Gopher Blog

A trip to the U of M Farmers Market

Hello readers!  

Yesterday I was walking around campus on my lunch break and stumbled upon the U of M Farmers Market. Every Wednesday, rain or shine, vendors line Church Street to sell their produce. The market is full of locally grown vegetables, fruits, and even beautiful flowers from the University’s Landscape Arboretum. The food is so delicious and very inexpensive! Yesterday I came home with a huge head of lettuce, onions, peppers, and cucumbers, which cost me a total of $5!

 
One of the vendors is Cornercopia, the U of M’s student-run organic farm. I talked to a student who was working at the Cornercopia stand, and she said they grow 100+ fruits and vegetables throughout the year. The farm is located on the University’s St. Paul campus and is tied to an organic farming class offered through the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences  that teaches students how to plant and grow their own gardens.

 
In addition to the wonderful food and flowers, the Farmers Market is a great place to get health and wellness advice. Representatives from Boynton Health Service (the campus health clinic) were available to give nutrition advice and free stone massages.  University Dining Service and Campus Club prepared lunch with foods found at the market. I had a ton of fun and can’t wait to go back next week! 

Calling All Cyclists

 
Washington Avenue Bridge  

With all the nice weather we've been having lately, I have been able to bike back and forth from work. There is a bike trail that stretches all the way from my house in St.Paul to the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis. Six miles is a long ride to campus, but I enjoy the beautiful trail on East River Parkway, spending less money on gas, and getting my exercise for the day! During the school year I bike a lot too. It's nice to hop on my bike when I'm running late for class and get there right in the nick of time.

I am not the only person that is taking advantage of the trails in the Twin Cities. Bicycling Magazine recently named Minneapolis the "Best Bike City in America"! While reading the article, I was surprised to find out that 8,200 people bike to work in Minneapolis during the summer. Here are some more fun facts about biking in the Twin Cities from Bicycling Magazine and Nice Ride Minnesota:

• Minneapolis and St.Paul have 84 miles of bike trails and 44 miles of bike lanes. Forty additional miles will be built this summer.
• There are 50 bike shops in the Twin Cities (one of those is Erik's Bike Shop, located on the U of M campus).
• Minneapolis is ranked second in the nation for the number of people who commute to work by bicycle. Census data shows that approximately 4,500 Minneapolis regularly commute to work by bicycle.

The Twin Cities just got even more bike accessible with its launch of the Nice Ride bike sharing program. Bike kiosks are scattered around the city, where you can pay to rent a bike for a couple of hours or up to a year. Eleven of the sixty kiosks are located on the University of Minnesota campus.

 
Williamson Hall Kiosk

 
Kolthoff Hall Kiosk 

Being able to bike just about anywhere in the Twin Cities is one of my favorite benefits of going to the University of Minnesota!

 

My Good Friends, the Admissions Ambassadors

If you have ever had a campus tour at the University of Minnestoa-Twin Cities, you have probably met an Admissions Ambassador. Admissions Ambassadors  assist the Office of Admissions by leading tours and sharing their unique experiences with prospective students and families. They represent the University of Minnesota to the public.

You may have thought that being an Admissions Ambassador was a campus job, but it is actually a student group.  The Ambassadors not only lead campus tours, but are an active campus organization.   They participate in fundraisers like the Relay for Life, March of Dimes, and hold special events for members.

Admissions Ambassadors Coordinator, Natalie Winters, said, “our Ambassadors have tremendous school pride and are very dedicated to the University.  We all come from various majors and colleges, and we originate from various states and countries.  We unite to represent the University of Minnesota and each member provides a unique perspective and campus experience.” The Admissions Ambassadors are a cherished asset to our University.

 
Ambassadors give tours, rain or shine!

To learn more go to http://www.sua.umn.edu/groups/directory/show.php?id=1007.