SKIP TO NEXT PAGE
MUSEUM RO W Museum Row was located in the Miracle Mile district of the city, near the La Brea tarpits. It stretched along W ilshire Boulevard between Fairfax and W estern Avenues. The area featured the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LA C M A), the Page Museum, and the Peterson Automotive Museum among many smaller exhibits.
Potential attractions could be found across the whole city. Attractions abounded even minutes away from campus. Westwood Village, located directly across the street from the main campus, was frequented by students and faculty alike. Arguably the gem of Westwood, Diddy Riese’s $1.50 ice cream sandwiches had become popular among not only those in Los Angeles but the greater Southern California in general. On the other side of campus, the Getty Center overlooked the I-405 freeway; the museum featured art from pre-20th century Europe in addition to its beautiful gardens and architecture. To the west along the Santa Monica coastline, 3rd Street Promenade offered a vibrant nightlife and a locale for more affluent shoppers. And deeper into the heart of the city lay attractions such as Griffith Park, Koreatown, and the Staples Center. Less than an hour’s drive away were the Long Beach Aquarium and Orange County. In particular, the city was known for its affiliation with the movie industry and its close proximity to Hollywood. Many students chose to hike to the world-famous Hollywood sign at least once during their college careers. “It’s really memorable during my undergraduate experience to visit such an American landmark,” said third year microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics student Jonny Jih. Numerous movies held premiers at various theaters in the city, even in Westwood. Terrazon and brass stars were emblazoned along the sidewalks of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine street; the Walk of Fame honored thousands of influential figures throughout the years, from actors to directors to musicians. To a lesser extent, Los Angeles was also
D O D G ER ST A DIU M Located in Elysian Park, Dodger Stadium is home of Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Los Angeles Dodgers.The stadium has hosted several MLB All-Star games, the 1988 World Series, baseball during the 1984 Summer O lympics, and was the starting point for the LA Marathon in 2012.
as famous for its large number of museums. In addition to the Getty Center, Museum Row featured a number of art museums, and many others (such as the Museum of Tolerance) could be found throughout the city. To some, these museums offered an insight into a world rarely seen by others. “I love LACMA because it’s intensely surreal to see a painting in real life after studying the textbooks for years,” fourth year design/media arts student Kevin Cheng said, adding, “After coming from a formal analysis background and being forced to learn the theories of modern art, going to the museum has definitely helped me appreciate modern art in a way I never could have before.” While there was no lack of tourist attractions in the greater Los Angeles area, students tended to favor certain locations over others. Staples Center, in downtown L.A. was particularly popular; students flocked to various shows, concerts, and Lakers or Clippers games. Elsewhere in the downtown area, other students with different interests still found their own places of interest. Oliver Sheu, a second year mechanical engineering student, remarked, “I love the area in downtown around LA Live because of the atmosphere: all of the lights, people, and urban feeling. Whenever I pass through I always want to stop by just to see what’s going on.” However, sporting events and shows were only a portion of what the city of Los Angeles had to offer. Koreatown, located along the Mid-Wilshire district, was a popular destination due to its abundance of restaurants. Despite the parking and driving difficulties associated with the area, students still flocked to the array of inexpensive all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ restaurants in Koreatown. And yet, these were just a sampling of what the city had to offer. Students at UCLA had the benefit of living in one of the busiest cities in the world, and Bruins seemed to not squander their time in college. Los Angeles offered a variety of places that satisfied those in search of all kinds of attractions, and most students–many of whom will only be in Southern California for four years–capitalized upon these rare opportunities. LEFT | PINK’S H O T D O GS W ith customers willing to wait in line for up to two hours, Pink’s served unique hot dogs to those who had time to spare on La Brea and Melrose. The hot dog stand featured orders based on celebrities such as Rosie O ’Donnell and Martha Stewart.
500) D AYS O F SUMMER BENC H Marc W ebb’s 2009 indie hit, (500) Days of Summer, utilized this bench as a reoccurring and important setting. The actual bench could be found in a park known as Angels Knoll at the corner of O live and 4th Streets. A plaque on the back of the bench paid homage to the movie.
PAULEY PAVILION Pauley Pavilion’s ! rst phase of construction began in April 2010. Due to the ongoing construction at Pauley Pavilion, home games for the basketball team were moved to the Los Angeles Sports Arena or the Honda Center in Anaheim during the 2011-2012 season. While many students did not like the idea of traveling on the road to watch a home game, they were optimistic about the renovated Pauley Pavilion. “Being able to watch your basketball team in a home game was all part of school pride. But when you had to take a bus for an hour to watch the home game, it was not really convenient. I cannot complain as long as the Pauley Pavilion construction was in the interest of students. But at the same time I could not walk to a basketball game the day of. I had to plan it out” said third year math student Dylan Rudy. While construction progress was sometimes unnoticeable due to fencing, a live camera feed from the Pauley construction camera chronicled the construction’s animated progress. " e renovated facility, scheduled to open sometime during fall of 2012, boasted a digital scoreboard, a ! lm room, and improved
seating that enhanced the fan experience, among many other much-needed additions. BOMBSHELTER The Bombshelter in the Court of Sciences, which was under construction for two years, opened in early 2012. Prior to its closure for construction, the Bombshelter was a convenient place for South Campus students to have lunch between classes. “When I first came here and also as a South Campus major, I spent the majority of the time consuming fine edibles at the Bombshelter. I was somewhat distraught when I heard it was closing my second year as I lost a valuable resource, but once I saw the plans of developing a more sustainable center, I appreciated the campus’ initiative. I took forward to studying there before I graduate,” said fourth year integrative biology and physiology student Ryan Andre Magsino. Now named the South Campus Student Center, the Bombshelter houses four restaurants and features a roof-top garden. The roof-top garden is one of several features that make the building environmentally friendly. STRATHMORE BRIDGE The Strathmore Bridge, located between the tennis courts behind the Los Angeles
Tennis Center and Parking Lot 8, provided a quiet and less-congested route to Ackerman Union from “The Hill”. In February of 2011, the bridge underwent construction to make it seismically sound. When the underpass was closed for a couple of weeks, students who did not want to fight the crowds on Bruin Walk
“When I first came here and also as a South Campus major, I spent the majority of the time consuming fine edibles at the Bombshelter. I was somewhat distraught when I heard it was closing my second year as I lost a valuable resource, but once I saw the plans of developing a more sustainable center, I appreciated the campus’ initiative. I look forward to studying there before I graduate”
walked through the dimly lit Parking Lot 8. The project was completed in January of 2012. ENGINEERING VI The Engineering 1A building was demolished before the start of the fall quarter. The newly named replacement, Engineering VI, was completed in spring of 2012. Engineering VI was expected to house not only modern conveniences such as air conditioning but also top-notch technology to advance research. Second-year mechanical engineering student Isaac Zapata explained, “the Engineering [IA] building was for research and office hours. [The building] did not hold any classes so [the construction] did not affect me or other students as far as I knew. I planned to apply for research and I thought it was good that we were getting new research equipment for the school. Laboratories would be bigger so hopefully professors would open up their lab to more students.” A STATE OF HIBERNATION Akin to a bear or a bruin, the buildings under construction entered a state of inactivity or hibernation. There were no bustling sporting activities going on inside Pauley Pavilion. The Bombshelter lacked the chitter and chatter of students reviewing chemistry homework over sandwiches. However, after some time, the period of dormancy ended, and just like a bruin bear opening its eyes, the facilities reopened their doors. O PP O SIT E | Pauley Pavilion’s exterior being encased in glass that lines the arena is one of the main aesthetic differences of the renovation. The renovation of Pauley Pavillion is a $136 million dollar project. AB O V E | Stein Plaza under construction with the foundation for the new Edie and Lew W asserman Building halfway built. The new Edie and Lew W asserman Building will contain a state-of-the-art research center slated to open in 2014 in Stein Plaza which will boast 3-D surgical imaging technology, new programs to treat eye diseases and a patient-centered approach to care that experts say is the first of its kind in the U .S. LEFT | Sproul Landing under construction during the month of February. Sproul Landing in addition to Sproul Cove and Sproul Presidio Commons Building will allow U C LA to guarantee undergraduates four years of housing.
coming down the hill. At the beginning of winter quarter, new signs were posted with Joe Bruin reminding students that the hill was a pedestrian zone, and those on foot had the right of way. First-year applied mathematics student Priscilla Cho voiced her happiness with the new signs, and said, “I think it will be good to have a reminder for the skateboarders and scooter riders who fly down the hill, weaving in and out. Just about every day I feel like my life is in danger when they go by me. Walking up the stairs is plenty of effort without having to worry about being run over, too.”
Conversely, there were some close calls
BY FOOT The obvious candidate around here, walking made the most sense for many students because of the sheer simplicity of it, and because of the ease with which one could get away from an out-of-control skateboard. Put on some sneakers, rainbow sandals, heels—if one so dared—or boots,
and walk out the door. The numerous steps on campus made walking advantageous, as students didn’t have to carry anything else as they already struggled enough trudging up the seemingly never-ending steps. BY SCOOTER The scooter was a throwback from about ten years ago, but was nonetheless a highly adopted option for those who wanted to get to their destinations more quickly. Although the scooter’s contribution to the perils of riding down the hill was minimal, the small brakes were the downfall of the vehicle, because slowing down on the way to Bruin Walk was not exactly an option. The advantages of scooters were their convenient size, portability, and obvious style. They may have seemed awkward, but those who rode scooters attested to the fact that their mode of transportation was logical. “Riding
a scooter is three things: quick, fun, and attractive. What’s not to love?” said secondyear English student Jack Stuart. After a brief hiatus in popularity after the initial excitement in the early 2000s, it seems that Razor scooters have found their place in helping UCLA students get around campus. BY SKATEBOARD Generally a bit trickier than scooters because of the lack of braking mechanisms, skateboarding was the mode of transportation favored by those who weren’t actually trying to brake much and didn’t mind using the soles of their shoes as brakes. Often, skateboarders were seen flying down the hill, and surrounding students held their breath, hoping no collision was impending. Also convenient-to-store and practical to ride, the skateboard allowed students full use of their hands to inhale the BruinCafe
muffin and down the much-needed cup of coffee on the way to class, unlike the use of a scooter. BY BIKE Taking the complexity up a level, the bike is another commonly used transportation method on campus, but how did this work logistically? How did those riding bikes manage to get up the hills around campus? Did they leave their bikes at the bottom of the residential hill, or tough it up to the top? Wasn’t it always terribly inconvenient in the crowds? And what about all the stairs? “I ride my bike because I’m always rushing around from class to class, and biking just makes travel time so much shorter,” said second-year physics student Sara Tran. Some students opted to leave their bikes at the bottom of the hill rather than walk it up, others locked them up near the residential halls, and others even brought their bikes to store inside the room—with their roommates’ consent, hopefully. Albeit difficult to maneuver during peak traffic times, the bike offered speed and ease when getting from North Campus to South Campus in the ten minutes between classes. OPPOSITE T OP LEFT & T OP RIG H T | The majority of Bruins like second-year computer science student Yixin Sun preferred to walk to and from classes. Many students at U C LA become accustomed to the several stairs that one had to use to get around campus. PH O T O | QIN QIN YANG (LEFT) & ALICE LIU (RIGHT). OPPOSITE BO T T O M LEFT | First-year physiological Science student Andrea C hau uses her scooter to get around to campus. Due to their convenient size and portability, scooters were widely popular among students to get around campus. PH O T O | ALICE LIU. T OP LEFT | Fourth-year political science student Dieu H uynh uses his skateboard to cruise around campus. Although skateboards helped Bruins get around faster than walking, the disadvantage was the several hills that U C LA was known for. PH O T O | ALICE LIU. T OP RIG H T | First year law grad student Janie Stack like many Bruins uses her bicycle to get from her apartment to campus. Bruins in the apartment were more likely to use bicycles to get around campus then those living in the dorms. PH O T O | ALICE LIU. LEFT | Second-year civil engineering student Jialin Li uses her car to get to campus. Despite being the most convenient way to getting around campus, the price of parking deterred several Bruins from taking the most convenient mode of transportation. PH O T O | QIN QIN YANG.
Smog and pollution from nearby construction sites clouded the air. In the distance, stood a line of billboards advertising campus organizations. Student walked in a linear fashion as if they were stratified into lanes. Up ahead, the lanes merged as the road bottlenecked. Backed bumper to bumper, students attempted to merge. Shoes rubbed against one another, bikes exercised their unoiled brakes, and people remained unapologetic over these collisions. Meant to be a convenient and hassle-free route from the dormitories to class, Bruin walk was instead a crowded amalgamate of people. Upon entering Bruin Walk from the dormitories, students faced the construction work spanning along the pathway in front of Drake Stadium and the Intramural field. Cement trucks would come charging down the hill, carrying construction materials to the work sites. With student safety in mind, construction workers led students to one side of the walk where they waited for the truck to straighten out at its destination. Meanwhile, opposite the Intramural field was Pauley Pavilion, a construction work in progress. Dust from the basketball stadium marred students’ vision, and tractors and trucks blocked Bruin Walk for some time as they transported supplies to Pauley Pavilion. The students that make it past Pauley Pavilion soon realized that construction was the least of their worries. Ahead was the busy Bruin Plaza, where the UCLA student store hosted poster and patio sales and where students came to dance and play music on the McClure Stage. Aside from the swarm of students that passed through the Plaza, the area was also was inhabited by solicitors. No matter what these activists asked for, whether signatures for a
petition or voter registration or donations for a noble cause, all of them made it their business to get student names, addresses, and phone numbers. The most recognized of these activists was Dennis. Hailing from the In-N-Out parking lot, the homeless man with a Mac
Book Pro would walk through Ackerman Union and Bruin Plaza wearing ladies clothing. Dennis, known to the entire student body as “peace-sign guy”, danced and swayed around Bruin walk with his index and middle finger spread apart to into a V. He preached free love and invited sorority girls to his parties. Mother Monster Matrix was another maxim of his that he promoted along Bruin Walk. Essentially, it was computer jargon that would create world peace if it were in the hands of his idol, Lady Gaga. However, the highest concentration of solicitors lay between the Student Activities Center and Kerckhoff Hall. Even more astonishing was the fact that these solicitors were students. Soliciting students animatedly passed out fliers advertising various student groups and events or sold bake sale items to fund-raise. To many students, these walking advertisements were irksome. “The people passing out flyers on Bruin walk were aggravating. They were overly pushy and put people in uncomfortable situations. Consequently, avoiding them became a daily routine. Sometimes I looked at my phone so it looked like I was preoccupied. Other times I decided to go a different way that avoided Bruin Walk,” said first-year microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics student David Nusbaum. From the perspective of student organizations, though, Bruin Walk was the perfect place to hand out fliers, as the majority of students took this route to class. Getting the attention of students, however, was a challenge. “I caught people’s attention by bringing up what they were doing. If they were texting, I would say, ‘Fight Cancer
by texting!’ [or] silly things that would catch student’s attention,” mused third-year communications student Chiara Basile who was a member of Colleges Against Cancer. Only the final stretch of Bruin Walk after Kerckhoff Hall was free of construction and solicitors. For students who wanted their entire walk and not just the last stretch of the route to be peaceful, there were alternatives to Bruin Walk. Student alternatives to Bruin Walk were Strathmore to the Court of Sciences and Charles E. Young Drive North to Wilson Plaza. These routes were respectively coined the “South Campus” and “North Campus” routes. Along the “North Campus” route, students passed the Fowler Museum and Anderson School of Management. Walking the “South Campus” route, undergraduates noted the university’s research centers and distinguished hospital amidst graduate schools. Both routes, even though situated on completely opposite sites the campus, were essentially empty. First-year neuroscience student Harmanjit Bassi related “I preferred to take the North Campus route, for it was a less crowded route relative to Bruin Walk. I did not have to focus on avoiding people but rather could admire the university’s beautiful campus. Walking along Drake Stadium on Charles E. Young, I saw Royce Hall magnificently.” Despite its many inconveniences, at the end of the day, Bruin Walk was representative of the university. Along Bruin Walk, North and South campus students mingled. Suits from the Anderson School of Management, scrubs from the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, gold and black backpacks of student athletes and uniforms of UCLA dining hall employees added to this diversity. The numerous clubs stationed along Bruin Walk were a token of student involvement and students’ diverse interests. Bruin Walk reminded students about the nearly 1,000 student organizations on campus. Bruin Walk was also a reminder that the campus was home to 40,000 students and that each one came from one of 130 undergraduate majors or one of 12 graduate schools. Bruin Walk made students proud to be Bruins. OPPOSITE | Fourth-year neuroscience student Alexander H ua portrays the way people feel about the fl yering frenzy on bruinwalk. Many Bruins would avoid BruinW alk altogether to avoid the many student groups trying to get them to take a fl yer. PH O T O | JOSE FREDI HERNANDEZ. T OP | Female student pretends to be on her phone as to avoid interaction from solicitors on BruinW alk. Many Bruins would listen to music on their choice of mp3 players to be able to tune out the voices of student groups trying to get their attention.PH O T O | ALICE LIU. MID DLE | Second-yearsociology student Jamie Andersen and fourth-year global studies student Steven Sterrett promote C E C’s sneak preview of 21 Jump Street on BruinW alk. C E C gave Bruins many opportunities to preview new movies at no cost. PH O T O | ALICE LIU. BO T T O M | Student solicitors prepare as a mass of students walk down from the top of BruinW alk. The most congestion on BruinW alk occurred during the hours on 11A M and 3PM. PH O T O | ALICE LIU.
During Welcome Week, Volunteer Day engaged over 7,000 incoming Bruins in community service at nearly 30 sites in Los Angeles. ! ese students participated in a wide variety of projects that ranged from painting murals, to cleaning beaches, to repairing parks, schools, and hospitals.“[On Volunteer Day] I went to an elementary school in the San Fernando Valley. We painted the school and the principal and board of advisors gave us speeches of gratitude. I felt the experience was rewarding physically and emotionally. When I saw the appreciation of the elementary school children, I knew
that it was definitely worth the day of service,” first-year business economics student Mark Tompkins expressed. Aside from Volunteer Day, the UCLA Volunteer Center organized large scale events including Operation Gratitude, and “One Bus, One Cause,” among other projects. For students who wanted to regularly give back to their community while simultaneously stimulating their interests, UCLA offered connections to dozens and dozens of service organizations. Whether students wanted to teach SAT courses to underprivileged high school students or provide health-care for the homeless, there was a wide variety of clubs that provided
public service in the fields of education, health, environmental sustainability, and social activism. For many students, volunteering complimented their interests or career plan. “I got involved with Bruin Initiative because I wanted to work with high school students and help them make it into higher education. We worked with students who were really motivated and wanted to go to college but did not have the funds to pay for the SAT preparatory course as did children from higher socioeconomic backgrounds. We gave them a free service that taught them and raised their score to level the playing field and they were able to achieve higher education,” thirdyear American literature student Katie Schowengerdt said. Aside from student organizations, Bruins also volunteered at local organizations, such as Volunteers of America, Monday Night Mission, the American Heart Association, and the UCLA Ronald Regan Medical Center. At the UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center, students could volunteer in patient transport, child life, emergency medicine, and patient care. “Through Care Extenders, I got a lot of patient interaction and a good feel of what the hospital layout was. I remember a man who told me how much his operation procedure cost but how he was still grateful…that it affected me [emotionally],” said first-year biochemistry student Andy Moon. Service was not encapsulated within a certain location or limited by borders. In addition to serving Los Angeles, Bruins also volunteered abroad in countries such as Mexico and Nicaragua. “At Global Medical Training, we set up clinics in areas where there were no medical services. Over winter break, I traveled to Nicaragua and helped set up a medical
clinic in different cities,” related first year environmental science student Danh Lai, adding that he “provided checkups to local citizens and diagnosed parasite infections.” Service was one of five attitudes of a True Bruin. Added by Chancellor Block in 2009, this pillar encouraged students to develop a life-long passion for public service. After all, the university was a public institution of higher learning.
OPPOSITE | U C LA volunteers hang out and meet one another before spreading mulch over the sides of a creek at the U C LA Lab School on Volunteer Day. This year marked U C LA’s third annual Volunteer Day. PH O T O | ISAAC ARJO NILLA, DAILY BRUIN. T OP | Fourth-year mechanical engineering student Alex Baker (left) and second-year chemical engineering student Serena Shanbhag (right) teach elementary school students at Aspire Firestone Academy in south Los Angeles how to program robots made from LEG O s through U C LA student group BEA M. PH O T O | KAREN CHU, DAILY BRUIN. BO T T O M | Male U C LA volunteers sort through boxes of books for the new library built for the Ramona Gardens Public Library. Bruins spend the entire afternoon painting, cleaning, and sorting through boxes of books for the new library.PH O T O | QIN QIN YANG.
Founded in 1919 with a simple four-building structure, UCLA had rapidly expanded to include over 190 distinct buildings and structures. To the average student, this meant little more than a sign of educational expansion. To the Sustainability Committee, this inspired an initiative to build more environmentally efficient buildings and improve the standards many buildings already constructed. The first building constructed to meet the committee’s green standards, La Kretz Hall, not only revolutionized green construction efforts on campus, but it housed the Institute of the Environment, motivating students to learn more about their delicate environment in a building that reflected environmentally-friendly choices, like sustainable building materials. Moreover, the newly constructed Court of Sciences Student Center went the extra-mile, meeting LEED certification standards for an environmentally efficient eatery. As far as sheer energy consumption went, conservation was made a top-priority, with installed energy-star appliances, long-lasting compact fluorescent lighting, and motion-sensor control lighting fixtures. Although these changes were not always obvious, the impact they made was substantial. According to Sustainability Director Nurit Katz: “Some of the biggest steps we have taken are in energy efficiency, changing our lights and heating and air conditioning systems. The changes may not be easily visible, but they have a huge impact in reducing our energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Since 1990, UCLA has reduced our greenhouse gas emissions per square foot by 27%!” Unbeknownst to many students, UCLA was also home to its very own cogeneration power plant, located on Westwood Plaza, which not only efficiently produced electricity, but captured released steam to heat many of the buildings on campus. Astounded to learn about the environmentally friendly plant, first-year environmental science major Jhenevieve Cabasal remarked, “I wasn’t aware that UCLA had a cogen power plant, but honestly I’m not surprised. UCLA definitely takes sustainability and going green to a new level.” Furthermore, to combat the widespread problems associated with waste accumulation, the university adopted some technologically fresh and innovative strategies. For one, food containers from quickservice restaurants frequently seen in the hands of hungry students were biodegradable and made of recycled materials, while the forks and knives in said students’ hands were Spudware—utensils made from potato. Additionally, all restaurant napkins and paper towels were made from recycled paper. “I recently learned that everything
OPPOSITE | Being green isn’t easy and it was any diffeent for U C LA. H owever, despite the diffi culties, U C LA took many measures to make sure its carbon foot print was down from the previous year. PH O T O | KAREN CHU. T OP | Located on W estwood Plaza, the U C LA cogeneration power plant effi ciently produces electricity. The cogeneration power plant not only produced clean power, it captured released steam to heat many of the buildings on campus. PH O T O | KEVIN TSENG. ABO VE | H idden behind the Sunset Village complex, the expanding herb garden grew herbs and spices used in the dining halls. Despite not being able to fully supplement the dining halls, the herb garden gave students the contentment of knowing exactly where some of the herbs and spices used in their food came from. PH O T O | KEVIN TSENG.
besides the straws and plastic bags at Café 1919 are compostable. This is such an important step, because even though we’re just one school, anything we can do to reduce the landfill problem is helpful,” said first-year undeclared humanities student Raquel Alvarez. Even on the smallest scale, sustainability efforts made a sizable impact. Hidden behind the Sunset Village complex, a small but expanding herb garden grew. Although the garden could not fully supplement the dining halls’ needed supply of herbs and spices, it helped to reduce the need for buying herbs and allowed students to eat seasonally spiced meals with the contentment of knowing exactly where the flavors came from. With the expansive Sustainability Committee taking off effusively from its humble beginnings in 2005, “green thinking” became as thoroughly a part of the campus mindset as learning. Despite crippling budget crises and difficulty swaying steadfast board-members, the Sustainability Department brought the campus to a better state of environmentalism through a series of programs, renovations, and policies, all reflecting the same message: green is good.
There were a variety of trucks that served cuisines ranging from sushi to Greek gyros to pizza to Vietnamese sandwiches. The rotation of over 20
different food trucks provided fresh food for students to eat, and gave them the convenience of accessible food in the Court of Sciences. For the most part, students appreciated the variability and accessibility that the food trucks provided. “I have class early in the morning, and throughout late afternoon, I’m always on campus,” said third-year mechanical engineering student Chris Underhill. “At first I was hesitant to eat food produced in a trailer, but these food trucks always provide a nice breath of fresh air and variety from the normal fast food choices in Ackerman.” Good food however, came at a steeper price. “For the most part, the food is a little more expensive and in slightly smaller portions that what you could get at Ackerman. It does taste better though,
“For the most part, the food is a little more expensive and in slightly smaller portions that what you could get at Ackerman. It does taste better though, and lets me get back to slaving away” and lets me get back to slaving away,” said third-year biochemistry student Danny O’Brien. ! e food truck trend caught on quickly, and students were excited to see what truck would be pulling into the Court of Sciences each day. It quickly became apparent that even though the food was more expensive than at other eateries on campus, students were willing to pay the price. For the most desired food trucks, such as Fishlips Sushi and the Grilled Cheese Truck, students eagerly lined up during the busy lunch hour to wait as long as 20 minutes for their food. ! e Gastrobus, a bright yellow California-cuisine style bistro on wheels, made the two-hour commute from Sun Valley to UCLA to open for lunch. Owner Lana Medina said that it was all worth it however, and that “it’s a whole other crowd because we don’t usually hit the
West Side.” Another popular food truck with the students was the Komodo Truck, which specialized in Asian fusion food, and had been a regular truck in the Court of Sciences ever since the Bombshelter closed. “My truck is always busy from 10 to three. We usually have three sta" on the truck to work, but with UCLA, we bring four,” said the owner of Komodo, Mike Cho. Despite the small enclosed space, in order to keep up with demands of the hungry UCLA students, Cho felt it was necessary to bring in more workers in order to cook food fast enough to meet students’ demand e# ciently. ! e popular sushi truck, Fishlips, was a common sight amongst students, who were glad to see the red and orange striping that marked the sushi truck. It was known to be the only truck that came on campus to sell fresh sushi, and many students preferred Fishlips over the typical grocery store-bought California rolls. Providing fresh sushi to hungry UCLA students was a hard job though-T.K. Kimura, the owner of the Fishlips truck, said “We start our day around 7, and we make stops to $ ll up on water and begin prepping early in the day. Prep is killer, especially with a sushi truck, because we get the ingredients fresh every
“My truck is always busy from 10 to three. We usually have three staff on the truck to work, but with UCLA, we bring four,” morning.” Kimura added,“Sometimes [at other locations] we close at 2 and have enough time to prep for a dinner round at night. With UCLA, this is impossible. We typically sell out of everything, and don’t have the energy to sell again at night.” Students appreciated the hard work they put in to make their sushi fresh, and gave the truck its approval by frequenting
the truck whenever it rolled into the courtyard. Food trucks were just a temporary installation in south campus, though, while the new Court of Sciences Student Center was being built, which opened in February of 2012. ! ird-year American Literature Student Narineh Tahmasebian joked, “! e only bad thing about these food trucks is that they aren’t everywhere.” Some students had become so enamored with the food trucks that they were vying for new spots on campus to put the food trucks so they could have the option of eating there despite the new student center opening. ! is food truck craze was not a typical college dining option--in fact, UCLA was one of the $ rst colleges to begin contracting food trucks. Since its immediate success, other schools such as UC Riverside and Johns Hopkins University have jumped on the bandwagon of food trucks catering to students at lunch time. ! e food trucks began to advertise on their websites to other universities in the area, seeing that it was such a hit for the Bruins. At UCLA, food trucks had been around for years, as a result of the construction in various parts of campus. When the Anderson Business School constructed the new Espresso Café Roma, food trucks $ lled in the gaps and pulled into the Business School turnaround to feed graduate students there. Any student who walked past Sproul Hall, or saw the Bomshelter under construction saw food trucks that fed the construction workers as well. Especially a%er the Kogi Truck became popular for its Mexican-Korean fusion food, entrepreneurial chefs started to try their hand at a rolling restaurant. Kimura said, “At $ rst, I tried to open up a restaurant. ! e economy wasn’t good though, and there was a lot of overhead. It got me thinking about other options, and then, Fishlips was born. Looking back, it’s been a lot harder than regular restaurants – we prep and open multiple times a day, but at the end of the day, it’s all worth it because it makes the customer happy.” OPPOSITE T OP | Male student contemplates which item to get from the menu. Food trucks gave Bruins a wide variety of food not available from the dining halls or on-campus restaurants. PH O T O | JO NATHAN NGUY. OPPOSITE BO T T O M | Third-year psychobiology student Lauren Yang hands her money to the Flying Pig cashier. Despite the long lines associated with the trucks, Yang and others wouldn’t mind the wait to get foods not offered by the on-campus restaurants. PH O T O | JO NATHAN NGUY. CENTER | The foods offered by the food trucks gave students a wider variety of food selections not usually found on campus restaurants. Despite the benefi t, the good food came with a steeper price with smaller portions.. PH O T O | AMY H O. BO T T O M | O wner of Komodo, Mike C ho, poses in front of his truck. Due to the popularity of the food trucks at U C LA, many owners like C ho decided to bring on more workers due to the needed demand. PH O T O | RICKY YU.
A bittersweet time–the end of visiting food trucks in the court of sciences–was made sweet with the opening of the new Court of Sciences Student Center. Formerly known as the Bombshelter, named for its partly-underground, indestructible appearance, the Student Center had its grand opening in February 2012 with great success. Initiated during the two-year period in which the Bombshelter was closed for
construction, food trucks filled the void that students felt; the only other south campus eatery was the far-away Café Synapse. Although students enjoyed the food trucks and the gastronomical options seemed more varied, some students voiced concerns over prices and lines. “The food trucks were great, but just too expensive, so I’m happy the Student Center has opened up, because it’s more in my price range,” said first-year psychobiology student Mark Renod. Prices at the food trucks were indeed higher as they were
private businesses trying to make their living, as opposed to the not-for-profit student organization, ASUCLA. The new Student Center housed five different eateries: Bombshelter Bistro, Fusion, Yoshinoya, Subway, and Southern Lights. The most popular had been Yoshinoya and Subway, but students also appreciated Fusion for its effort to emulate some of the successful food trucks that had occupied the Court of Sciences during the interim period. Jhenevieve Cabasal, a first-year environmental sciences student, applied to work for ASUCLA at the new Court of Sciences Student Center, and since it was a brand-new facility, the employers were open to hiring workers without extensive experience in the food service industry. Cabasal said, “I started off working at Bistro, but we’re moved around a lot so we can become familiar with the other areas like Fusion & Southern Lights. I think a lot of students and faculty really enjoy the student center. It gets so busy that sometimes, it’s nearly impossible to find an empty seat once you’ve bought
people would want to spend time in. Part of this e" ort to improve the ambience of the Student Center was directed toward the LEED certi# cation of the
On the top of the building lay a garden roof for people to bask in the sun, and inside the building, there were plenty of chairs and tables with natural light coming through large windows. Outside on a patio, more chairs and tables o" ered a large seating area for the center that regularly serviced 2,500 students a day. As students adjusted to the shi% from food trucks in the courtyard to a brandnew facility with LEED certi# cation and reasonably priced restaurants, they learned more about the improvements that ASUCLA was making to their new developments, starting with the Court of
“It gets so busy that sometimes, it’s nearly impossible to ! nd an empty seat once you’ve bought your food. " en again, I suppose that’s a good indicator of how much business we’re getting.”
your food. ! en again, I suppose that’s a good indicator of how much business we’re getting.” Aside from the restaurants and co" ee shops, the Student Center aimed to be more of a study space than the Bombshelter previously was. ! e goal was to include more tables, more chairs, more open space, and a better environment that
building, which meant that “the building was designed and built using strategies aimed at achieving high performance in key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy e$ ciency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality,” according to the U.S. Green Building Council. “It’s really important to me that our school is starting to be environmentally conscious. If we don’t start now, then it will be too late soon. I’m glad they put in the extra time and money to achieve LEED certi# cation. It’s worth it,” said fourth-year environmental sciences student Hailey Kim.
Sciences Student Center. Still a" ectionately nicknamed “the Bombshelter”, the new student center became a favorite among students and faculty in south campus. OPPOSITE | Students sit in the new Court of Sciences Student C enter. The new dining location was crowded with new patrons during the lunch rush hour and since opening in February, the Court of Sciences Student C enter has performed well in sales, exceeding expectations. PH O T O | ISAAC ARJO NILLA, DAILY BRUIN. BOTTOM | The new Court of Sciences Student C enter offered a wide array of snacks and drinks. Bruins in south campus found it more convenient then having to walk to Ackerman Student C enter to get snacks and drinks in between class breaks. PH O T O | RICKY YU. TOP | A plate of Yoshinoyas most popular bowl combo composed of chicken and beef. Yoshinoya was among one of the most popular new restaurants that’s opened in the new Court of Sciences Student C enter. PH O T O | RICKY YU. CENTER | U C LA male employer enjoys a salad from Bombshelter Bistro. The Bombshelter Bistro was ASU C LA’s nod to south-campus demographics, which was weighted toward more staff and faculty than any other part of campus. PH O T O | RICKY YU.
The professors were relentless. As early as week three, they bombarded students with midterms, projects, and essays that did not stop until as late as week nine. And by then, it was too late to take a breather, because in a mere week, life directions would be altered by finals. The weeks dragged on as a neverending marathon of school, stress, studying, and hopefully, success. The signs multiplied as the week numbers increased. One by one, they spawned across campus. “De-stress for finals!” “Take a break from studying, come play with puppies in
the lounge!” “Stressed? Come make your own stress ball!” “Escape from studying, go clubbing with ACA!” ! ey were everywhere. Just as pervasive as your stress. ! e lines at De Neve late night reached astronomical lengths. Bruin Cafe co" ees, smoothies, and pastries were in high demand. First-year undeclared life science student Sabrina Louie has never attended any stressrelief event. “I don’t think they’d be helpful,” she says. “I just workout to relieve stress.” Indeed, despite midterms abound and # nals week looming over the horizon, John Wooden Center was always # lled with people. No matter what week it was, trying to secure an empty squat cage or cardio machine was always a challenge during the peak a$ ernoon hours. Although, perhaps this resulted from the guilt of increased snacking as students labored away, studying for exams. When asked about it, Sabrina agreed: “I guess I eat more, and I de# nitely watch TV when I’m stressed.” And of course, this lead to more wasted time, piling upon more stress, and created a never-ending cycle of stress and sleepless nights everyone was familiar with. Not all
students conformed to the typical stereotype, however. ! ird-year transfer anthropology student Robert Honsby was o$ en more than just on top of things—he planned ahead: “When I’m stressed out with school work, or with anything in general, I take a step back and reevaluate what I have to do.” But that was not all. Robert seemed to have mastered those time management skills that some of us, a$ er 20-some years of schooling. “I properly manage my time and take a breather. If I’m still stressed out, I will go to the gym or on a run.” For Robert, exercise was just another healthy outlet. “I don’t really eat junk food,” he added. A line only in existence in every snacking, midterm-weary, # nals-dreading college student’s dream. Even though Sabrina and Robert never attended any de-stressing events, plenty of students did show up to various activities put on by their RAs and Student Leaders across the hill. Sunny Sinco, a fourth year comparative politics student and RA of Rieber Terrace 6th %oor, put things in perspective from the other side. As an RA, she not only had to focus on her own schoolwork, but also had to maintain the sanity of her residents’ minds as well. “I try to incorporate this perspective into my programming as an RA, providing residents with limited opportunities to set aside their books and to unwind. For Fall Quarter Finals Week, we instituted a nightly snack break, introducing holiday treats from around the world to make the experience both rejuvenating and educational,” she said. Indeed, free food was always a good way to
bring residents out of their rooms, no matter what the occasion was. She added, “I think the residents appreciated the pick-me-up and seized upon the chance to detach, if only momentarily, from their academic demands.” Finals week brought about a slew of last minute stress relievers for students. Students lined up sometimes an hour beforehand for Food for Finals, a program that each community set up to give out free food such as instant ramen, cookies, chips, soda, energy drinks, candy, and even blue books and scantrons to needy studying students. And during the dreaded week itself, students selforganized relief methods such as midnight yell—simply yelling out the window as loud as possible once the clock hit midnight—and the unforgettable Undie Run. As stressed as everyone was, UCLA’s undergraduate population was always able to # nd a way to relieve the buildup of stress. It was always nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel close in sight—winter break a$ er Fall Quarter, spring break a$ er Winter Quarter, and the coveted summer vacation a$ er Spring Quarter. But no matter what, students were able to collectively focus in and # nish each quarter strong, forming the continued tradition of excellence UCLA had always maintained among the top colleges in the world. OPPOSITE | Fourth-year biochesmitry student Nora Bedrossian meditates during her short breaks of studying. Short meditation sessions helps relief the stresses brought on by cramming for midterms or finals. PH O T O | JO NATHAN NGUY. T OP LEFT | Bruins pet a puppy brought in during H ug a Puppy. H ug a puppy was sponsored by the O ffi ce of Residential of Life for students to relieve stress during finals. PH O T O | ALICE LIU. T OP RIG H T | Female student gets a massage during finals week. Bruins in the dorms were encouraged to attend de-stressing events during finals week as to not get burned out by too much studying. PH O T O | ALICE LIU. ABO VE | Students lay on the grass to relax and pass time. Bruins take short naps and study around the various places around campus to avoid the stress that may be associated with studying in enclosed areas. PH O T O | KEVIN TSENG.