Blog Post #9- Field Notes

Last week I observed the students and environment at VCU from an overhead walkway.  I believe this was my first time observing people without having to "look" for something in particular.  At first it was difficult to just write down what I saw instead of my opinions on what I saw.  It was a warm sunny day and I first thing I noticed was the feel of being in a small city.  Public transportation was readily available and the streets were filled with restaurants, shops and street vendors.  Although there was a lot of traffic, most people seemed to be walking or biking.  I assumed these people were students since they were all wearing backpacks.  Most of the people I observed were walking quickly and not interacting or acknowledging others.  I noticed cell phones and Ipods being used by those who were walking.  It was not a quiet scene because of the traffic and loud music coming from several of the cars.  For the fifteen minutes I was observing I saw VCU students of multiple ethnicities and ages.  Mostly all of them were dressed casually on this warm day (shorts, jeans, sandals, shirtless).  I did notice multiple people wearing VCU t-shirts which might indicate school pride or simply be a result of the recent basketball games.  The student culture at VCU did seem considerably diverse from what I observed, however also had many commonalities such as the modes of transportation.