Editors Note: They traveled 1,230 miles to come to Washington, D.C. — Christine Amdam flew all the way from Norway and Alina Braun from Germany. This fall, they are studying journalism at American University and working as interns for WTOP. They quickly discovered that Washington and the American culture are very different from their hometowns Oslo and Mannheim and decided to document their experiences. Check WTOP.com each weekend to read about Christine and Alina’s “culture clashes.”

Fraternities and sororities – building the U.S. elite

Alina Braun, special to wtop.com

I learned about American fraternities and sororities through Hollywood movies shown on German television. Thus, as you can imagine, my idea of fraternity and sorority life was pretty much created by stereotypes: rich students living in big houses wanting to be one of the