We found "accommodation"... I'm putting that in quotes because it really is a disgrace to the word to call this rathole accommodation. List of obvious defects: I can't get into my bathroom, because the door is locked, and the lock has been demolished. I can't close my window, because someone broke off the handle. It is all really, really, really ugly. Think 70's, but the part that was NOT hip.
Apparently, this place is getting sold or demolished next week or next month, and it shows: There is trash lying all across the hallways, it's not cleaned up one bit, all kinds of things are broken, and it generally just sucks.
There is no Internet access either. How the hell is a man supposed to study like this? We have to spend an awful lot of money on Taxi fares every day to get to Campus, and there isn't a single bit of community life around here. We went to a party at PGP (Prince George Park Residences, premier exchange student residence complex we all applied to) tonight, and it was sooooooooo depressing! So many people, very nice and interesting people, and we have to live far far away from all of them. And no sports or other activities in our "home" either... I'm thinking of calling our profs in Germany to make them call and email the Singaporean correspondents to make them give us proper rooms. This is just unbelievably horrible.
Did I mention the zoo's worth of animals crawling around here? Geckos and all kinds of insects, even though we're on the 20th floor.
Anyways, the party was nice. I talked to lots of interesting people from all over the world - Canadians, Americans, Englishmen, Scots, Thais, Malays, Cambodians, Germans (duh), etc. I wish I could stay at PGP... it's such an awesome place! :(
So we have two options now... either stick with this horrible piece of crap place, or use the waiting list that opens end of August (in 3 weeks! T_T), and hope to get into one of the on-campus accommodations... hall or residence, I don't care. Or get private accommodation, which would result in the same and less contact with locals and other students, and be off campus as well. Or bitch and moan and bite and gnaw until they give me what I want, deserve, and can expect.
Seriously.
In Germany, all dorms and student accommodation are filled with exchange students first and foremost, with the locals being an afterthought... after all, they're from here, they can find a different place to stay - exchange students can't do that this easily. Here it seems to be the other way around...
Annoying. I'm just about ready to strangle someone.
Moral support please!
PS: As promised, here are some photos.
Some shots of central square food court:
This is on campus:
And these were taken on famed Orchard road:
The girls trying to tell the clerk that they want some bedlinen cover piece to slip into, and use as a sleeping bag. She was a little confused and couldn't help them in the end.
I suppose these roofs are to protect people from rain, but I have yet to witness rain here.
Our first backpacker hostel from the outside:
Shy cat in chinatown:
Student Exchange Programme - Orientation. Very depressing, since they went through all the student halls and residences... >_<
View from the roof of our bunker at night:
This is on campus:
And these were taken on famed Orchard road:
The girls trying to tell the clerk that they want some bedlinen cover piece to slip into, and use as a sleeping bag. She was a little confused and couldn't help them in the end.
I suppose these roofs are to protect people from rain, but I have yet to witness rain here.
Our first backpacker hostel from the outside:
Shy cat in chinatown:
Student Exchange Programme - Orientation. Very depressing, since they went through all the student halls and residences... >_<
View from the roof of our bunker at night:
2 comments:
still try hospitality club, if anyone knows something or could invite you to stay untill you have sth better.
Might be worth a shot. I'll still try bitching a lot first though. What the hell are they thinking? How the hell am I supposed to study like this? How is it that in Germany, all our exchange students are prioritized when it comes to student accommodation, and locals are 2nd choice? Yeah... What the hell are they thinking?
Stuff like that. Gonna be tough acting tough :D
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