Lollnobooza Serves Up Alcohol-Free Fun

NEW YORK – Despite sub-zero wind chills and slushy sidewalks, about 3,000 students and faculty turned out last week for Fordham University’s biggest alcohol-free party of the year, Lollanobooza V. Lollanobooza, launched in 1995, promotes alcohol-free fun for students and is part of a nationally recognized alcohol and substance-abuse awareness campaign at Fordham. The Lombardi Center Fieldhouse on the Rose Hill campus was transformed into a giant game room, nightclub and tattoo parlor as students scaled the Rocky Mountain climbing wall, decorated themselves with temporary tattoos and Henna body paint, and dashed through the Modular Olympics inflatable obstacle course. The all-night party ran from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., with students playing laser tag, dancing to reggae beats, having their fortunes read and relaxing in an aromatherapy room. In addition to fun and games, students received lessons about the dangers of drinking at an alcohol prevention booth run by their peers. At the booth, students learned substance-abuse prevention tips and alcohol-related trivia. Participants put on “beer goggles,” which blurred their vision, and were challenged to walk a straight line. “This is like a night of school spirit,” said sophomore Danielle Faria during “Lolla V,” having just come off the obstacle course sporting a Lollanobooza T-shirt. “Instead of going to a bar and getting drunk, this is a chance for everyone to get together in a safe environment and do things that are fun.”