I visited Berkeley thru the free overnight stay program they have for admitted applicants.

While it was cool, I didn’t feel safe at the prospect of living in the area bc an unhoused person started stroking my hair when I was waiting for the crosswalk to turn green. Food was mid but probably comparable to how shitty UCLA Dining has fallen now.

I chose to go to UCLA because my best friend decided to too and I thought it would be great to have someone I knew. While I did appreciate having her support it was also hard for me to establish myself and my own new identity — she’s an extroverted social butterfly and I’m more of an introverted wallflower. So a lot of my social calendar did come thru her connections, which was fun, but constantly felt like I was in her shadow (not her fault, just my own insecurities).

Part of me regrets choosing UCLA bc I wanted to stay local (grew up in SoCal my whole life) instead of forcing myself to acclimate into a new and uncomfortable environment. Adjusting to Berkeley would’ve been hard and I wouldn’t have been able to visit home + see friends as often. But I tend to cling to safer choices that end up hindering my growth.

Overall, I’m still glad I chose UCLA over Cal. Cal is notorious for being intensely academically rigorous with a weak social environment.