Applying to Uni for 2024? Find your Uni here and chat with others! >>

This thread is closed

The Cambridge Chat Thread

Scroll to see replies

The West Wing

Do they use all Peterhouse rooms for conferencing then? At Clare much of our accomodation is student-only, so we can have it for 9 months at a time without moving out.

What about people that need to stay to work on dissertations and such?

No, that's the retarded thing. Basically our rooms staff/housekeeping are (a) power obsessed (b) completely disorganised. So despite the fact that probably only a third of our undergrad accommodation is used for conferences or summer schools, they still insist on moving people out of their rooms at holiday. This means that you have to pack your bags and go somewhere a stone's throw away from where you were living during the holidays.

To give you an idea. This year my housemate and college husband both were allowed to stay in my house until graduation because they were "third years". I was made to move out to parkside a week before they left the house because I was a "second year" They told me that after I left no people moved in. The rooms just stayed empty. Then to top it all... a day or two after I moved to parkside, a friend who had been living in the very house I moved to got given college accomodation in the street that I had lived on because he was in college for a choir tour! :eyeball:

Madness!
I've managed to get around this the past two years by living in a very unpopular house and living in the attic and basement which college don't like using for conferences. But I only managed this by going to the person in question each holiday and being very persistent and reminding her about how much stuff I have and also demanding whether she was actually going to put anybody in my room (which she couldn't really lie to my face about)

This is another key point for the rooms. The Hostel is probably safe for all holidays. Old Court might not be.
I think Tom had this issue last year. He stayed for his final Easter but Johns made him move to Cripps.

Reply 901

Craghyrax

smilepea

Go with the coin, go with the coin!

The coin won.

Now I'll finally stop boring people about my room until Michaelmas when I start ranting about the evil second years in the double set :p:

Meanwhile, I have packing for a hike to do, gas to purchase, campsites to book, relatives and friends to ring and several more things besides :afraid:

Reply 902

Craghyrax

Athena

I paid £850 a term (3 x 9 weeks) for a room in a flat, en suite, kitchen shared between 8, this year. But that was actually in another college's block, that my college was subsidising by £400 a term for the 20 of us they'd kicked out of college :s-smilie:

Sounds like a good bargain. Which college was it?
I really liked Wadham by the way. My Uncle gave me a tour when I visited over Easter.

Reply 903

Craghyrax

Athena

Balliol, the Jowett Walk flats behind Wadham (actually more convenient for us than the Balliol students!). Wadham is a bit of a mess atm (what with the whole building programme) but the new Lodge is really swish, and Minimo is going to have one of the gorgeous renovated Front Quad rooms, I'm very jealous!

minimo got taken by Wadham? :eek:

Since when am I the last to know this? :hmmm:

That's awesome!!!
And yeh, I saw some construction work going on while I was there. Do you know where in Cambridge you'll be living btw? I have no idea what Darwin accommodation consists of, having only visited the main part.

Reply 904

Zoedotdot

I paid £695 per 10 week term for a room much bigger than my one at home, which I share with my sister, with internet included, sink in my room, gyp room shared between 5, toilet shared between 5 and three showers shared between 17 (complicated situation where there was a shower for two people on the ground floor and a broken shower on the top floor where I was living, so we had keys to all the bathrooms - usually it would be 4 between 17). I'll be paying the same this year, plus minor inflation, because my room is the same grade. It's pretty much the same facilities I think, but out of college. Last year we had to move everything out every term (but my bedder was a legend so I always left loads of stuff and she just made sure that no-one was ever put in my room) but this year I think we can leave things, because, frankly, I'd be surprised if college even admitted to guests that Barnwell was part of Emma :p:

Reply 905

Craghyrax

Athena

Darwin, annoyingly, don't give you any choice of room (price/size/location - anything), so I could be in the college proper, or on Silver Street, or on Newnham(?) Rd. I wish they would give us a say, since, as my PhD stipend is generous, I'd like the top price band of room!

Those are all good locations, although Silver Street will be really noisy. I've not heard of Newnham road. I wonder if that's supposed to be Queens rd. Either way, its near and all nice looking.

Zoedotdot

I'd be surprised if college even admitted to guests that Barnwell was part of Emma :p:

You can go alot uglier than Barnwell in college! At least everything is in good nick and very convenient and practical. The outside is better looking than the inside though. But you can mediate it by decorating your room well. The major downside is the location :s-smilie:

Reply 906

Zoedotdot

Craghyrax

Oh of course, you know John don't you? So you would have been :smile:

Yeah, I agree, I'm probably overstating it. It's just generally known as 'the grotty one' and it is blinking miles away from college, although not really that much further than Blantyre. I think it'll be nice, we do have good facilities, and the layout's quite communal like it was this year so I don't really mind. And I was so low down on the ballot that I'm actually quite chuffed to still have a grade 3 room! Apparently my room is the only one on the staircase without the orange wardrobes :biggrin:

I always decorate my room, when it's tidy people always say it's lovely :smile:

Unfortunately, I'm a very messy person, so mostly people walk in and swear.

Reply 907

Craghyrax

*breathes a huge sigh of relief* Anglesey youth hostel had rooms free tomorrow night, so we won't be sleeping in a ditch! That was a close call!

Zoedotdot

Oh of course, you know John don't you? So you would have been :smile:

I always decorate my room, whe
n it's tidy people always say it's lovely :smile:

Unfortunately, I'm a very messy person, so mostly people walk in and swear.

And Hannah, and Laura, and Helen, and Rachel.... the list goes on! :biggrin:

Lol... liberation from orange cupboards is a definite bonus :wink:

And yeh, it sounds like Barnwell is the equivalent to our Parkside! People don't really like it that much, and people fear being forced to go to it (which never happens) but the people who do chose it go for the benefits of having a freezer, washing machine, ovens, huge kitchen and personal garden. Plus a communal space in the kitchen which most of our college rooms don't offer. But parkside is definitely grotty! No conference guests to motivate college to redecorate anything.

On the other hand, unlike Barnwell, its all (externally) pretty old houses so if you want an absolutely massive room with large old fashioned white wooden framed windows, then you can get a veritable palace for about two thirds of the price there.

Reply 908

smilepea

I'm really hot and icky, I've just sorted out my bike for next year and moved all of my stuff from the garage upstairs (not that my stuff has been in the garage since I got home or anything :flute:

)

Reply 909

Craghyrax

smilepea

I'm really hot and icky, I've just sorted out my bike for next year and moved all of my stuff from the garage upstairs (not that my stuff has been in the garage since I got home or anything :flute:

)

I want a garage :frown:

Reply 910

fumblewomble

Athena

Newnham(?) Rd.

Craghyrax

I've not heard of Newnham road. I wonder if that's supposed to be Queens rd.

Yes, Newnham Road is Queens' Road once you go past Silver Street
http://www.cam.ac.uk/map/v4/drawmap.cgi?mp=main;xx=1700;yy=1200;mt=a;mx=1611;my=1252;ma=90;tl=Newnham%20Road

Reply 911

Craghyrax

fumblewomble

Yes, Newnham Road is Queens' Road once you go past Silver Street
http://www.cam.ac.uk/map/v4/drawmap.cgi?mp=main;xx=1700;yy=1200;mt=a;mx=1611;my=1252;ma=90;tl=Newnham%20Road

Ah yes. Well, like I said: great for looks, but bad for traffic noise. Luckily most people just get used to it, I guess.

Reply 912

smilepea

I discovered why my brownies were so gooey yesterday (not that it's a bad thing) it turns out I'd misread teaspoons for tablespoons for the cocoa powder oopsy

this is ridiculous.

smilepea

I discovered why my brownies were so gooey yesterday (not that it's a bad thing) it turns out I'd misread teaspoons for tablespoons for the cocoa powder oopsy

Good brownies are a bit gooey so I wouldn't worry about it!

Reply 915

Craghyrax

smilepea

I discovered why my brownies were so gooey yesterday (not that it's a bad thing) it turns out I'd misread teaspoons for tablespoons for the cocoa powder oopsy