Meet and Greet at Zachary’s

Some of the art showcased at
Zachary's Chicago Pizza

Tonight was the first time the UChicago cohort was able to meet our chaperone, Mr. John Hillyer. We had all been in contact for the past couple of days to organize our meet and greet. Mr. Hillyer suggested we meet at Zachary’s Chicago Pizza at 6 PM on Saturday night. I had never heard of the place but I thought it was very fitting that we have our first meeting and discussion about Chicago over Chicago style deep dish pizza.

I arrived at Zachary’s after Mr. Hillyer and I was able to spot him right away because of the description he gave of, “tall guy with blue polo shirt, tan shorts, blue hat, and beard.” Soon after we were joined by Maxime, Isaac, Shreejal, and Jahnvi, a past UChicago cohort member. Together we were able to squeeze into a table in the corner meant for four but occupied by six.

Once we settled in, Mr. Hillyer suggested we order right away because apparently deep dish pizza takes 40 minutes to make! We decided on two medium pizzas that would satisfy both the meat eaters and the vegetarians of the group.

The pizza we waited 40 minutes for

While we waited we discussed much of what to expect once we got to Chicago. Mr. Hillyer shared what we could expect for the first few days of our trip. We also got to learn more about his experience with the ILC. He shared that he has been a chaperone for more than five years. Having someone with this much experience certainly makes me feel more comfortable with making the trip.

We also got to hear a lot of first-hand experiences on the UChicago campus from Jahnvi, a member of the 2017 UChicago cohort. She shared what we could expect in class, in the dorms, and provided us with many other tips. Getting to hear from someone who has already experienced everything we are going to go through was definitely  beneficial and I am thankful she could make it to dinner. The 40 or so minutes we spent waiting for the pizza went by pretty fast because of our discussion.

After the pizza arrived we did less talking and a lot of eating! After having a couple of slices of pizza, multiple drink refills, and discussing more, we decided to call it a night. 

I greatly enjoyed this dinner because it provided me with a better idea of what the experience in Chicago will be like. I loved getting to know Mr. Hillyer and Jahnvi and hearing their past experiences. I hope I get to hear more from ILC alumni further down the road.

The Rush and the Wait

"I am not taking you to the meet and greet dinner, dude. Too late! Take the bus," my sister told me around 5:10. 

"Dinner starts at 6:00. No problem. I can still make it ON TIME if I take the bus. I have literally gone to San Jose taking public transportation," I told myself, being frustrated with my stubborn sister. 

Unfortunately, google maps estimated that if I left at 5:10 PM then I would get there at 6:10 PM, which would be bit late. I try to be about 15-30 minutes early everywhere I go. 

My dad helped me out and gave me his debit card number to call an Uber. The Uber got to my place at 5:24 PM. I was taking a Uber pool, the cheapest version of Uber, so there was another passenger and we had to drop him off first before proceeding to our final destination. 

Through our commute, I discussed with the driver how expensive Bay Area is. The driver temporarily moved from Florida to California to explore the area with his wife. He told me how he lived 2 blocks down a beach and was renting a home for about 1,200 dollars monthly. Essentially, his family was making approximately the same in Florida, give or take some. I was shocked. 

I found Zachary's pizza to be very expensive but also really good. I ran in the restaurant at exactly 6:00 PM and looked around for the ILC crew. It was so overcrowded. As soon as I walked in, I noticed a long line near the front desk. For some reason, I felt that ILC'ers would be towards the front. But surprisingly, they were all the way to the left hand side of the counter. I had to go all the way around due to the long line to meet up with the folks.

While observing the pizza place, I noticed that there was no table for six, which I did not enjoy. There was a small table towards the brick wall, with 6 people gathering around it. I noticed a new face within the group as well.

The Brick Walls

Everyone greeted me as I sat down. Fortunately, they did not begin the Chicago discussion yet. 

"6:00, right on time," Don would say if he was with us. Unfortunately he was not. He emailed us prior to the event that he would be out at Stanford taking some pictures. 

We ordered two deep dish pizzas- a medium-sized veggie and a medium-sized BBQ Chicken. Our server informed us that we would have to wait a while for the pizzas. Taking advantage of the time, we discussed about our trip to Chicago. 

The new face was Jahnvi. She is an ILC'er who took the Physics of the Stars course at University of Chicago. She informed us about her trip experience- weather, campus, time dedication, blogging, free time, etc. Listening to her stories made me as excited as ever to head out to Chicago! 

John Hillyer, our chaperone, told us about his rules and expectations. I really enjoyed the conversation we had with him.

"Pizza's here," John says as the server brought in the two deep dishes. 

We dug in! The food was great. John told us about his time as a faculty member at Richmond High School and De Anza High School as we ate. My taste buds loved the taste of the deep dish pizza.

It had been about 1 hour and 40 minutes since we were there. I did not have a ride back home so Kayla offered to give me a ride. We all left. 

Max told us that he was walking home and Issac's parents picked him up. We waited from Kayla's sister to arrive all while discussing good books to read with John. As Kayla's sister arrived, we shook hands with Mr. Hillyer and drove back. 

Personally, I found the night to be super productive- from discussing the weather in Chicago with Jahnvi to talking about good books to read with John. Knowing Chicago before going to Chicago, arguably, is very important. :)

A Deep Dishcussion

At roughly six o'clock this evening, I was dropped off in front of one of the best restaurants on this side of the bay: Zachary's Pizza. The air was cold and full of the delightful smell of dough baking. Their familiar red and black awning hung in its typical pristine condition. I have had deep dish in the past, so I knew what a treat I was in for.

Once inside, our group found that it was quite crowded, but we managed to squeeze in on a table for four. We began with introductions and discussion of the menu, as deep dish pizza requires quite a bit of preparation. As two of our group are vegetarian and the rest me at enthusiasts, we settled quickly on two medium pizzas: one super veggie and one BBQ chicken.

After we finished ordering, we began to discuss Chicago and its intricacies. Jahnvi, an ILCer who went to UChicago last summer, generously provided us with details about where and where not to go for our days prior to classes and whatnot. I learned that the beach is great, the Navy Pier fell short of expectations, and that there are some incredible thriller attractions to try out.

Admiral (definitely his preferred title) Hillyer pitched in with details about our accommodations for the first few days, his need for punctuality and attentiveness, and advice concerning the environment of the city. Chicago is hot. Like really, really hot. The humidity doesn't help, either. As a Californian, you might wake up to a foggy day with the impression that it will be pleasantly cool. You would be wrong. Walk out the door, and you will soon realize that it is actually still above eighty degrees. With these sorts of temperatures, the Admiral explained, we have to make sure we are drinking plenty of water so as to remove the possibility of dehydration.

Eventually the pizza came, and we all ate hungrily for a time. The Admiral closed out the meeting with "fun" trivia about serial killers and other interesting facts about the rich history of Chicago. It was great to talk to others with experience at and around colleges back east, and I think that I am much more prepared now to make the most out of my time there.

Chicago Pizza for a Chicago Cohort

The institution itself

Tonight was the night that the UChicago cohort finally met our chaperone, John Hillyer. We were to meet at Zachary's pizza, a quite well known deep-dish pizza place that I happen to never have gone to before. Partly because I'm not a huge fan of deep-dish, partly because my family doesn't eat out that often.

I arrived at 6 and walked into a very crowded restaurant smelling of delicious pizza sauce. I spotted Kayla and John against the wall, in line for a table. Isaac and Jahnvi, an ILCer who went to Chicago last year, joined us soon after. After we succeed in squeezing five of us in a table for four, we then saw Shreejal walk through the door, and had to fit in the extra chair. After ordering drinks, we set about the task of deciding on pizza because, little did I know, it takes forty minutes to cook the deep dish! After finding the vegetarians in the group, we ordered to nearly opposite pizzas: the Super Veggie and the Barbecue Chicken.

With the pizzas ordered, we briefly introduced ourselves and started talking about the trip. John and Jahnvi did most of the talking as John has had tons of experience with the ILC, and Jahnvi was part of last year's Chicago cohort. We learned a lot about the travel both to and from Chicago, and while on the trip, as well as what to expect from the dorms and cafeteria. I'm really glad Jahnvi could make it because it was great to hear firsthand stories about her trip.

Once all the serious discussion was about wrapped up, our pizzas arrived we got to experience a teaser of Chicagoan culture.

A food picture for the sole purpose of making Don jealous
(Veggie in front, BBQ chicken in back)

As we ate John shared fun and interesting facts about Chicago's history and some sites that we can check out. On the whole, this evening has only made me much more excited about my trip this summer, and I am really looking forward to spending more time with my cohort and our amazing chaperone!

Our waitress could have used some photography tips from Don!