Jun 24, 2013
A Partner’s Summer in Hanover: June
By Claire B. TP14
Well, summer's here! Which means most of the T'14s have left the Upper Valley for jobs around the world. Finals and FYP (First Year Project) presentations wrapped up the week of 5/27, and students had at least a few days of downtime (if not more) before starting work. Most took off and started at their jobs on 6/3, 6/10, or 6/17.
While students relocate for 10-12 weeks for their summer internships, many TPs stay in the area for summer; I would say mostly those with full-time jobs or young children. Some are able to relocate with their students, but some (like me!) are not. There's a crew of ~25 of us here for the summer (mostly TP'14s, plus some T'14s who are working at Tuck Bridge for the summer). That'll be it for most of June (plus of course the '13s who are moving out, mostly over the course of this month, so sad!). Then, T'15s and TP'15s start moving in in July, so while the pace is certainly different than it is during the school year, it hardly feels lonely or deserted up here as some might have feared.
My husband, Will, is interning for a private equity firm in Denver for the summer. Quite the haul! So I can't visit him as frequently as the TPs with students in Boston and NYC might, but there's plenty here to keep me occupied for weekends I'm in Hanover. Of course, it's difficult to be apart from your significant other, but the TP'13s all raved about their summers last year -- how beautiful it was, how quickly the time flew by -- so I was actually anxious and eager to see what this summer had in store for us.
So far, I can attest, the weeks have flown! The first weekend of June, I ran my longest race to date: the Covered Bridges Half Marathon. The race is hugely popular (dubbed "the best 13.1 miles in New England"). Registration was 6 months in advance, in December, and bibs sold out in 14 minutes! That's crazy. I actually fundraised for my race entry, and raised $980 for the Haven, an organization in White River Junction that provides a food pantry, clothing closet, and emergency shelter to individuals and families in need.
A half marathon has been a personal goal for a while, but running the CBHM had specifically been on my Tuck Bucket List to accomplish while we're here for school.
Smiles before the race with a good friend/TP'13 who also ran
at the starting line
Finished!
The race course was absolutely gorgeous; I'll definitely be running again next year!
The first weekend of Will's internship (June 8-9) was graduation weekend for the Class of 2013 (as well all other Dartmouth programs), so there was lots of hubbub around Hanover and many goodbyes to squeeze in. It's wild to think that will be us in one short year... or that one year ago we hadn't even started this journey yet! I was happy to learn that the ceremony is streamed live online, so extended family far away who won't be able to travel for Will's graduation next year, will still be able to watch him cross the stage.
The following weekend was
Quechee's Hot Air Balloon Festival (another item on my New Year's bucket list...my Tucketlist?)
Several TPs attended -- how often do you get the chance to see hot air balloons up close?
Getting started...
So many fun colorful decorations
While we waited for the balloons to fly, we checked out the many local artisans at the festival. There was handmade pottery, jewelry, stained glass, woodwork, clothing, etc. So many neat finds!
Blowing them up...
All lined up in a row, at dusk - so beautiful! The Wicked balloon was special this year.
And this past weekend, I packed myself up for the weekend and headed west to visit Will in Denver! Which I was able to do because one of the many, many dog lovers in the Tuck community--a fellow TP'14 who's also a dog-owner and who is also here for the summer--dog-sat for me this weekend.
our Tuck Puppy, Honey
So for the big visit, we had a long awaited dinner date to ourselves on Friday night. Saturday morning we headed to Boulder with Will's roommate, also a T'14 interning in Denver, and met up with other Tuckies in the area (including a recently graduated T'13 and soon-to-matriculate T'15), to hike the flatirons and have lunch at the local farmer's market.
Switchbacks to the top
Taking in the view along the way
View from the top!
Three T'14s, a TP'14, and a T'15. Can you tell who's who? 😊
Like many who are drawn to Tuck, I love hiking and being outside. But the neatest thing about Saturday's hike, which is so typical for the Tuck community, was how easy it was to connect with Tuckies who'd never met and just enjoy time and conversation with each other. There are, admittedly, fewer Tuckies in the Denver area than in other major U.S. and international cities, but we still found each other!
Not bad for my first four weeks of summer! I'll keep you posted on my escapades in the Upper Valley... I have to float on a tube down the Connecticut River at least once!
