Oh, sh-t! It’s 2 a.m. on a Monday and you have a paper due at 8 a.m., but Strozier is always full. You want to bring your boyfriend back to your place, but your roommates are home. All you want is a moment of piece and quiet, but everything is always so loud. Where do you go when these disasters strike? CM interviewed Florida State students to find 10 underrated and hidden-in-plain-sight sanctuaries.
1. When You Don’t Know Where to go on Friday Night: Swing Dancing
“Well, I heard about it from a friend and she’s like, ‘Hey, you want to go swing dancing tonight?’ As a freshman, I am not involved in very much and I know nothing about swing dancing, so I decided to show up and find out. It meets up every Friday night in the music buildings. It is a popular activity. I met a lot of cool people there!” – Reese Landrum, Freshman, Physics and Astrophysics
2. When You Need an All-Night Cram Session: The BLG Complex Landings
“A good place to study is in the second floor landing between Landis Hall and Gilchrist Hall. It’s very quiet most of the time. Nobody’s ever there, especially late at night, and I’ve got a lot of essays done there faster than at most other places. One day it was raining and I didn’t want to get wet, so I entered from Broward Hall and then used the connector between Broward and Gilchrist before I took the one between here and Gilchrist. That’s how I found this good place to study.” – Nicholas Pierce, Freshman, Editing, Writing, and Media
3. Where to Walk the Dog: Langford Green
“I have my dog Blaze. He is my very fluffy golden retriever at school with me and I really enjoy walking him on Landis. It is a good way to meet people on campus and make friends through it because dog people are good people and I like good people. When I’m not on Landis, I also enjoy walking Blaze on Langford Green, the field in front of the stadium. That field is kind of just Blaze and I, so I like to go there to do cardio with him. It is where we have one-on-one special time together.” – Lindsay Hoop, Junior, Biology
4. Where to Find a Quieter Strozier: Honors, Scholars and Fellows House
“Last semester during finals week, everywhere was crowded. Strozier, the Union Lounge, everywhere was too crowded to study. My friends and I were going to Chick-Fil-A when we discovered that above us was the Honors, Scholars and Fellows House. There was no one there, it was super quiet and it was a great place to study. We got a lot of work done and now whenever Strozier is busy, I tend to go there instead.” – Gianna Iavarone, Sophomore, Accounting
5. When You Need to Meditate: The Student Life Center Courtyard
“Behind the Dunlap Success Center, right in front of the University Counseling Center, there’s a tree. There was this huge tree growing out front when they were building and during construction they tore down the tree and transplanted it. Even though it is substantially sized, it is a lot smaller than it used to be. It is a story of renewal and regrowth and it represents how Florida State University has changed over time. There are benches all around, so it is a good place to hang out with friends for a breath of fresh air.” – Shelby Resnick, Freshman, Psychology
6. When You’re Too Cheap for a Motel: The Cawthon Hall Ground Floor Bathroom
“One night, my boyfriend and I were having sex in my room, and my roommates walked in. Both of us were really into it and wanted to finish, but where could we go? We started exploring Cawthon. In the basement there is a sketchy, long hallway that no one goes through. In this hallway, there is a staircase that leads to the first floor and at the base of that staircase there is a bathroom. So, we went into that bathroom and the rest is history.” — Anonymous*
7. When You Need a Casual Study Zone: The Goldstein Library
“I found out about the Goldstein Library from one of my professors. I heard it was this library that people don’t really go to a lot, and it’s a really cool place. I decided to go to it and see what it was about. It is the library of Library Sciences, it is right by Landis and I like to go there because it is very peaceful. They have a puzzle that you can work on when you are stressed out. When I was working on my research paper for English, I started doing the puzzle and it made me feel a lot better. The librarians are really helpful there. They also have really comfortable chairs!” – Thomas Bretz, Freshman, Exploratory
8. Where to Impress People: College of Medicine Courtyard and Garden
“I found out about the courtyard at the College of Medicine when I had to go for an interest meeting for the Dentistry Club. I was walking around because I got there about 15 minutes early, so I explored the area. There are a bunch of classrooms in a circle and right in the middle is a big green area with a group of trees in the corner. I brought my family to see it during Parents’ Weekend. It is a good place to talk.” – Andrew Washburn, Freshman, Chemical Engineering
9. Where to Feel Like a Wizard in Hogwarts: The Heritage Museum in Dodd Hall
“I discovered the Heritage Museum after my speech professor last fall had the librarian come in and talk to us. The librarian was talking about the different museums there and on campus and the different resources that are scattered about. She ended up mentioning that there was a museum in Dodd Hall. Even though I didn’t have any classes in Dodd, I stopped by one day, and I ended up discovering this place. It’s really beautiful in the mornings and evenings when the sunlight comes through the stained glass windows. It’s very quiet; it kind of feels like a church. It just has a good atmosphere for getting things done.” – Ashlin Morgan, Senior, Pre-Law
10. Where to Get Some Afternoon Delight: Greek Park
“I f–ked in a hammock behind Landis Hall. I had a new hammock and I was looking to use it. So, after a noon game, I was talking to a girl and was like, ‘Hey, want to go try out this hammock?’ I wasn’t intending to have sex; I just wanted to try out the hammock. We walked over there to that wooded area behind Landis. It was only 6 p.m., so it was not dark out yet. And you kind of have to cuddle in a hammock, so we got pretty close. Then, yeah, we f–ked.” – Charlie, Freshman, Business
*Names withheld to protect privacy.
