According to the 2011 Global Status Report created by the World Health Organization, South Korea ranks 11th for alcohol consumed per capita. It should come as no surprise then that alcohol consumption is a major part of the college culture in this country. As a freshman, the prospect of being invited to drink with upperclassmen can be daunting. That fear never really goes away until one becomes a junior or senior, when only then can he deem himself sufficiently “safe.” If, perchance, you are expecting a night of friendly conversation over a few beers, or like myself, initially completely oblivious of the extent to which people drink in college, you are in for one rude awakening.

Unless you live a life of solitude hermetically sealed away in a dorm room, you will most likely end up being invited to a beginning-of-semester party, either for your entering class, club, or later on, department. These events always begin in a rather civilized manner, usually with dinner, a toast to another new semester, and a few light drinks. More often than not, freshmen or newcomers will be asked to introduce themselves and the upperclassmen will do the same. If you’re a freshman, it is in your best interest to remember as many of those names, and their corresponding faces, as possible because they will come in handy. But more on that later. If this is your first time attending one of these events, at this point you’re probably thinking to yourself, “Hey, this isn’t so bad.” Time to think again. One could look upon this portion of the evening as the calm before the storm.

Once everyone has had their fill of food, the congregation will then move to a nearby bar and the drinking begins in earnest. After what is essentially a mandatory first drink, you will likely end up talking to and drinking with the people who are sitting around you. It is at this point that an upperclassman sitting close by will call upon you to play a “game.” There are no winners in these games so don’t get your hopes up. The most common practice appears to be guessing anything form their name to – should Lady Luck turn her back on you – their phone number. It is in this moment that those names you hopefully memorized beforehand may save you from having to drink, that is, at least for one round. That is not to say it is only the freshmen who have to drink. Upperclassmen will drink a fair amount on their own anyway.

As the night progresses, there comes a point where the alcohol starts to take its toll on the people there, and what little order that remains will devolve into chaos. Voices inevitably grow louder. You might overhear some rude or lame jokes being thrown about as people begin to lose grip over their self-control. And of course, you may even spot the odd person or two making trips to the bathroom to empty the contents in their stomach. Once enough casualties have been sustained, one may be inclined to think that any sensible person would call it a night, but that evidently is not the case. Once the dead or wounded have been safely sent off to their dorm rooms, the survivors reform their ranks and huddle together, ready to move on to the next field of battle.

The above process will repeat itself a few more times throughout the course of the night with ever-dwindling numbers. An interesting fact to note is that the quality of the alcohol will tend to improve. Those few who have made it to the last round, either through pure luck or some superhuman ability to digest excessive quantities of alcohol, will usually shoot for the more expensive Western liquors, such as whiskey or vodka, as opposed to the cheaper and more accessible soju. Should you make it this far into the night, you can be rather confident that there will not be anything more coming after the bottles have been emptied, and will prevail victorious.

The return trip home can be a somewhat interesting experience on its own. Assuming you have had too much to drink, the scenery around you will appear to change randomly as you oscillate between states of awareness and oblivion, giving the impression of teleportation before you eventually collapse on what is hopefully your own bed. Waking up the next morning, or more likely the afternoon, experiencing some sickening combination or migraine and nausea with little to no recollection of what actually happened, you swear upon your soul never to drink so recklessly again. A promise you manage to keep, but only until the next time you go drinking and history repeats itself.