<p>Thanks for the articles. We saw both campuses a few summers ago and stayed at the Marriott in Berkeley- on the waterfront across from San Fransisco. Both have excellent academics, but Berkely is a more fun, less upscale town than Palo Alto as well as having a much more interesting physical setting. The author should have commented on the fault line running along the Berkeley stadium- it won’t last a hundred years intact, interesting to see a curb separating from the street. We did our own self guided tours.</p>
<p>I’m an alum of both and lived many years in Berkeley and several in the town next to Palo Alto. I’d never think to call Berkeley “less upscale” than Palo Alto. Although I’d have to agree that it has more parts that are less upscale. However, “the hills”, not to mention the Claremont section, of Berkeley are nothing if not upscale.</p>
<p>I’d agree Berkeley is more fun, but I think that might just be my own personal taste. There’s more “there” there, beyond the University, I’d say.</p>
<p>Fault lines run rampant in the Bay Area, btw. And I’ll put my money on the Cal stadium lasting a hundred years. But I won’t be surprised at whichever of us wins.</p>
<p>Three years ago we visited both. DD chose not to apply to Cal after the visit. As a parent, I found both to be charming - different, but charming.</p>
<p>S has been very happy living at Cal for the past four years. We’ve had many memorable trips to visit and and have never been bored or lacked for great food!</p>
<p>Hmm, I have not yet read the articles, but I would say Cal has a more blue collar feel than Stanford, S is just more yuppie and Cal has a very down to earth feel.</p>
<p>Cal is also more Blue Collar than UCLA, IMHO</p>
<p>I went to grad school at Stanford. I loved it, but I never fully got over my dislike of the golf-course aesthetics of the campus. Everything color-coordinated and groomed into submission, no building closer than a 7-iron to any other building, and the real world kept at eucalyptus-grove distance. I loved, loved, loved the look and feel of Berkeley. Physically and socially, it has all the energy that Stanford lacks.</p>
<p>I liken Stanford to Disneyland –> not one cigarette butt or piece of litter visible on the ground anywhere. Cal is not nearly so well-groomed and antiseptic –> every available pole and post has a hundred bills and posters tacked to it, and there always seems to be a random stray dog walking by.</p>
<p>The 100 years came from them, not us. The part of Berkeley close to campus is not the same as the closest off cmpus area near Stanford- thinking of where students would easily hang out.</p>
<p>Just got back from picking my high school age daughter from riding lessons at the big red barn at Stanford. She’s taken riding lessons at a few different places, and I gotta say, the big red barn is so pretty and manicured it’s hard to believe. That said, I tend to frequent the western edge of the Stanford campus, and the hodgepodge they call the medical center combined with the fields and temporary buildings/temporary horse stalls/temporary agricultural labs I’d have a hard time comparing to Disneyland. Each campus has it’s picturesque portions and it’s less than camera ready portions.</p>