2 OPINION TechNews STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF ILLINOIS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGYSINCE 1928 McCormick Tribune Campus Center Room 221 3201 South State Street Chicago, Illinois 60616 E-mail: editor@technewsiit.com Website: http://www.technewsiit.com If: teenyeae STAFF Editor-in-Chief Ryan Kamphuis Assistant Editor Hannah Larson Campus Editor Utsav Gandhi Business Manager Kori Bowns IT Manager Pranava Teja Surukuchi Copy Editors Kristal Copeland Layout Editors Kori Bowns Swasti Khuntia Pranava Teja Surukuchi Distribution Manager Emilie Woog Financial Advisor Vickie Tolbert Faculty Advisor Gregory Pulliam MISSION STATEMENT Our mission is to promote student discussion and bolster the IIT community by providing a newspaper that is highly accessible, a stalwart of journalistic integrity, and a student forum. TechNews is a dedicated to the belief that a strong campus newspaper is essential to a strong campus community. 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TechNews does not accept or publish anonymous letters or sto ADVERTISING Legitimate paid advertisements, from within or outside the IIT community, which serve to produce income for the paper. are accommodated. TechNews holds the right to deny any advertisement unsuitable for publication. Media ‘ Kits are available upon request. Ad space Is limited and is taken on a first-come, first-serve basis. Contact the Business Manager at business@ technewsiit.com for more information. LOCAL & NATIONAL ADVERTISERS To place an ad, contact us via email at business@technewsiit.com. Neesha Narayanan TECHNEWS WRITER Have you ever had the experience of seeing a blanket of yellow flowers along a narrow road, trees arching over, the image of bright yellow flowers merging with the setting sun, and the sound of the seashore humming at a distance, giving you an invitation of exploration? Over the summer, I traveled to Vorpommern—Riigen in northeastern Germany, near the Baltic Sea. Vorpommern-Riigen is just a couple hundred miles from Copenhagen, Denmark. First, we went to Putgarten, which is a municipality of Riigenand, and is connected to the main island by a bridge that is just high enough for us to drive through. It was mid-May and the beautiful scenery was breathtaking. The place we booked for our stay looked more like a country house than a hotel; an independent house with thatched roof and three small buildings opposite it. One of the three was a stable that could take 30-35 horses and the other two were for living purposes. The interesting thing is that when we reached this place in Putgarten, there was no one around. It felt as if everyone had suddenly fled. We called the owner and found out that we would not see anyone until the next morning and that the keys were on the door of our apartment. It felt weird to have the whole place to ourselves. There was a lake in the backyard, and a ranch with beautiful horses running and grazing. The greenery and serenity of the area was a bonus to such a wonderful experience. The next morning we planned to go to Cape Arkona, a 45-metre-high cape on the island of Riigen. This area can best be accessed by foot, but Putgarten has ample space for parking vehicles. The walk itself is worth it. There were flowerbeds on both sides of the road and a huge navigation tower with the Baltic Sea in the background. The cliff provided us with an impressive view. We were lucky to go there at that time of the year, because there was a summer festival taking place at Arkona, with sky-high kites of various shapes and sizes; there was food, beer and family oriented activities. This event is one of the best ways to enjoy and get to know German culture. We were struck by the beauty of the place when we took the steps to the beach at Konigstreppe (King’s steps). They were old and woody, giving off a mysterious TechNews | Tuesday, August 27, 2013 feeling. The route was so pretty and green, and at the end of the steps I could finally feel the cool waters and appreciate the off—white colored cliffs that mark the border of Riigen. Our trip concluded with a visit to Vitt by train. This place has been a fishing village since the tenth century and serves as a port in Arkona. It is a highly popular tourist destination in Riigen. Its thatched roof houses and sloppy land exemplify that dreamy ‘romantic fishing village’ look. I promise this place will spoil you with delicious smoked fish. We happened to go there at 9 in the morning for a walk. While absorbing the beauty of the Baltic Sea, we saw a small spot where they sold freshly smoked fish with a dash of lemon. The taste was so strong and unique that it stayed in my mouth for the whole day, even though I had 4—5 flavored gums. However, it was a really good. The drive back home was amazing—we passed by a small spot where we spent some time at the shore enjoying the monsoon weather. We also enjoyed driving on the autobahn with no speed limits. Overall, Rugen is one beautiful getaway place to go experience the pleasant countryside and enjoy seafood! Photos by Neesha Narayanan Warm Welcome Week for new, returning students Liang Hou TECHNEWS WRITER That brand new back to school feeling has returned, despite whether your excitement can’t be contained or you are already dreading the dire urge to poke yourself with #2s to stay awake in that calculus class. As an upperclassman now, I found the entire Welcome Week experience to be quite comforting, almost comparable to peering into a fisheye lens, a slight distortion of my experience from two years past, albeit none the less familiar. On Wednesday, August I4, Move- In Day had arrived and the omnipresent anticipation that resonated within hundreds of students could be felt around campus. There was an aura of calm, as underclassmen blended in seamlessly with upperclassmen. Actually, I found myself seeing more unfamiliar than familiar faces, a fact that had suddenly hit me as I realized how fast the undergraduate years seem to go by. Observing the Playfair on Farr Field from the quad, the enthusiasm of the Welcome Week leaders, voices of new friendships forming, and a keen sense of participation was infectious. I was glad to catch Pancakes with the Provost on Saturday morning, because, c’mon, who doesn’t love free food and people watching in the Commons? Again, a peaceful sense of calm at 11 am. that morning told me that the school year was sinking in, finally, and summer memories were already melding into nostalgia. Taste of the Quad soon followed, and it was widely successful, thanks to the combined efforts of all of our sororities and fraternities, Greek Council, the Student Activity Fund, Residence and Greek Life, and Office of Campus Life. I enjoyed getting to see everyone, sampling different foods from the different Greek chapters on campus, and the festivities of a mechanical bull and photo booth where awkwardly posed picture strips surely ensued. Fast-forward a week and an entire week of actual school has gone by. Actual school, what? Like, classes and things and learning? Yeah, that! The school year had gone into full effect, and my mind had to do a fast 180 from enjoying Welcome Week’s excitement to preparing for classes and studying. Yep, thefirstweekof schoolisdefinitely the most hectic, with student organizations like Union Board holding their first general body meeting, events to get involved on campus like Alternative Spring Breaks information sessions, and career building opportunities like the HT Career Fair in between pockets of (sometimes) stimulating class time. I dig it.