Five square metres of problems?

Today’s blog is about something that small it didn’t even feel like one page would fit in it when I first came here. It is about the life in our cabins and our bunks, what the challenges are, how we feel about it and what our favourite things in our bunks are. This blog contains some general facts about how our cabins are structured and my opinion and view on the cabin life over the time I have lived on board. At the end we will hear some opinions from other students about the specialties of their bunks, how they think about their room at home compared to their bunk here and the day of the cabin change. We will also learn about the “top three hacks” to utilize and personalise the walls of our bunks.

But what exactly are these “bunks”? The bunks consist of our bed and 70 centimetres of airspace above. These bunks and our two 50x50x35 centimetre large boxes in the shelves in our cabin are the only private space we truly have on the ship. I´m personally impressed by how strictly the other students and adults respect that – I don’t know one single case where that rule was violated. Furthermore, not only that but nearly every single virtual border you draw between you and any other person on board is being respected. For me, that seems to be the most important principle to make it possible to have that many people living on such a small area like the Thor.

When I first saw my cabin (which was supposed to fit 4 people) and bunk, I was moderately worried about where to fit my things. I struggled a bit while sorting my things in the little space I had, and afterwards keeping it sorted was even harder, because I had to stack different types of clothing on top of each other. That is why when I needed something from the bottom of the clothing stacks, I simply reached through everything else and pulled out what I wanted, but also what I didn’t want, which caused a mess.

However, time after time I got used to the life in my bunk and cabin. I sorted my clothing not by type, but by how frequently I need it. I also made use of the organizer I mounted to my metal bunk wall with the help of fishing magnets my dad had given to me as a gift. In the top three list down below you will learn how exactly.

Obviously, there are other human beings living on board and I chose a few of them for some interviews so you can hear some different opinions. They will tell us some general and funny things about their cabin life, and I tried to pick the most interesting or most often given answer for each question.

Anton (Interviewer): What came into your mind when you saw your cabin for the first time?
Laurenz (lives in a cabin of 4): I was really surprised by how small it was. I had heard about it, but I guess I underestimated it. However, after some days the size wasn’t a problem anymore.

Anton: What is your favourite story about your cabin?
Johannes (lives in a cabin of 4): By far the most iconic thing in our cabin is our little plant. Our cabin was known for its bad air quality, and we thought about how we could change that. At school we had learned that plants could turn bad air into good air, so we bought a plant hoping that we could breathe again. But in fact, the only positive effect it had on our cabin was that it made everyone who visited our room smile.

Anton: How was the day changing the cabins?
“Starboard” Jakob: That day was the most stressful day since the beginning of KUS. I think I lost one third of the things I had, but fortunately on a ship everything returns someday. I moved from a cabin for six people to a proportionally same sized cabin for four people and I managed to get a bunk on top, which I like way better. I can now dry my clothes above my bed which wasn’t possible before.

Anton: And finally, how do you think about your room at home?
Nearly all the students I interviewed mentioned that they think their room at home is way bigger than they need it to be and that they have way too many things at home they don’t need or use and take unnecessary space. Some of the boys said they miss their large beds at home, though, because here our beds are (only) 2 metres by 70 centimetres large.

And now the “hacks” on how to use every centimetre given of your bunk:
One of the top three favourite things to hang on your wall is a curtain built with a towel hanging in front of your bunk to make it impossible for others to have a look into your bunk. The second favourite things are pictures and photos of family, friends and home in general. Jannika, for instance, has at least about 100 photos covering her walls and Laurenz had brought only one photo but collected tons of random pictures from the other students and ended up with some silly ones. His walls are quite funny and interesting and represent the backstory of 15 different students in one.

However, without a doubt the winner is an organizer you can put at the wall. It is easy to mount with magnets and you will find one in nearly every bunk. It is often filled with the little things you don’t know where to put: Sunglasses, pens, diaries, flashlights, vitamin drops, books and sometimes you even find some chocolate.

It is astonishing how many little things come together on this little space. At first it seemed tiny to all of us but even the messiest persons have learned and managed to keep their things together. We got to know each other really well in our cabins and I really appreciate that. In my opinion the five square metres are not a problem, but instead a great opportunity.