Re airports, my daughter has found Go Shuttle to be pretty easy going from campus to LGA or JFK, but often a 3-4 hour marathon the other direction, from airport to campus. Same for the other options from LGA/JFK to campus i.e. subway or bus to Grand Central, then Metro North to New Haven, then a cab . . . ~ 4 hours by the time that’s all done.
So, we use Hartford when feasible - obviously not nearly as many flights as the NY airports is the obvious trade-off.
She has found the CT Limo shuttle from Hartford to campus to be a pain with long waits for a ride - they told her to sit for two hours at BDL last time. I just don’t think there are enough flights into that airport for the ground shuttle to be a convenient option.
Uber is about $65 between BDL and campus and much faster and easier than CT Limo, which IIRC is around $45. There is also some mechanism where the students can find shared Uber rides to cut the cost further, but I’m not sure exactly how that works.
From when I’ve looked anyway, there are very few flights into Tweed.
I was curious and took a quick look at Tweed - it looks like there are a total of two outbound flights and two inbound flights at that airport today, all to or from Philadelphia.
Hello everyone - my daughter made it through 1st semester with a lightweight warm down jacket (rated as Light activity: to 25° Moderate activity: to -25°) that is pretty warm but it is waist length and not waterproof. Since it was fairly dry and not too cold this fall, it worked just fine.
I was wondering whether it would be good to get a waterproof winter parka for New Haven winters (for use over the next 4 years and beyond) - something that is down lined and warm but also longer and totally water and wind proof. Kind of like a ski jacket but longer. I am not entirely sure what New Haven winters are like and whether being so close to the coast has an impact on how wet it can be. My daughter seems to be outside quite a bit walking between classes and the dining hall. She is a minimalist and says her jacket is fine, and maybe it is…but thought I would ask you guys!
Winter parka is useful for New England’s winter in January and February. It is nice to have a hood. But it does not need to be waterproof. When it is 10F out there, kids are dealing with ice and snow, not water.
One that is longer and covers the bottom is a really wise choice. My daughter has both a north face shell and a long puffy jacket. Both have hoods. Also good waterproof thermal boots. She grew up here and so she has a good grasp of how the weather can change on a dime. That is the bigger issue. You can start off warm and then the wind kicks in and you are freezing. New Haven is technically on the water and the wind can be rough and very cold.
I think the boots and socks are the best idea. Even living on the east coast, my D did not tell me until halfway through last winter that she was still wearing her Dock Martens in the snow. For the life of me I don’t know how with all the buying we did, the snow boots slipped through the cracks. I quickly ordered a pair from Amazon and she was great. Also, a good pair of rain boots are a necessity. I never heard of Hunter boots until she went to Yale, but she loves her pair and you can put the warm insert in them also. Dry feet and hands seem to make everything else okay.
For boys, waterproof shoes with descriptions similar to the following are very nice: “Comfort never looked so good! This waterproof men’s lace-up boot from the 1825 collection has a durable black leather upper and breathable, waterproof GORE-TEX® lining. The removable footbed cushions and supports, while the rubber outsole provides grip and shock-absorbing properties.”
Totally odd question but here it goes…
We have contributed to the Yale fundraising effort but have any of you suggested your students do the same? Told my DS it would be a nice gesture to donate something to the cause…
Teaching and encouraging our kids the value of giving back is always a good thing. I would ask though whether the money your son donates is your money or his – is he foregoing “a few pizzas and libations at Yorkside”? The lesson learned and message given can be subtly different.
It’s a long time until graduation for us, but… we are from people who have never met another soul who went to an Ivy League school. I think grandparents are going to want to make the trip to graduation. But I notice that that campus…and those buildings… are for young, able-bodied people. Suggestions for getting elderly people around?
@tonymom - I have heard that the London School of Economics summer program is great. A friend of my daughter attended last summer and enjoyed the experience. There are students from all over the world who attend. I seem to recall that there is no homework, mainly big chunks of class time. I also spoke with an alum who has had three children attend Yale, and all three did the LSE summer program after their freshman year - she highly recommended it.
@Faulkner1897 MANY THANKS! He’s interested in doing one session and, depending on if his team goes to the Henley, maybe two. Ive encouraged him to apply although I’m sure it’s very competitive. Thanks for feedback.
@Community2605 My daughter graduated in '15 and we had two 80+ grandfathers with us. I won’t lie, it was hard. Restaurants are not usually accessible (even the first floor is often up a flight of stairs), sidewalks are crumbled and root-damaged, etc. We stayed in a residence college and requested a first floor room, but it was still up a short flight of stairs. We did request a wheelchair from Yale, which helped (but they were ridiculously limited in hours for pick-up and return, which added to the stress and chaos.) Wheelchair stuck in the mud on Old Campus, very very hot and no shade (plus we had extra security for VP Biden). If you have specific questions I’ll try to answer from our experience.
For those of you who waive the Yale health coverage, does a waiver need to be signed for the spring term? In the January 2017 monthly messages, there is a blurb about waiver request for spring term being due by January 31.
When you submitted the form in the fall, you had the option to waive coverage for the year or just the fall term, so the answer depends on what you submitted.
I have a couple of comments on going to Commencement with an elderly relative. I would not recommend staying in the residential colleges, because of access issues. I would actually suggest the best bet is to have a car and to stay in a hotel outside of New Haven. There is handicapped parking near campus, as well as plenty of other parking. Bring your own wheelchair if possible. Make restaurant reservations early, because as noted before, some are not very accessible. Take advantage of the special seating area for disabled people. One problem you may face is where to “park” the relative in between events, because your kid’s room may not be accessible. Possibilities are the RC common room, or one of the art galleries.
Question about Bull Dog Days. Do kids usually go for the entire 3 days? Just trying to plan as my child will be flying into the NYC airports. I am also trying to decide whether to just send him alone. Any thoughts? TIA