The members of Group 72 look a little the worse for wear while they survey the square on which the festival is taking place. “I expected to wake up deaf and without a voice after last night,” attendee Anne-Sophie tells us. The incoming first-year students say they really enjoyed the sing-along event. “Since I actually come from Rotterdam, I wasn’t sure whether to attend Eurekaweek,” Anne-Sophie says. “But I’m glad I ended up signing up, because last night was just fab. I don’t think I’ve ever sung that loudly before in my life, haha.”

EW Groep 72 dag 2 – Wouter Sterrenburg – Erasmus Magazine (1 of 3) (EM)

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Day two for group 72: entertained with neverending quizzes

The future medical students of group 72 take EM along for the ride during the Eurekaweek.…

On that occasion, the group did not have to deal with massive queues. Thanks to some ‘clever’ merging, they only had to wait in line for half an hour, and the sing-along began some ten minutes after they had found themselves some seats. They know they are fortunate in that regard. For instance, Zoë tells us that her cousin, who is also attending Eurekaweek, had to queue for an hour and a half. After the sing-along, some freshers kept partying into the wee hours at house parties. They had a great time, but it was kind of full on. “Since there weren’t a lot of freshers at the party I was attending, I was in bed by 3am,” one attendee tells us. Those group members who aren’t fully vaccinated yet had a considerably shorter night’s rest. “Having to be at Ahoy at 8am to be tested was a bit of a tall ask after that,” says Lieke.

 

“Are there actually any other things to do here?” Anne-Sophie says, sighing, soon after arriving at the festival square. Despite having queued for ten minutes, the group members have barely inched five metres closer to the stalls selling poffertjes and chips, causing their guide, Tom, to suggest that they could ‘get the same food in town, but without these ridiculous queues’. So they decide to go into town, and after posing for a quick photo with the large letters spelling out ‘Eurekaweek’, the group departs for Witte de Withstraat to have a quick meal at the Frietboutique (‘chips boutique’). A few group members choose to leave or go to McDonalds instead, but no one seems to mind that too much.

Enkele deelnemers van groep 72 tijdens een potje bierpong.
A few Group 72 members play a game of beer pong. Image credit: Wouter Sterrenburg

Packing list adventures

The group members work their way through some rather large servings of chips while still discussing last night’s sing-along event (“It’s funny how with some guys you can just tell they’re Business Administration students”). “I find sauce on top a bit of a nuisance, so I ordered mine separately,” says one girl. She tells the others that she will find out the next morning whether she has survived the draw for RSC/RVSV membership, and she is quite nervous about the whole thing. “I’ve received my packing list for the hazing activities. They want me to bring the weirdest things. I even have to bring a lock for my tent, so I’ll be interested to see what it’s going to be like if I actually get in.” Her fellow group members, seated a little further, listen to her story in disbelief, and they all arrive at the conclusion that they wouldn’t like to be hazed themselves. After all, the fact that prospective members will apparently need a lock has got to be bad news.

EW-Groep-72-dag-3-Wouter-Sterrenburg-Erasmus-Magazine-2-of-3-EM-1600×1066
The group members enjoy the vegetarian barbecue (and a few beers) at MFVR’s outdoor seating area. Image credit: Wouter Sterrenburg

While the group lean back and digest their meals, a group member called Lucas sighs deeply. “I’m exhausted, and to think that we have another day to go.” But there is plenty to do today, as well, since the group can move straight to MFVR’s outdoor seating area for a barbecue and silent disco. By now they have begun to realise that, being medical students, they will be rather isolated from the other students attending the university. Some think it’s quite a pity that they will not be meeting any interesting international students at their faculty. “But hopefully we can emerge from our bubble a bit at sports clubs and in other ways,” says Lucas, hopeful. However, for now they are having a good time together, and this evening they get to chat, play beer pong and dance to their hearts’ content at MFVR. This evening may be a little quieter than last night, but maybe that will allow them to finish things off in grand style on the final day of Eurekaweek.