Hi everyone! I’m spending the summer on campus working as an intern in the Admission Office. My days are usually packed with campus tours and meetings with various working groups in the office, but today I wanted to take a moment to share what I’ve been up to in my free time on the weekends. Amherst is such a special place, and there are plenty of great activities to enjoy here during the summer – both in the town and the surrounding areas!
On Saturday, I woke up at 9:00am and started my day with a delicious breakfast at Valentine Dining Hall. My typical breakfast includes toast with butter, scrambled eggs, and a good cup of black coffee (I always go for the “medium roast” option available at Val). On weekends, Val usually has juicy and delicious strawberries – so of course, I also had a bunch of those!
After breakfast, I met up with my friend and we headed to the Saturday morning Farmer’s Market on the town commons. The market offers a wonderful variety of locally grown vegetables and fresh fruits, handcrafted goods, food stands, and more – all of this with great live music in the background performed by local musicians! For the Gilmore Girls fans out there, it feels just like a peaceful day in Stars Hollow. I love the strong sense of community that the small town can offer!
After the Farmers’ Market, we decided to head to Northampton – a nearby town just a 30-minute bus ride from Amherst. The easiest way to get to Northampton is by taking the B43 PVTA bus, which is free for all Amherst College students.
In Northampton, we decided to go to Ana Bandeira Chocolates, a delicious bakery specialized on homemade chocolate goods made with Cacau beans produced locally in Brazil. I ordered “pão de queijo” – a small cheese bread roll – and “pudim de leite” – a creamy flan made with sweet condensed milk. As a Brazilian, I was sooo happy to get a little taste from home right here in the middle of Western Mass! One of the highlights for me was also their fresh Orange juice – it felt amazing to enjoy a cold, refreshing drink in the afternoon. Summer in Massachusetts gets really hot, don’t let yourself be fooled!
Pão de queijo, pudim de leite, fresh orange juice and iced latte.
After eating at Ana Bandeira, we did some window shopping in Thornes – a marketplace featuring local owners and locally made products. They have some of the most unique stores and items I’ve ever seen – definitely worth checking out! They also have a vintage photobooth (one of the few still in public use across the country!), which is perfect for capturing the moment and keeping the pictures as a little souvenir.
After Thornes, we went to Raven, a used bookstore. It was a great place to explore – I loved the atmosphere and could have easily spent an entire day just browsing titles and reading synopses. I think summer is a great time to get a break from academic readings and finally give a chance to those books that have been sitting on our shelves for a while. I’m currently reading As Meninas, by Lygia Fagundes Telles (translated to the English edition as The Girl in the Photograph), and I’ve been both challenged and fascinated by Lygia’s writing style.
Bookshelves at Raven Used Books
On our way back to Amherst, we made a quick stop at Target, and I ended up getting some flowers to keep in my room. I’ve been venturing into flower arranging lately and it has been a wonderful summer hobby. They add so much beauty and lightness to the space!
Finally, I ended my day with dinner at Royal Chicken & Kebab, a local restaurant just a five-minute walk from campus. I’m a burger lover so I decided to try their smash burger and I loved it! Money well spent.
This was a little glimpse into a day in my life during a summer weekend at Amherst. I’ve really been enjoying exploring the area, and I hope to write more blog posts about the great experiences Amherst College students can have here!