Feb. 22, 2000
GW campus
3 p.m.

While many of us have long forgotten our first tour of GW, the faces of the eager high school seniors that have been gracing our campus lately are a sure reminder of younger days. Their eager gazes force us to look back and remember the day when we were in their shoes, touring the campus and asking questions that we weren’t sure should be asked.

Unlike many GW students, I was given the opportunity to take a second tour of the campus for this story. While at first I didn’t think the experience would bring anything new, some of the inquiries that were made were rather amusing indeed.

The tour began with the infamous food question: Where do vegetarians eat? asked an anxious mother. STAR tour guide Jim Rybicki politely answered that J Street has a vegetarian station.

I figured that was a rather typical question and would set the tone for the rest of the questions to come. While many typical questions about classes and professors did follow, many others came along with them.

The Watergate living and learning community is housed in (the Hall on Virginia Avenue), began Rybicki. He was quickly interrupted by a comment from one of the more boisterous seniors in the group.

What exactly are they waiting for? Another Watergate? Do they all have little telescopes and spy equipment? Sounds like they’re waiting for the second coming of Christ! the young comedian exclaimed. Rybicki politely smiled and continued with his tour.

Similar comments followed, but were all handled well.

I don’t really dread any questions, Rybicki said. I feel I could answer any question about the school honestly.

Rybicki was given an unexpected trivia test on this Tuesday afternoon tour.

Do you know why the name Foggy Bottom was given to this area? asked an inquisitive father. Rybicki impressed him (and me) by coming up with a pretty good explanation. I believe it has something to do with the industrialization of the area which caused a great deal of fog.

The comment about the Watergate program was a bit strange, and the trivia was also, but the comments about the tour guide were even more bizarre.

Are you planning on going to grad school here? asked one mother.

I’ve applied. I’m just waiting for the response.

Oh, so you mean you’re waiting to see if they want to keep you? asked the young comedian of the group. Maybe they’ll keep you around just to do tours for them, she added.

Despite the odd-ball questions, Rybicki says he still enjoys giving tours. I have done it since my sophomore year, and I love telling people about the GW campus, Rybicki said.

While taking a tour of campus for the first time was a great opportunity to be acquainted with the world of GW, taking one for the second time was an even better opportunity. It was great to hear some of the strange and interesting comments regarding the whole college search process. It’s easy to forget how we were, because as soon as we get that acceptance letter – the whole thing becomes a memory.