Stanford’s Spring Quarter, also known as The-Best-Quarter-Of-The-Year, is upon us. Spring Quarter is the quarter for fun. Spring Quarter is the quarter in which events pile on one another in your rich social calendar until you realize you have three shows to attend at 7 pm that Friday night and cannot possibly be at Dinkelspiel, Toyon and MemAud at the same time. Most notably, Spring Quarter is the quarter in which the sun shines down upon you so you can bask in its warmth and glory forever.
In the spirit of encouraging happy productivity in myself, I’ve made it my goal this quarter to study outdoors as much as possible.
So without further ado, here are four of my favorite outdoor study spots at Stanford University.
1) Coupa Cafe
This is my absolute favorite for the times that I’m hungry and craving sweetness/caffeine, but also want to get some work done. If you don’t get too distracted by noise, Coupa’s bustling activity serves a comforting background buzz to your dense texts and has the added advantage of having Green Library right next door in case you need to borrow books. I highly recommend their delicious spicy hot chocolate. Creamy, chocolatey, and with an added punch of flavor, this is arguably the best hot chocolate I’ve had.
2) The Economics Building
I discovered this gem last quarter and can I just say, loveliest place ever? The front of the Economics building has a courtyard with tables, overlooked by trees that provided a stunning orange and red backdrop to the area during the fall. It’s one of the places that you really see seasons; Winter is bare and cold, and by the time it’s Spring the trees are green and back at it again. The back of the building is sometimes even more gorgeous for its solitude and year-round Spring vibe; I absolutely love sitting on a wooden bench with my laptop and hearing nothing but birds chirp around me as I type.
3) McMurtry Building
McMurtry’s architecture all around is stunning and a treat to the eyes, and in warm weather, perfect for quiet outdoor study. Its terrace is huge, supplemented with highly aesthetic soft green chairs that seem to contour themselves to be comfortable, and overlooks the Rodin Sculptures outside Cantor. Possibly the best part about McMurtry is that you won’t get bored of it; study breaks walking around and looking at the redwood sculptures, the arrangement of lights, or the art-filled books in the library is always refreshing.
4) Any of Stanford's fountains!
Before I say anything further about studying, let me just say, YES! The entire student population has been celebrating the return of these beautiful, iconic parts of the Stanford Campus. The fountain near Meyer Green is gorgeous to study at because of its pretty water-curtain like effect and its ability to drown out any noise so all you can hear is the pleasant swoosh of water on water. Seating is very comfortable if you don’t need a table and it has the added advantage of being right next to Green Library and Coupa Café.
These are only a small sampling of the beautiful outdoor spaces on Stanford’s campus, but provide a starting point and a balance between convenience and productivity. This weather is too much of a treasure to miss out on from inside a library or a room. Happy studying!
