By itsmaggiegwu
You realised the struggle is real when you had to push 2 large pieces of luggage and a backpack from Baltimore Airport to somewhere off-campus in D.C. You ignored the hustlers at the airport and boarded a train followed by the metro and finally arrived before dark at Courtland Towers. What you didn't realise was that it will get a lot better next week; when you meet people from all over the world, tick off many items on your bucket list, and explore one of the greatest cities in America.
Orientation week at GW was probably one of the best orientation weeks I've had. It was also very different to how they do things at UNSW (University of New South Wales) which has a more plan-it-yourself vibe to it. We do have awesome parties, band night, movie night, comedy events along with freebies from sponsors and student organisations but the GW orientation was at another level (I mean we got a tour INSIDE The White House). Seeing the degree of hard work and effort put in by the GW Exchange staff and leaders over the planning and execution of all the events throughout the 5.5-day orientation week, it truly reaffirmed my choice of coming to GW. I would like to thank the staff and leaders for making us feel welcomed and comfortable from being away from home.
This week was jam-packed with both informational and exciting events ever day from around 9am to 10-11pm. I still feel like I'm jetlagged from the lack of sleep but it was so worth it. My top three four highlights of this week include:
- The White House tour
- Karaoke night
- Baseball game (Nats v Orioles, GO NATS!)
- Potomac cruise + Mount Vernon
Aside from karaoke night, which took place in a sketchy area in D.C. (yes Chinatown, I'm looking at you), the other 3 were undeniably the most 'Murican things I've done. The White House tour was unbelievable because it's extremely difficult to get into, even for Americans. And on top of that, we were told that Obama was in one of the helicopters that flew in (highly likely that he also waved at us too)! We got into the spirit of American sports in a Nats v Orioles game with a full stadium crowd of red and orange as the sun set right in front of our eyes. We also visited Geroge Washington's homestead, Mount Vernon, and walked through the mansion he had inherited from his half-brother and expanded as his own. It was also interesting to learn that as the first president of United States, Geroge Washington held people in slavery for most of his life, and was one of the only founding fathers to free his slaves which occurred after the death of his wife Martha Washington.
On Tuesday classes start and I'm both excited and scared about having taken a few too many Lifestyle and Sports courses after discovering that they exist. Maybe I'll learn a new sport or two or three (does hiking count as a sport?). And probably join an exaggerated amount of student organisations, to say the least.