Small Project 2: Mini Diliman Ethnographies

Date: September 2, 2014, Tuesday
Time: 1:30-2:15pm
Place: Katag (Cafeteria of the Faculty Center)


What I See

The cafeteria is nearly full of people. White plastic tables are scattered all over the space, and some have been adjoined to others to form longer tables. The only form of ventilation is in the ceiling fans, but only 1 out of 3 is being used. Most of the people present are sitting around in groups. Only 2 tables have single occupants, both of whom are wearing earphones. Not many people are still eating at this time, most are now just sitting around and talking to their group of friends, or possibly acquaintances. Most have their school bags with them and carry around photocopied readings or other thick books. There is a constant stream of people entering and exiting the cafeteria, most of whom line up, buy some food or drink to take out, and leave. The five servers use a sort of rotation method to cater to the students. Though the line may be long at times, it moves quickly. When a group stands up to leave their table, a janitor comes to pick up their used trays, plates, and glasses, and wipes the tables down.

An interesting phenomenon: between 1:50-2:00pm, the cafeteria nearly completely empties with each group leaving after the next. The rest of the time is very quiet with only a few occupied tables left and all of them except one occupied by only one person eating hurriedly. The five servers behind the counter finally stop their frantic serving of food, and start chatting with each other.


What I Hear

The sound of chairs and tables being dragged is frequently heard. Now and then, a blender is turned on behind the food counter. There is the clacking sounds of metal cutlery hitting plastic plates. Generally there is a constant stream of chatter that is amplified by the echoey space of the cafeteria. But some snippets I catch are:

From the table on my right:
"Target grade."
"96-100."
"Math 17."
"Exam."

From the table on my left:
"Volume 1... 18th century ... Volume 3."
"Can I borrow after?"
"In the story"
"Aristotle"
"Mayaman na Jewish family"

What I Infer

Majority of the people are university students. The table to my right are most probably freshmen, because I don't know many people after freshman year overly concerned with the number equivalent of their exam grades and because of the mention of Math 17. They are possibly students from one of the science colleges. The table to my left are probably some students from the Department of Comparative Literature. The rest of the people in Katag who are not students are probably faculty or staff from the College of Arts and Letters, the cafeteria being in the Faculty Center building after all. Most of them are very comfortable in this space - comfortable enough to know they are allowed to rearrange the tables as they wish. The servers are all well acquainted and familiar with their system, none are new (or too new, that is).

Interpretation

According to the more or less standardized class times of UP Diliman, 1-2:30pm is a time slot of its own and most students are either sitting in class at this time or waiting for their next class to begin from 2:30pm onwards. The students in Katag were probably doing exactly that - waiting for their next class to begin. This would explain the sudden emptying of the cafeteria at about 2pm. The students were probably heading to their next classes.

Katag is right next the College of Arts and Letters (CAL) building, a building where many General Education (GE) subjects are held. GE subjects are a requirement of all UP Diliman students regardless of specific degree programs, and this would explain the varied backgrounds of the students, some coming from the sciences (those discussing Math 17) and those from the English department (those discussing books). I am also guessing that many of the students present were freshmen. Aside from the grades comment, I think it is common for upperclassmen to belong to student organizations, each of which have their own tambayan. If these students are using the cafeteria as their venue to wait for their next class, perhaps they are not members of any organizations yet?

It is Filipino culture to always move around in groups. Anywhere one goes, it's common practice to bring along a friend or two. This would explain why nearly everybody was sitting in groups. People are used to having their friends along with them and always be chatting with them. It may be a far stretch but I am guessing that maybe it even explains why those who were sitting alone had their earphones on - perhaps it is not within our culture to be comfortable when we are alone, so we try to distract ourselves with music. Or maybe it is simply a sign of the times. This generation is always "plugged in" so to speak, and always need to be listening to something and always have "background music" available to them.

Katag is technically not a very comfortable place to "hang out" in - it is rather hot and noisy. But what is attractive to students is the openness of the venue (it not being limited to only a few select students, such as an org tambayan) and the convenience of the location (right next to the CAL building). The food is not bad too - which is probably the most important factor considering it is a cafeteria after all.