Each fall, on Scotland's foggy eastern coast, the hallowed, medieval halls of the University of St. Andrews play host to one of the strangest -- and messiest -- rituals of contemporary European civilization.
"Raisin Weekend," the crazed, carnavalesque kickoff to St. Andrew's academic year, may indeed at one time have had something to do with raisins. These days, though, the focus has drifted away from dried fruit and towards a naughtier combination of objects: alcohol, foam (generally taking the shape of shaving cream), and police reports.
For a university sometimes accused of having built a reputation for stuffy poshness -- its most famous recent alumnus is Prince William -- Raisin Weekend promises the ultimate retort, styling itself as a wild, bachannalic rite of passage for baffled first-year students.
two days and two nights of stealing property, swilling alcohol
clipped from: www.spiegel.de 
