In Puerto Rico, the drinking age is 18. It has been very hard to get accustomed to Emory specifically due to the fact that in the United States the drinking age is 21. It is huge culture shock for students, because when you are used to something, it's hard to take it away or prohibit you from doing it. Throughout my whole life, my parents have always taught me what alcohol is, and have showed me various techniques for me to use so that I know how my body reacts to alcohol. Here it is the complete opposite. Parents hide alcohol from their children and pretend like if it does not exist, so that when their children go of to college, they don't know how to properly handle alcohol, and get intoxicated almost everyday. In Puerto Rico children are always given wine at the table, and that is a large and important part of our culture and who we are.
That is the thing about cultures, they are all different which makes the people in them accustomed to many different things. I knew this was going to happen if I came here, but many students did not, and since they believe that what they are doing is correct, they often get in trouble here. Most latin students aren't used to having to sneak around in order to consume alcohol. It is hard to picture how some places can be so near in distance, but so different culture wise. Although I don't necessarily agree with this particular idea of the culture here, I have no problem dealing with it, and it actually makes my Emory experience more interesting. |