A few thoughts on the Mensa in Würzburg
This article was originally published in German. The English version is an automatic translation and may contain errors. The German original is authoritative.
Hardly any place shapes student life as much as the Mensa. High time to share a few thoughts on the Mensateria in Würzburg.
Some avoid it, "there's too much going on, too many people I might run into" whilst others spend every one of the five lunch breaks here. It is a place that for most students is an integral part of university life. "Either you love it or you hate it" still rings true, because there are certainly some students who have never set foot inside one of the refectory buildings. I would say: they are missing out on something.
But what makes a lunch in the refectory special? It is the hustle and bustle that already begins when you queue outside the Mensateria at Campus Nord around 12:30. Many groups walking past you, countless different conversations that you can catch snippets of with one ear. The queue moves surprisingly quickly. It continues: "Do I still have enough credit on my card?"
One or another friend has to go to the machine first to top up their student ID card, even though we could have automated that long ago through a direct debit mandate ("Auto-Load"). We first check: would there still be half a table free for us in the cafeteria? Just in case there's nothing left upstairs. Once we get upstairs we join one of the many queues for a dish, some considerably longer than others (pizza, hamburger (unfortunately often with meat so far)). On the one hand you're glad for the time together with friends, yes also for an affordable and warm lunch, on the other hand you do get annoyed every now and then:
"The hamburger is unfortunately with meat."
"There's a stew as a vegetarian option today again".
"I would really like a vegetable lasagne."
But that's how it is. Most of the dishes taste (to me) really good, and in the end it's a bit like at home: you eat the same dishes over and over again there too. But at home there isn't the wide selection of desserts – from mango lassi to fruit salad and numerous side dishes. The work there is probably also marked by the delay in the refectory opening. And yet the staff there are really friendly, give you a smile and wish you a good appetite.
Back to the opening: it is being delayed.
I would say: you notice it because the Mensateria is really full at peak times. No idea if others see it that way. There must be a reason why an additional large refectory is needed. I think it's a tragedy. The building looks ready when you pass by, the tables and chairs are there, a small part of it has a cafeteria that is already open. But it's not until September of last year that Radio Gong writes that there is still no reopening date. They call it the "Berlin Airport of Würzburg".
If an opening were to happen this spring, the whole thing would have been delayed by a full 4 years. Then the refectory would have been unused for 7 years. It's not about the question of blame for me. Rather more about the money that goes out as a result, through the repeated measures and the failure to put the refectory into operation. So much has contributed to it still standing idle. Lastly, the numerous defects in the ventilation system probably need to be remedied. And so around 1050 additional places for students and staff of the JMU remain in the dark for now.
Once you've found a free table, you enjoy your lunch break. Sometimes with the same people you usually eat with, sometimes you're there with people from your seminar whom you've joined at short notice. The refectory is always a good place to get in touch with new people or simply spend a bit of time with friends. In the end we always stay a bit longer than planned. Because you're putting off studying in the library. And because it's so nice.
– written by Pauline Grammer
Sources:
Renovation work at the Hubland refectory: A chronological overview