University
View of the bus stop from the Bernoulliborg at the Zernike Campus

University life in December

Looking for the light

View of the bus stop from the Bernoulliborg at the Zernike Campus
University life feels different in December. You go to a lecture at 3 p.m. in broad daylight and walk out of the building in pitch dark at 5. You stumble around looking for your bike in a world that suddenly seems changed, illuminated only by street lamps, reflectors, and light flooding from windows and passing buses. Student photographer Zuzana L’udviková made her way around the UG campus to capture the moments just before and after darkness settles on the city.
Text and photo’s by Zuzana Ľudviková
13 December om 16:48 uur.
Laatst gewijzigd op 11 December 2024
om 14:53 uur.
December 13 at 16:48 PM.
Last modified on December 11, 2024
at 14:53 PM.

When the darkness comes, the walls and pillars of the Academy building put on a veil made of light.

Notice how its colour changes whenever there’s a special occasion or a holiday – is it blue, yellow, red, or purple this time?

Biting frost doesn’t bother the athletes at the ACLO sports centre as they warm up with a game of padel.

When night falls, the outdoor courts are illuminated just enough that the game can go on for a few more hours. 

During the day, the outside world is mirrored on the Bernoulliborg walls, so you can’t see much through the glass barrier.

But shortly after 5 p.m., it’s as if the building uncovers its true face and offers passersby a warm escape from the falling darkness.

If you need a spot to park your bike in the city centre, the Harmonie complex has you covered.

And if you’re doing a spot of late-night studying at the UB or close by, the racks will be nearly empty.

You can always tell when lectures are over, because the Zernike bus shelter will fill up with students. Buses come and go as dusk begins to fall and the lights in the surrounding buildings come on.

It takes a good thirty minutes before the crowd clears out. After that, the only thing you hear is the quiet buzzing of the bus stop’s advertisements.

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