While vacationing at Disney World with his family as a 16-year-old, Byron Gale was stunned that he was not able to drink from the goblet of wine that was on the table in front of him.

I couldn’t drink with the rest of my family, Gale said. It was like an insult to my family that I could not drink in the restaurant.

Gale, 24, a senior in physical education from Athens, Greece, said that since he was 7 years old, it was tradition in his home country for him to drink with his family on special occasions. Although he has been to several foreign countries, he was first unable to drink when he was in the United States.

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It is a custom for many international students to drink at an early age, Gale said. He said that many cultures consider moderate drinking, such as sipping wine with meals, an enriching part of life.

I was taught to drink in moderation and not to abuse the system, Gale said.

Carla Coppi, assistant director of International Students and Scholars, acknowledges the cultural differences, but she makes it her responsibility to teach international students about the laws for alcohol in the United States.

During the International Student orientation we go over the drinking laws, she said. We do know that it is culturally different, but out of respect we have to tell them this is the law and they have to abide by it.

When Gale came to SIUC at the age of 18, he was not of legal drinking age. Gale said he felt restrained in Carbondale because he had always been able to go out to bars and drink with friends at home.

I felt restricted in what I could do, he said. I wouldn’t feel like I could be part of a social group that is over 21 years old.

Gale is not alone in his distaste for the U.S. age-related alcohol restrictions.

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Charalambos Charalambous, a senior in marketing from Cyprus, said being allowed to drink when he was young helped him to get over the need to drink excessively when he got older.

We have the freedom to do things (like drinking) when we were kids, he said. By the time we turn 24, we did all the stupid things when we were teenagers.

We did all these things when we were young and now we’re just more mature.

Gale said he also was amazed with U.S. alcohol policies when he attended church one Sunday, and communion took place with grape juice instead of wine.

I felt insulted by not being able to have wine, he said. I understand why they do it, but churches around the world all have real wine.

Not being able to drink in Carbondale has affected the view that Charalambous has regarding America in general.

Before I came here, I thought that America was a land of freedom, he said. I changed my mind when I compared it to my country.

Gale said even being of legal drinking age, he still feels juvenile going to bars in Carbondale as compared to Greece.

I feel like a little kid wearing a band around my wrist (stating my age), he said. I feel like I’m going to the roller rink.

Coppi said that the subject of drinking does not come up in her conversations with international students, but she can understand their feelings.

It’s our law, she said. Regardless of whether it is frustrating or not, they have to abide by the laws.

Even though some students have a problem with not being able to drink, Coppi said most international students are more concerned about grades instead.

Students are very focused in academic excellence, she said. Everything that stands in the way of excellence is discarded.