Flyby’s Guide to People-Watching

There are many ways to procrastinate in Harvard Square. You could get overpriced coffee, go on a walk, buy Harvard merch for your family, heckle tourists… the list goes on. But we at Flyby are humanists, which means we enjoy the highest form of procrastination: people-watching. Ever wonder how we get so many “overheards?” We always have an eye out. And I love eavesdropping — that’s why they call me Eve. So if you want to get the most possible entertainment value out of our glorious campus, read on for the best people-watching spots on campus.

The front of the Smith Center

If you like getting stuff done or can’t live without lo-fi covers of Disney songs, you may tend to head straight for the student commons in Smith. But since everyone’s on task, there’s nobody to look at! So next time, try sitting in the very front of Smith, near Pavement. You’ll see groups of French-Canadian tourists, prospective pre-frosh, and people wrestling with Blue Bikes.

The street side of Cabot Library

If you find exactly the right spot in the center of the short end of Cabot library, you can watch the most underrated difficult intersection in Cambridge. Two crosswalks + food trucks + Annenberg + shuttles + parallel parking spots = chaos. And I’m team jaywalker any day of the week, but some of us (I’m looking at you, blue backpack who is currently standing exactly where the Penske truck needs to go) need to improve our spatial awareness. I love watching us all have our “I’m walkin’ here!” moments.

The Mather Express shuttle

I stumbled upon this one by accident on a day when I started feeling carsick on the shuttle. Not my proudest moment. But because I had to look up from my phone and out the window while taking slow, steady breaths, I realized that this mobile window-heavy seat was perfect for watching the pedestrians go by! It’s especially fun when the traffic is so bad that you end up going exactly the same speed as the people on the sidewalk. Plus, you’re getting somewhere!

The Leverett d-hall during brain break

I don’t know why, but every time I’ve stumbled my way into Lev brain break, I’ve seen both everyone I know and about 40 people I’ve never seen before in my life. I’ve had epic highs and lows at Lev brain break. But watching everyone else also have epic highs and lows always makes my night better. (I’m not even in Lev, by the way.)

Lamcaf

Oh, Lamcaf. A unique vibe. A humbling experience. A fuel for my increasingly problematic caffeine addiction. But at least when you sit by the window, you can watch every tourist ignore interesting things (the Alice in Wonderland-inspired gate, Houghton library, the tree that is literally growing underground) to make a beeline for Widener. Sometimes, though, they’re wearing fun outfits.

Make sure to try all these spots to remember that you are, in fact, just one person among basically infinite people. We live in a society. WE LIVE IN A SOCIETY. (Maybe think about that as you choose your career?)