Oz XXII - Dorm Etiquette

There are certain unwritten rules when staying in hostel dorms. Whilst they are unwritten they are pretty straightforward, don't be a muppet and think about the other people in your room. Generally people stick to these rules, however, when there is a group of people in a dorm (rather than just solo travellers) the rules can go right out the window. I stayed at Port O'Call hostel in Port Douglas. The first time I was there I was a in a room with an Italian called Mario (ex-professional footballer) and a German guy. Both nice guys, friendly, and non-snorers (all important). The second time I stayed there, after my Cape Tribulation trip, I was unfortunate enough to land in Tokyo. In general Asian travellers are very friendly and slightly mental. However, a group of Japanese boys is a whole different story. I arrived in the dorm to find the other 3 beds each had their own laptop. They had their clothes hung around the room and generally behaved liked I was some kind of weirdo for daring to enter their place (they had been staying there for 10 days, which is a bad sign in itself). I went into town for a few beers and came back to find Tokyo 1 watching a DVD on his laptop. I had a wash and went to bed. At 1am Tokyo 2 returned stomped around the room and then had a shower. He then decided it would be a good idea to use a hair dryer. I wasn't impressed and banged on the wall, advising him that if he wanted to use the hair dryer in the future (and continue to be a ponce) then he had better stop using it. He did. He then decided to open a few beers and turn his laptop on. I wasn't impressed. At 3am Tokyo 3 returned stomped around the room and opened a beer. His friend took him outside. At 5am Tokyo 3 woke up got a beer and turned his laptop on. Now I can't say using your laptop at night is one of the rules I would have told people about before but it is now going on the list.

The Tokyo triplets only saving grace was that they didn't snore. Snoring is possibly the most disruptive thing in a dorm. Generally when people are muppets and come back drunk the distrubance only lasts a few minutes before they pass out. However, snorers can go for the whole night. I have returned to dorms at night to be greeted with choirs of snorers. I have taken it on myself to wake these people if they are lying on their back. It is really frustrating when they are lying on their sides and still snoring. I had one guy in Sydney who seemed to choke to death throughout the night. Another guy in Canberra snorted loudly on the hour every hour.