Academic traditions

This was the beginning of the Academic week at my friend's college. She studies to be a dentist. She is standing with the people dressed in black. The students crawling on the sand are freshmen and they have to deal with everything the older students tell them to do.

After this humiliation that takes place on this beach every year, there is a party in the evening when all the freshmen get to put on their black capes for the first time. They all have so called sponsor students from upper class who will help them put on their capes.

They have rules even about how you're supposed to put on the cape. And women's hair must be tied up always, certain amount of hairpins are allowed and certain types of shoes. If these rules are not obeyed, there are consequences.

These traditions are not usual in Lisbon area so my friends university is an exception. These kinds of traditions come from Porto, if I remember correctly.