Part of the excitement of coming to Rhodes is going into residence, a new experience for most of us, and one that you will never forget I’m sure. In general we all have this idea of what it’s going to be like, mainly drawing on the typical American college based film where all the buildings are handily placed on flat ground surrounded by rolling hills in the distance, an idyllic scene. But this is not true for Rhodes.
Kimberley Hall is famously perched on top of “The Hill” where you have an amazing view of Grahamstown and on a clear night, you might even be able to see the lights of Joburg somewhere off in the distance. This is about the only advantage for those of us who live on The Hill; because we pay a great price in the distance and amount of time it actually takes for us to crawl up to the summit.
You may think I am over exaggerating but I speak from personal experience! There is nothing worse than walking/crawling/limping up the hill after a long day of lectures and walking around campus all day. It is the ultimate form of torture that the campus has to offer and leaves even the fittest of men gasping for breath when they finally reach the brink.
Look around campus on a rainy day and you can always spot those students who live on the hill. They are usually the most rain drenched and stern looking people, they walk with a certain purpose. This is because there is no use trying to stay out of the rain when walking up or down the hill; it’s completely exposed to the elements, so one way or another you are going to get wet, you might as well keep calm about it.
All in all The Hill and its inhabitants are viewed with respect from the students down below, some may pity us for the trek we have to make up and down everyday, but in the end we are made stronger, literally. My advice for the next generation who come to live on the hill is to bring as many pairs of shoes you can get your hands on; they will disintegrate before your eyes (shoes from Mr. Price go quicker than others.) And prepare yourself for the “Conversation Killer” the infamous spot halfway up the hill were conversation runs dry and is replaced by wheezing, huffing and inappropriate gasps for air. Despite all these tragic factors The Hill is an amazing place, a separate community from the rest of campus, and a place that will leave you with many stories and memories.
enjoy the walk
Siobhan.
Kimberley Hall is famously perched on top of “The Hill” where you have an amazing view of Grahamstown and on a clear night, you might even be able to see the lights of Joburg somewhere off in the distance. This is about the only advantage for those of us who live on The Hill; because we pay a great price in the distance and amount of time it actually takes for us to crawl up to the summit.
You may think I am over exaggerating but I speak from personal experience! There is nothing worse than walking/crawling/limping up the hill after a long day of lectures and walking around campus all day. It is the ultimate form of torture that the campus has to offer and leaves even the fittest of men gasping for breath when they finally reach the brink.
Look around campus on a rainy day and you can always spot those students who live on the hill. They are usually the most rain drenched and stern looking people, they walk with a certain purpose. This is because there is no use trying to stay out of the rain when walking up or down the hill; it’s completely exposed to the elements, so one way or another you are going to get wet, you might as well keep calm about it.
All in all The Hill and its inhabitants are viewed with respect from the students down below, some may pity us for the trek we have to make up and down everyday, but in the end we are made stronger, literally. My advice for the next generation who come to live on the hill is to bring as many pairs of shoes you can get your hands on; they will disintegrate before your eyes (shoes from Mr. Price go quicker than others.) And prepare yourself for the “Conversation Killer” the infamous spot halfway up the hill were conversation runs dry and is replaced by wheezing, huffing and inappropriate gasps for air. Despite all these tragic factors The Hill is an amazing place, a separate community from the rest of campus, and a place that will leave you with many stories and memories.
enjoy the walk
Siobhan.
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What a nice, sweet commentary about the hill and all it encompasses.But nothing that was said there made me feel like I am reading a good piece of journalism. It is all good and well to show how beautiful a place the destination of all those who ascend the hill is,but I believe I was supposed to get something out of your piece that would make me want to take some humanitarian action,even if it is short-lived.What I am trying to convey here is the fact that even though this is your opinion and how you feel about your ever-so-precious hill, it makes not much of a difference to the way I am living,except that I am lucky enough to be staying at the foot of the hill.As for the respect we give you,I am not sure were you got that one.The 'trek up the hill' just is;nothing spectacular about it really,sometimes a bit over-rated I must add.
Wow, mys-tique (nice name, by the way) sure likes pontificating!
I read this and all I wanted to do was to flatten the fucking hill. Yeah, I look for social action and real meaning in everything I read, because I'm such a humanitarian.
Have you read the title of this blog, dude?
haha, nicely said Nich.
Well mys-tique, I think you mis-took what this blog is all about. In the bilateral conference we held at Prague we debated whether each and every post should make a difference to someone's life. Our UN delegate, Mr Bradmor-onJanssen, did propose that our posts should propel readers into voluntary humanitarian action. Unfortunately for him, our Rat and Parrot delegate Ms Siobhanget Alyfe, who wants to ensure purely capitalist-orienated neoliberal policies, threatened to stop all beer supplies to TakingLifeSeriously members if this were to happen. Our stattattistics man, Mr Nich Mulgrowup, summed up that effect of the sanctions of the civilian drinking population would be catastrophic.
So basically, this post was never meant to make a difference to your "ever-so-precious" life
In summation, the neo-social democratic backlash in response to worldwide economic crisis linked with the ingratiating capitalist tendencies of most bloggers, vloggers, politicians and gimps on the internet leads us to believe that you are not the centre of the universe, because there are more important (and more sincere and entertaining) things in the world than your humanitarian exploits.
So please stop acting as if they are.