Surviving in a residence

By Arnia Kiara Oosthuizen

I am a third and final year Communication student and since my first year, I’ve been staying in a hostel. An all-ladies hostel. Meaning hormones, moodiness, back-stabbing, but also so much love and friendships... I've also met my bridesmaids here. 

My hostel is the home to 260 unique ladies and that means unique things happen and you learn your lesson very fast here. Here are the things that my friends and I have learned:

• ·         Sometimes it’s better to not see/hear anything (Jonanke)
• ·         Never leave your dishes in the kitchen, no matter how insignicant you think it is, it will disappear (Mart-Mari)
• ·         There is not really ghosts in the residence, but yet you sometimes believe it (Toni)
• ·         People who do not live in residences will never really know what goes on there (Hanri)
•        Never stay next to the balcony, because you will have people constantly smoking next to you and chatting very loud (Mone)
• ·         You get one toilet roll per week. TOILET ROLLS ARE GOLDEN! If you accidentally forget them in the bathroom, they will be gone by the time you go looking for them.
• ·         Silence is not golden.
• ·         It is totally acceptable to walk in pajamas all day long or slip into your pajamas any time of the day.
•        The more you participate, the more friends you will make.
•        The more you participate, the more fun you will have.
• ·         Bathing is too much cleaning work (because people don't clean after themselves) and it takes too long to take a bath. SHOWER INSTEAD.
• ·         The walls are thin. Watch what you say and keep your music down or you will have angry neighbors.
• ·         There will be someone studying the same as you, so get yourself a study buddy to make things a bit easier.
• ·         Buy some earplugs for noisy nights.
• ·         You will have a lot of friends in the residence, so doing projects can sometimes be hard when they pop.
• ·         Having a tidy room, makes you more positive and feel task-oriented.
• ·         If you go to sleep before 11 pm, people will ask you if you're sick. NO ONE SLEEPS EARLY.
• ·         Watching scary movies is not great when returning to the residence. A residence is scary by nature.
• ·         Watching a lot of series' is acceptable.
• ·         Being up to date with ALL the movies and series is acceptable.
• ·         Great food is scarce.
• ·         Having an almost empty fridge is common and not strange. Fridges mostly contain sauces and food that no one wants to eat.

·      I would not have preferred to stay anywhere else, it is so much fun to participate in activities and all the friends that one makes, makes life worth the while.

Living in a residence makes you part of something fun, you will have stories to tell your children one day. Living in a residence has taught me many lessons and how to work with other people.

Also check out my post about the things that university guides will never teach you.

Monkeys on campus

By Arnia Kiara Oosthuizen

I never thought I would say this sentence, but here I am saying it. WE HAVE MONKEYS ON OUR CAMPUS! Actual monkeys.

Proof!

I knew about them for more than a week, but didn't blog about it, because I wanted to find out more. The university is being vague about this problem. The only information I could gather so far (and I'm talking under correction), is that the monkeys' natural habitat has been disturbed by development near their habitat. Where that would be, we don't know!

The university is leaving us in the dark here! They are only sending us warnings to not feed them, wear flashy things or talk on cellphones, while passing them.

They are going to become a problem, when they figure out there is a cafeteria with lots of food and also residences, which also contains food.

Why is the university not doing something about them? We used to see campus cats and chickens on campus, but since the monkeys arrived, they have been AWOL!

If anyone has information about this, please let me know. We are in the dark!

I know we live in Africa, but wild animals can usually only be found is game reserves and parks. Not on university campus'.

Never a dull moment

By Arnia Kiara Oosthuizen

This is why I love it to live in a dormitory, because we have these random times where we will put on loud music and dance in the corridors. It's nights like these that make all the hard work and tough times worth it.

We will play cricket in the corridors or make a slippy slide. It is never planned and always fun.

I love it when I hear a noise outside my door, because then I know the people living with me on this floor, is up to something AGAIN!