#dormitory

The Yoshida dorm, affiliated to the Kyoto University, is one of the oldest dorms still in use in Japan. It has been built in 1913.

As my friends and I like to describe it, the atmosphere of the building is a sort of “if Ghibli made horror movies” mixed with a general Howl’s Moving Castle vibe in terms of… messiness of the place.

The particularity of Yoshida, besides its old age, is that it is an entirely self-managed dormitory: the students who live there are the only ones in charge of the dorm, which repeatedly caused tensions between its occupants and the University and the city of Kyoto, for the building is considered too old for security reasons and needs to be destroyed.

I’ve been there twice, at night, because the place is also known for hosting parties every now and then, and allows outside people to come and have a look (while, of course, being respectful of the people who live there. Pictures are for example okay, as long as they obviously don’t disturb the privacy of the residents). These pictures have been taken at 3AM, hence to completely eerie vibe the dorm gives off. I expected to see something messy; I was not prepared for the level of dirt I saw in there (there were cicada sloughs on the walls!), but for some reason, it was part of the charm of the place.

I don’t know if I should call Yoshida an underground/anarchist place, but what I know for sure is that people there are very artistic and also like to be involved in various projects and meetings, and do their best to raise awareness about their dorm! Going there was the most unique experience I’ve had in Kyoto, and I wouldn’t be surprised if scholars and sociologists paid some interest to Yoshida!