Brought together by Haddaway and Beer Pong

Being abroad is like freshman year all over again – minus the social awkwardness, drug-using car-stealing roommate, and inability to purchase alcohol legally.

No one has any preconceived notions about you except perhaps the other kids from your school – it’s essentially a blank slate to be used as you wish. Add to that, at the Blackrock campus where I’m living, it’s filled with a motley of ERASMUS (Euro study abroad) students, Americans, first and second year UCD kids, and graduate students (in Smurfit B-School) from all over Europe.

A bit of a confession – I’d never really lived in a large dorm before this. During freshman year at BU, I lived in a Bay State Road house filled with mostly upperclassmen – so the idea of living in a 180-room (all singles –  total win) building with shared kitchens was new.

Meeting people was very easy because everyone’s also new or half of their friends left at the end of fall semester – but sometimes the circumstances of meeting and getting to know people is kind of funny. Wednesday night was legendary – as an example.

Wednesdays are pretty big here – it’s a huge night for clubs, evidenced by the concessions (flyers) littered all over the classrooms of Quinn advertising drink-specials, reduced entry, and general mayhem. I have yet to go out on a Wednesday. Perhaps it’s because going out 5 nights a week destroys your bank account rather quickly, perhaps it’s because clubs are ridiculously expensive. Regardless – this past Wednesday was no different, but a few of us decided to just do some typical American drinking of cheap beer in the comfort of the Blackrock dining area.

As the night progressed and the 30+ people going to “French Kiss” cleared out, we were left with another group (many of which I’d previously met – all grad students) across the room. After a break in their music, I threw Tik Tok on my laptop – which immediately started a music competition between our two groups.

One of the German guys asked if I had any Haddaway – so I queued up “What is Love?” on Youtube. Not 20 seconds later, everyone in the room was doing the Chris Kattan/Will Ferrell head bob. Hilarious. Of all the cultural exports from America – Night at the Roxbury.

The following night (last night) was karaoke Thursday at Wicked Wolf – except this time a couple dozen people from Blackrock showed up and the place was packed. (I sang Come Sail Away by Styx– the intro was a real struggle but I got into it once the refrain hit, it rocked.)

After Wicked Wolf, American cultural export #2 reared its head – Beer Pong. This national pastime for college students across the country (US) has actually become popularized in Europe because of American study abroad students – but it was pretty funny playing it here. Here, all of the rules haven’t necessarily been imported – so we were fairly liberal with elbows across the table, etc.

I’m a somewhat competitive beer pong player (read: I’m a huge shit-talker), but not nearly as much as a lot of people at BU and other, more rowdy party schools. Compared to my new friends from around Europe, my minimal skill absolutely ran house and I was on the table for five straight games.

In both cases though – we found common ground in rather odd places and it paved the way for deeper conversation. Who knew that bad 80s music and pong would be the source of new friendships?