Before I went there, I’ve heard that Cornell is the most beautiful university in United States. After arriving, I realized that the sparkling spot in Cornell is not its natural view, but rather its spirit of diversity and freedom. I am extremely nourished by the atmosphere in Cornell, not only academically, but also mentally.

Study

I chose two classes and audited another two. The first class I selected is antitrust law. The main reason leading to my decision is that antitrust law is very exquisite in US. It is the first country establishing antitrust system and the perfect model of current antitrust practice. After the semester, I am glad that I made the right choice. This course totally thrilled me. I met the best professor I ever had, Professor Hay. He is learned man with multiple backgrounds. He used to work as an officer in Department of Justice, then a lawyer, then a professor. Many classic cases mentioned in the casebook include Professor Hay as one participant. In some cases, he was the prosecutor. In some others, he was the defendant lawyer. And sometimes, he was the expert witness. I have written some article about AT&T’s history from the legal point of view. So I was extremely astonished and thrilled when I knew that my professor was the one who initiated the divestiture of the greatest telephone & telegram company in US’s history.　He also told us many details and stories which helped us to understand the judicial opinion using both legal precedence and public policy. Professor Hay is a responsible person and treats students very seriously. The most impressive thing I felt when I communicated with him is his respect to me! In his point of view, any small issue raised by a student is important, although he is a famous professor and I am just an exchange student. I am never stupid, annoying or undisciplined in front of him. He is not only a professor teaching knowledge, but also a mentor for all his students.

The other class I chose is torts. The director of this course is Professor Wendel. He is perhaps the youngest professor in law school. In his former life, he was a prominent lawyer working for a world famous law firm. He told me how he calculated his time spending in escalator every year and decided to quit his job. Then he went to Cornell. Professor Hay is a little old school style comparing with Professor Wendel. My torts professor is energetic and eloquent. He really knows how to train students to use logical thinking. And he is also good at encouraging people. You would not feel awkward or embarrassed even if you can not answer the question in his class. And as he was a excellent lawyer in the past, he always wants us to consider not only the legal theories but also the practical elements such as whether it is a jury’s question or a judge’s question. He is teaching us the basic lawyering skills. His practical attitude towards law education is totally new for me. At first, I felt it very difficult to follow his logical reasoning process as I knew nothing about American civil procedure. But later, I found this kind of thinking method was quite useful if I want to be a good lawyer in the future. Now, after one semester with Professor Wendel, I tend to analysis a case not by law statutes and theories, but mainly by the real practice and situation.

The other two classes I audited were Contract, American Principle of legal writing. Contract is a two-semester class. It is like the most complicated law in US and needs a lot of efforts. And contract law in US shares many similarities with Chinese contract law. One can have a deeper comprehension of our law by learning this. At the same time, it is also different from Chinese law in some aspects. It is quite interesting to do some comparative analysis according to the different customs and histories of the two countries. My director Professor Hillman is a mysterious person. The only thing I know about him is that he really dislikes Lady Gaga. By the way, he loves students raising wired questions. As to American Principle of legal writing, I quit this course in the middle of the semester. If you really want to train and challenge yourself, do not choose this class which is specially opened for international students. Choose Judicial Opinion! It is only for J.D. students. But you could always argue with staff in register office and get a satisfying result.

As to credits, I am perhaps the only one who chose J.D.’s credits rather than LL.M.’s. I want to know my real position among American Law students. It gives me much more pressure but definitely worth it. I do not know my exam results yet. But I am looking forward to it.

Life
Ithaca is gorgeous. That place is as beautiful as in dreams. I lived off campus, far away from law school. But the public transportation is OK. And I’d rather choose lower price, better condition than shorter distance. I lived in a lovely apartment with an American roommate. Most of my neighbors are retired from Cornell University. I am lucky to know an old lady who lives upstairs. Her name is Caroline. I encountered many difficulties when I first arrived there. She helped me without any hesitation. When I was a little down, she always gave me a big warm hug. Sometimes I just can not understand why Americans can trust and love a totally stranger. But I like this. I promised her to send postcards after I come back to China. I will surely fulfill it.

One of my big harvests is friends. I got the opportunity to know friends from all over the world. And two of us harvested boyfriends during this semester! This is quite a significant proportion.

Yeting, Yifang and I, we traveled a lot. We went to the eastern side during the fall break, then California, Nevada during Christmas. New York City, Boston, Washington D. C., Los Angeles, Las Vegas. In stead of burying ourselves in books, we tried our best to know a real America. Traveling is exhausting especially when you are lack of money. But still it is thrilling and interesting. We spent one night on the floor in JFK airport. But no one complained about the harsh condition.

This special semester ended. But I will never forget the things this experience taught me, the friends who gave me warm and laughter. The best memories are not in pictures, they are inside me.