By Rachel L. Reynolds
You’ve cleared your schedule, bought your plane tickets, and are officially headed to Visitas. While you may be focused on just how many events you can fit into a single day (here’s a hint: It’s fewer than you think), another cool part of this weekend is actually where you’ll be sleeping at night. Staying with a host is one of your first opportunities to check out a dorm or upperclassman house, find other prefrosh to meet, and get to know someone who already lives on campus. While some of us can’t even remember the name of our Visitas hosts, we’ve got some tips that will make this part of your weekend as great and unforgettable as possible.
Don’t Trash Their Room
At this point in the semester, our rooms are probably already pretty gross, and we’ve just cleaned them to make sure you don’t judge us. So please, don’t let all that hard work go to waste. You don’t have to be spotless, but just keeping your things in one area of the room and throwing away your trash can go a long way. You’ll have plenty of time next year to be just as messy as we are now!
Do Respond to Their Messages
It’s 2 a.m. and you’re still sitting in the Science Center chatting with your new friends and avoiding your hosts texts asking for your ETA back at their dorm. We’ve all been there, but please, just end our suffering (and yours) and respond so we know you’re not lost in the middle of Boston and we can leave a key out for you.
Don’t Make it Your Hang-Out Spot
Your host may have a thriving snack supply, but Visitas is the perfect time to *actually* meet other prefrosh — which can’t happen if you’re sitting inside the whole time. And when you do find a squad, there are plenty of places to get to know each other that don’t include where your host may be working, sleeping, or already screaming about their upcoming finals. Check out some dorm common rooms, the Smith Campus Center, or maybe even outside if the weather is finally cooperating.
Do Ask Questions!
Sure, we might not have all the answers (scratch that, we definitely don’t), but we do know what it’s like to feel completely clueless about Harvard, and honestly some of us probably still feel like that. Whether you want advice about the best events to go to, have questions about random Harvard things, or even just need directions, really don’t be afraid to ask!
Be a good hostee, but above all, enjoy Visitas!
