Reunion 1999

When? Saturday 7 August - Sunday 8 August 1999

Where? Cambridge, England

The 1999 Reunion was a bit nerve-wracking for all concerned, to be honest. It was to be the first time we had all seen each other since Andrew and I had graduated in July 1998 and returned to Cambridge, and Iain and Stuart had left Lower Flat for separate lodgings elsewhere. We were uncertain then as to whether or not we'd see each other ever again, but, largely through the miracle of email, we all kept in touch. Slowly but surely, the plans for a reunion came ruthlessly together...

However, questions started to arise in my mind: would we all still get along? Would we still share the same sense of humour that got us through countless revolting dinners, vexing crosswords and miserable essays? Fortunately, the answer was a resounding YES. In fact, before long it was like we had never been away. We met up on grey, drizzly Saturday morning in Cambridge city centre, Andrew having kindly put up Iain and honorary reunion member Christian at his house and brought them and Stuart and Rana down to meet Claire and I. With the weather looking decidedly dodgy, we retired to a local pub near the punts so when the rain ceased, we could nip out and do a spot of punting through Cambridge (Andrew and I never having it done it before either). We put the time to good use by chatting away and catching up. Fortunately, we didn't have to wait long before it was safe to venture out, and we were soon on our way, gliding effortlessly through Cambridge's famed waterways (initially in completely the wrong direction).

It really was a great afternoon. I had never seen the Backs before, and the colleges were stunning to look at. Glorious buildings, they were. And of course it was great fun punting along, trying to keep up with Stuart, who is probably a black belt or something.

Having proved that some people were born to punt, and others were born to crash into the sides and go round and round in circles, we all disembarked and had a bite to eat before splitting up and regrouping in the evening at Chilis for a good old proper nosh up. After that we went off to see Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, which I had already seen and thought was hilarious, but was forced to modify my opinion upon the second viewing, when I realised it wasn't nearly as good as the original. Still, there were some good laughs there, and the day ended with all of us quite tired, but quite happy too.

The second day of the reunion coincided with (ahem) mine and Claire's engagement party (ahem). It had therefore been decided that we should all meet up there, at Claire's house, for some wine and food and those little nibbles that one usually finds at these sort of social occasions. It was a great opportunity to chat anyway, and reminisce about the good old days. It was there, incidentally, that the idea for a Roper Road website was first mooted... Naturally, it was also a good opportunity to take some photos.

It was an immensely enjoyable weekend, despite the dodgy weather. It could have been quite a flop: how many other people do you know that meet up with old university acquaintances from around the country? It could have descended into embarrassment and awkwardness. But it didn't. Quite the opposite, in fact. We were still the good friends we had been in Roper Road. It was jolly good fun and I for one am very glad we managed to organise it. Thank you everyone!

To read Andrew's review of the weekend, click here.