u/JokeProfessional9297

Hey, I‘m a rising senior and having trouble deciding between Yale and Penn for ED. I don’t necessarily have a dream school. I really do love both, but if I had to pick one maybe I would lean slightly more towards Yale. My only concern with Yale REA is that I probably won’t get it — I mean it’s Yale — so I don‘t want to waste my early application on a school that is nearly impossible to get into. I know that Penn is equally amazing, but I think I have a slightly better ED chance here just based on numbers. Also more people from my school get into Penn and nearly nobody gets into Yale historically. My only concern is that I may regret not applying to Yale early. Here are my concerns about Penn:

1. Philly — I visited campus last month, and the area felt like it’s own Penn bubble. I never felt unsafe, but it still seemed more urban than I would prefer. How does being in a large city impact your campus life — overall positive or negative? Is Philly a fun city? I also took SEPTA into Center City and did not feel great about it. It smelled like cigarettes and urine on all the carts, trash everywhere, and quite a few homeless. Have you or anyone you know had any negative experiences on SEPTA? And are there any other alternative ways to get around Philly — walking, uber, shuttle, etc?
2. Academics — I intend to double major in PPE and Health & Societies. Are these popular major? Are double majors common? How math/econ heavy will the PPE courses be? I know that Penn faculty is among the most conservative of the Ivys. Have your poli sci professors still been liberal or moderate in your experience? Does Penn have a good pipeline into DC? My goal after graduation is to work on the Hill. Also, if anyone happens to know anything about the Penn in Washington program, I would love to know more about it.
3. Students — I know Penn students (at least according to stereotypes) are more pre-professional and network oriented, which is honestly what I prefer over Yale’s more liberal arts atmosphere. Does the emphasis on pre-professional culture live up to its perception at Penn? Also, are the students very cut throat and competitive (like the stereotypes suggest) or have you found them to be collaborative? I will not be attending Wharton, so this is specifically about the other undergraduate schools. But I heard it can be hard to get over Wharton’s overwhelming presence on campus. How is the social life here — is it really the “Party Ivy?”
4. How has your Penn experience been overall? If you could start over and pick any school, would you have chosen somewhere else?

Other than that, I really do love Penn and want to love it even more. I visited both campuses last month and watched tons of videos on both schools. I know this was a lot, but any input from current Penn students would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

I spent 5 days in Lisbon last summer and absolutely loved my time there! I will be back again this summer to explore more of the country, and I can’t wait to get there! I am currently in the middle of finalizing my travel plans, so I thought it was the perfect time to jump on here and give some advice to people who are visiting Lisbon for the first time:

Tips:

• The stairs and hills are not as overwhelming as they are made out to be but the tiles can get pretty slick!
• Use Bolt! It’s their version of Uber. It’s very efficient and much more affordable! We never had a bad Bolt experience.

Trip Highlights:

• Praia da Ursa is a beautiful beach by Cabo de Roca. But is is a pretty strenuous hike down! I would avoid this beach if you have anyone in the gorup who is younger than 10, older than 50, has any kind of mobility issues, or has no experience hiking. It can get pretty intense! I would do this over Sintra.
• The views at Castelo de São Jorge were stunning and the best views anywhere in the city by far (plus peacocks!) Try to catch the sunset if possible. Just don’t arrive too late tho because they do rush everyone out at closing time.

Food: Honestly, the most dissapointed part of my trip was the food… Maybe I was missing something or went to the wrong place? Don‘t get me wrong, it was good but just didn’t live up to hype For me personally. That being said, my favorite spots were Baixamar (definitely caters towards tourists but it was great nonetheless and service was awesome) Taberna Sal Grosso, and Lisbon Tu e Eu. If you’re coming in the summer, reservations are absolutely necessary! Pasteis de Belem is an absolute must!!! Unpopular opinion but Bifanas do Afonso was not it for me. I was very excited about this, but the hour wait was definitely not worth it!

Safety: I had some concerns about safety because I had heard Lisbon is getting dangerous and dirty. Some areas do look rough around the edges wirh graffiti and some trash, but overall the city was very clean and I never once felt unsafe. I found the people overall the be friendly and speak English pretty well, but a few Portuguese here and there will certainly make locals open up to you!

If you have any questions, lmk!

I‘m planning a last minute trip to Spain at the end of the summer and need some advice. Any input from locals or anyone who has traveled to Spain would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

I‘lil be spending 7-10 days here (still working that out.) I definitely want to do Seville and Malaga, which I know is accessible by train. Maybe spend 2 days in each city? I also want to add either Cordoba or Granda (whichever one is better).

My major dilemma is choosing between Barcelona and Madrid. My concern with Madrid is that it might be too boring — not a fan of parks or museums. But my concern with Barcelona is that it will be overcrowded and touristy. I don’t love crowds and prefer a lowkey vibe. is it true that they hate tourists there or were the water protests last summer overblown by the media? I think I prefer Barcelona overall but the only thing keeping me is the tourism issues.

I am also Asian-American and worried about facing any potential dismcirnation. If anyone has any insight on that, that would be appreciated. I’m from the US speak perfect English and a bit of high school spanish. Will I face any discrimination?