We’ve all seen it, the lovely little college brochures that advertise university life. Pictures of smiling students reading and learning spread across the pamphlets. The groups are always diverse; the sun is always shining; and the grass is always green.

Such photographs are quaint and represent any given university to an extent. But here in my snowy Northern town, I’ve come to view our campus in a different light. The following is a quick glance of what I have observed.

It’s only a few unedited shots, but it’s the campus I know.

Here are the dorms. This is where they want you to live.

 This is the wide grassy yard they show you. Across the way are just a few places where they want you to buy food, topped with more dorms where they would like you to live.

 This is the long path where they capture countless pictures of students merrily walking along, chatting on their way to class.

 This is where knowledge is king.

 I have met with my English professor in this building. It is a maze. But the view from the top window is beautiful.

 Here is one of the buildings for the theatre department, conveniently located by a fire hydrant in case it ever spontaneously combusts.

 These bikes are star models in the average college brochure. Cheerful, friendly looking students zip in and out of the frame, seemingly eager to learn.

 However, most students prefer a car. There are always strangers rushing by. You see them, but you will never know their name.