While Lafayette students from the West Coast and other warm areas are used to seeing sunshine and soaring temperatures, this past weekend, they got a real taste of winter in Easton – strong winds last Friday night and Saturday morning brought temperatures to nearly single digits.
Brenda Gomez ’26, who is from Hawaii, had never seen snowfall until coming to Lafayette. For Gomez, seeing snow for the first time was a very happy experience, and she even got the chance to try and catch snowflakes in her mouth.
“It was a magical experience,” Gomez said.
Gomez also enjoys many of the “little things” about the winter season. “[I like] being able to see your breath and drawing things [on] foggy windows and being able to wear scarves and just waking up every morning and seeing if it snowed,” she said.
Gomez plans on staying in a colder region.
“I already know that I’m gonna become a northerner. I fell in love with the snow and hope to experience as much as possible throughout my life,” Gomez said.
Isaac Reynolds ’26, who is from Fort Myers, Fla., enjoys northeastern weather and even plans to stay in the region following college.
“In Florida, it stays basically 80 degrees or hotter for 90 percent of the year so it never really feels like winter,” Reynolds wrote in an email.
Similarly, Julia Gibbons ’23 from Winter Park, Fla. said that she enjoys experiencing Pennsylvania’s four seasons.
“In Florida, we have palm trees to look at all year round, but I love seeing the trees in the fall change color,” Gibbons wrote in an email.
But, although she enjoys the northeast’s varied seasons, Gibbons favors Florida’s warmer winters.
“It’s the perfect temperature of 70 degrees and sunny,” Gibbons wrote.
Zoë Gelber ’24, originally from Atlanta, Ga., wrote in an email that she enjoys the winter months because she likes “getting under the covers and getting warm again.”
Kailee Sawai ’24, who is from Torrance, Calif. noted wearing warm jackets and sweaters as a favorite part of the cold weather experience.
“I never wore warm winter coats [or] clothes at home since the coldest it gets by where I live is the 50s (year round)!” Sawai wrote in an email.
“I also enjoy sending pictures of the snow and wintery things to my family back home, since we never really go to the snow often or experience snowy weather in Southern California!” Sawai wrote.
Despite the picturesque moments winter brings to campus at Lafayette, Gelber and Sawai both said they prefer the warmer weather.
“I do prefer the warm weather, but I’d prefer a mix of both. 72 degrees outside is the sweet spot,” Gelber wrote.
“I prefer the warm weather more however, since I like wearing slippers, shorts, and t-shirts,” Sawai wrote. “I just don’t like peeling off all my layers whenever I go into buildings for class or to eat when it’s cold out here. I also enjoy cold, iced drinks more than hot drinks so I’d say they’re more enjoyable in the warmer weather.”
Charlie Berman ’24, who is from Burlingame, Calif., also prefers the warmer weather “because there is more available to do.”
However, Berman does enjoy getting outside in the cold weather. “I like the feeling of knowing that it is cold, but you are playing sports or exercising in a way where you can’t feel it,” Berman said.
Disclaimer: Charlie Berman ’24 is a sports editor for The Lafayette. He did not contribute writing or editing to this article.
