Our totals so far (as of 10/11/2025 at 213 PM):
69: Total donors
$3852.41: Total donated
23: Honors students with 2+ donors
Eleanor Autrey (3) and Jenna Whitehead: Current Mayor of Athens Leaders
200: Our total donor goal (by 10/21/2025 at 11:59 PM)
Day Two: Ferry across the East River to lower Manhattan; walk down Wall Street, "Fearless Girl" statue, Trinity Church and the adjacent cemetery, where Alexander Hamilton, his son Philip, his wife Eliza and her sister Angelica are buried; the National Museum of the American Indian; subway to Chinatown; soup dumpling lunch at Shanghai 21; subway to Greenwich Village, where an epic walk (we finished the day with 34,000 steps!) included stops at the houses of Woody Guthrie, Mark Twain, Taylor Swift, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Edgar Allen Poe (the address, anyway); John Wilkes Booth (the planned Lincoln's assassination here), Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, The Weathermen (domestic terrorists and neighbors of Dustin Hoffman who accidentally blew up their own apartment in 1970); historic buildings: site of Stonewall riots in 1969 that launched the gay rights movement; the Jefferson Market Library; Washington Mews (cobblestone street and stables converted into home and NYU classrooms); Washington Square Park; Café Wha? (where Bob Dylan first played in NYC); the building exteriors for "Sex and the City" and "Friends." We then dined in Chelsea Market and capped the day with the Tony Award-winning Best Musical of 2025: Maybe Happy Ending at the Belasco Theatre, featuring Darren Criss in his Tony Award-winning performance as the lead actor. Subway to hotel.
Alyssa: It’s hard to pick because they were all amazing! The 9/11 museum moved me to tears, being on the boat in front of the Statue of Liberty was so surreal, and eating in Central Park was a dream! I couldn’t possibly pick my favorite part because the whole trip would make my highlight reel!
Aldan: The shows were great, but I also enjoyed the 9/11 museum and the MoMA. Normally I’m not one to listen to music in public but I put in some AirPods while walking through the MoMA and listened to classical and marimba music, which made for a really unique and fun experience. Additionally, I’m a Thunder fan so the roller coaster of watching them lose on the flight to NY then win the championship on our flight back was a great time.
Gwenny: Going to the MoMA and walking around.
Alexus: My favorite experiences were going to the MoMA and seeing John Cena walking on the street.
John: My favorite experience was the Broadway musicals we saw each night. I really liked the visuals of Maybe Happy Ending.Gwenny: Cucumber salad.
Alexus: My favorite food was the egg drop soup from 21 Shanghai.
Jimena: Little Italy and soup dumplings (in Chinatown)
John: My favorite food was the slice of pizza at Little Italy.
Camden: Soup dumplings and my chop cheese from the bodega.
Aldan: Definitely New York pizza. The Little Italy pizza place we went to Saturday night was some of the best pizza I’ve had, and I ate some great margarita pizza.
Gwenny: Rode in a boat
Alexus: 34,000 steps in one day, a harbor cruise, walking the Brooklyn Bridge, and trying Agua Fresca!
Alyssa: I went to New York for the first time! I did a lot of new things like go to a Broadway play, eat Chinese food, ride the subway, see the Atlantic Ocean, and ride in a taxi! My eyes stayed wide with wonder on this trip because of all these new experiences!
Jimena: Saw a Broadway musical
Day Three (Saturday, January 18): A ride across the Golden Gate Bridge followed by a hike through thre Redwoods in Muir Woods, followed by sushi dinner.
Day Four (Sunday, January 19): Choose your own Adventure. Some of the places chosen included the Japanese Tea Garden, the SF Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the Cartoon Art Museum, and the Exploratorium. Dinner: pho at the Golden Flower Restaurant.
Favorite experiences?
Allie M: The
Museum of Modern Art. I got to see Samson Young art, which is someone I have
been interested in for a long time.
Hannah: Shopping local, seeing the old Victorian style houses
in the Haight Ashbury district, and hiking through the Muir Woods.
Emily: Riding up and down the steep streets in the cable cars.
Lindsay: Walking through China Town and visiting the local
shops, visiting the Dao temple, walking amongst the Redwoods at Muir Woods, and
visiting the Musée Mécanique.
Luke: Wandering Muir Woods
Saul: As
someone who loves following technology and who has kept up with the work coming
out of Silicon Valley near San Francisco, I loved experiencing self-driving
cars for the first time. They are a piece of tech I have followed since their
major inception years ago. I loved the ferry we took to see the Golden Gate
Bridge that gave us such a cool view of both the bridge and the city behind. Walking through historical Chinatown has
given me a unique understanding of something new.
Lauren H: My
favorite experience, hands down, was Muir Woods. There is nothing like hiking
on those trails, and the beauty of the forest is truly immeasurable. Another
interesting stop was our narrated boat tour to the Golden Gate Bridge and
Alcatraz island, which was highly enjoyable. This was especially true because
we were able to see Angel Island, Treasure Island, and many other notable San
Francisco features. Additionally, my trip to the Japanese Tea Garden and the
California Museum of Sciences with some of the group was incredible. The unique
sculptures and trees of the tea garden and the four story rainforest exhibit
and two story aquarium of the science museum, paired with a brief but enjoyable
visit to Haight Ashbury, did well in completing the final full day in San
Francisco.
Lauren G: Riding the trolley, walking through the sculpture park, Alcatraz, going under the Golden Gate Bridge, everything about Pier 39! The double carousel, sea lions, Fisherman’s Wharf, and walking along the boardwalk was beautiful.
Madison:
Pork dumplings and scallion pancakes from Hang Ah Tea Room, and Sea Salt Caramel
hot cocoa from Ghirardelli Square.
Allie M: The
shrimp roll I had on Sunday [from Hang Ah Tea Room], it was VERY good.
Hannah: The
gyoza at House of Dim Sum in Chinatown and the cheesecake and gelato at Café
Greco.
Emily: Vietnamese pho [Golden Flower Restaurant].
Lindsay: The dim sum at Hang Ah Tea Room! We also ate at a sushi place
with a very friendly cat.
Luke: An authentic ramen bowl.
Saul: Port
pot stickers was something I tried for the first time during our first night at
the Hang Ah Tea room, which was incredible. We would visit local coffee shops
every morning where I would try a different pastry. At the Brioche Bakery &
CafĂ© one morning I tried a cinnamon roll that was unlike any I’d ever had in
Oklahoma both in texture and flavor.
Lauren H: My
favorite foods from this trip were the spicy rice noodles from Hang Ah and the
seafood pho from Golden Flower. They were thoroughly enjoyable and incredibly
delicious. There is truly nothing like getting the chance to eat food from
people who know how to authentically make it. Additionally, though was only a
small part of the trip and not an actual meal, getting to try Boba milk tea
from Chinatown was incredible.
Lauren G: Ramen, lukewarm sake, various assorted Boba
Anything you did for the first time?
Madison: In
a Daoist temple, riding in a cable car, and riding in a Waymo (self-driving
car).
Allie: I
rode on a plane for the first time (in technicality because the first time I
was 2 years old).
Hannah: I
crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and hiked in Muir Woods for the first time.
Emily: Some
things I did for the first time was visit the sea lions at pier 39, see the
Golden Gate Bridge in person, and try Boba tea.
Lindsay: I
ate at several restaurants that only gave chopsticks to eat with instead of
forks; that’s how you know it’s authentic! I also rode in cable cars and street
cars for the first time, and I got to visit my first ethnic enclave in
Chinatown.
Luke: Flying on a plane, getting on a
streetcar, and eating authentic ramen.
Saul: A number of things, from trying new foods to hiking the trails of a forest. I tried foods like dim
sum with unique dumplings, pork pot stickers, and scallion pancakes that opened
my palette to something brand new. I rode in a self-driving vehicle around the
city, which opened my eyes to the technological advances the city has to offer.
I saw how grand redwood trees are when visiting the Muir Woods National
Monument.
Lauren G:
Seeing a self-driving car, going to a comedy show, seeing a redwood tree,
getting a caricature of myself!!