When Lindsay Ellwood moved into Mayflower Hall, it took two to three hours to organize the room to her liking.

By Sunday, the day before classes began, the UI’s residence halls had filled up with new freshmen and returning dorm dwellers.

Outside of Currier Hall, four young and lively women — all friends from high school — stood at the sunny bus stop, talking to each other and holding their University Bookstore bags. The graduates of Buffalo Grove High School in Buffalo Grove, Ill., agreed the elevator posed the biggest challenge, forcing them to wait as other residents lugged their belongings up.

“It wasn’t that bad moving in,” said freshman Kaitlin Hillner, who agreed with her friends that the big move was exciting, as well as stressful and a bit tiring.

But for others, like sophomore Kurowsh Saatnia, the move in wasn’t such a long process, only taking her roughly half an hour.

Sitting in a lounge in Burge Hall with Saatnia, fellow sophomore Tim Vivirito said moving into their dorms was trouble-free.

“It took us awhile because I have a lot of clothes,” Vivirito said. “Other than that it went pretty smooth.”

The Mayflower residents discussed how quiet their dorm floors were during move-in.

But some didn’t adapt as quickly to the new living quarters.

Adjusting to dorm life was an eye-opening experience for freshman Zhe Du, a new resident of Hillcrest Hall.

On Aug. 15, Du flew into Cedar Rapids from Kansas, took a shuttle to Hillcrest, and unloaded his heavy luggage and backpack with help from the residence life staff and his resident assistant Thomas Arce.

Du said he was excited to live in American dorms, which house less students than standard dorms in China.

“[Chinese dorms] range from six to eight people,” Du said. “And sometimes, if you get lucky, you get four.”