8.9.2014 Day 5 Group 6

It was the weekend; therefore the dining hall was available to us later than usual - at 10:30 a.m. Therefore, we decided to pay a visit to the bookstore beforehand. We arrived at the cafeteria at around 9 am and that was the time when we all become shopaholics. We bought fiction books, T-shirts, and souvenirs there. Almost all of the merchandise has 'Stanford' written on it and we all bought something to make sure we have something of sentimental value when we head back home to Hong Kong. We, being the shopaholics that we are, spent 1.5 hours browsing through the store and marveling at the organization of the goods. We rushed off to the dining hall for brunch and it was scrumptious!

After the brunch, we went hiking through the Stanford Hills to see the Dish. The sun was ruthless and brutally shined its light upon the weary hikers and the roads were pretty steep. Although we felt extremely tired after hiking for 2 hours, it was worth as we saw the Pacific Ocean at the peak of the mountain and the gentle breeze was pleasant. The best thing that came out of the exhausting hike was that the counselors treated us to ice-cream and tons of snacks! Then, we had a 2-hour break in which most of us went back to our respective rooms to take a nap to refresh our drained bodies.

The next stop we went to was the Memorial Church (also known as Mem-Chu) which was built in the loving memory of Leland Stanford.  The stained glass on the church walls reflected light like dazzling diamonds and it was truly a sight to behold.  The palm trees beside the church looked as though we entered a virtual world where fantasies run free. We had hopes to enter the majestic Church - however, a wedding was held there and we took photos of the striking scenery instead. A joyful feeling stimulated all the people surrounding it and we all congratulated the newly wedded couple deep down in our hearts.

Right after dinner, we head back to our dorms.  Swinging on the tire swing is not the only thing to do. Some of us even launched our hands high up in the air to attempt to reach the leaves hanging down from the branches. In that moment, we swear we were Tarzan. Whilst soaring in the air, we can feel the wind blowing right at us.  

It was a long and tiring day, but we still enjoyed ourselves and so it was worth it.