Going Out

Every college student looks forward to the weekends. There's no classes, and no work. It's the time to sleep in until noon and stay up till four o'clock in the morning. Here at Fordham, which is also known as 'The Bar School' of New York, there is a very distinct drinking culture that is affiliated with the weekends.

As a Fordham student, you have several options:

-Go to one of the local Bronx bars

-Go to a party

-Head into Manhattan

The local Bronx bars are a common destination. They are all rather unsavory to outsiders; they are small, windowless places, and their wooden paneled walls are covered with sports memorabilia and beer logos. These bars are usually packed with students at about midnight, and they can become smoky, claustrophobic dens of excess. You need strong constitution and a few drinks to be able to enjoy yourself at these places. The upside is that the drinks are cheap, every patron is a Fordham kid, and you usually see several people you know.

Parties tend to be held off campus, and they are usually smaller gatherings. You tend to know more people in these settings, and the crowds are less oppressive. The classic drinking games are employed here, including Beer Pong and Kings. Personally, I prefer parties, because you can leave without your hair reeking of cigarette smoke.

And then there's always Manhattan. Manhattan offers everything, from great restaurants to clubs to upscale bars to movies and shows. Anything and everything you could want is in Manhattan; the only issues are transport and money. Fordham's main campus is 13 miles away from Midtown, so it can sometimes be annoying to shlep all the way downtown (usually a 30 min journey with no traffic) and then head back to campus when the night is over and you're exhausted. The city is also quite expensive, but if you're smart you can go to good places for cheap.

Now, some kids spend their weekends firmly entrenched in one of these options. I know kids who only hang out in the city (usually the older, 21-plus students), I know kids who go to the local dive bars every Friday and Saturday night, and I know kids who prefer only parties. Personally, I dabble. For instance, this Friday I saw a movie with friends downtown, and last night I went briefly to a local bar before going to a low key party at a friend's apartment.

As a senior, my tolerance for the Fordham bars is waning. They tend to be too crowded, and lately they seem to be full of overtly drunk kids, which can be an unpleasant distraction when you're just trying to relax with friends. I remember those heady days when I was younger and I thought the bars were the coolest places on the planet, but now I look at these places through the more critical lenses of someone older, and I'm not too impressed. Oh well, everyone remembers their local hole-in-the-wall college bar, and I will retain fond memories of mine. And in the mean time, I will always have Manhattan.

Until next time...