Laundry

The main laundry in John's is, unfortunately, hidden in the depths of Cruddas on the bottom floor, meaning that it's a long climb up and down to keep smelling nice. We all agree it's probably worth it though.  There is also a washing machine and drier in 23 North Bailey.

Washing machines in John's cost £1.40 for a 35 min wash (£1.60 for a 45 min 'Super-Cycle'). Driers cost 50p per 20 mins. The machines don't give change and take coins from 10p upwards - so be careful!

You'll need your own soap, but an ironing board and iron are provided, if you feel it's necessary (most of us don't bother too much except for formal wear!).  There are also drying racks available.

If you have any questions or comments about the laundry, please contact the JCR Services Manager: johns.services@dur.ac.uk.

Living Out

Lots of information available here.

Maintenance

Click here to report faults that may require the Maintenance Team's attention.

Year Abroad

Most language courses require you to spend a year abroad as part of your degree; most other departments give some kind of option to head overseas for a while.

This page will have links to all the information you need, and accounts from those who are spending or have spent a year abroad.

Library

The college library was originally the college chapel.  It is open 24 hours a day and houses a good selection of academic books.  The ground floor is dfedicated to theological literature while upstairs is where all the books on other academic subjects are kept.  There is plenty of study space and wireless internet making the library a great place to crack on with that essay or problem sheet!  

The library is constantly buying new books so if you have a request for a book you think the library should have, get in touch with Jane the Librarian or the JCR Library Rep or fill in the Book Request Form below.

Librarian: Jane Ghosh (j.a.ghosh@durham.ac.uk)
JCR Library Rep: Katie Jesset (k.l.jessett@durham.ac.uk)

Book Request Form.

Bar

The St. John's College Cellar Bar is situated on the highest of three levels of cellars underneath Linton house. Serving a full range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, at some of the lowest prices in Durham, John's Bar aims to provide a welcoming atmosphere to everyone... especially Johnians.

Social events take place in the bar on a fairly regular basis, often consisting of lots of people dressing up in silly costumes! The bar serves a variety of real ales, and aims to serve you an awesome pint. It is also home to the now legendary Tripod, exclusive to John’s, and the staple drink of any respectable college bar crawl.

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The bar team are:

Senior Bar Officer: Charlie Deans

Bar Treasurer: Charlotte Bettley

Cellarman: Rob Luff

Assistant Treasurer: Livvy Hampsher-Monk

Assistant Cellarman: Will Johnson

You can see their profiles here.

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The bar is open every night of term from 8-11pm

Regular Special Offers are -

TRIPOD - £4

DOUBLE & MIXER - £2.50

POWER SOURZ - £2.50

Bar rules - there are no rules! But if you throw up in the bar you will be fined £50, and if you are caught canoodling, you get a pint of very cold water thrown over the pair of you... no-one needs to see that!

Formal Dinners

Formal Dinners take place once a week in St John's. They are free for livers in and livers out, and offer the perfect chance to engage with the wider college community, have a laugh with friends, try a new wine, and share a tasty meal. Formal Dinners, or just "Formals" as they are known in Durham, are steeped in tradition and as such one of their defining characteristics is the presence of a "high table".  The "chair of formal", usually the college principal, sits at the centre of high table.  Attendees should recognise and respect that their place at the Formal is through invite from the chair of formal.  Also on high table, there are the personal guests of the chair and members of the St John's Senior Common Room including tutors, visiting fellows and members of academic staff.  Respect is shown to high table through a number of things, for instance attendees should stand in silence whilst high table enter, and while high table exit.

Attendees are also expected to abide by a certain etiquette. These rules, beloved by most students, can be quite quirky; for instance, should you wish to get up from the table part way through the meal, you must bow to high table as you leave.  Other more serious rules request that behaviour is not too rowdy and people respect the dress code.  The dress code for a  Formal is suits with academic gowns for the men, and smart dresses with academic gowns for the women. 

The food we recieve at formal is wide and varied, and always of a high quality, some sample dishes are:

• Mozzarella and tomato stack, drizzled in balsamic vinegar with rocket salad. (V)
• French onion soup with garlic croutons. (V)
• Duck liver pate, with plum chutney, salad and a bread roll.

• Chicken breast stuffed with sundried tomatoes and brie.
• Fillet of cod, in a whisky prawn sauce, on a bed of mashed potatoes.
• Lamb chop in a Redcurrant jus, served ontop of dauphinoise potatoes.
• Caramelised red onion and goats cheese tart. (V)

• Gold diggers crunch (triple chocolate cheescake on a bed of chocolate brownie, with buried dime bar pieces) (V)
• Pear and Almond Tart (V)
• Tarte au Citron (V)

Signup for Formals take place the week before during the formal, this way those who aren't on formal that week get priority to sign up for formal the week after. Signup is conducted through this website under News and Events --> Event Signup.  For those who are interested in understanding how the JCR Food and Formals officer decides who recieves a place on formal,  >>this document<< outlines the procedure used.

JCR Shop

The JCR Shop is found in the Bailey Room, and is open for half an hour after the bar closes, although we are looking into extending our opening hours. This depends on whether we can find enough volunteers for shifts – hint hint! Well stocked with sandwiches, chocolate, crisps and drinks, the shop is the place to go to when you need an energy boost to get you through that all-nighter! The shop is also proud of its commitment to Fair Trade, with a selection of Fair Trade goods on sale.

Manager: Diamond Dukes.

Contact the Services Manager: johns.services@dur.ac.uk. 

Just World Coffee Shop

The Just World Shop began as a small stall opening twice a week in the room now used by maintenance inside St. John’s College about 26 years ago. It was started by some of those who went on to found Traidcraft! About six years ago the shop moved to its current position on the Bailey, allowing access to outside customers.

Toastie Bar

John’s Toastie Bar occurs every Wednesday and Saturday evening, from 9.30 – 11pm in the Bailey Room (although the toasties are created and cooked in the kitchen of 23 North Bailey, and couriered along the Bailey by a trusty volunteer).

The toasties are reasonably priced (70p for 1, 2 for £1.20), with flavours on the set menu ranging from ham and cheese to chocolate spead, peanut butter and banana (or if none of the favours on the menu take your fancy you can choose your own fillings).

The Toastie Bar is run by volunteers within John's who get the reward of a free (and well filled) toastie at the end of the night so get involved!

Articles from Abroad 2008/09

Chris Gough's article - Toulouse, France

We learn in this article about the life and times of Chris Gough, third year French and German student, who is currently studying in Toulouse, France.

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Wish You Were Here...?

                                                                       

Many of you are probably wondering what all the fuss is about. I mean, what could possibly be so great about spending a year in a foreign country, without Durham, without friends and, above all, without Klute?
For some, it’s just a compulsory part of their modern languages degree. However, for most (get ready for an extended list of clichés) it’s about finding oneself, about learning things one could never find in any library or lecture theatre…
I must say that I’m yet to experience any of the above: I found myself years ago; an arrogant chauvinist with a penchant for pomposity. And as far as becoming a rounded individual is concerned, Jayne’s Place has done sterling work thus far.

Before one can even begin to take advantage of the benefits on offer in a foreign land, there is a number of rather disorganised hurdles to overcome. Even getting to Toulouse is an endeavour worthy of the greatest mythical hero if you live anywhere north of Milton Keynes, and so outside the catchment area of Gatwick. Then, there’s the weight limit imposed on luggage by the fascist airlines: Ryanair and Easyjet are notorious for their adamantine approach to weight limits. Usually, one has to condense one’s life into a travel sized, 20kg receptacle. I had trouble enough doing this, so goodness knows how my female colleagues fared.
Once I had finally arrived in Toulouse and had paid my €20 (about £16 at the time of writing) for the taxi ride into town, I faced an even graver problem than the earlier luggage detritus…

I arrived at my French halls of residence at about 5 p.m. – perhaps not the most unusual time of day to expect things to be open. But alas, the reception shut at 4 p.m., meaning that I had no idea where my room was, let alone a key with which to access it.
Very fortunately, I managed to get a reasonable priced hotel room near the town centre and I moved into my ‘room’ the next day.
Toulouse itself is a beautiful city: the town hall putting almost all others in the shade with its subtle pink façade and the sprawling square in front of it. The people here, unlike the Parisians, are incredibly friendly. You would be hard-pushed to find someone who would refuse to engage you in conversation. And the weather? Well in October, Toulouse experiences temperatures which would leave Brighton’s beaches packed and Reading without use of their hosepipes.

My first impressions of my cell were not great. Flicking the light switch was futile, as none of the 3 lights in the room worked. Having told reception about this, it took them 24 hours to put down their Gauloises and foie gras and come and fix the lights.
Next, I set about trying to make some friends on my dingy corridor. However, pickings were slim at best; a 30 year old Vietnamese aeronautics apprentice, whose name I still can’t pronounce, and a trainee librarian called Jasper, who had the personality of one of the mould growths on my bedroom wall. This was unlikely to be a loud, alcohol-fuelled corridor.

My first visit to the university (a 40 minute bus and subway ride) where I was to study was an eye-opener to say the least. If the architect was trying to keep in the style of the surrounding area – run-down blocks of flats and ubiquitous urban decay – he did an excellent job. The organisation was almost as shoddy as the building in which it was housed. Having filled out the needlessly complicated registration form (with a lot of help from some very kind French students), it was, for me anyway, a matter of turning up to whichever classes you wanted. Needless to say, I gave myself a particularly strenuous timetable involving a 4 day weekend and no morning classes whatsoever…

So, would I say the year abroad is a good thing? Put simply, yes it is. It really is the best way of learning a language, my French having improved greatly in a few weeks, and having to live in a foreign country will leave you able to cope with anything.

Above all, it makes you feel lucky to be at a university where the administrative staff at least know what day of the week it is…span