Category Archives: New Experience

L.A. Life, New Experience, Travel, Uncategorized

This Weekend, Joshua​ ​Tree​ ​National​ ​Park​ ​Hosts the Night​ ​Sky​ ​Festival​

By Minah Ha

From​ ​November​ ​10th-12th,​ ​Joshua​ ​Tree​ ​National​ ​Park​ ​will​ ​be​ ​partnering​ ​with​ ​the National​ ​Park​ ​Service​ ​in​ ​order​ ​to​ ​bring​ ​star​ ​enthusiasts​ ​the​ ​Night​ ​Sky​ ​Festival.​ ​This​ ​is​ ​the​ ​third annual​ ​Night​ ​Sky​ ​Festival​ ​that​ ​the​ ​park​ ​has​ ​hosted​ ​for​ ​those​ ​who​ ​want​ ​to​ ​sit​ ​under​ ​a​ ​sky​ ​full​ ​of stars.Although​ ​this​ ​event​ ​is​ ​free​ ​of​ ​charge,​ ​if​ ​you​ ​decide​ ​to​ ​come​ ​on​ ​November​ ​10th,​ ​you​ ​will have​ ​to​ ​pay​ ​a​ ​park​ ​entrance​ ​fee​ ​of​ ​$30.​ ​However,​ ​because​ ​of​ ​Veteran’s​ ​Day​ ​weekend,​ ​there​ ​will be​ ​no​ ​park​ ​entrance​ ​fee​ ​on​ ​November​ ​11th​ ​and​ ​12th! Joshua​ ​Tree​ ​National​ ​Park,​ ​located​ ​three​ ​hours​ ​away​ ​from​ ​Los​ ​Angeles​​ ​is​ ​known​ ​for​ ​its​ ​unique​ ​Joshua​ ​trees​ ​and​ ​desert​ ​flowers​ ​in​ ​the​ ​day​ ​to​ ​it’s​ ​breathtaking​ ​desert stars​ ​in​ ​the​ ​night.​ ​Because​ ​the​ ​park​ ​itself​ ​is​ ​located​ ​far​ ​from​ ​big​ ​cities,​ ​the​ ​lack​ ​of​ ​urban​ ​lights allows​ ​stars​ ​to​ ​be​ ​clearly​ ​seen.​ ​Thus,​ ​star​ ​enthusiasts​ ​in​ ​Southern​ ​California​ ​flock​ ​to​ ​Joshua​ ​Tree to​ ​stargaze​ ​and​ ​explore​ ​the​ ​many​ ​constellations​ ​that​ ​they​ ​can’t​ ​see​ ​in​ ​their​ ​own​ ​urban environments​ ​due​ ​to​ ​light​ ​pollution.​ ​Many​ ​describe​ ​the​ ​desert​ ​stars​ ​in​ ​Joshua​ ​Tree​ ​as​ ​millions​ ​of specks​ ​in​ ​the​ ​sky​ ​and​ ​when​ ​sitting​ ​under​ ​it,​ ​you​ ​can’t​ ​help​ ​but​ ​to​ ​think​ ​about​ ​the​ ​vastness​ ​of​ ​the universe.

Beginning​ ​at​ ​5am,​ ​the​ ​Night​ ​Sky​ ​Festival​ ​will​ ​showcase​ ​various​ ​astronomy​ ​programs throughout​ ​the​ ​day.​ ​You​ ​can​ ​learn​ ​about​ ​the​ ​different​ ​constellational​ ​stories​ ​and​ ​folktales​ ​that have​ ​been​ ​passed​ ​down​ ​through​ ​storytellers​ ​and​ ​identify​ ​those​ ​stars​ ​in​ ​the​ ​sky.​ ​There​ ​will​ ​be​ ​park rangers,​ ​scientists,​ ​and​ ​astronomers​ ​explaining​ ​the​ ​various​ ​workings​ ​of​ ​our​ ​solar​ ​system​ ​to​ ​all those​ ​who​ ​want​ ​to​ ​learn​ ​about​ ​the ​science​ ​behind​ ​our​ ​stars​ ​as​ ​well!​ ​Additionally,​ ​at​ ​night, telescopes​ ​will​ ​be​ ​placed​ ​for​ ​viewers​ ​to​ ​get​ ​a​ ​clearer​ ​look​ ​at​ ​the​ ​stars​ ​and​ ​possibly​ ​the​ ​different planets!​ ​If​ ​the​ ​weather​ ​permits,​ ​you​ ​also​ ​might​ ​be​ ​able​ ​to​ ​get​ ​to​ ​clearly​ ​see​ ​the​ ​Milky​ ​Way​ ​as well!

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New Experience, USC

Senior Year: A Bucket List

By Kurt Ibaraki

This is it. This is my last semester at USC. These past three years have gone by so fast. I remember how excited I was when I first got on campus. My parents helped settle me into my new dorm room and after a couple of hours of reorganizing my room, they left me to start my new life at USC. The first couple of weeks were not easy, but slowly, USC became my second home. USC has so much to offer and I wish that I had more time. However, there are still a couple of months left for me. As a result, I have compiled a small bucket list of things that I want to do before I leave.

First, I would love to study in every library here at USC. I have only been to Leavey, Doheny, and the VKC library in my three years here. More often than not, I have spent countless hours studying at Leavey, but with so many other libraries available, a change of pace would be nice.

Second, I want to enter every building. Being a Neuroscience major, I often find myself in SGM, THH, and ZHS. While there are so many buildings here, I have probably only been in half of them. I would love to see the insides of the buildings in which business and engineering majors spend the most time.

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New Experience, USC

Turning Dreams Into Reality through USC’s “Dance Off”

By Sabrina Hsu

Everyone enters freshmen year of college with a mixture of anticipation and apprehension – I was no different. Growing up as an international student, transferring from school to school in itself wasn’t as intimidating as knowing it would take a while to integrate into the already-established friend groups in the school. So when I entered USC, I put all my hopes into the Fall Semester Involvement Fair, wishing for an organization that would catch my eye and help me find a group of people with common interests. Out of all the clubs and activities I joined, Dance-Off was the one I had least expectations for, but it is not an exaggeration to say it was the one that changed my life.

KASA Dance-Off is a competition for fall semester freshmen dancers with all levels of experience. As someone who never danced hip-hop before, I went to the first dance workshop with no intention of staying for the rest of the semester. But the passionate and family-oriented atmosphere that surrounded me when I danced with this group of people drew me in, and before I knew it, I was looking forward to the workshops every week. Of course, it was tough – two weeks before competition we practiced dance more than we did anything else, including sleeping and eating. But ultimately, our success during the competition, and the bonding and friendship that came out of the hours and hours of practice and “suffering” were worth it.

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