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When I was applying to Penn I remember reading somewhere that Penn was
the most social of the Ivy Leagues. And I would say that is very true. I
thought the social scene was great...it didn't have to be overwhelming
if you didn't want it to be and there were always things to do.
My Freshman year I joined a sorority and my social life was basically
parties within the Greek system...and I loved it. There was nothing
better than heading out on a Friday night with a bunch of your friends
and going to one of the fraternities where you could drink for free,
hang out with your friends, and then stumble home later that night
making the mandatory stop to get pizza, chips, and whatever other calorie-
packed food you were craving! Then you wake up the next day and do the
same thing all over again!
Needless to say the students at Penn are looking to work hard and party
hard as well. Obviously that doesn't mean everyone is like that or that
you have to fit that mold. However, if you like to go out and have fun
there are definitely those venues open to you at Penn. And on another
note, you don't have to join the Greek System in order to take advantage
of what it has to offer. You can go to most parties whether or not you
are part of a house and if you have friends in a house you will most
likely be invited to many of their events.
There are a few bars on campus (they could have changed in 2 years) but
when I was there Smokey Joe's (Smokes) was the big place to go. There's
also the Blarney Stone and Cav's. Plus Penn had some good eating spots
as well. We used to love the pizza from Allegro's, Genji has great sushi
(well, it was great until I learned what real sushi could taste like!)
and there's Mad4Mex, great margaritas!!!
One of the reasons I went to Penn was because I loved the fact that they
had tons of sports! If you want to do intramural there are many options
available to you. I ended up not having the time to do a sport myself
but I used to love going to football games at Franklin Field and
basketball games as well.
And don't forget about Spring Fling! Every spring there is an event
called Spring Fling that takes place in the Quad. There are singers that
perform, various groups at Penn do performances...it's a great event!
Aside from all that Penn has to offer there are several other outlets as
well. One of the advantages of living in a city is that you have access
too many things! I didn't take advantage of that until Junior year, but
it's nice to be able to hop in a cab (no one drives since Philly isn't
very conducive to having a car) and go eat or drink downtown somewhere.
Old City is a great spot...they have some fun bars there and great food!
Plus you have South Street if you want to get off campus for a day and
do some shopping. And of course there is Liberty Place for more upscale
shopping.
And of course you have the Schuylkill River...you can go walking along it
on a nice afternoon or go ride your bike if you have one. Then there are
all of the museums in the city. The Art Museum...free Sunday mornings
(yes, you can make yourself get up early once in awhile!), the Franklin
Institute, the South Street Seaport, The Reading Terminal...there are
tons of things to do in the city and I would definitely try to take
advantage of it! Plus, the great thing about Philly is that unlike New
York or other larger cities, you can walk Philly very easily. And after
all those nights of late night snacks, you may need the extra walking!
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