{shortcode-a4997fd7d295e7c07b45b736afdee73e8200c5f0}
Let’s face it: there’s nothing new under the sun, and that includes Visitas. Every year, various upperclassmen (and several second-semester freshmen that feel like high school was forever ago) reserve a five by two rectangle on their floor for an overeager adorably excited prefrosh. Every year, prefrosh schedule 50 events on their calendar and successfully make it to 10 of them in between getting lost between the Science Center and Thayer Hall and oohing and ahhing at the Charles River. Every year, prefrosh are misled (but sadly, not that much) about the quality of HUDS. Every year, Flyby channels nostalgia and trauma from their iterations of Visitas into articles that are poetic, hilarious, or both. So, since there are only so many Visitas-related one-liners we can write without repeating ourselves, here are a few timeless classics for you to reread instead of having us rehash prior years’ jokes for you (though we’re amazing at that). You’re welcome.
How to: Not Get Lost During Visitas
I’m sorry, but this article is required reading before you step foot on campus. I’ll have a hard enough time getting to class on time with the Class of 2028 monopolizing my shower; I don’t need you loitering on the sidewalk to delay me further. Download PassioGo, switch your Google (or Apple) Maps default travel setting to walking, and plan your commute well enough to not interrupt mine.
Making Friends at Visitas: Do’s and Don’ts
You think you know social etiquette, but you don’t. Just trust me. Please read this article, and please don’t commit one of the mentioned social faux paus, or you will end up in one of our infamous overheards.
What We Wished We Had Done During Visitas
Do you want to have a suboptimal Visitas experience? Do you want to have paralyzing nightmares for the rest of your life because of your Visitas regrets? Yeah, I thought not. Learn from us older (not that much!!!!!) and wiser students, and consider these tips to make your Visitas memorable in a good way.
Things to Do During Visitas That Aren’t on the Programming
I know you’ve already planned your entire itinerary on whichever mildly defunct platform the admissions office has chosen for event scheduling this year, but you should take another few minutes (which is like 5 percent of the time you spent making your original itinerary) to pencil some of the items in this article into your schedule. Your visit will be better for it!
I already told you, there’s nothing new under the sun. Despite the title, this bingo card is not 2023-specific. It is just as applicable (and fun!) in 2024 (and 2025, or 2026, or 2027…if you’re reading this in the future). Have this handy for whenever you make the mistake of attending a speaker session and realizing five minutes into the hour-long event that you’re bored out of your mind.
How to: Visit Harvard Without Visiting Harvard
If you can’t make it to campus this Visitas, this article is the (year-old) miracle you’ve been waiting for. If you are visiting in-person, you might as well still read it and weep in preparation for your arrival on campus. It’ll make campus landmarks a little bit more familiar and clue you in to campus culture. You wouldn’t visit France without learning to say Bonjour, would you?
Hopefully this suggested reading list will help you arrive on campus ready to explore all that Visitas has to offer, but if the articles above don’t quite answer all your questions, don’t forget that Flyby has many, many more articles just waiting to be read. The world is your (Flyby-described) oyster!