Day Five - Freshers fayre, fair?

Wednesday.  Half way through the week and the cracks are beginning to show in some of the freshers helpers.  One lucky helper received his daily meal voucher, usually credit card sized, in A3!  It’s a struggle this photocopying business.  Those not showing the strain however, are the ever irrepressible first years!  Today was the Fresher’s Fayre, the annual event where new students are introduced to the huge variety of societies and groups available at Heriot-Watt. 

Also at the fayre were a multitude of commercial stalls, among which were:

  • Dominoes Pizza, giving away pizzas, loyalty cards, bumper stickers and T-shirts.
  • Lush, giving away things ranging from their famous soaps, lip balms and moisturiser.
  • Urban Outfitters, scarves and hair clips were distributed from this stall.
  • Endsleigh insurance giving students the chance to get their property protected.
  • St. James shopping centre were handing out discount cards.

The societies, while not trying to bribe first years with cheap trinkets and the like, did offer an excellent range of sweeties and pens.  Tomorrow, a selection of them are offering people the chance to ‘Give it a go’.  The Drama society are running an improvisation workshop, the Computer Games Society are playing LAN games and the Poker society are playing poker.  In the near future, the Debating society are having a debate entitled “This house will abolish the law”, discussing whether laws still apply in this modern world, interesting stuff! Another, high brow, society are the economics crowd, who are in talks with former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, trying to persuade him to come and give a talk.

  

Outside the union building the Medieval Society held a reenactment of a famous historical battle.  Equally interesting but from the other end of the technology scale was the robotics society’s Jenga playing robot arm! It wasn’t just societies in attendance today, student groups were also present.  Three, very important groups worthy of a special mention this afternoon were:

 

-       The British Red Cross, who were looking for volunteers for the coming year to attend various events both and nationwide.

-       LGBT society whose highlight in the near future is a trip to the premier, on October 9th, of the film ‘Inside Out’.

-       The Watt student newspaper were recruiting advertisers, writers, reporters and photographers.

 

Tonight’s main event on campus is the Rock & Roll bingo, an event that was very well attended both times last year is sure to be another massive hit, at the time of writing the doors have only been open ten minutes and already Zero’s is looking full!  Then in town is the first of the weekly Heriot-Watt club night in Lulu’s on George St. and don’t worry lads, Queen Margaret University are also attending so that pesky 70% boys to 30% girls ratio will be seriously evened out!