Beach breaks and exploring the south coast

For the past week we’ve been very lucky with the weather, with several long, sunny and warm days. Nice weather has the power to put you in a good mood and give you lots of energy! I’m always more motivated during the warmer months compared to during winter. It’s easier to concentrate for longer and breaks are more fun, especially if you can do something outside. The power of the sun…It’s not just energy for plants, we need it too!

Anyway, in light of this gorgeous whether one of my housemates and I decided to take a spontaneous break from our work and go on a trip to the beach! As I’ve mentioned before it’s really easy to go places by train (or coach) to and from Southampton, so we found ourselves in Portsmouth by the waterfront in no time! For those who don’t know, Portsmouth is another city located on the South Coast of England. I’ve heard many friends talk about their visits there and now I finally had a chance to go and explore for myself.

We arrived in the afternoon seeing as it was a rather spontaneous decision (if we had planned ahead of time we probably would have tried to arrive earlier so we could have spent the whole day there). Since it was around lunchtime when we arrived, we first spent some time in Gunwharf Quays checking out some of the many shops and grabbing lunch while enjoying a view of the harbour. We didn’t spend too long inside since we didn’t want to waste the daylight and lovely weather.

After eating we headed to Southsea Beach. I haven’t been to many pebble beaches before so I was really excited and probably a little overly impressed though I still think it was really cool! (Perhaps not quite as comfortable… lying down on the pebbles isn’t as enjoyable as lying on sand but it’s still very beautiful!). We stayed at the beach for a bit and walked around near the water just enjoying some fresh air and sun before we took a walk around Southsea Castle which you can look around for free. Lastly we walked to Clarence Pier which is an area with lots of rides and games.

 It was fun to be spontaneous and to go explore somewhere new. If we had planned ahead we might have had more time there, but we didn’t want to get back to Southampton too late as both of us still had work left on our dissertations. The day passed really quickly but we got to do and see a lot, including a lot of walking! It was nice to stretch my legs a little after being glued to the chair in front of my desk for so long.

Exploring Portsmouth. 

As James mentioned in his last blog post there’s only about six weeks left at the University of Southampton until summer break begins! However I’m not sure if summer break will be the right phrase any more seeing as I will become a graduate this year. Anyway, yesterday was the last day of my Easter break and now it’s back to lectures, deadlines, Green Action and all the other events going on around campus that make University life so busy but eventful!

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter!

Kristin