Dormitory - Tumblr Posts

Tietgen Dormitory by Lundgaard & Tranberg Arkitekter (Copenhagen, Denmark).

The magic of dormitories (or lack of it)

Am I an experienced dormitory resident? No, quite the opposite. It's my first time staying at one.

It's a hectic experience — both parents and students are shouting, suitcases moving left and right, up and down, with someone occasionally dropping a box or a bag.

I'm staying at a female-only dormitory. Males are not allowed past the lobby. The building is quite safe in terms of security as there are many cameras around, and residents are required to scan their card.

There's no elevator, so I had to drag both of my suitcases (8kg and 17kg) up the stairs to the 5th floor. How I'm going to get it down, I have no idea.

I expected more from the dormitory. There's only one kitchen with a burner for the whole building (if there's another one I haven't found it, the 'kitchen' on my floor has a microwave and a kettle), and it's located right next to the laundry room. The smell of laundry detergent is quite strong.

The fridges are not located near the kitchen. Instead, there are at least two fridges on each floor that anyone can use. You do have to write your name and room number on anything you put inside.

The dormitory rooms themselves are mostly fine. Despite housing 4 people each, they're quite spacious. Each student has a table and a chair with a wardrobe right next to it. The beds themselves are beneath the ceiling.

Mattresses, bedsheets, and pillows are not included, so you have to buy your own.

The location of the beds is unfortunate. Hot air comes up, so it's very uncomfortable during the night as it gets too stuffy. So, while the site I ordered my mattress on included a blanket in a package, I've been sleeping without it as I fear I might overheat.

The dormitory is also loud in the evening — some residents are coming back after drinking and having a fun evening, and because of big gaps between the floor and the door, you can hear them clearly.

Some local students I've spoken to warned me about the so-called "cold" period coming soon. As in, temperatures are as low as 25°c, so I better have packed warm sweaters, etc. While I did grab a few warmer items, I feel like I'm going to enjoy the 25°c a lot more than the current 34°c as I'm more used to the lower temperatures. I can't imagine how they would react if I told them that we sometimes get temperatures below 20°c in the summer.

So, at the moment, I'm surving the heat with the help of the AC unit in my room. Is it working as well as hoped it would? No, but if I had to choose between that or no AC at all, I would fight for the opportunity to use the AC to my death.

(This little guy visited the kitchen in the morning. Some other students who were on their way to the laundry room got scared of him, but I don't really understand their reaction. He's (or is it a she) just small little guy, so small, in fact, that he couldn't escape the sink. I've captured him and brought him outside, so hopefully, he finds a better place to stay at.)

I'm also feeling homesick. Missing my parents, my brother, my cat, as well as my friends and colleagues. It all leaves me quite depressed, but I'm hopeful it gets better when the lectures start so I can keep my mind off of that.

The truth about (dormitory) girls

As someone who's used to keeping her space a bit cluttered but clean, I'm horrified by the condition of some of the rooms. Mainly, the public ones.

My dormitory room can be called clean, but even that is relative. The air conditioning unit smells weird, and a lot of stuff is black with dust that's never been cleaned. Even my bed was dirty when I moved in, so I had to scrub everything down.

The 'kitchen' area is mostly fine because of 2 cameras that overlook the room, but even there are a few problems — the sink is constantly full of food waste, and there are several questionable stains on the counters.

The worst room, in my opinion, is the shower room. Some of the doors are broken, so it's impossible to use some of the showers, and that's OK when the dormitory is mostly empty. But that's not the biggest problem.

The mould is the main issue. It's almost everywhere, almost as if it's never cleaned. On the doors, near the ceiling... Even big clumps of hair don't give me the creeps, but the mould... I'm not an expert, but I really hope it's not going to affect me long-term.

The girls here don't seem to know how clean up after themselves, including flushing the toilets. If we didn't have cleaners coming every morning, I think the dormitory would be full of trash and human waste. I've never been as thankful to them as I am now. If I could open a shrine to them, I would.