If you aren't a proud alumnus of the University of Washington, an afternoon on its campus may seem an odd choice for a single-day Seattle getaway. Still, there's something so memorable about college life that graduates can find themselves recalling a more adventuresome era as they stroll along the Quad. That's the grassy expanse southwest of UW's art and music halls, where 31 majestic Yoshino cherry trees are in full blossom. We visited on a Monday afternoon, the first day back from spring break in fact, but even the fully-populated campus felt calmingly pastoral. We found the trip a revitalizing midweek escape from adulting.

The southwest end of the Quad opens on Central Plaza, aka "Red Square." This plain of flat brick offers a thoughtfully designed vista of Frosh Pond, once the site of log-rolling contests and the ritualized dunking of freshmen. Now its Drumheller Fountain draws the eye toward Mount Rainier in the distance. In 2011, Travel+Leisure magazine named "U-Dub" one of "America's Most Beautiful College Campuses." It called particular attention to the neogothic vaulted ceilings and towering stained-glass windows of Suzzallo Library. That edifice houses a bustling espresso bar, bakery and market.

Remember when your student ID earned "free" admission to a never-ending cavalcade of art and edutainment opportunities? Now you'll have to either cough up $15 for a parking pass or trek from free curb parking. Admission into the Burke Museum of Natural History costs an additional - though reasonable - $10. There you'll marvel at skeletons of a stegosaurus fleeing an allosaur, a towering mastodon navigating a glacier, and tabby-sized sabertooths. The museum's lower floor houses a collection called "Pacific Voices," meaning Pacific Rim cultures that contribute diversity to Washington culture. The Burke offers free admission the first Thursday of each month.

The UW campus boasts four different indoor theaters for stage productions, plus outdoor and concert venues. In early April, you could catch a Shakespeare adaptation (People Sitting in Darkness), an original play (Brooklyn Bridge) coproduced with Seattle Children's Theatre, or the Brechtian musical Urinetown. You could also attend a free concert by master sitarist Ustad Usman Khan April 1, or hit the Neptune (1303 NE 45th St.) for Santigold on the 9th or George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic on the 12th. Swing by the School of Art's Jacob Lawrence Gallery, "the Jake," before grabbing a pint at Finn MacCool's Irish Public House.

Now you're on University Way NE, "the Avenue" in student parlance, which boasts an international banquet of cheap eats. We recommend Thai Tom (4543), where the quarters are cramped, service is fast and furious, and flavors are true to its owners' Bangkok roots. (Careful: it's cash-only.) For an unforgettable sit-down meal, savor Din Tai Fung in the University Village shopping center (2621 NE 46th). Its soup noodles (xiao long bao) won special praise from Anthony Bourdain, but everything is well worth the unavoidable wait.

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON, 1410 NE Campus Pkwy., Seattle, 206.543.2100