The Butterfly
During the first week, in broad daylight, a guy wearing a pink bikini and bra walked across the courtyard. Pointing to his glittery wings, he declared himself a butterfly and told me to open my mouth. I thought he’d squirt water from his water gun, but it was actually pálinka (fruit brandy).
The Silence
I expected wild eccentrics, loud guys, and screaming girls, but when I entered my first class, nobody was talking or looking at me—only complete silence. Then the professor came in and said that if you were the star of your high school, remember that here in this room, everyone feels the same way. "None of you are special," he said, and then started the lesson.
The Stains
The first weekend, everyone drank themselves under the table. The whole dorm was wasted, even people who had never drunk before. One girl stumbled through the lobby in a miniskirt, leaving diarrhea streaks down her legs. Everyone stared. She walked past us—leaving a trail—got in the elevator—which got stained too—then walked down the hall and disappeared into her room. I never saw her again; I wouldn’t be surprised if she transferred colleges after that.
The Body
Early in the morning, I returned to the dorm and saw a covered body at the entrance. I thought someone had died, but it turned out the guy was so drunk he fell asleep on the grass—while exchanging a few words with the guard—who then covered him with a blanket so he wouldn’t get cold.
Mixing it up in the Dorm
One evening, I came home to find my roommates cooking up a storm. It turned out the guys were steaming liquid ketamine over hot water to make it "nice and crystalline."
Welcome
I was unpacking with my parents in the parking lot when three guys passed by. It wasn’t even noon, but they were drunk: one stopped to vomit in a trash can, the second danced holding an inflatable sex doll, and the third told my dad, “Sir, your daughter is going to love this place!”
Hi!
As an 18-year-old with acne, I was heading to my room with my suitcase when a girl came up, lifted her shirt, showed her breasts, and said, “Hi, I’m Zsuzsi!” Let’s just say I was thrilled by the warm welcome. We spent the whole afternoon together—I don’t even know her full name and never saw her again.
The Pub
My first exam was spent with a young teacher who took us to a pub. After the sixth round of shots, he announced that everyone had passed. He also taught us to pour alcohol into soda bottles so we could get drunk during class.
Battle Scars
At my very first university party, the ambulance came three times. First, a girl fell backward laughing out the window from the raised ground floor. She got scratched by bushes and had a concussion, but nothing serious. Then a drunk guy tried to show off his samurai skills and cut his hand so badly it needed 25 stitches. That didn’t stop him; after leaving the ER, he kept partying and even pulled a girl to dance—who then turned and punched his friend instead, breaking his nose.
The Dorm Roommate
I grew up in a small village with only a handful of quiet, introverted young people like me, so university life was a shock. During the first week, a wild party forced me to sleep with earplugs. Then one morning, I woke up screaming because a naked guy was snoring next to me. Half the floor came running. It turned out he meant no harm—he was just so drunk he got lost and entered the wrong room. He was totally wasted.
