Third year project update and more

I’m starting to feel a lot of excitement for my third year project as the plans for the field work and data collection component are being finalised. I spent the majority of last summer working in one of the clothing stores in West Quay, a large shopping complex in Southampton city centre. I only went home for two weeks, in addition to one week off in Edinburgh, Scotland, travelling with my sister. I found it was really easy to get a summer job in the UK as a student compared to in my city in Sweden which is why I chose to stay in Southampton most of last summer. However, this summer after flying back to Sweden for my sister’s graduation, I’ve had to be a little more flexible and patient while making plans for my third year project. Because of uncertainties of dates for the data collection it has been harder to commit to a summer job this year however on the plus side I’ve been able to spend more time at home in Sweden with my family which has been wonderful too.

Anyway, now that some plans have been finalised I can begin to fill you in on some of the details of my third year project which will be about stomata and stomatal patterning. In August I will be flying to Italy with two other undergraduates as well as PhD students and staff from the University of Southampton to a field site containing 6000 poplar trees. In about three weeks I will be returning back to Southampton which will give me about a week before I will be leaving for Italy to begin data collection. I’m looking forward to this new experience and will keep you updated on the progress. Until I leave I will be preparing by beginning further reading into the area of research. We have also begun completing a risk assessment for the field project which is an important safety measure for field work and a good step for us to become accustomed to, especially if we plan on doing more field work in the future.

Because I have now been in Sweden for longer than initially planned, it’s been a while since I’ve seen any of my uni friends and I’ve been trying to keep up with what everyone has been up to. I won’t go into too much detail but I thought it might be interesting to mention some of the things my friends have been doing over the summer. I’ll only mention what my second year friends are up to seeing as many of my third year friends who just graduated have already started their new jobs and I’d just like to wish them good luck! So some of the interesting things my friends have been up to include internships; one of my friends who is studying chemistry is in the middle of an accounting internship which may be surprising considering it’s a different field from their course. Another friend has recently started a summer job working as a waitress in her home town. One of my housemates, who is studying audiology, is currently on placement while another of my housemates (a geologist) is currently in Bulgaria working on a mapping project. I have another friend who started their summer off volunteering in Greece – many others have been travelling with family and friends.

As I’ve mentioned before it’s really easy to travel around places in Europe from the UK, as well as there also being a lot to see within the UK. Last summer I spent a week in Edinburgh, Scotland with my sister and much like when I travelled to Paris this summer, we travelled there by coach which we found to be the cheapest option. There was a lot to do in Edinburgh and we were lucky enough to go at the same time the Edinburgh Festival Fringe was taking place (even though prior to arriving in Edinburgh we had no idea what the festival was). Pictures are always fun and while I’ve recently been neglecting taking pictures, I thought I’d share a few photos from my trip last year which was also a really budget-friendly trip and I would highly recommend.

In the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh

In Edinburgh castle, down in the prisoners exhibition

View from Carlton Hill

Lastly, we’ve been having very hot weather where I am in Sweden, probably one of the hottest summer’s I can remember since moving to Sweden. Anyway, I hope you all are enjoying yourselves wherever you are and taking care if you’re out in the sun.

Kristin

Summer time in Southampton

Last summer I spent most of my holiday down in Southampton working the summer Open Days and practising with my band. By contrast, this summer I haven’t been in Southampton at all since I left after the Grad Ball in early June.  However, during the last week, I have visited Southampton twice.

If you’ve been on campus, have friends in third year or follow the University of Southampton via social media, you’ll have noticed that the two week graduation period got underway last week. On the first Tuesday of the graduation period I went down to see and support my sister and my girlfriend, who were both graduating with History degrees.

It was a strange day for me. On one hand I was a very proud brother and boyfriend, but on the other, it was sad to see them, and other Historians I knew, leaving the University. Of course, I will have all the pomp and circumstance to look forward to next year when I graduate and wave goodbye to the University one last time.

A very proud brother

My second trip down to Southampton was for a mini holiday of sorts with my girlfriend. We set off on Friday and drove down to Beaulieu in the New Forest to visit the National Motor Museum and the Beaulieu Palace House. As you will have seen from my last blog post, I am a massive fan of Formula 1 and cars in general, so I was like an excited child on Christmas morning walking through the museum and seeing all the cars I can only dream to own.

Is it obvious I like F1?

After admiring the collection of classic cars and riding the monorail (with its ridiculously low ceilings), we headed towards the Beaulieu Palace House. It was now my girlfriend’s turn to get excited as we had a guided tour through the parts of the house that were open to the public. Both the interior and exterior of the house were very impressive. Each room seemed to have its own history and, as the tour guide explained, its own supernatural entity.

In the evening we made our way back to Southampton, just in time to see my fellow Life at Southampton writer, Robin, perform in the first preview showing of The Importance of Being Earnest, which is being taken to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year. I would highly recommend watching their gender-swapped adaption if you get the chance to see it, because not only is it extremely well acted, but seeing Robin dressed as a woman is priceless!

Bizarre as this may sound, we ended our mini holiday together the next day on a cruise ship. After heading down to Southampton docks, boarding the ship and going through customs we were given a tour of the giant vessel. We were guided round some of the luxurious penthouse suites and then taken to see the public areas, which included a theatre, a spa, several swimming pools and even a roof-top garden with real grass! The morning was concluded with a cocktail mixing performance, which inevitably involved many glass bottle being bravely juggled, before we were whisked away for a fantastic three course lunch in their sparkling dining hall.

If this trick had gone wrong we would have been soaked!

All of this sounds incredibly expensive, but fortunately we didn’t have to pay a single penny because my mum had won the tickets for the event in a raffle at work – hooray!

James

The Final Curtain

The time has finally come for my final post for the Life at Southampton blog! With this in mind, it seems fitting to talk about my graduation, which took place last Wednesday, and marked the culmination of my four years at the University of Southampton. I have to admit, I wasn’t really looking forward to the big day. As I’ve talked about in a previous post, most of the friends I made in first year graduated last summer, due to my year abroad which added an extra year on to my course, so I thought it might feel as though there was something missing – no big group photos, no celebratory drinks or parties. But, in the end, I thoroughly enjoyed the day, and couldn’t be more pleased that I went.

My Mum and I drove up to Southampton from Bournemouth in the morning, and met my Dad on campus, which had been transformed, with white marquees and everyone in their gowns and mortar boards. The atmosphere felt very different from last time I was there, when exam stress was in the air. The sun was shining, and everyone was smiling and congratulating each other, surrounded by their friends and families. I was a little sceptical about the traditional graduation outfit, but it felt fabulous once it was on – I really felt as though I had earned it, which I hadn’t expected to feel at all. 

Compulsory graduation selfie!

We took a few photos, and headed into the Nuffield Theatre for the ceremony. As soon as I was seated I began to feel extremely nervous – there were so many things that could go wrong up on stage, like falling over in my heels, or my gown or hood slipping off in front of everyone. Thankfully, though, nothing did. I was the last person in our ceremony to go up and receive the Pro-Vice Chancellor’s handshake, and I did feel a little sorry for my parents having to wait right until the end! I felt really proud to see some of my friends from this year go up and have their degrees conferred. I even bumped into one of my friends from first year that I haven’t seen since before I left for Japan, who was abroad last year and missed the ceremony so was graduating this summer. It was totally unexpected, and so nice to have a link to my pre-Japan university days.

My friend, Emma, and I after our ceremonies

After the ceremony, as an official graduate, we headed to the Pimm’s tent for a drink or two, and then went and had some lovely family photos taken. I can’t wait to receive the prints and display them, alongside my certificate – I know that both my parents will be showing them off to anyone and everyone! Afterwards, we headed back to Bournemouth for a lovely lunch and a compulsory glass of champagne, and, of course, some serious picture uploading to social media. It’s been so nice to receive congratulations from friends of mine from all over the world – as far flung as Argentina, Indonesia and Japan – and it really hit home just how much I have done and achieved during my time at Southampton.

My parents and I enjoying a glass of Pimm’s

I think the best thing about my graduation day was being able to express my gratitude to the support that my family and friends have provided over the past four years, as well as being able to say a final goodbye to Southampton, which has been my home for a great deal of that time. It felt so strange to drive away not knowing when the next time I will come back will be. But, as they say, when one door closes, another opens, and that couldn’t be truer than now. Graduation marks the transition from one stage of my life to another, and as my time at Southampton comes to an end, I am so excited to see what the future holds.

I suppose all that’s really left to say is thank you – to everyone who has made my stay at University of Southampton so enjoyable, challenging, stimulating and special, and also to the Life at Southampton team for having me as a writer for the past year. I have so enjoyed reflecting on my experiences, and I hope that you have enjoyed reading them!

Tayler

Summer productivity

It’s the middle of that curious summer spell, far enough away from next term that doing work seems slightly over-hasty (although I guess it couldn’t hurt to check out some modules in advance!), but long enough since the end of exams that doing something productive feels necessary, and I’m writing at what has been the end of an almightily surreal, but wonderfully enjoyable, day.

As I wrote about recently, this time of year sees many of my friends, fellow Performing Arts members, and housemates departing for pastures new, having completed their degrees in the past couple of months – it’s going to be strange living in Southampton next year without them! So with many of their graduation ceremonies taking place today, I went along to catch up with many of them one final time on campus – well, for this summer at least (I’ve made as many as I can promise to visit!) – and just to check out what the graduation ceremonies are all about. After all, give it a year and, all being well, I’ll be attending my own next July (ahhh)!

Thankfully the weather couldn’t have been any better for the occasion; glorious sunshine throughout made for a fantastic, if at times sweltering (particularly for those graduating, all underneath robes and mortar boards!), backdrop for a day of celebration with families, friends and academic colleagues, all coming together to see off many a time at the University of Southampton in style. Highfield campus was awash with the colours of multitudes of smartly-dressed individuals and their loved ones, surrounded by packed marquees, eye-catching decorations and salient displays which all just added to the grandeur of the occasion. And that’s not even mentioning the free champagne on offer!

The reception venues looked magnificent, and were great locations for everyone to mingle!

Of course, my main reason for being there was to celebrate the magnificent achievements of some of the most inspirational, amicable and downright clever people I’ve met, so it was great to see many of them again, swap stories (with the hot topic being what conversations people had with their respective academics while claiming their degrees!), and share in their joy on what was hopefully a never-to-be-forgotten day for them. If the ceremonies I was able to catch on the video wall inside the main Students’ Union building were anything to go by, along with the huge amounts of photographs being taken and fun everyone was having basking in the sunshine, I’m sure the day certainly was! I hope to see everybody again as soon as possible!

I managed to watch many of my friends’ ceremonies inside the Union building, which was awesome!

If you’ve ever read any of my posts before, it probably won’t surprise you to know that, when not attending graduation ceremonies, most of the rest of my time recently has gone into rehearsing for – you guessed it – a theatrical show, even in the middle of the summer! After all, preparations have been well and truly in full swing for the two shows that Gone Rogue Productions (the touring name we use for Performing Arts groups from the University of Southampton) are taking to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August for a two and a half week run, hopefully to entertain international audiences on the most famous stage of all. These are Stephen Belber’s dark thriller Tape, and a cross-gendered twist on the Oscar Wilde farcical classic, The Importance of Being Earnest – two pretty contrasting shows, but both potential crowd-pleasers!

Being cast in the latter production as Gwendolen, one of the female love interests, has been an absolute blast so far, if slightly different to the usual rehearsal process! Many an hour has been spent recently learning how to act as a typically feminine character, for example in terms of changing my voice, mannerisms and physicality – as well as practising how to walk in heels (ouch!) while wearing a dress (luckily behind closed doors in rehearsal rooms, at the moment at least)! As my director Jed put it, it’s not something I really envisaged when I joined the Students’ Union Theatre Group in first year! But it’s been a lot of fun preparing for the Fringe again with another brilliantly talented and convivial cast and crew, and the show’s coming together nicely to hopefully form a rollicking farce for audiences to enjoy, just in time for our preview showings on campus at the end of the week. It’ll then travel to Scotland at the beginning of August and start showing on the 10^th – so there’s not much time at all to go now! For more information, feel free to check out our crowd-funding pitch below:

So as ever, life at Southampton, even in supposed “downtime”, remains busy and challenging, but wholly fulfilling – and with only a year left until I’ll hopefully be graduating too, that’s certainly the way I’d like it to continue to be!

Robin

Summer learning

The summer break is a great opportunity to do things which you normally don’t have time to do. For example, this summer I have been utilising a number of free online courses provided by a company called Future Learn. The online courses are put together by members of university staff who specialise in the subject area of each course. The study material includes informative videos, articles and discussions and the great thing about these courses is that they are completely free and it’s up to you how much time and in how much detail you choose to study each topic. In addition, most of the courses are suitable for both beginners with little knowledge in the subject and people who might already have a solid foundation due to studying related topics at university.

There is a huge variety of courses including a course titled Developing Your Research Project which as the name suggests is all about learning how to develop a good research project and was put together by the University of Southampton. Other courses which I am following include a global food security course by Lancaster University, which I have found extremely interesting, especially since food security is one of my main interests. I’m also interested in a course about sustainability by the University of Nottingham and a course on obesity by the University of Reading. I have honestly found these courses to have been a great source of learning and as I mentioned they are totally free so anyone with an interest can take part.

Apart from participating in these online courses I have also been spending some time choreographing a few dance routines. As you may know by now, I’m a total lover of dance and while I still plan on cutting down on my involvement with the dance societies next year, I thought it would be fun to explore choreographing a couple of routines. I really admired the dance captains who choreographed our competition routines over the past two years so I’ve been wanting to see what I can come up with. So far I’ve really enjoyed it and my sister who is also a dancer has been giving me some tips along the way. I think being able to choreograph is a really great skill and one which is really valuable as a dancer, because it allows you to explore your individual creativity in a new way.

Lastly I have also been spending a fair amount of time outside enjoying the wonderfully warm weather we’ve been having here in Sweden. Where I live, you don’t have to walk far until you find yourself deep within an ample forest, so I’ve been exploring new corners of various nearby forests with my sister and our dog. I’ve also been spending time swimming in a nearby lake which is a popular summer activity in Sweden. Because it’s so popular my sister and I try our best to get up early and go swimming, before the crowds of people arrive. The only downside to this is that the water is usually (super) cold in the morning – but we’re getting used to it.

Here’s a photo of a typical lake where we often go swimming. I really love swimming in these open lakes, it gives you a total sense of freedom.

Kristin 

Formula One

I love all kinds of sports and fortunately the University of Southampton offers a wide variety of facilities and societies for students to get involved with. I have tried my hand at many, including making frequent use of the Jubilee Sport Centre’s swimming pool, joining several teams including Handball and Badminton, and stepping into the unknown worlds of Dodgeball and Tchoukball.

However, outside of the realm of university sports, the one I am most passionate about is Formula One. I think the reason that I love Formula One so much is because it manages to combine my interest in physics with my love for sports (and it also makes me quite a handy asset for any pub quiz team!).

Last Sunday was the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and I was fortunate enough to receive two tickets for the race for my twenty-first birthday. I decided to give the other ticket to one of my friends, on the premise that he would then drive us to the circuit. We arranged to leave very early, expecting a mass of traffic on the motorways, but somehow we managed to beat it and arrived there much earlier than we had anticipated.

Even though we had arrived several hours before the start of the race, there was still plenty to see and do. Upon arrival at the circuit we caught the tail-end of a GP2 race, which is a racing series below F1 and is used a talent pool for young drivers. I had never been to a live racing event before, and even though I knew how loud the cars were going to be, I was still surprised at the noise, especially when they shifted gears with a ferocious bang.

After the podium ceremonies for the GP2 race had finished, another support race began, but this time it was for the Porsche Supercup, a category where all competitors drive in identical Porsche 911s. Next on the programme was a parade of classic Formula One cars, driven for the most part by the drivers who actually drove them in the world championship. I didn’t know this event was happening, so naturally I was bursting with excitement as Maseratis, Lotuses and Ferraris from a bygone era came speeding onto the track.

A parade of the finest automotive machinery ever built

Before the actual race got underway there was time for one last warm-up act: a fantastic performance by The Red Arrows. They gave the 120,000-strong crowd a high octane routine, consisting of formation flying, crash-defying acrobatics and plenty of patriotic red, white and blue smoke.

An amazing up-side-down formation by The Red Arrows

Finally the time came for the Formula One cars to line up on the grid and get the race underway. The speed of these cars compared to the previous races was incredible and despite there being an hour long pause to proceedings due to a first lap incident, the two hour race flew by. I was also lucky enough to be sitting at a portion of the track which saw a lot of the most exciting moments, including a brilliant wheel-to-wheel overtake, which straightaway was deemed to be one of the best overtaking moves of the season.

The heat of the battle

The whole day was a fantastic experience and it was made even better when I spotted myself in the crowd when I watched the race back on television!

James

Summer internships

My time as a writer for the Life at Southampton blog is quickly coming to an end – this will be my penultimate post ahead of my graduation next week! My graduate life in London has started to take on more of a routine, as last week I began the first of two internships which I will complete before I head off to Asia in November.

I will be working at a city-based farm two days a week, as their Corporate Social Responsibility intern; a role which I am, so far, thoroughly enjoying. The farm itself is based in London, in sight of landmarks such as the Shard and the Gherkin, yet it feels like a little oasis. It’s a working farm, with sheep, goats, chickens, ducks, geese, donkeys and pigs, and a variety of crops which are used by the café to make simple, wholesome meals. There is also a rural arts centre, where visitors can try their hand at crafts such as pottery and woodwork. The farm works with a wide range of people from the local community, from school children to the elderly, as well as providing volunteering opportunities.

The urban farm, where I will be interning from now until November.

The department in which I am currently working organises and runs corporate volunteering days for large companies, which send groups of staff down to the farm for the day to undertake meaningful activities and work on projects which have a positive impact both on the farm and on the local community. My role is quite varied – I assist my colleagues with the organisation and running of the corporate days, as well as working on the promotions and marketing side of things. I have spent the last few days, for instance, updating the Corporate Volunteering page of the website with some new imagery, and will be helping to publicise the days through the social media channels over the coming weeks.

 Some of the projects undertaken by the farm’s corporate volunteers.

The farm itself is largely volunteer run, and I’m working with a fantastic team of people. The environment is so enjoyable that sometimes it doesn’t even feel like work! If I feel as though I’m getting too cooped up in the office, I can take a wander around, get some fresh air and spend some time with the animals, which is really therapeutic. It’s fantastic to be able to gain valuable experience, enhancing my C.V., whilst doing something I love, and something that’s a little different from your standard office-based internship.

There’s nothing quite like spending a sunny day on the farm to lift your spirits!

My second internship, which begins in two weeks’ time, is with an organisation which promotes good food and farming. I will be assisting with their one of their campaigns, again for two days a week, and helping to organise an event which will take place early next year, bringing together all the groups and individuals involved.  I’m extremely excited to start work for what is one of my favourite food-related organisations, and will hopefully be able to tell you a little more about it  in my final post towards the end of the month!

Tayler

World Cup fever

In case you somehow hadn't already noticed (which must be pretty unlikely given how much it’s been on television!), the FIFA World Cup is now in full flow, meaning it’s one of the best times of all to be a football supporter – and one of the worst if you’re not!

I've been making the most of the brief few weeks I've had off before rehearsals for our next trip to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe get into full swing across July (with our two week run up there beginning in mid-August – scarily soon!). I opted to head back up North and make the most of the ideal listings on television in a setting complete with the home comforts of family, cats, and a seemingly eternally-stocked fridge, always in the company of my eagerly-watching Dad. After a hectic term stuffed with assignments, a dissertation, examinations and extra-curricular commitments aplenty as ever, the opportunity to take some time off to help on the family farm and enjoy some world-class sporting action was much appreciated, particularly as we all love football around the household – well, unless you’re my Mum, that is!

Following a fantastic, if all-too-brief, spell of rest, relaxation and recharging, it was soon time to return to Southampton to switch student houses and get settled into my new surroundings. I moved  into a property with new housemates for the first time since I started University – and simultaneously received a timely reminder that I have way, way too much stuff with me, as the two car trips between the houses (thanks massively again to my long-suffering parents!) and whole day spent unpacking proved!

As I wrote last time, the experience of living with new people will probably take a bit of getting used to after such a long time elsewhere, particularly as my old group were all used to one another’s (occasionally weird!) habits and routines after three years together. But I’m once again lucky to be living with some terrific people, all of whom I've shared many a happy memory already with during my time in Southampton, so if the year ahead is anything like the first week or so has been, it’s going to be another memorable one!

Aside from box-moving aplenty, being around campus in these sport-intensive times has also allowed me to observe a different aspect of the happenings in Brazil, namely its propensity to foster a unique culture within the (remaining!) student community – a.k.a. 'World Cup fever!' Although I think football is quite widely seen as a controversial sport in many ways, particularly in terms of the manner in which support is often expressed for domestic teams, the World Cup always seems to be one of those all-too-rare occasions where everyone, partisan or less so, can come together to appreciate the sport the way I think it should be; having a bit of fun, enjoying a chance to get behind a team, and laughing along with any friendly, competitive rivalry which naturally ensues.

This spirit seems to have been widely adopted across campus, and is particularly evident in the Students’ Union pub, the ever-popular 'The Stag’s'. Dressed in the flags of all the participating nations to celebrate the occasion, it’s the go-to place for catching all the football as it happens and enjoying a buzzing, excited communal atmosphere while doing so! For example, during one game in the earlier rounds, a number of student fans dressed in Colombia’s colours had a great time watching their team race into a convincing three-goal lead over Greece, cheering loudly for every goal they scored to the point where the neighbouring Greek fans, seeing the funny side of things, began to cheer equally as loudly - every time their team completed a pass!

The Stag’s has been a second home to football-watchers in the past few weeks!

One word of warning though: if you do plan on heading down to The Stag’s to catch a game, it’s probably best to get there as early as possible as my friends and I discovered when, out of sheer determination to ensure we got good seats for the first England match against Italy (The Stag’s fills up very quickly on such occasions!), we ended up arriving seven hours before it began, watching two other matches to fill the time – and all, at the end of the day, for a disappointing 1-2 loss! But once again the atmosphere inside the packed pub was fantastic, with a large mixed crowd of England and Italy supporters ensuring the competitive yet ever-friendly rivalry was there for all to enjoy.

The view from our eagerly-protected sofa bay – seven hours in the making, but it was an amazing day of football!

And so as the tournament soon draws to a close (“Finally!”, I hear my Mum cry!), it’s odd to think that the enjoyable World Cup fever which has gripped many across Southampton, and indeed the nation, is also soon to fade away… but then, of course, the new Premier League season is but a month and a half away! Sorry, Mum!

Robin