Student travel: deciding where to go

As Alexandra pointed out in her recent blog post, exams are very nearly over. True, I’ve been sat here twiddling my thumbs for almost a week already, but now more and more students are crossing over into the realms of freedom, and a whole lot of you are probably wondering what to do next.

I mentioned a while back that a favourite among students when it comes to the monumentally huge summer break is to spend some time travelling.

This isn’t even exclusive to third-year graduates either; the summer is big enough to cover lots of new ground, even if you’re planning on heading back down here to Southampton in September.

If you’re like me, and libraries and textbooks have very much taken over your life as of late, a change of scenery is usually a pretty exciting idea. The only question that remains from here is ‘Where?’

It seems almost a silly question, but believe it or not, the world is pretty darn enormous, and thanks to this little thing called globalisation more recently, travelling to some of the more far-out destinations isn’t quite as difficult as you might think. Almost anything is on the cards; this is one of the only times in your life that you’re likely to have the freedom to completely up-sticks and wander the globe, so why not use it?

If the world is quite literally your oyster, how do you narrow it down enough to actually pull together a manageable trip? Sure, we’d all love to go everywhere, but time and money don’t usually prevail in the way we’d like them to.

Here are some things to consider when planning your trip:

With any luck, I’ll hopefully be finding myself back here in sunny Vancouver come the summer!

Desire

Like I’ve already said, this is likely to be one of the only times in your life you will have the ability to spread your wings and go where you want to go. Ask yourself: where is the one place on Earth that I’ve always wanted to travel to?

It might be Japan, it might be Peru, it might be Africa; everyone is different. Try not to fall into the same old student cycle of simply just going to the most popular destinations. True, a lot of students do go to Australia and Thailand, but that doesn’t mean that you have to if you’re interested in going somewhere else. Be creative and surprise yourself!

Contacts

This doesn’t just mean the people you’re travelling with (although it’s always a good idea to at least have a partner along for the ride!). Think about people you may know in other countries, and if you might be able to stay with them. It’ll cut the budget in half and the chances are you’ll form a great new/reignited friendship out of it too.

When I sat down to plan something for the summer, I started plotting the family I’m in touch with in the US and Canada and found a way to connect between four different cities. It might just be couch-surfing, but it’ll certainly give me a more authentic and a significantly cheaper travelling experience overall!

Budget

Sadly this ends up being the be-all and end-all of most trips. New Zealand might sound like a blast but the flights will likely set you back an entire year’s worth of rent, and the same goes for quite a few places. Have an idea in your head of how much money you’re able to spend/fundraise, and try to craft your trip realistically around that.

Some countries will be cheaper than others in terms of living costs (food etc.), but remember to factor in the money you might lose in exchange fees on currency or on tourist VISA applications.

Depending on what happens in next month’s referendum, Europe is a (potentially) cheap and beautiful alternative to world travel - Amsterdam is definitely worth a visit!

Still, with a decent amount of planning, you could find yourself living it up in an entirely different part of the world in a few months - certainly an exciting prospect if you’re still chained to a desk with deadlines looming.

Adventure calls!

Ben

South Coast road trip: Salisbury, Sandbanks, Poole and Bournemouth

Judging by the headline, you can probably tell I’ve been on quite an exciting road trip! This time it was extra exciting, because my boyfriend and I literally sat down and pointed at somewhere on the map close to Southampton. We ended up with Salisbury, which I’ve always wanted to visit because I want to see Stonehenge.

The original plan was to go up to Stonehenge, but because I really want to go there the next time my dad visits, we decided to stay in Salisbury and look at the map once again for some inspiration.

We ended up driving down to the Sandbanks and Poole and stopping by Bournemouth on the way home, so it was quite an exciting day.

Although without a car you might not be able to do all of this in a day, all of the mentioned places are well worth a visit, so I thought I’d share what I enjoyed the most with the different places we went to.

Salisbury, Poole and Bournemouth are all reachable with regular trains from Southampton Central Station.

Salisbury

Salisbury is about an hour away and reminds me a lot of Winchester - so in other words a very nice town. For those who read this blog regularly, you might recall that I was quite astonished by the Winchester Cathedral. Well, let me tell you, Salisbury has a cathedral, and even though I didn’t think it was possible, it is even more astonishing than the one in Winchester!

First of all, one of the four original Magna Cartas from 1215 is preserved in the cathedral and you can have a look at it there. It is all very well-organised with guides to explain every part of the cathedral and answer any questions. Entry is, in principle, free, but most people donate something at the entrance.

Inside Salisbury Cathedral.

At the moment, they have an art exhibition around town, 

including inside the cathedral with human rabbits.

Apart from the cathedral, Salisbury has quite a few shops and loads of nice places to have lunch. If you are driving to Salisbury, it takes about 10 minutes more to drive through the New Forest. I’ve written about the New Forest before, so if you fancy meeting a donkey or two, you know which way to drive!

A cute New Forest donkey!

Sandbanks & Poole

To my understanding, Sandbanks is a part of Poole, so this will just go as one. If there is one word to describe it there, it is: WOW! This is about 10-20 minute drive from Bournemouth, so the beach is basically the same, but the difference is that Sandbanks has massive houses on the beach which are a bit of an attraction in themselves.

By the time we had reached the Sandbanks it had gotten cloudy, so we went for a long walk on the beach and around town. However, you can rent a kayak or paddle board so this is the perfect spot to go over the summer. It’s also a nice alternative to Bournemouth and definitely worth the extra 10 minutes train journey.

Sandbanks beach 

Bournemouth

Although I’ve been to Bournemouth a couple of times before, I realised I had missed out on something very important: the arcade! I thoroughly enjoyed trying to win myself a selfie stick on the machines, racing cars and playing on the 2p machines.

If you need some inspiration for your next road trip, I hope you found some here!


In other news, Life at Southampton are recruiting new bloggers for next year and the applications close on Monday 16th May. I would strongly encourage any University of Southampton students who might be interested to apply. For myself and the blogging team this year, blogging has been productive procrastination and a good break from all the academic writing we usually do. I know this blog has encouraged and motivated me to go and explore more of Southampton, the south coast and in general all the things the University has to offer – so I hope anyone who likes to write will consider applying!

If you’re a current student, you can find details here!

Alexandra

Student holidays at home and abroad

For final year students, last Thursday was results day and, just like last year, I had conveniently booked a holiday during that week.

I was in Amsterdam for four days with my girlfriend and as I got my first text telling me that our results had been put online, we rushed to find a waffle shop with free Wi-Fi.

It was then, whilst eating my waffle topped with chocolate sauce and whipped cream, that I found out I had been awarded a first class honours for my Masters in Physics! I was over the moon and the knowledge made my waffle taste even nicer than it already did!

Amsterdam is a beautiful city, notable for its architecture and canals. 

Naturally that moment became one of my holiday highlights, along with watching the sea lion show at the local zoo, taking a relaxing canal tour through the city and engaging with the interactive exhibits at the Amsterdam Museum. Whilst Amsterdam is known for being a party city, it also has a large amount of culture, including the fascinating van Gogh museum and the Rijksmuseum, which houses an enormous gallery of 17th Century paintings amongst other collections.

The sea lions were incredible. 

As I mentioned above, this is not my first holiday whilst I’ve been at University; I went to the beautiful Belgian town of Brugge last year and I have also been on two less-cultured holidays to Marmaris and Magaluf. With budget airlines and great deals to be found online (we found a four star hotel room at a very tempting discounted price), going on holiday as a student is cheap and easy, and is fast becoming part of the University experience, especially considering that students have incredibly long summer holidays that run from June to September!

My girlfriend and I enjoying our holiday in Amsterdam together. 

Even if your friends aren’t organised enough to book a summer excursion, there are still chances to travel as many societies hold their own holidays. For ArtSoc (the University’s Art Society) there was an opportunity to go to Florence over the Easter break, but sadly with a looming Masters project deadline, on top of revision and interviews, I was unable to go. Most sports societies tend to organise competitions or tours abroad too, and if the sun isn’t your thing, the University has a Skiing and Snowboarding Society too!

As a student it can sometimes be hard to find funds for holidays, so there are always alternatives closer to home. At some point over the summer, my friends back home in Surrey want to do a small camping trip, where badly barbecued burgers and haphazard tent erecting is more than enough to have a good time! If you’re in Southampton over the summer, why not explore the New Forest with some friends? It couldn’t be closer!

This summer is my last big break before I start work as a medical physicist in September, so I am allowing myself to enjoy it and take all the opportunities that come my way. My holiday to Amsterdam turned out to be a perfect way to celebrate all the hard work I put in to my degree and I’m now looking forward to graduating in three weeks’ time.

James

Preparing for several new journeys

I’ve now finished my final exams of University which is really hard to believe! I think part of me still expects my University life to continue as usual after the summer. However, another part of me is preparing for several new journeys and adventures which is a good reminder that many things are about to change and my time at the University of Southampton is coming to an end.

Furthermore, while finishing University is still somewhat difficult to get used to, I have been enjoying celebrating end of exams. I’ve also been enjoying some free time to relax a little; eating out with friends, catching up with friends who I haven’t seen in a while and saying goodbye…

Many students are already moving back home and, seeing as I’ll soon be leaving for Europe (I’ll be gone for almost 20 days) then shortly afterwards flying to Australia, this may be the last chance I have to meet up with many of my University friends and say goodbye. Time passes so quickly and its times like these that you’re truly reminded of how fast it can go!

When I think back over the past three years, I’m happy that I’ve managed to see and do a lot! I wonder where I’ll be in three years’ time and if I’ll be as shocked as I am now as to how fast time passed!

Anyway, as I mentioned I’ll be leaving for Europe next week which is incredibly exciting. I’ve done a lot of travelling in the past but this will be the most I’ve travelled by train and the longest I would have survived with just one backpack! Packing is proving to be a challenge but I’m sure I can make it work.

In the past week I’ve been busy making final plans for the journey, checking trains, travel routes, things we definitely want to see and do… I really love travelling and I can’t wait to explore new cities and learn about new cultures.

I’ve also been packing up my room and sorting through my things. It’s amazing, I moved to the UK with just one suitcase and an additional bag and now I’ve somehow managed to accumulate over three suitcases-worth of things. My housemate and I will be back from Europe towards the end of June so I’ll have less than a week to prepare for my move to Australia.

I usually don’t think of myself as very materialistic but I have to admit it has been difficult deciding what to keep and what to give away (especially when it comes to my clothes!).

I’ve been taking some time to start thinking about what I want to do with my life now. I have some rough plans but I’m happy to have the next six months to really think about my future (the academic year in Australia is different to in the UK which is why I have the extra time)…and I’m very excited be seeing my family again soon!

Morning exercise on Southampton common, a good time to clear my head. 

In preparation for Europe and all the walking we’ll be doing I’ve also been trying to fit in some exercise in the mornings. Running on Southampton Common has helped to clear my mind at this busy time.

This is, unbelievably, my last blog post for Life at Southampton. I’m grateful to have been given to opportunity to join the team as a student blogger and have loved sharing my experiences at the University of Southampton. I hope you have enjoyed reading about what I’ve been doing over the past couple of years and I wish all new students all the best during their time at Southampton and as well as the new Life at Southampton student bloggers! I look forward to reading about your university experiences.

Goodbye for now, Southampton.

Kristin

Easter in the Peak District

As a family we don’t normally do much to celebrate Easter, apart from the giving of chocolate eggs and perhaps the seeing of grandparents. However, this year I was invited on holiday with my girlfriend’s family, who were going to stay in a cottage in the Peak District over the weekend. Naturally I said yes and on Friday morning we crammed all our suitcases into the boot of the car, like a real-life version of Tetris, and headed north.

We stayed in a small village called Ashford in the Water, which neighbours the famous town of Bakewell. It was quite a long drive from Surrey, but the beautiful buildings and scenic landscape on offer was well worth the wait. Before we arrived there, we made a stop in Sudbury to visit the country mansion owned by the National Trust. The drizzle meant we didn’t walk around its gardens, but we did wander around the impressive Hall and take a peak in the Museum of Childhood which is housed in the Servant’s wing. The museum was very well designed and the toys room took me on a nostalgia trip, especially when I saw the Tracy Island set from Thunderbirds which got hours of use from me as a child!

The beautiful exterior of Sudbury Hall

Over the weekend we visited another three stately homes, the most impressive of which was Chatsworth House and its never-ending gardens. Inside, every room had been meticulously restored and decorated, containing some fantastic paintings and artefacts, including an imposing collection of neo-classical sculptures. There was also an intriguing exhibition of modern chairs throughout the house, including ones shaped like spinning tops, seats disguised as paintings and cocoon-like sofas. The grounds were equally as stunning and I spent a good twenty minutes getting lost in a very confusing maze, but I beat my girlfriend to the middle, so that’s all that counts!

The picturesque grounds of Chatsworth House

On the Saturday morning we drove into Bakewell to do a bit of shopping. Apart from the two famous Bakewell Pudding shops, which both claim to be the inventor of the dessert, there were plenty of gift shops to look round and many teddy bears to be hugged!

There was also a craft fayre taking place in the town centre and a troop of brightly-dressed Morris Dancers, making the town feel alive with activity. After shopping around, we walked up the steep hill to have a look around their museum, which detailed the history of the small town inside a very well-preserved old house. One of its best features was a very friendly cat who made itself right at home on my lap!

Morris Dancers complete with dancing unicorn!

Naturally a holiday in the Peak District isn’t complete without taking a hike through the undulating countryside. On Saturday evening we walked along the top of a valley, which had some wonderful views as dusk approached, before descending via a very steep and scary stone staircase to its muddy and rocky bottom. Clambering over some very slippy rocks, we made our way back to where we came from, very exhausted and in need of a hearty dinner. A lot of walking was done on this holiday, so it was good to put our feet up in the evenings and just relax in front of the wood-burning fire!

A sunny afternoon view of the landscape

It was lovely to take a small break away from the world of University work, where I could de-stress and forget about the deadlines that are on the horizon. Now that I am back I feel motivated and ready to make the final push to finish off my Masters project and begin revision for my last ever set of University exams!

I hope you had a great Easter too.

James