Duryard: more than meets the eye! (Halls Of Residence At The University Of Exeter)

Member Name: Harleq123

Product:	Halls Of Residence At The University Of Exeter
Date:	12/07/02 (1331 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: sociable atmosphere, nice surroundings , acceptable food

Disadvantages: unexciting architecture, staircases galore!, quite far from campus

On the day I moved into Jessie Montgomery House, one of the four Duryard Halls, my heart sank into my shiny new university trainers.
Having had images of stately halls of learning with deep carpets and luxurious fittings. I was greeted however with dull and dark acres of grey within the building, endless staircases and a room which Romanian oprhans would sniff at.
That is not to say that Exeter cannot offer luxury in its halls - it most certainly can. In Mardon Hall for example, fitted out to hotel standards, but it may come at a cost. Mardon is renounded for having a somewhat elitiest atmosphere generated by people who assume superiority by the chance that they got into a 'better hall'. If you ended up there you would be delighted at first but at the cost of sociability perhaps.
Soon after moving into Duryard, corridor mates came to introduce themselves and strangers seemed to wander into one anothers rooms at random and I made very good friends in my hall and through freinds made there. I am aware that this may not have happened in other halls.
The food provided in Duryard's dining hall is often moaned about but in truth saw me through the year happily, and the Welly, Duryard's Hall bar provided cheap beer at walking distance, with a good atmosphere too! Duryard also had an advantage over Birks Halls (a comparable modern hall) in that it had its own small library, excellent for rare moments of revision, and the halls are set in beautiful grounds, with sweeping lawns which are truly wonderful for sunbathing in the summer.
In conculsion - ignore the temptations of fitted carpets and 18th Century houses- choose sociability - choose Duryard.

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