33 Dover Road
By Stella Ho ‘22
The French House, February 2022. Photo courtesy of Stella Ho ‘22
I was walking back to the French House with my friend Gaya last week when a sentence slipped out of my mouth: “Look, we’re almost home.”
I paused for a second. Before that moment, in my last month of classes, in my senior year at Wellesley, I had never called a dorm here “home” before. And yet here I am, sitting in the dining room surrounded by friends (and a cat), realizing that these people and the memories we’ve made in this building are a large part of why I call my upcoming graduation bittersweet. For knowledge gained and valuable memories made, there is also the loss of this cozy, malfunctioning, precious house whose contours I’ve memorized over the past year and a half.
Here’s my house tour of la Maison française at 33 Dover Rd, Wellesley, MA 02482. Key elements: private residence, donated to Wellesley College and converted into a dorm for 16 students. Walking time to Bates is about six minutes. Square footage: unknown but a good size for its residents. She’s a bit of a mess, but we love her.
The French House courtyard, May 2021. Photo courtesy of Stella Ho ‘22.
The Exterior
Two buildings, both painted cream and with dark brown roof detailing, with a wooden gate and courtyard connecting them in between. On the left is Main House, three stories and towering over the surrounding trees. On the right is Carriage House, two stories, cozy and compact. The backs of both buildings face Nehoiden Golf Course. I think there’s a hole located pretty close to the house. Hence, tranquil wine nights in the courtyard with friends in Term 4 being punctuated every twenty minutes or so by a thwack! and then a yell of, “FOUR!”
The Foyer
The day I moved in: at the start of Term 3, February 2021, I knocked on the door apprehensively and Jane opened it for me. I wrestled my suitcase filled with jumbo-size hand sanitizer, wet wipes that include bleach, and gloves into the foyer. Jane left promptly, probably to join the RA and her best friend, Anne, somewhere else in the house. I was scared of both Jane and Anne at the time. Now, I can’t imagine the house without the dynamic duo.
The cat, Poppy, in the library, October 2021. Photo courtesy of Stella Ho ‘22.
The Living Room
Cozy and wood paneled, with a plush blue couch that hasn’t been washed in who knows how long, a rug that I almost slip on at least once a month, a projector that only works half the time, a fireplace with some German words carved above it (make it make sense), and a window seat that provides a perfect view of the parking lot outside. Location of cuddle puddles on said blue couch and many of my movie firsts, often with Anne: The Farewell (2019) which I cried to, Crazy Rich Asians (2018) which I laughed my ass off to, and Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) which I watched Anne cry to.
The Library
A too-heavy wooden slide door opens onto a room lined partially with bookshelves. There’s a French version of Fifty Shades of Grey somewhere in the stacks. During Term 3 finals period, Kazu, Udita, Maya B., and I had the unfortunate pleasure of seeing a man pee into a bush on the golf course through the butterfly-patterned stained glass windows of this room. During Term 4, Kazu, Kristi, and I had many, many group screaming sessions here. Keep in mind, the room is soundproof from the living room but very much not so from the dorm rooms that are directly above.
The Dining Room
A glass table cover spontaneously exploded here on March 12, 2022, at about 8 pm. Anne, Gaya, Célia (one of the French TAs), and I were stunned into silence for several seconds. Then, we remembered Anne’s cat, Poppy, was sitting in a paper bag on top of the panel that had exploded. The bag was promptly removed, Célia continued sitting in silence with her mouth stuck in an o for a couple more minutes, then a migration was made to the library. (Thankfully, no one was physically hurt.) I refused to enter the room again until April 23, when I decided to face my fears. Anne, Gaya, Célia, Poppy, and I meet here every night again. Last semester, Kazu and Jane—now both studying abroad in France—added even more laughter. And, the room’s windows provide a great view of the golf course!
The dining room across different months. Photos courtesy of Stella Ho ‘22.
The Piano Room
Accessible from the library and the dining room, with a recently tuned piano. Gaya and I escape here when we need complete silence for our homework time.
The kitchen in preparation for the French Department’s end of year party, May 2021. Photo courtesy of Stella Ho ‘22.
The Kitchen
A granite island sits in the center, with a fridge drawer for each resident. For some reason, last year my drawer frequently froze the salads that I put inside. Surprise treats sometimes appear in the communal fridge, left by kind residents to be shared. Ants and/or flies have overrun the nearby sink more than once. I learned about the magic of Lysol while doing kitchen duty once a week last semester—it cuts through any and all oil that accumulates on the various countertops. Also, the scent is fabulous. I want rooms to smell like citrus Lysol all the time.
The Dorms
Every student living here has a single, except for one double which is essentially half of the entire third floor of the main house (I’ve heard it’s huge). The heat doesn’t always work in the rooms, but that’s why the living room couch exists.
Illustration by Jennifer Long ‘25
Want to visit the French House? Go past the College Club, cross Washington St, take a left, then a right at Dover Rd (I suggest using the side of the street with a sidewalk.) Keep going straight until you see the cream walls and brown roof on your right, and remember to look both ways before you dash across the road. Until May 27, I’ll make this journey every day, grateful each time I see that color scheme for the love I’ve found within these walls.
Stella Ho ‘22 (sho2) (she/hers) dedicates this article to Annie Wannie, Gaya Waya, Célia Wélia, Tiffany Wiffany, Kazu Wazu, Janie Wanie, (It’s) Britney (Bitch) (honorary FH resident), Poppy Woppy aka la Kitty française, and, of course, the cookie wookies that Jane baked that are the reason we speak like five-year-olds sometimes. From the May 2022 issue.