Feeling overwhelmed by deadlines or a hectic schedule? Step away from the daily bustle and explore six peaceful settings. From the tranquility of a historical library to the warm embrace of a greenhouse packed with exotic plants, seek serenity in one or all of these spaces.
Medical Historical Library
The Medical Historical Library, located past the rotunda inside the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library, is just the spot for quiet reading or to collect your thoughts. This impressively grand room has a hand-planed oak vaulted ceiling resembling the inverted keel of a ship, noise-absorbing rugs, and soft seating near the fireplace.
Upon entering the chamber, you are enveloped by two levels of books and a deep sense of tranquility. Browse the shelves for books on the history of medicine and science, or bring a Kindle, paperback, or just yourself and sit for a spell to experience the serenity.
Hours: Hours vary; check for times
Getting there: 333 Cedar St.; main floor
Need to know: No food or beverages are allowed.
Recommend: Decipher the “blessing of the books” inscription carved above the fireplace.
Meditation Room, St. Thomas Moore Chapel and Center at Yale
Saint Thomas More receptionist Dawn Taylor-Groom provides a warm welcome to the bright and airy Thomas E. Golden Jr. Center. She directs visitors up a ramp, past a gently bubbling water fountain toward the meditation room. Inside this tall, light, circular space, visitors experience stillness and solitude.
On a sunny day, light streams through a round skylight and the red, blue, green, and yellow stained-glass windows. Head over to this easily accessible area to sit or stand in thoughtful reflection and experience its calming essence.
Hours: Hours vary; check for times
Getting there: 268 Park St.; main floor
Need to know: No food or beverages are allowed.
Recommend: Visit on a sunny day.
Nouwen Chapel, Yale Divinity School
The Nouwen Prayer Chapel is located on the ground floor of the Divinity School Library amidst the stacks and study carrels. The intimate Byzantine-style chapel, with its cavernous white ceiling and bright interior, is simultaneously uplifting and calming and is worth visiting if you are on this part of campus.
Step inside and sit on one of the neatly arranged rows of wooden chairs to experience the serene chamber and the newly installed icon, a painting by artist George Kordis depicting the Parable of the Prodigal Son. This chapel is open to the Yale community during the day for prayer and meditation.
Hours: Open 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Getting there: 409 Prospect St.; lower level
Need to know: No food or beverages are allowed.
Recommend: Upon entering the library, follow the signs to the Nouwen Chapel or ask front-desk staff for directions.
Yale University Chaplain’s Office lounge
Staff, students, and faculty are always welcome to stop by the Chaplain’s Office lounge for a respite, chat, or sweet treat. Located on the lower level of Bingham Hall on Old Campus, the lounge has cozy couches, an electric fireplace, and a Yale-blue freezer stocked with a variety of ice cream bars, including non-dairy options. Sink into the soft sofa for a catnap or meet a friend for a board game (Apples to Apples, anyone?). This space is ideal whether you want to unwind alone or meet a colleague.
The chaplains’ offices are adjacent to the lounge, and they are happy to meet with anyone who would like to talk. Appointments can be made via the Chat with a Chaplain form or by calling (203)432-1128.
Hours: Monday - Thursday from 5 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Getting there: 300 College Street, Old Campus Courtyard, entryway D (badge access)
Need to know: Badge access
Recommend: Ice cream bar or Swedish fish
Selin Courtyard, Sterling Memorial Library
Sterling Memorial Library’s Selin Courtyard is sheltered from the noise of the street. This peaceful spot is perfect for reading or sitting in the open air. Its focal point is a bronze cistern-style fountain anchored by four wingless cherubs on dolphins that gently spout water. There is ample seating to spend some time enjoying this restful spot.
Don’t feel like reading? Relax on one of the shaded or sun-drenched benches and marvel at the many features of the surrounding building’s Gothic architecture and the numerous carvings that decorate the courtyard.
Hours: Selin Courtyard is open from early spring to late fall; check SML for hours of operation
Getting there: High Street
Need to know: After coming through the main entrance on High Street, take a right at the circulation desk and enter through the first door on the right.
Recommend: Drop a coin in the fountain for good luck.
Marsh Botanical Garden
One block off Prospect Street lies a little gem that flora enthusiasts or those seeking summer heat in winter will appreciate. Marsh Botanical Garden features outdoor meadow and pollinator gardens, and four of its greenhouses are open year-round. Visitors can take a meditative stroll beneath the mature trees and enjoy the wildflowers and colorful garden beds dotted with asters, coneflowers, baptisia, sages, and grasses. They can also admire a variety of conifers and shrubs, including rhododendrons, flowering dogwood, mountain laurels, and blueberry.
During winter, enjoy the humid warmth of the greenhouses, which are chock-full of exotic desert, carnivorous, and tropical plants such as palms, hibiscus, orchids, and cacti. Visitors will leave feeling enriched and inspired by the natural beauty of this special place.
Hours: Greenhouses open Monday – Friday; 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.; Outdoor gardens open 7 a.m. to sunset every day.
Getting there: 265 Mansfield Street
Need to know: The gardens sit along walking paths on eight lush acres.
Recommend: Sitting by the koi pond or beneath the 325-year-old white oak.
