BYU Duck Pond

Maybe you've lived your entire life in the Provo, Utah area. Or perhaps you're a BYU graduate with plenty of fond memories of BYU life: the clean campus, sunny summer days spent licking Creamery ice-creams, bustling Wilkinson Student Center, and juicy J Dawgs. Either way, if you live in the Provo area or you're just passing through, you really should visit the BYU duck pond. There aren't very many more relaxing and pleasurable places to pass a Sunday afternoon than in this quaint, newly-renovated area.

Over the last year, the entire hillside South-West of campus has been completely transformed. It began with the cobblestone path zigzagging the overgrown woods of the South-campus hill. The deep, muddy ravine that claimed dozens of tennis balls, flip-flops, and tennis-shoes weekly became a stone-lined stream with crystal water tumbling over sand-colored rocks and spilling out of boulders in artificial waterfalls. The overgrown underbrush was cleared and pruned. Stone tablets now mark the freshly-planted foliage. Iris cascade from the hillside, nodding their fragrant heads to passerby.

And finally, the duck pond. The dirt paths leading to the banks of the pond have been paved with dusty, burnt red cobblestones. Fresh, dark woodchips blanket tree beds, kissing the green grass in crisp, curved lines. And a new wooden dock frames the once unkempt dirt pond banks.

This Sunday afternoon, I watched as young families gathered on the wooden benches eating sandwiches or fried chicken. A larger group sang happy birthday to an elated young boy, then passed out ice creams to the energetic children. One boy pushed a stroller with a watermelon almost as large as he. The children knelt near the dock edge, gripping the wooden rim and leaning eagerly over as they pointed enthusiastically at the young ducklings swimming in that adorable quick-bobbing fashion.

A handsome mallard perched on a large rock in the water, lazily pruning his feathers. The rest of the ducks horded near the bank where three young boys were tossing bread crumbs. Two females, however, broke from the group when they eyed me sitting on the far bench. One cautiously hopped up on the dock. When my attention remained focused on my notebook, the duck began quacking insistently, waddling in my direction and eyeing me pointedly. Smiling, I promised her I’d bring bread crumbs next time I visited. So the young brown duck waddled to the grass to nibble clover heads, clearly disappointed.

This duck pond and the cobblestone path above it are by far my favorite places on BYU campus. Here are some great ways to spend time in this pleasant little area:

·         Play Sequence® – my favorite card/board game – at one of the metal tables next to the stream and the hillside path.

·         Picnic under a large tree in the green grass next to the pond.

·         Read a novel in the summer shade.

·         And of course, feed the ducks!

Knockwurst, Anyone?

Personally, I wish that every school assignment was a project. Essays are ok, tests, definitely not. But projects are expressive, creative, and fun! In my Media Writing class, our first project was a road trip article. I went to a local festival called Swiss Days in Midway... tell me what you think!

MIDWAY, Utah. - The young boy entered the Swiss Days festival with eager anticipation. Bright colors and delicious smells surrounded him, tempting and inviting. On one side, kids ran and jumped in an inflatable bounce-city that sported a larger-than-life Spiderman and a Disney princess tower. On the other side, children’s voices sang lighthearted Swiss songs that echoed from a distant stage. But this boy’s eyes were trained on a small booth off in the distance. He pulled on his father’s sleeve with tangible energy, dragging him full-force towards a tantalizing, succulent scent: Swiss pies.

     In the late 1940’s, Swiss Days began as a celebration of harvest, when local farmers and ranchers would gather at the end of the season to enjoy the food and festivity of their “Harvest Days.” After several years, the name and theme were changed to Swiss Days in order to incorporate the town’s unique ancestry and to attract larger crowds to the event. Even after 60 years, however, Swiss Days remains, as always, a festival of food.

      Gania Harshbarger, 43, a tourist from Provo, Utah, who visited Swiss Days with her family of six on their way to a camping trip, found the food the best part of the festival.

      “My Knockwurst sandwich is the most authentic food you can find at Swiss Days,” she said through flavorful mouthfuls, “It’s delicious.”

      Other guests, on the other hand, specifically chose their food selection because of its non-Swiss resemblance. Joshua Hansen, 19, also from Provo, said he picked his Swiss taco simply because it reminded him of a Navajo taco.

      The community worked hard to make sure all locals and tourists were abundantly fed. With their constant commitment, the outdoor food court became alive with enthusiastic children, bustling strollers, and, of course, the sigh of satisfied foodies.

 Each booth beckoned to the crowds, gathering quick-paced lines of hungry guests. The festival’s “World Famous” Swiss Tacos attracted a line that snaked in between tables and booths for nearly half an hour. Knockwurst sandwiches and Kraut dinners offered a more traditional Swiss fare, as well as the homemade Braztzilies – Swiss cookies – that were sold at surrounding stalls. A centralized booth fried hundreds of fresh scones, with which the pleased populace lathered spoonfuls of honey-butter or berry jam.

      The pie booth, the fervor of the little boy, however, was not localized. Out of the way, though many people visited the stall, the crowd was significantly smaller than those at the other vendors. But the boy instinctively knew that this booth would be incomparable.

 Nestled between the Swiss dogs and the Swiss shaved ice, the pie booth was saturated with sugary sweet scents. Rows of thick slices of berry, peach, apple, rhubarb, pumpkin and pecan snuggled in crowded racks. Tourists pined over the selection of decadents, struggling to make a decision. The most popular pie, Berrylicious, had already sold out by late afternoon.

      Lamont Jones, 53, a local of Midway and runner of the pie booth, personally recognizes food’s fundamental role during the festival. For the past 12 years, Jones has spent each Swiss Days dishing out plates of steaming pies and hamburgers to the thousands of locals and tourists who come every year.

      When asked what was his favorite part of the Swiss Days festival, he said, “Seeing all the people, and all the activities that are going on. And also, community; it’s pretty cool to see everyone show up and come together, it’s pretty neat.”