In Western countries, it is a common practice for high school graduates or even college students to temporarily step off the academic treadmill and take a gap year to travel or work or explore other interests.
Living on campus means you couldn't plan your own schedule and need to obey others' arrangements for you, including deciding on choosing the tutor who will teach you, classmates who will study with you, yet you could select courses, dormitory and roommate on your own. Therefore, living off campus truly means to experience the real life.
What I am trying to say is do the right thing that you think worth doing. Don't be shackled by creepy people who don't understand you and creepy things that are not worth living for.
I went to Qian Dongnan state in the east-western part of Guizhou province and met women who create traditional handcrafts. My journey also took me to Lao Junshan in the remote mountains where I discussed using technology to plant white kidney beans with farmers.
If there is one thing I have learned about my students in the past two months it is that they really enjoy taking photos. Sometimes it is quite amusing watching them push each other away just to get a shot.