Choose A Good Dorm - It's A Parent's Responsibility

Beware of the thieves!

I actually mean those people who run a dorm and promise something without fulfilling them or who charge rates that you did not agree on.  Yesterday my daughter and I along with my mother-in-law transferred her stuff from her old dorm to the new one.  It was time to move to a new place because the old dorm near the raymundo gate is dirty, noisy and is run by a woman who gives false promises and charges exorbitant rates for nil or poor service.  The one thing I hate the most is how she expects the occupants of the dorm to clean the common area.  The reason it is a dorm and not an apartment is so that people will only want to occupy a room - actually, a space in a room for those who stay in those rooms for 2 or more people.  Thus, they should be responsible for the area that they are occupying.  Nothing else.  The kitchen, dining room, toilet, sala and even the ref should be cleaned and maintained by the owners or the caretakers.  

But no.  This dorm has dirty white tiles in the toilet – it used to be white but is now very dirty – plus the toilet bowl is  a mixture of brown and dirty white because of the grime.  The ref was never cleaned for the whole time my daughter was there and there was a time that it smelled like poop in the whole house when the ice melted during a black out.  Until yesterday the sink still had that turbid filthy brownish water near the wall just under the faucet which.  I dread to think what microorganisms can be cultured there.  Salmonella, pseudomonas?  Gosh!  Those can cause disease or even death to the kids.  So, be careful when you choose your child’s dorm especially for the first time.  

Here’re some tips to keep away from those types of dorms (a lesson I should have learned beforehand):

1. Check with the local government. At UPLB, you can actually just go to the Batong Malake Barangay hall and check with them whether the dorm in has incidents or cases filed against them.  
2. Check for recommendations over the internet.  I’m not saying that you believe everything on the net.  But if there are a lot of people saying that one place is good, then it probably is.  
3. Check for recommendations from the college or university.  
4. Of course if you have friends or relatives, ask them too for recommendations or suggestions.  

The following are recommended dorms at the UPLB area:

For the area near the Math Building:

1. St. Therese Parish
2. Ilag Dorm
3. One Silangan

For the area near the BioSci building:

  Raymundo Gate dorms – butterfly ladies’ dorm, Lola, and a pink dorm at Pearl St., near F.O. Santos.  I will post a phone number soon.  Just please check back again.  The Westbrook dorm is a very nice, clean and well-kept dorm. However, the area going there gets really dark at night. 

For the area near the forestry, try the dorms of UP.  For the VetBuilding and CEAT areas, the YMCA or the dorms at the Silangan are probably the nearest ones.  

UPLB conducts a freshman orientation.  You can inquire then which dorms are recommended.