Still giddy from a fantastic trip that will be treasured for a lifetime, I am inspired to share some of the comedic highlights from a trip that involved 110 HBS students in South Africa over spring break. While we promised that what is shared on safari, stays on safari (and given the PG rating of the Harbus), not all can be revealed, but suffice it to say that the trip had funny moments a’plenty. Here are a few of the takeaways:
1. 1st and 2nd years can get along – you just need to get them together with a little alcohol.
2. Despite what your friends may claim, flaming sambuca shots can singe vital body hair
3. Exploring the bush is a thrilling experience indeed.
4. HBS students can not only take over a bar, but can tend bar – as evidenced by Gaurav Misra (NB) by passing the bartender and making several rounds of 30 or so shots each
5. If the phone rings at 3 a.m. advising you that because lions are in the camp, you should get into the bathtub and run the water to stay safe – just hang up.
6. Sniffing dung for freshness and tasting it is a sure way to successfully track a rhino.
7. Playing creative versions of “I Never” amongst people who don’t know each other is one way to break the ice PRONTO.
8. HBS students can party like rock stars amongst a gaggle of Zoolander models.
9. Safari-style Range Rovers could scale the stairs in Aldrich like a champ
10. Red Bull is indeed the breakfast of champions
11. Amarula on the rocks should be a required food group.
12. An 18 1/2 hour plane ride goes by surprisingly quickly if you’ve averaged three hours of sleep a night for over a week.
13. If you make the very rational argument that taking 110 HBSers anywhere is a recipe for a disaster, please seek advice from our fearless organizers, Adrian Maizey and Moz Hussain, who lost nary a person and threw a fantastic trip. You rock guys!
