While many of my friends find college to be high school 2.0, I think it is completely different. Hunter College is a microcosm full of drama, love interests, hard work and the rainbow bridge. The most important aspect of college I'm growing to love is my friends. In a month I have become a "college girl," which I define as someone with a social imagination who has learned to love the world. Being a college student means exploring this microcosm with your friends, commuting and experiencing new people. It's also about dancing to 2008 pop songs in your friend's dorm.

My belief is that every college student needs a safe haven. To me, that haven is the rainbow bridge. In a month's time, I have explored every floor of every building of Hunter to find that my home-within-a-home has been in front of me all this time. On the rainbow bridge, I sit with my friends during my five-hour break on Thursdays, I listen to my friends talk about boys and I meet new people every day (thanks, Madonna). I've had a few mental breakdowns, a few crushes and a few headaches all in the same place. What's great about the bridge is that it reminds me of home when I'm away. I am thankful for all it has given me.

Commuting four days a week has been made possible by two (sometimes three, four or five) very special people. Living two and a half hours away from Hunter has shown me that it's possible to sleep anywhere and everywhere. It's also possible to make some great conversations anywhere. I call them "strawberry lemonade sessions" where simple things like boys and important things like school are discussed. In retrospect, I've been able to fall asleep on the bus, on the train, on the ferry, along the rainbow bridge and even in class (if you can believe it).

In a month, I've had some of the best times of my life. The friends I've made are some people I will spend my entire life with (Wolfpack and Dog House, my heart goes to you). My classes are evenly placed which gives me enough time to laugh, to cry and to sleep before I head to heated debates, writing sessions and snooze fests. The commute has become a time to lie down and rest as well as learn new things about people I never knew. The rainbow bridge has become much more than a passageway to the library. It's a safe haven, a chamber of secrets and a home. In just four words I can tell you: college is something else.