Oh, how things have changed!

Last night after work, Holly and I went for a walk around UVic. We wandered around Finnerty Gardens and some of the chip trails until we passed by good ole Lot 1. I parked here almost every day for about 5 years and so I detoured and headed to my old haunting grounds, the Engineering Lab Wing (ELW). I took Holly around to see all the 'sights' in the building and the various places I spent way too much time in. We then wandered over the new connecting bridges to the freshly built Engineering/Computer Science building (ECS). Wow, that's a nice building! The interior is nice and open, with a central atrium as its main focus. Offices, lecture halls, meeting rooms, and lounge areas occupy the perimeter. In the centre of the atrium is the elevator shaft, with short walkways providing access.

The lecture halls are ulta-modern and very very nice. All the halls are wired. The smaller labs are outfitted with computers and LCD panels at each desk. The lecture halls are wired with network drops and power plugs in pods on top of the desks for each seat. The three main halls have a raised stage and a plethora of connections and control panels. LED stair lighting provides illumination when the projectors are on and the ceiling lights are off. So many toys to play with!!!

Tables and chairs are scattered in various locations for studying, with easy access to power plugs everywhere. Some of the lounges are furnished with leather chairs and couches, others with the standard durable fabric stuff. And the most important item for students: there were nice, flat, COMFORTABLE benches that were nice and wide and long that are absolutely PERFECT for sleeping on. If I had to spend another night at school, this would be where I would stay. As a preliminary rating, I'd say it was a 3.5-star accommodation. I had to lower the rating because the benches/beds were on the first floor, where most of the traffic would pass. I didn't hit the 4th floor, so I don't know if there were any up there. Floors two and three had the leather couches, but I didn't notice any of the wide bed/benches.

Almost makes me want to go back to school sooner... If I'm going to get my Masters, I might as well get in on a new building.

That is all.