``That's right, Harvard students streak and scream," said Jones, referring to ``The Primal Scream," an annual Harvard tradition in which students can vent their frustration before final exams.
Jones is co-leader of a new tourist attraction in Cambridge -- ``The Hahvahd Tour," in which historical tidbits about America's oldest college are laced with puns, references to drinking, and campy stories of food fights. It is an unofficial Harvard tour, created by Jones and Daniel Schofield-Bodt , who lead their customers from Harvard Square through Harvard Yard to buildings on the outer edges of campus, and back.
The pair, both of whom are 21 and will be seniors in the fall, hawk their services with ``Hahvahd Tour" signs and shouts of ``Join us," attracting a mix of khaki-clad tourists and prospective students and parents for their 90-minute journeys . They offer three a day, and draw their biggest crowds -- roughly 100 per tour -- on weekends.
Jones, a Texas native, and Schofield-Bodt, who is from Connecticut, call their enterprise the ``Hahvahd" tour because university officials told them they could not use the university name.
The tour guides, who accept tips rather than charge fees because they're not an official business, seem to be prospering after almost two months in operation. They compete with the authorized Harvard tour, which focuses on historical facts and is also given by students -- for free. Jones and Schofield-Bodt say they make about $2,000 a week in tips.
Their venture , advertised on signs in Harvard Square and on their website, has earned praise from tourist websites for its humor and from local businesses for bringing more shoppers to the area.
``We want people to have a crazy time, a zany time," Jones said.
Earlier this week, Jones cheered when a customer told him she was from Athens, Ga.
``All right," he exclaimed, inviting a high-five . ``Another Southerner."
The students tell tourists that most of the buildings are named after college presidents, then segue into one of their favorite lines. Leonard Hoar , the third president of the college, has never been honored with a building in his name, Jones explained.
