UC Santa Cruz is in the coastal redwood forest. Their best asset is the beautiful setting. The welcome office is a little dated and the main entrance looks like a vintage barn. The university is set up in 10 colleges spread, across 2000 acres (huge and spaceous). It’s all beautiful trees and shady paths. The housing and class rooms and clustered together. The property is generally sloped uphill from the ocean overlooking the Monterey Bay and Pacific Ocean. Santa Cruz the city has a seaside beachy feel and quaint. There’s old and nice spots, and other spots. We found our chatty, 5-major tour guide a little sassy and marginally believable. The school felt more like UC Summer Camp. Their marketing push had a strong progressive bend to multi-culturalism and liberal political leanings. Overall, the trees are great, but that’s all I’ve got to say. Go Banana Slugs!
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