Back in college

Don't think I've ever mentioned to many of you guys that I spent my first 18 months Down Under in a residential college. No? Okay, let me briefly go through my time here..

It was in the month of July, 2003 that I moved into Dunmore Lang College as a resident student. My room, 437, was situated up in what they termed the Nunnery, as it was an all-girls floor. I had a sizable room, one that was bigger than normal rooms as it was in the corner and was actually meant for resident tutors. I had a view of the new wing and would poke my head out of the window every time I spotted a familiar face walk past.

I made many friends during my stay in college. Most of them were - no surprise here - Malaysians. However, they were from various parts of Malaysia and the majority of them were from up north. Hence, my understanding of Hokkien improved while we enjoyed our time teaching Manglish to other non-Malaysian friends.

One girl I was particularly close to was Jennie from Hong Kong. We shared the same wall for a year and I always had free karaoke sessions due to the thin walls! Sometimes, I had to knock the wall to indicate to her to keep her singing down! Haha, it was great having her around as she would come and check on me once in a while to see what I was doing, go for meals together with me or just for nothing. She learnt quite a few Hokkien and Malay words and she even sounded Malaysian sometimes!

Daniel was a fellow Malaysian from Sungai Petani I was comfy with, too. I used to head over to his room in the evenings to watch movies, to chat, to grumble or just to do nothing. Sometimes, he would ask me to help him with his assignments, which I still don't understand how I managed to as he was an actuarial student while I, an early childhood one. If he had classes in the afternoon, he would come over to my room just to check on me. I remember a few times when I was napping, he would pull the covers down slightly so my head would not be totally covered. He also checked on me whenever he knew that I was not feeling well.

Good memories, definitely. The nights when the drunk Dungeon boys would run around the whole college knocking on everybody's doors, the craziness of Conception Day, the camaraderie of the students, the feeling of belonging to a group of students.

I am now back here. Not as a student, but as a guest. I am now in a Corporate Ensuite in the new wing, which is more or less like a hotel room on its own. Well, motel la, not hotel la. Unlike before when we used the communal bathroom, I now have my own. I even have my own fridge and television, luxuries we students were allowed only after our 2nd year. I think the sound-proofing over in the new wing is much better, as I did not hear anything throughout the entire night. Either that or most of the students have moved out for the holidays or I was too tired to notice.

New or old wing, it feels good to be back. It feels a little weird, though, as although there is a feeling of familiarity, there is also a sense of novelty. The reception is now in the Almgren Centre, no longer in the old wing. We now do not need to pre-pay for internet access - everything is wireless now. I wonder if the food is still the same, though.

I will take pictures soon so make sure you keep an eye out for them in Facebook!