I took some time out from my busy schedule to visit my University city Dunedin.
I hitched a ride with my Mum's neighbour and my former varsity classmate Carmel and her son Jonah. We were greeted by Hana one of my old flatmates who was my delightful host again, at the warehouse in Queens Gardens she shares with two others. We indulged in some of Dunedin's cheap eats - Vietnamese was the theme and bumping into another old Varsity mate was becoming par of the course! Asian cuisine, of any kind can be found in the North End of the city and generally offers a delicious and generous meal for under NZ$15 a head. This was always a favourite for us students with many birthdays spent out with BYO (thats Bring Your Own) booze to these genuinely tasteful establishments. Rolling out full of life was never difficult to achieve!
We enjoyed a leisurely afternoon pasting posters for Hana's upcoming gig around the CBD and doing some Christmas/pre-trip shopping (Hana was graduating on the Saturday and flying to Vietnam on the Sunday!). While Hana high tailed it to a recording studio session I made my way to North Dunedin beyond the gardens (past Studentville!) to meet another old flatmate, Hugh and the faculty of my Design Studies course. Hugh and Nicky invited me home to their place in Port Chambers where there flatmate had cooked a delicious meal for us all including Rhubarb dessert. Hospitality in the south just makes my heart go all mushy! And it coming from two English girls was even better. Both of whom were confused why I would give up the simplicity of Dunedin life for London.
The following day was a scorcher. The kind the locals all love to indulge in after all the students leave for the year (and in my summers working in Dunedin between term times I was able to enjoy). Hana and I made our way towards North Dunedin and the old haunts of my varisty years. I went with my camera but what was to unfold was brilliant for a local tourist.
I visited my old flats seeing them mostly unchanged bar some graffiti and my old first year hall of Residence - making it into the news on the Arana website on my visit. It was pretty cool going back to Arana after 10 years away.
I went to Arana in February 2000 as a fresh faced, short haired, skinny girl from Southland. I had gone to my local co-ed High School and was about to start the same University that my 4 siblings had all attended...I knew where the lecture halls were and what pubs to go to or not and I'd been in halls before with my siblings when they had been at Cumby or Arana. But then I it was my turn. I made friends with kids who wanted to be doctors, physio's, lawyers, scientists, artists, and accountants. But it was when I met people who had laptops on their school curriculum, I realised I was now in a whole new world (my family had only owned a computer for 1 year!).
On my return visit I met the new Dean who shared with me the great success of the college today which boasts 2 Rhodes Scholars amongst its Alumni. Now when I went there we were all rounders - and decidedly the nice guys of the pack who also enjoyed a beverage or two - apparently this has changed slightly. What I think I am most proud of of my year are some of my friends and their life achievements to date. Nikki Hill (Holdgate to us Arana Kids - although her marrying Sam Hill was on the cards by the end of first year!) a doctor and NZ Triathlete, Hap Cameron and his completed mission to live and work on all the continents before 30 (Book & Doco out next year!), Dean Couzins the captain of the NZ Mens Hockey team and they are just the obvious ones! There are plenty with PhD's namely Peacey, Mr & Mrs Sudsy and AMJ, Honours, PostGrads, DipGrads and degree upon degree, who hold down important roles all around the world, including many Mothers and Fathers now too.
So it was that I stepped back in time to see what they had changed with the help of Peter Chan as tour guide...to start with they had got rid of an entire Road. Thats right folks St David St and the Zigzags are defunct...well the Zigzags are still there but just for access to take photos it seems. St David St now is home to a brand new 100 bed dorm as is the gym/common room which is now a 60 executive bed dorm (costing multi millions to build). Thats an entire 160 more folks to the hall. I can imagine this has changed the dynamic massively. The computer room has no computers in it...personal laptops you see dominate the room now apparently. There are about 8 Macs next door for use but it all seemed rather redundant. The Kitchen is back to front with the kitchen at the north end and the seating at the south end. The Main Common Room upstairs where the double rooms used to be (sorry Amie no more secret room). There are actually no double rooms any longer so my Northland v Southland rooms on basement are now used for storage. The side entrance on Clyde St is now where the office is - so no sneekies from Footroot Flats nowadays! And finally they rent out the rooms in holidays - with the new Dunedin stadium they had many staying for Elton John's recent concert!
But a couple of things remain the same.
It was really great to see how the home I had made for a year of my studies had developed so much in the past 10 years without losing its charm and familiarity. I was reassured its still luck of the draw which room you get and it made me reflect on how lucky I was with the people I shared the experience with. Feel the love my Arana peps!
I went down the road to Varsity and indulged in the architecture and the familiarity and memories. Enjoying Grad photos as a kid with my family checking the maths on my favourite gargoyle, and discovered a new one with a world map. The many walks home from the pub with my friends through archway. The site for my final year installation project and crisp winter dashes to lectures.
I wanted to check out Design School as well as I had learnt the night before that my degree was no longer available and honestly I wanted to meet the woman responsible for this! She of course was not in her office. I was very disappointed to hear that I now had a degree not offered by the University...and one I thought could have the potential to be incredibly well developed if in the right hands. But alas the Head of Department did not have the same vision so only Design for Technology is still available. The opportunity to peer this with Commerce was surely missed by this woman and will continue to leave a hole in the arts to commerce departments.
After that grown I enjoyed a relaxed walk into the building gave me access to the computer suites (still the same but with flasher Macs) the design lab with all its fun equipment and the attic home for 2 years while I completed my degree. Nick was still in his room pottering and Kylie was out to lunch, Grant the computer guy was off on an adventure and a cutting of Larry was pride of place on the Kitchen wall. It was with much sadness I had learnt that Larry my Design for Communications lecturer had taken his life in 2010. He was a delightful man who taught me about fonts and aBa. Of which I am incredibly grateful and I am sure most of my Times New Roman using colleagues are not! I hope he is at peace now.
Back out into the bright light of day I took a stroll to the University Central Library completed in 2000. It was amazing to see little had changed but that it had become lived in. Great design proven I think. And a reminder of the awesome art collection held as I walked through some of Colin McCahons works along my merry way.
Finally after attempting to stop for a Pizza at Poppas' I was pooped...they were closed as it was past lunch time. There will be a next time!
Hana was supporting some Auckland artists on tour out at Port Chambers (I think this is the most I have ever been to PC in my life!) that evening which was a a great way to sign off this brilliant visit. I can't wait for more of Hana's work to be on iTunes so I can rock out it more often.
Being a tourist in my old University city was just what I needed. Taking a moment to reflect on where it all began is quite special. I am grateful for my degrees and the doors they have opened but I am most grateful for the friendships made during these years. Thank You Dunedin.
I hitched a ride with my Mum's neighbour and my former varsity classmate Carmel and her son Jonah. We were greeted by Hana one of my old flatmates who was my delightful host again, at the warehouse in Queens Gardens she shares with two others. We indulged in some of Dunedin's cheap eats - Vietnamese was the theme and bumping into another old Varsity mate was becoming par of the course! Asian cuisine, of any kind can be found in the North End of the city and generally offers a delicious and generous meal for under NZ$15 a head. This was always a favourite for us students with many birthdays spent out with BYO (thats Bring Your Own) booze to these genuinely tasteful establishments. Rolling out full of life was never difficult to achieve!
We enjoyed a leisurely afternoon pasting posters for Hana's upcoming gig around the CBD and doing some Christmas/pre-trip shopping (Hana was graduating on the Saturday and flying to Vietnam on the Sunday!). While Hana high tailed it to a recording studio session I made my way to North Dunedin beyond the gardens (past Studentville!) to meet another old flatmate, Hugh and the faculty of my Design Studies course. Hugh and Nicky invited me home to their place in Port Chambers where there flatmate had cooked a delicious meal for us all including Rhubarb dessert. Hospitality in the south just makes my heart go all mushy! And it coming from two English girls was even better. Both of whom were confused why I would give up the simplicity of Dunedin life for London.
The following day was a scorcher. The kind the locals all love to indulge in after all the students leave for the year (and in my summers working in Dunedin between term times I was able to enjoy). Hana and I made our way towards North Dunedin and the old haunts of my varisty years. I went with my camera but what was to unfold was brilliant for a local tourist.
 |
| Rugby Mad - & rather unchanged the Forth St Flat I lived in with 5 other girls in 2002! |
 |
my old flat. 15 Hyde St.
Modern day Graffiti v Old School Stolen Power & Pot House
|
I visited my old flats seeing them mostly unchanged bar some graffiti and my old first year hall of Residence - making it into the news on the Arana website on my visit. It was pretty cool going back to Arana after 10 years away.
I went to Arana in February 2000 as a fresh faced, short haired, skinny girl from Southland. I had gone to my local co-ed High School and was about to start the same University that my 4 siblings had all attended...I knew where the lecture halls were and what pubs to go to or not and I'd been in halls before with my siblings when they had been at Cumby or Arana. But then I it was my turn. I made friends with kids who wanted to be doctors, physio's, lawyers, scientists, artists, and accountants. But it was when I met people who had laptops on their school curriculum, I realised I was now in a whole new world (my family had only owned a computer for 1 year!).
On my return visit I met the new Dean who shared with me the great success of the college today which boasts 2 Rhodes Scholars amongst its Alumni. Now when I went there we were all rounders - and decidedly the nice guys of the pack who also enjoyed a beverage or two - apparently this has changed slightly. What I think I am most proud of of my year are some of my friends and their life achievements to date. Nikki Hill (Holdgate to us Arana Kids - although her marrying Sam Hill was on the cards by the end of first year!) a doctor and NZ Triathlete, Hap Cameron and his completed mission to live and work on all the continents before 30 (Book & Doco out next year!), Dean Couzins the captain of the NZ Mens Hockey team and they are just the obvious ones! There are plenty with PhD's namely Peacey, Mr & Mrs Sudsy and AMJ, Honours, PostGrads, DipGrads and degree upon degree, who hold down important roles all around the world, including many Mothers and Fathers now too.
So it was that I stepped back in time to see what they had changed with the help of Peter Chan as tour guide...to start with they had got rid of an entire Road. Thats right folks St David St and the Zigzags are defunct...well the Zigzags are still there but just for access to take photos it seems. St David St now is home to a brand new 100 bed dorm as is the gym/common room which is now a 60 executive bed dorm (costing multi millions to build). Thats an entire 160 more folks to the hall. I can imagine this has changed the dynamic massively. The computer room has no computers in it...personal laptops you see dominate the room now apparently. There are about 8 Macs next door for use but it all seemed rather redundant. The Kitchen is back to front with the kitchen at the north end and the seating at the south end. The Main Common Room upstairs where the double rooms used to be (sorry Amie no more secret room). There are actually no double rooms any longer so my Northland v Southland rooms on basement are now used for storage. The side entrance on Clyde St is now where the office is - so no sneekies from Footroot Flats nowadays! And finally they rent out the rooms in holidays - with the new Dunedin stadium they had many staying for Elton John's recent concert!
 |
| My basement room - unchanged since 2000 |
- The smell. They still use the same cleaning products and sheets apparently...nice! Although I noticed the Arana smell is Ruben's room so perhaps that has changed ;o)
- The main block bedrooms are still the same - my room on basement was identical but the room number had gone from 006 to 001 and there was no David Fa'atafa next door or Isaac Proctor across the hall.
- The letterbox. I guess its an antiquated method of communication now - I still love a good letter or postcard but its stll the same
- Peter Chan is still Deputy Dean, Jane is still in the office, lots of the Kitchen staff seemed to be the same
- Footroot flats is identical
It was really great to see how the home I had made for a year of my studies had developed so much in the past 10 years without losing its charm and familiarity. I was reassured its still luck of the draw which room you get and it made me reflect on how lucky I was with the people I shared the experience with. Feel the love my Arana peps!
 |
| my favourite gargoyle at the University of Otago |
 |
| Registry Building |
I wanted to check out Design School as well as I had learnt the night before that my degree was no longer available and honestly I wanted to meet the woman responsible for this! She of course was not in her office. I was very disappointed to hear that I now had a degree not offered by the University...and one I thought could have the potential to be incredibly well developed if in the right hands. But alas the Head of Department did not have the same vision so only Design for Technology is still available. The opportunity to peer this with Commerce was surely missed by this woman and will continue to leave a hole in the arts to commerce departments.
 |
| Design Studies Attic...unchanged and open to anyone walking past! No access card needed here |
 |
| Celebrity Squares at Central Library |
Finally after attempting to stop for a Pizza at Poppas' I was pooped...they were closed as it was past lunch time. There will be a next time!
Hana was supporting some Auckland artists on tour out at Port Chambers (I think this is the most I have ever been to PC in my life!) that evening which was a a great way to sign off this brilliant visit. I can't wait for more of Hana's work to be on iTunes so I can rock out it more often.
Being a tourist in my old University city was just what I needed. Taking a moment to reflect on where it all began is quite special. I am grateful for my degrees and the doors they have opened but I am most grateful for the friendships made during these years. Thank You Dunedin.
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