I just got back from day 2. This is going to be SUCH a hard decision because I had so much fun at all the houses!
House 4: I talked to the woman who gave me my house tour for most of the party, but other sisters kept coming up to join the conversation so I got a pretty good feel for what they're like. They seemed really down to earth, and they have some really cute traditions that they do that made them stand out from other houses, but I won't talk about that just in case it gives the house away. I talked to them about all kinds of things--having a car on campus, our siblings, music, and lots more. The house was REALLY cute, inside and out...they had all sorts of little knick-knacks and decorations, and the outside reminded me of a cottage near the beach. The sisters were all dressed in red, white, and blue, and that was the theme of the party (those are not their colors, though
). They served us little red white and blue candies, mini powdered donuts with little American flags stuck in them, and soda. This was the only house that had a theme for the party, and it was also the only one that didn't show a video or a slideshow. Luckily conversation didn't lag for me, because having a video would have given me something to talk about if it was! The main thing I liked about this house was something my rusher told me. She said that the house is really close-knit and everyone gets along really well, and there are no cliques within the house. That's really important to me, and I'm not really sure how to ask that question so I'm glad she told me! Overall I felt very comfortable in this house, and I would like to visit them again so I hope I get invited back!!
House 5: I have to admit I was a little nervous about going to this house because they have a pretty bad reputation. But I went in, and I absolutely LOVED it. The house was pretty, and the girls were really nice. I got a house tour from one sister who was just adorable and very sweet, and then when we went into the living room to talk to the other sisters I ended up with a girl I went to high school with. We spent the whole time talking and catching up. I was so happy because I wasn't friends with her in high school, and I was a little worried about what she thought of me since we already know each other. But she seemed really happy to see me and it turns out we have a lot in common. They gave us water and soda, fruit, and brownies...yum!! Then we watched a slide show. Like house 4, this house also seems close-knit. That's just the vibe I got because the sisters were all joking around with each other and they seemed to be having a lot of fun. This is definitely my favorite house right now because I got SUCH a good vibe from them and felt really comfortable. I'll be crossing my fingers and toes in hopes that they invite me back!!
House 6: This is the house of my roommate's teammate (I'll just call her "Jane" from now on), so I was nervous. I did end up liking it, but this is by far the top house at my campus (they have the highest GPA, they always win Greek Week, they're all beautiful and really cool, and their house is AMAZING--I'll get to that later). So I don't know if I'll get invited back because this is the one house that every PNM dreams of being in. It started to rain when we were standing outside waiting, so I don't even want to know what my hair looked like in there!
We went in, and we were double-rushed for the house tour, but I didn't feel overshadowed by the other PNM at all; it was about equal. We also kept being passed from one sister to another as we went through the house, and I liked that because we got to spend a little more time with each sister instead of just saying hello and probably having them forget us. But back to the house...I just can't get over how absolutely BEAUTIFUL this house is. It's this huge white mansion, and the inside is all red carpets and marble and chandeliers. I felt like I was in a castle!! The other houses are nice, but you can't even compare them to this one. It was incredible. The tour took up most of the party because the house is so big, but I kept getting into random conversations with the sisters so I'm sure that slowed it down a little. One of my tour guides was in my theater class last semster, so that gave us something to talk about. After the tour they took us into the dining room where they gave us punch and cookies. We sat and talked with the sisters a little more, and I did see Jane, so I just smiled at her and said hello and asked how she was, then continued talking to the other sisters around me. We then went into the living room and watched a slide show, and it was time to go right after. I had a lot of fun at this house, and I liked the women I talked to, but I couldn't help but feel a little intimidated by them. It just seems like they're on a whole different level than the other sororities...they just seem so perfect! If I get invited back I'll definitely go, but I'm not going to get my hopes up because this particular house is VERY hard to get into.
So right now, I've decided I like the houses in this order: 5, 2, 4, 3, 6, 1...and I really like all of them except for 1 (which again I am keeping an open mind about). The last 3 parties of round 1 are tomorrow night, I find out who invited me back on Wednesday and decide who I want to go back to, and then Thursday and Friday I have round 2 at up to 6 houses. Saturday night is prefs, and Sunday is bid day. I can't believe that a week from today I'll know where my home is!!
EDIT: And one more thing that actually kind of confused me. Some girls in my rush group were asking an RC about getting invited back, and she said that after round one everyone usually gets invited back to all 9 unless they did something really bad, and it's basically our choice of who to visit again. She said that the sororities do most of the cutting after round 2. But that wasn't true at all last year...I only got invited back to 5 after round 1, and I actually only knew one girl who was invited back to all of them. Most were invited back to 5, 6, or 7 houses. The RC who said that told us she joined through COB and didn't go through formal rush. So do you think that maybe things have changed since last year, or is she just misinformed? I would hope she knows what she's talking about!!
