Last Saturday night I went to Club Crystal. While it’s cool that there’s a club that underagers can go to, I have to say that it was pretty repellent. It made me think about the differences in going out and "partying" between Australia and the U.S.
The dance floor here is completely different to Australia. Here in the U.S, it’s basically an orgy of couples imitating sex positions within a ten-meter radius. A multitude of disturbing images have been burnt on my brain from fraternity party dance floors, and the weird thing is that both dancers usually look really bored. But who wouldn’t be? You’re just rubbing the back of your body against some guy that you probably can’t tell is attractive due to the black light. Not only is it impersonal, but it’s laughable as well. Maybe this relates more to my lack of dancing ability, but whenever some guy has attempted this choreography on me I’ve just felt ridiculous and not at all inclined to engage in any relations. In Australia, we dance facing each other and a lot less grinding action occurs.
The drinking age in Australia is 18, so I’ve been drinking legally for a year. So coming to a country where I am underage again is a strange experience. The natural result of being underage is going to house parties again instead of clubbing. I remember the house parties I went to in high school were not nearly as organized as the ones here are. Probably because this is a college town and the police are very aware of underage drinking. To deter the authorities, cardboard covers the windows, making the average house party climate the equivalent of a tropical jungle. I think both sexes would agree that the sweaty atmosphere of these parties is disgusting. Though I’m sure the boys don’t mind the fact that girls wear fewer clothes as a result of the temperature.
At some parties that I’ve gone to there’s been a black light, which is strange considering the black lights in Australia are found only in nightclubs and raves. No house party would ever have a black light in it. This strange lighting that turns faces red and blondes neon does have the added benefit of increasing the "beer goggles" effect. "Beer goggles" is what turns an average-looking person into the equivalent of Brad Pitt after a certain amount of beers. This often leads to a walk of shame the next morning.
Not to be a whiny girl, but I really hate beer. I’m sorry if I fulfil stereotypes, but I just hate it. It tastes disgusting and it makes me feel like I’m going to vomit. However, I do realize that if a party is supplying beer, then I can’t complain about free alcohol. Something that astounds me is the American ability to play game after game of flip cup and beer pong without getting bored. After a while, don’t people feel that those games are a tad redundant? I know beer pong and flip cup are beloved here, so it probably sounds like I’m committing blasphemy, but I just think it gets a bit repetitive.
Needless to say, my experiences thus far in America concerning going out and partying is very different to the one I experience in Australia.
