to distract you from doing any actual work.
Not for studying
Pro tip: It can also be used for group projects.
Crossroads (or Cafe 3, or CKDC…)
We were all forced to buy meal points at the beginning of the semester, and if you’re hungry enough what better way to spend them then at one of the various, all-you-can-eat dining halls around campus?
Home away from home
In the beginning of the year, us wide-eyed, naive freshmen were full of hope when we walked into our local Berkeley dining commons and saw the amazing variety and enormous amount of food surrounding us. Pizza and Pho? Chicken strips and fried rice?
The possibilities seemed endless.
Some days are better than others
The possibilities ended pretty fast. Turns out the chicken strips lost their novelty a few months in. Then again, it’s already paid for, so why not?
Pro tip: If you want to make your dinner more entertaining, mix all your food together and play Odds Are to see if anyone will try it.
Lost in Dwinelle
It’s called “the freshman maze” for a reason.
It’s all grey, fluorescent, and linoleum, so sometimes walking into Dwinelle is like dreaming that you’re back in high school, except you don’t know where anything is.
You can’t not have at least one class in Dwinelle
Pro tip: It’s possible to walk from level F to level G without going up or down any stairs
Frat parties
Most of the people who party at frats are freshmen as we have easier schedules than upperclassmen, we don’t have apartments, and we want to make our first years at college ones to remember.
If you know a brother and don’t mind Keystone Light, you’re in.
“It’s lit come thru”
Pro tip: wear something with pockets or you WILL lose your phone.
In the dorm bathroom, yakking after your first frat party
Turns out Keystone, boxed wine, and Vitali don’t mix very well!
Luckily, roommates exist solely to comfort us, tell us we messed up, and remind us that next time we’re returning the favor.
*Cringe emoji*
Pro tip: You live and you learn.
Being harassed by activists on Sproul
As freshmen, we haven’t quite mastered the “don’t bother me I’m busy” face that most people use to avoid being bombarded by veganism flyers and Lyft promotion codes on the way to class.
It’s hard to say no
We can’t help that we look so approachable and naive!
Thanks, but no thanks
Pro tip: Just take the flyer and keep walking.
On Facebook during lecture
This one transcends all grades, but is particularly ironic for freshmen who vowed to pay attention to every single lecture like the studious, hardworking students they are.
Bonus points for Facebook chatting with a friend who is also in lecture.
My happy place
Pro tip: Stagger times to “check out” for a few minutes during lecture with your friends so you can compile notes later.
The laundry room
Located in every dorm building, the laundry room is somewhere you’re bound to run into familiar faces.
Rude but justified
It’s a place where emotions run rampant: frustration when your Cal1card “cannot be read” by the machine, rage when people forget to take their clothes out of the machine so they’re all full, guilt and resentment when you realize you’re the one who forgot to get your laundry and someone had to take it out for you…the list goes on and on.
Pro tip: Machines are usually empty during weekday afternoons.
The area known as the Asian Ghetto
It’s cheap, fast, and located right at the center of all the Units, making it the perfect place for a quick and tasty meal either late at night or in on the way home from class.
Plus, it always smells amazing because of Kingpin.
So many options!
Pro tip: The naan from House of Curries right across the street is like an edible cloud.
Locked out of the room
It’s happened to all of us at least once.
Whether you dropped your keys somewhere between Memorial Glade and Unit 2 or you were stranded in the hall after a shower with nothing but a towel, you luckily had your roommates on speed dial to swoop in and save the situation.
Classic
By now, you’ve mastered the essential trifecta: Keys, phone, and wallet (with your Cal1card intact, of course.)
Trifecta!
Pro tip: Preset everything in your bag so you don’t forget anything in your rush to class.
Yes, Berkeley is big, but it’s nice to know that no matter where us freshman live or what classes we take, we’re all encountering the same places, mistakes, and experiences in preparation for the three years still ahead.