The Chicago area experienced its first snowfall of the season Thursday morning, with a predicted 1-4 inches in accumulations.
McCormick freshman Mayte Cruz, who is from Nicaragua, encountered snow for the first time.
“I was very fascinated by the idea of experiencing a real winter,” Cruz said. “Obviously I am a little worried, because I don’t really know how cold it actually gets. But I am looking forward to having that new experience.”
Medill freshman and Florida native Ana Chavez called the snowfall a part of her first “real winter.” She said she started gathering winter gear in the second semester of her senior year in high school to prepare for Northwestern.
Chavez added that she wore her warmest coat, which covers almost her entire body, when she stepped out Thursday. She said she plans to also tuck her hair into her hood next time as it was soaking wet by the time she got to class.
Evanston native and Weinberg junior Martha Santiago said the snow put her in a “festive mood” and took her back to her childhood.
“I just remember being a kid, my family would, every time it snowed, make like a little snow hill in our backyard and go sledding in our backyard or at parks,” Santiago said.
But for Cruz and Chavez, Evanston’s winter activities vary from their snowless hometowns.
“Counterintuitively, we go to the beach during the winter,” Cruz said. “There’s a lot of families that will go to the beach right before Christmas and stay through the new year.”
Cruz said she is excited to have snowball fights and spend time outside during Thanksgiving break.
Chavez, however, said she plans to go on a cruise in the Caribbean over break. She emphasized that she wants to enjoy the warm weather as much as possible before she comes back to the Midwest’s cold temperatures.
Santiago noted how the timing of the first snowfall of the season has shifted later in the calendar year. Last year, it snowed on Halloween.
She added that typically, there is more snow from November to January, but now snowfall occurs in February, March and sometimes even April.
Chavez said she feels that the entire snow schedule has been pushed back.
“I expected it to be colder by the end of November, because I did hear about it snowing on Halloween last year,” Cruz said. “I thought I was going to have to prepare way sooner.”
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