Silence around Thalia fraternity house: neighbours relieved as initiations fail to take place
This week the initiation rituals at the student associations are starting. At Thalia’s fraternity house – where the board of A.S.C./A.V.S.V. intervened last week with a halt on new members – it remains completely silent. Much to the delight of the neighbours, who in previous years during initiation season on the Vondelstraat had to deal with a great deal of nuisance. “I went mad from those frat boys.”
The balcony doors of Thalia’s stately fraternity house stand open, yet the Vondelstraat has been completely silent for several days. That is something new, according to a neighbour. Less than a week ago, the students were parading “shouting and bragging” through the street with torches, as part of their recruitment of new members.
Other local residents are also exasperated by the noise nuisance caused by the so-called annual ‘fleurrondes’. A man living around the corner from the fraternity house says that last week the Thalia members spent two days racing expensive cars down the street with prospective members and setting off smoke bombs. “That bothered me the most: I went mad from those frat boys.” Now he is pleasantly surprised by the silence.
Concerns about safety
Last week the Corps decided on an unprecedented measure: Thalia is not allowed to admit any new members this year. The reason: concerns about the safety of (new) members due to serious misconduct. Although it remains unclear exactly what took place.
A neighbour who has lived opposite the fraternity house for 35 years calls it a “hopeless case” that the students never seem to behave. According to him, several attempts have been made in the past to reach agreements with the residents of the fraternity house. For instance, they still often hold their initiations out on the street instead of in their cellar, as had been promised. “I’m lucky I can sit on the other side of my house, but some families suffer terribly. Their children are still woken up every year by pop music with heavy bass blaring from the fraternity house.”
No life
It seems that the students have been intimidated by the negative coverage of their fraternity. Since the reports in NRC and Het Parool about the suspension of the fleurrondes and initiation rituals at Thalia this year, they have kept a low profile. No empty beer bottles on the pavement, no large fraternity flag hanging from the window of their townhouse. “It feels as if there’s no life left in the fraternity house,” says the neighbour across the street. “I think they’ve been so terribly shocked that they don’t even dare to throw parties anymore.”
The same neighbour says that several residents are currently on holiday, out of despair, in order to escape potential nuisance. He reckons those neighbours are well aware of the news: “They’ll be reading their paper abroad as well.” Still, he is not convinced that the students will remain quiet in the coming weeks.
Stylish homes
Enjoying the silence, the neighbour across the street is well aware that it will not last. “It’s insane that there’s a rowdy student house in the midst of stylish homes worth millions, where young families also live. The students should have moved to another building long ago. There are plenty of places where you can make noise without disturbing the entire neighbourhood.”
The man living around the corner from the fraternity house rings the doorbell of a couple who have just moved into a house a few doors down. He welcomes them to the neighbourhood. When the door closes again, he says: “They have no idea what awaits them next year.”
