How Faculty Celebrate Summer

Many College of Arts & Sciences faculty pursue research or prepare upcoming courses during the summer. But they also find time to recharge. And what better place to recharge than the Pacific Northwest? 

We asked faculty across the College to share a favorite summer place or activity, with a connection to their academic interests. From mountains to shoreline to city sights, they offer some classics and some surprises.

Catch the West Seattle Water Taxi

During the summer I love to take the West Seattle Water Taxi. I love getting out on the water, feeling the wind and spray on my face, soaking in some sun, listening to the seals on the buoys barking at each other and jostling for position, plus it’s free for anyone with a UPass! Facing the city, I can see the three television transmission towers for KING (the first television station owned by a woman, Dorothy Bullitt), KOMO, and KIRO — helpful reminders that, even though our world may seem more interconnected and global, the local remains crucial. 

Stephen Groening, Associate Professor
Department of Cinema & Media Studies

Visit Wa Na Wari, An Art Space

Black art shines at Wa Na Wari, the Central District home-turned-art-space that opened in 2019. Every time I visit, I am blown away by the art – often by five artists as part of a group exhibition. Some past favorites: an installation on Black hair and home by Portland-based Lisa Jarrett, and collage on Black femininity and history by Seattle-based Adetola Abatan. Wa Na Wari frequently hosts dance, artmaking, talks, and other community events.  

Jasmine Mahmoud, Assistant Professor
School of Drama

Hike Nature Trails in Western Washington

Since I’m constantly teaching music during the school year while actively creating and being consumed with working on my craft as a musician, I see summer as a time to recharge. Late July into early September is my favorite time to go into nature — to just soak it up and be absorbed by it. I enjoy the numerous and spectacular nature trails around here. Whidbey Island trails that lead to amazing beaches, and trails in Olympic National Park and at Mt. Rainier, have given me some of the most impactful WOW moments I’ve ever had.

Cuong Vu, Professor
Floyd and Delores Jones Endowed Chair in the Arts
School of Music

Hang Out Near Water, With a Book

This summer you will find me next to a body of water, likely with a book in hand. I might be inhaling a novel next to Rattlesnake Lake, poking around Lake Union in my kayak, or if I'm lucky, watching what my colleague Charles Johnson calls the "viridian waves" from one of the San Juan Islands (preferably Orcas). There are so many beautiful shorelines around here! If only we had a similar surplus of sunshine.

Megan Callow, Associate Teaching Professor
Department of English

Visit Moon Lava at the Museum of Flight

A little over three billion years ago, lava flowed across the Moon’s Oceans of Storms. On November 19, 1969, a piece of that lava flow was collected and eventually made its way to a small display cabinet at the Museum of Flight. This rather unremarkable looking rock is one of only a relatively small handful of extraterrestrial samples from a known location. I always remember to stop and say "hi" to lunar sample 12047 when I visit.

Toby Smith, Associate Teaching Professor
Department of Astronomy

Combine Water and Wind for a New View of Home

I love to get out on the Puget Sound in our old wooden sailboat. So much of the beauty of the Pacific Northwest is visible from out on the water. Watching the city buildings shrink into the distance and the mountains appear to grow in size as we sail off reminds me of our small place in the Universe. Of course, sailing a boat is also an exercise in physics! Making the boat move involves adjusting the boat so that the competing forces of the wind and the water push the boat forward, something that can be easier to do than to understand precisely how it all works. 

Marilena Loverde, Associate Professor
Department of Physics

Contemplate Our World at the Burke Museum

I love coming back to Seattle in late summer after a month of intense field work, digging for fossils in blazing eastern Montana. One of the things that I like to do is visit the Burke Museum. The exhibits help me to get away from the hustle and bustle, slow down, and contemplate deeper things about our world. It recenters me and energizes me, which is key right before the start of a busy autumn quarter.

Gregory Wilson Mantilla, Professor
Department of Biology
Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology, Burke Museum

Enjoy a Swim at Magnuson Park

My favorite place is Seattle's Magnuson Park, where I sometimes swim in Lake Washington. As a Chinese teacher who likes word games, I have found a connection between my name and my love of the water. My surname is Yu, and the syllable Yu has many meanings in Mandarin, each written with a different Chinese character. I like the character 鱼 the most, because it means “fish.” It makes me feel that I am a fish, being able to swim around gracefully and freely in Lake Washington under the blue sky.

Liping Yu, Teaching Professor
Department of Asian Languages & Literature

Savor History — and Treats — at Pike Place Market

Summer is a great time to explore the multifaceted history of Pike Place Market, which connects to different times and places. Many of the market's vendors were once Sephardic Jews from the Ottoman Empire (today's Turkey and Greece). Pure Fish is now owned by a fifth-generation Sephardic family. At a souvenir shop, purchase some Aplets & Cotlets, Washington state’s famed candy, founded by Armenians who also came from the Ottoman Empire and modeled the sweet on Turkish delights familiar from home.

Devin Naar, Professor
Department of History
Isaac Alhadeff Professor of Sephardic Studies