Journal Entry for the Week of January 31 to February 4

The process of entering a building is an experience of visual stimulation and navigation through carefully designed space and form. The structure and form of a building speaks volumes about its function; certainly this is true when I walk into the Dewhurst Hall, the common cafeteria on campus at Bishop's University. The entrance way is a simple door, and as you open it you find yourself in an open mini foyer, with a corner that leads into the cafeteria. There are coat hooks and bathrooms on adjacent walls leading into the cafeteria, giving the entryway a feel of organized and confined chaos. It is certainly functional to hang your coats and bags before getting your food, although the relatively narrow walking space gives the experience the feel of an assembly line at boot camp.

As you walk into the cafeteria, a whole host of visuals greet your eyes. At the door is the payment counter. The main room is a large, mostly rectangular design with a somewhat obstructing counter in the middle of the room where the cutlery and condiments are. Various food stations are arranged around the perimeter of the room, which makes it very easy to navigate from one station to the other, rather like a confined food court. The place is brightly lit and relatively easy to navigate, even though rush hours leave much to be desired in terms of breathing room. On a more positive front, the area is painted in bright, welcoming hues of yellow, and a large colourful mural adorns one wall, lending a certain creative appeal to the otherwise functionary room.

As you walk out of the food serving area, you walk into a large open room flanked with windows at all sides and square tables arranged in predictable (re: reliable) cafeteria style, row by row. With freshly installed granite floors, this room is welcoming during the sunlight hours with the large windows and the bright decor announcing various policies and campus events. The machine dispensing drinks is located to the right as you walk into this room, with the food compost and trash bins located along the same side. The room certainly functions well as a homely social spot, as the giant television screen at the furthest wall would indicate. Couches are also scattered along the outside perimeter, inviting tired students to rest and have a snack after a long day of studying or partying (these are not mutually exclusive). The stiff wooden ceilings and array of fluorescent lighting does not make this an ideal place to study once sunlight hours are over. Indeed, the wood ceiling and the columns standing throughout the cafeteria are not entirely navigation friendly, and give a somewhat claustrophobic air to the area.  If the function of the cafeteria is to be a place to sit and have meals with relative ease, this function is met. However, the overall structure is simplistic, and though easy to navigate, leaves something to be desired in what should be a welcoming creation.