A few carried briefcases. No one slept or exhibited disrespectful behavior. Lots of students raised hands to be called upon. Tears in the linoleum were patched with more aluminum sheets. Its not unusual to see a water or sewer pipe cutting across the floor in the middle of a classroom.
Stairs are also an occasional problem.
At prestigious Perm State University, we had to use one flight of stairs in which the first step was two inches higher than all of the others except for the last step which was four inches lower than the others. Ed, Sergei and I are staying in a dormitory for new faculty. The dorm has a small cafeteria staffed by two people. I never saw anyone actually eat there, however. There is a room with a ping pong table and I was able to play against a Russian from Siberia.