Carolyn Crist

So this isn’t the Reno post you’d probably expect, but I thought it was necessary.

When you travel for an assignment, get to know the town.

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I was glad that I was the first student to travel to Reno and that I went by myself after a weekend in Las Vegas. It was a good time to rent a car and drive around in the serene northern half of Nevada. I was amazed by the mountains surrounding the town, and I was struck again and again how the adage, “The Biggest Little City” rang true as I met people. They talked to me on the street, and I got footage in the hospitals that I didn’t think I would be able to get.

I also read the city’s version of Flagpole and stopped at several of the burgeoning “townie” spots, including a bead shop, an awesome used book store, and a random Irish memorabilia shop. I particularly liked a tiny coffee shop that I found while driving down a road and hoping to find Wi-Fi. It reminded me of Jittery Joe’s in Athens, and the workers were discussing a new location that was opening across town. I kept looking for the parallels between Athens and Reno, especially because the Access to Healthcare Network and Athens Health Network are similar health models.

I also enjoyed tackling more than six interviews in the two days I was in Reno, including b-roll footage. Though I may not be able to use many of it, I’m glad I had the experience shooting it. Also, broadly, I gained a good bit from the experience of traveling and getting to know a new community. I think that’ll lend a hand when helping to teach Professor Greenman’s Travel Journalism Maymester in Prague this summer.