Hello! This is Julia from Group 2 and I am here to share about the most important thing, FOOD. After being here for 5 weeks, I must say Berkeley is a real foodies’ heaven; everything from International House’s (I-House) buffet style meals to artichoke pizza. Besides enjoying the food here I also went on the Alcatraz Tour during the weekend, where I got to experience life as a prisoner on the rock. Of course, on top of everything else, there is still school work that needed to be done.
First up, food at I-House!
I-House serves breakfast, lunch and dinner on weekdays, while weekends they have brunch and dinner. I have to say, the dining hall is my favorite place in I-House because of the buffet style meals. Every day it’s an internal battle to stop myself from getting second servings because every thing looks so delicious! The menu changes each day and sometimes there will be special dishes like sweet & sour pork and salmon! On top of that, every meal the soft serve machine will be filled with vanilla and chocolate ice cream! Time to time there will be CAKES for desert as well. It’s really hard to resist eating everything here.
Next up are the delicious food places around Berkeley!
Artichoke Basille’s Pizza, just down Bancroft Way, is a must try for their mega size cheesy artichoke pizza. Right beside it is Dumpling Express, a good place to go when you miss authentic Chinese food like porridge and wanton soup; their xiao long bao would definitely satisfy your crave for dim sum. There’s also a MALA store on Durant Ave for those who love mala! Located on the same street, there’s also a small shop called I.B.’s that sells the best cheesesteaks I ever had, and you even have the choice of 3 meats! Also, not to forget BUBBLE TEA! Rare Tea has several shops around UC Berkeley and you definitely get your money’s worth of bubble tea with their large size cup. Of course, the ones mentioned are just a few places around UC Berkeley, if you go to Downtown Berkeley, there are so many more restaurants to choose from!
On top of just eating, there’s also sight-seeing!
The Alcatraz’s Cell House’s audio was really interesting, as they walked you through the daily lives of America’s most wanted criminals, and the few famous escape attempts as the prisoners long for freedom outside of the walls. Truly an unique and immersive experience that no one should miss!
All in all, week 5 was great even though it was project week. Everyone was getting used to the environment, and we’re basically living like locals now. That’s all for this week!
