Discover Dig Deep’s Kilimanjaro Challenge: Summer 2021

By Ciéra Cree and Harriet Brass

In October of 2020 I was contacted by an organisation known as Dig Deep – a ‘clean water and sanitation Charity working in Kenya, established in 2007’. 

The email that they sent me sounded inspiring and insightful, offering students the potentially life-changing opportunity to embark on many new adventures. Myself and Harriet Brass (Fundraising Support Officer at Dig Deep), through a selection of interview style questions, discussed these opportunities in more depth as well as how students could get involved.

Who are Dig Deep? 

We are a clean water and sanitation Charity working in Kenya established in 2007. Our Mission is to unlock opportunity for Kenya’s poorest residents, county by county, by ensuring everyone has clean water, safe toilets, and good hygiene – forever. By reducing the time lost to water collection and preventable disease we remove barriers to learning and earning, allowing people to lift themselves out of poverty. We don’t do projects and walk away – we’re working with government and business to set up services and build self-sustaining systems.

What is the opportunity?

You can get involved and support the work that we do by taking on Kilimanjaro. We organize Kilimanjaro fundraising challenges to not only give you an amazing once in a lifetime experience but your fundraising provides the funds and resources to help unlock opportunity for the communities we serve in Kenya. We have been running these trips since 2011 and have taken over 1200 fundraisers to East Africa. 

Kilimanjaro is the challenge of a lifetime that will take you on an unforgettable journey to Tanzania and the Roof of Africa. If you join the team then next summer you will be heading out to Tanzania to climb the world’s highest freestanding mountain with a peak standing at just under 6000m above sea level. Our Kilimanjaro challenge encompasses a 6 day trek along the Machame route, which is regarded as one of the most beautiful on the mountain as you can see the summit on every day of your climb. Together, with your team, you will pass through 4 ecological zones ranging from rainforest to the incredible glacial zone at the top.    

Reaching the summit doesn’t have to be the end either. Each year our suppliers put together a couple of incredible value extension packages. These are excellent quality and normally include an epic 2 day Safari in Tarangire National Park, followed by 5 days relaxing with your team in the idyllic island paradise of Zanzibar.

Why is the opportunity beneficial to students?

‘This challenge is an excellent opportunity to develop transferable skills, push yourself out of your comfort zone and gain experience with an international development charity. You will be building and refining your abilities from time-management to networking, fundraising to marketing. The list is endless. Going beyond your comfort zone isn’t meant to be easy but you will reap the rewards in confidence, the relationships that you build and the places you will be able to see as a result of it. 

You will have a fundraising target of £2600 which is split 50:50 between a donation to Dig Deep and your in-country trip costs, but don’t worry! We will support you from the moment that you sign up. We offer what we feel is the most comprehensive fundraising support including a dedicated Fundraising Support Officer, virtual resources, monthly fundraising ideas, tailored fundraising plans, regular blog series and an extended network of past and present Dig Deep climbers just to name a few. 

If you want to go one step further there is also the opportunity to become one of our Team Leaders. Our Team Leaders help us to recruit and support our team of fundraisers throughout the year and have that extra level of responsibility. It’s a fabulous chance to develop your leadership skills, increase your charitable impact and encourage others to join you on this experience of a lifetime. There are also some great benefits to being a Team Leader just check out our website www.climbforcleanwater.org/leadateam for more information.

Hopefully this all sounds appealing. If you would like to find out more then visit our challenge website at www.climbforcleanwater.org/kilimanjaro-2021 or simply pop the team an email at support@digdeep.org.uk.

Registrations are only open until the end of November to climb in 2021 and we will open applications for Team Leaders for 2022 around March 2021.

Images: Provided by Harriet Brass

A Holiday for One

By Tyla Brine

Whilst I was sat in the library on a Sunday evening, wallowing in post-Christmas blues, knee deep in deadlines, I booked myself a trip to Nice, and a week later I was off.

The adrenaline from my spontaneity had me buzzing, and it still is. Before this trip I had only ever flown once, so I thought it was pretty ballsy of me to do this alone. 4 days away in Nice wasn’t exactly a backpacking trip around the world for a year in order to ‘find myself’, but a year ago I had never flown, and having the confidence and zero anxiety to do this, didn’t exist. So, this was a pretty big achievement for me.

Booking only a week before my trip left me short of people to go with as it was so last minute, but that’s exactly why I went alone. I’m forever missing out on spontaneous opportunities and trips because one person is working, or this person has no money, or they don’t want to do the same things as me. Also, I’m very much someone who enjoys their own company and I don’t get to spend much time alone, so I decided to dedicate these 4 days away to myself.

Monday:

I arrived midday and although I technically couldn’t book into my AirBnB till 4, the owner allowed me to check in early, and sent a taxi to collect me from the airport. Already I felt a safe welcoming. I was so happy with the apartment I chose, as I was travelling alone I wasn’t exactly going out for dinners and cocktails every night, so I wanted a place nice enough to stay in and cook if I wanted, without the pressure of feeling like I had to be out every minute of the day.

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I began my adventures by walking around and getting my bearings, I was staying in the city centre so everything was only a 15 minute walk away. I got myself lost through the Old Town of Nice, the streets were thin and narrow with hidden cafe’s and shops, with shutter windows and laundry hung above me. The weather was a nice break from the bitter cold back home, and the architecture was amazing. I already felt so happy and fulfilled before I even properly saw anything.

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Tuesday:

Do you ever wake up in the morning and forget where you are? Whether you stayed at a friends house or just in a different bed, because that happened to me! At first I felt a bit disorientated but I had the best lie in and waking up in France instantly put me in the best mood. I had quite a lazy morning before heading to Musée d’Art Moderne et d’Art Contemporain, an Art museum that was just around the corner. It was time to put my amazing GCSE French skills to the test.

The Art museum had so many unique and quirky pieces, with an open terrace of a view of the city.

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Afterwards I visited another museum hidden in the old town, Palais Lascaris. Which exhibited ancient musical instruments and luxuriously decorated rooms, previously lived in by the The Lascaris-Ventimiglia family.

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Wednesday:

Wednesday was my last full day in Nice, so I wanted to revisit a lot of the sights one last time as well as another Museum. I walked up to the Castle Hill, a historic hilltop park that provided an amazing view of the whole city. I arrived just in time for the sunset and it was a moment where I felt reassured that I had done something amazing for myself.

My four days away was more needed than I thought, and has probably been the best TLC I’ve ever given myself. As I said before, it wasn’t necessarily a year long backpacking trip alone, but for me it was a big achievement, and despite being alone I had the best time sightseeing and just having some down time. If you’re ever gutted your friend can’t come away with you to that trip you both keeping talking about, then honestly just go on your own. I feel like there’s such a stigma to doing things alone, but learning to love your own company will be the healthiest thing you do for yourself. So stop thinking of excuses, and take that trip. You will not regret it.

Culture Focus: Barcelona

By Eliza Rawson

I was fortunate enough to spend three days in Barcelona over New Years (which has become my favourite city!) Barcelona is an amazing, vibrant city that is full of history, culture and amazing architecture. Perfect all year round and taking just under two hours when flying from London, the city is great for a weekend break or a week long holiday.

Here are my top tips and places to visit if you’re wanting to make the most out of a short city break and see what Barcelona has to offer.

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Attractions –

La Rambla:

Situated in the centre of Barcelona, La Rambla was a five minute walk from our Air BnB, bursting with tourists, tapas bars and souvenir stalls. The architecture was amazing and you could definitely understand why the area is so popular with tourists. There is plenty to do and a wide variety of food and drink places too.

Magic Fountain:

This is where the New Years fireworks were hosted. At night, the fountain had lights that projected into the sky which lit up the night sky amongst the stars. During the day, you could clearly see the water display and the architecture surrounding it which was so picturesque. 100% recommend climbing to the top which gives incredible views of the Barcelona skyline.

Teleferic de Montjuic:

Barcelona is incredibly hilly so I recommend wearing trainers (not heeled boots like me) when you’re exploring. We walked up to a cable cart centre which took us up to Montjuic – the views were phenomenal. Once reaching the top, you are welcomed to more incredible views of the ocean, harbour and Barcelona. You can either jump back on the cable cart to get back or walk all the way down and grab a bus.

Gothic Quarter:

The quarter is full of picturesque architecture, a tourist haven. Again, a popular place filled with shops, attractions and food bars. The gothic quarter makes a great spot for a photo and to explore the side streets, bursting with culture.

Barcelona Cathedral:

Situated in the Gothic Quarter, the cathedral is a must see! We didn’t go inside but from the outside, again, has phenomenal architecture and looks amazing when the sun is shining.  Extremely popular with tourists so would recommend buying tickets online if you wanted to go inside.

Arc De Trimof:

This is probably one of my favourite attractions! Although there isn’t much to do there, the walk and views were amazing amongst the blue sky and palm trees.

Sagrada Familia:

The temple of Antoni Gaudi which is still being built on his behalf! A must see even if you don’t pay to go inside, the architecture, detail and colour was like nothing I have ever seen before. Highly recommend jumping on the subway and visiting the Sagrada.

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Food & Drink –

Macchina Pasta Bar:

The first restaurant we visited when arriving in Barcelona and still to this day, I’m dreaming of the pasta I had. The restaurant operated on you choosing the exact dish you wanted – the type of pasta, sauce, toppings, you created your own meal! The food wasn’t too overpriced either so I’d say 100% worth taking a visit if you love pasta.

Chok:

A sweet tooth haven – the only words I can use to describe this bakery. The doughnuts came in a wide topping variety, from pistachio to oreo to kinder bueno – the toppings were suited for everyone’s taste buds.

Tandem Cocktail Bar:

A small, quirky cocktail bar found on Trip Advisor (another fab tip when on holiday, make use of Trip Advisor to find the small, independent restaurants and cocktail bars – they always end up being the best!) The bar had every type of alcohol you could imagine, they didn’t even have a menu! You created your own cocktail based on what taste/flavour you fancied. For £10 a cocktail which is standard, I thought this was very reasonable and 100% worth every penny.

La Boqueria Market:

I’d say La Boqueria Market is both an attraction and food place but if you’re looking for local cuisines and fresh meat, fish, fruits & veg, this is your place! The market was bursting with freshness and a great place to experience local foods.

How to Travel on a Student Budget

By Brontë Taylor

Wanderlust can be a very expensive addiction. Especially if you’re a student! But if you’re anything like me, traveling is a must. I have a few tips and tricks to keep the price down on your next adventure. As a frequent traveler, I have learnt the best ways to pick up cheap deals and enable you to keep checking off your Travel Bucket List.

The first and most important tip to put into practice before you even begin searching for your next destination: put your browser on Private browsing or Incognito. Sites save cookies on your computer, this allows them to know what you have searched previously, meaning that you might not get the best deal if you go back to the site. Private browsing stops websites from doing this.

Okay next, save yourself time and go straight to websites that compare flight prices and show you everything you need to know to book a flight. My go to websites are:

skyscanner.com

kayak.com

These sites are great; not only do they compare prices of flights for you but you can sign up for email alerts. So, if you have somewhere you want to travel to, but the flights tend to be pretty pricey, you can get weekly alerts so that you know when the prices are increasing and decreasing. Not only that, but you can also get weekly emails that show you the cheapest destinations for the week; which means if you are ever feeling particularly spontaneous, you just need to check your weekly email and BOOM you have the cheapest flights of the week in your hand. Obviously, if you want to fly for cheap then companies such as RyanAir, EasyJet and PrimeraAir are probably the best providers, although there’s no guarantee you’ll get the best service.

Unless you’re doing a day trip, you’re going to need accommodation! The best way to save money is to stay in a hostel. Hostels aren’t as scary as you may think, personally, I’ve stayed in quite a few and they’ve quite honestly been better quality than if you get a cheap hotel. Hostels are a great way to meet other avid travellers and to socialise. The website I always use for hostels is hostelworld.com, here you will be able to search for hostels in any city. I always check the reviews for these hostels because they may have high ratings but if those that have stayed there had issues, then I like to know. These reviews really help me make my decision and find the best accommodation for my trip.

Alternatively, AirBnb is also a great option if you want to keep accommodation cheap or you can always get great deals on websites like lastminute.com, where you can get flights and hotel for one cheap price. In March this year, I managed to travel to Paris for three days, (in a 4-star hotel may I add) with train included for about £150!  So, it is still possible to get some luxury on a student budget if hostels aren’t your thing.

Paris, France. Photo by Brontë Taylor

Another great way to save money while you are travelling is to plan out where you want to go and what you want to see. Most entry prices are listed online, therefore you can prioritise what you want to see and work around those prices. It’ll make it a lot easier to budget your days and control your spending while you are away, if you have a general idea where you want go and how much it will cost. A lot of tourist spots, like museums, usually have student discounts, as long as you can prove that you are a student, some places may even let you in for free.

So those are a few of my tips and tricks to travel on a student’s budget, I hope these help you reach your travel goals.

Barcelona, Spain. Photo by Megan Hageman

Culture Focus: Budapest

Your non-tourist guide to a great Budapest weekend

By Rebeka Kancsar

This gem of a city in the small country of Hungary in the heart of Europe is a popular getaway destination for young adults, partly due its eye candy architecture and affordable flights and hotels. Now, you could google ‘things to do in Budapest’ and figure that catching the hop-on hop-off and going from Fisherman’s Bastion to Heroes’ Square might be your best, or you could focus slightly less on the tourist hot-spots and explore some of these not-so-hidden treasures of Budapest.

Road to Ruins

Take a city known for its history, add craft beer, and you get ruin pubs—filled with antiques, flacking lights and art. Notoriously in District VII, buildings—or rather, their remains—can look like what you’d expect to see on urbex blogs, graffiti and fallen pieces of concrete, where you can easily walk past a ruin pub without realising. Considerate to neighbours nearby, it’s an unofficial rule that you have to be quiet on the streets and near the entrance, but once you walk through the gates of Szimpla Kert and into the courtyard, you’ll find yourself in another world, consisting of chill music, laidback atmosphere, projected silent movies, multicolour lights and wall art, filled with thrift-shop gadgets that serve no purpose but are fun to twiddle. Bikes wrapped in fairy lights hanging from the ceiling as chandeliers, old square TV’s mounted onto the wall, disco balls, broken road signs and an old Trabant car covered with graffiti with a table in it—a perfect playground for young adults. Speaking of adult playgrounds, it’s also close to the Pinball Museum, where you can play with over 130 vintage and new machines.

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Skylines

If you ever came across a photo of Budapest, chances are you’ve seen Buda Castle on it. You could take the £40+ walk inside the castle, or you could opt for a walk in the Castle Gardens for free and see historical architecture and a panoramic view of the Chain Bridge and Parliament Building over the Danube.

Another skyline spot on the Buda side of the city is right next to Gellért Thermal Baths—which is worth spending a day in if you’re one for spas, soaking in warm waters that are believed to be healing, although it’s crowded with tourists during holiday season, but Ryan Gosling apparently enjoyed it too. Climbing up above the Cave church, you can sit on a bench surrounded by trees in the middle of the city, overlooking its skyline AND Buda Castle.

Fiumei Road Cemetery & Memento Park

Cemeteries are generally not included in holiday plans, but here I give you Fiumei Road. Being the largest and one of the oldest cemeteries of Hungary, it houses the mausoleums of national heroes, politicians, poets, artists and the famous Anonymous’ Statue in a green, tree-filled park. Creepy, sure, but its architecture and statues are something worth seeing if you’d rather avoid the tourists. If you’re into statues but you’d rather opt from creepiness to a longer drive, Memento Park is right outside city with 42 pieces of art from the Communist era of Hungary, meaning you could have a picnic next to the massive statues of Lenin and Marx—which is, you know, less creepy.

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Food & Sustenance

One wonderful thing about Budapest is that wherever you go, there will be a kebab/gyros/pizza place around the corner, where you can get a slice for as cheap as 300 forint, which is around 80p (yes, you read that right). But if you feel fancy, you could visit the New York Café and its Italian Renaissance glamour for a champagne breakfast. You could also try Gozsdu Courtyard for a variety of bars and restaurants, where you can enjoy a huge range of traditional and international foods outdoors.

Tram-it

You want to avoid the hop-on hop-off—not only because it takes away the genuine excitement of exploring a city, but because Budapest has pretty good public transport, especially the tram network. Tram 2, 4 and 6 serve not only get you from one place to another, but you’ll have the best views of the city’s buildings. There’s always a stop within a short walking distance and you’ll avoid the crowds and stairs of the tube.

Vintage Souvenirs

Most tourist leave with an I love Budapest t-shirt, and while you’re free to do that, why not leave with something better, if you really insist on souvenirs? Budapest has a number of amazing vintage shops, such as Szputnyik D20 and Anfifactory, where if you’re lucky, you can find brands such as Vivienne Westwood and Versace for ridiculously low prices.

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So, booked your plane ticket yet?

Image: Rebeka Kancsar

Culture Focus: Amsterdam Travel Diary

2 nights, my hand luggage and an Airbnb – an opinion piece about my trip to the Netherlands and an insight into Dutch culture. 

One of the most popular locations for students, for my holiday with my friends this year, we are going to Amsterdam, I can’t wait to go back and I thought I would write a post for anyone who is also planning to go or is interested in reading about what I got up to. This is an ideal read for students looking for a cheap break in the summer or a weekend getaway! Take a look at a few of my tips and info I got from my short trip last August to the unique and vibrant city via my daily travel diary!

DAY ONE

Travel/Accommodation

After a 45 minute plane journey, we arrived at Schipol airport. With it having a tube station underneath and various bus routes, we struggled to find the way to the Rijiksmuseum. Also known as ‘the museum of the Netherlands’, it marked the meeting point with our Airbnb host, Rens. We met him during his shift at the museum, he was lovely to us throughout our stay. (I still haven’t written a review for him though which I still need to do.) The Rijiksmuseum is a popular tourist spot that sits near the Van Gogh museum and the huge ‘Amsterdam’ sign that always appears on people’s holiday photos. As there was only two of us, we didn’t manage to get someone to take a picture of us standing by it, but hopefully my pictures I’ve included capture enough to give you a feel of what the city was like!

After we’d been given a spare set of keys, we made our way to our accommodation which was a 30 minute tram journey from the centre. (It brought the price down a bit and hotels closer to the city were too expensive for us.) Although the journey’s there and back did get a bit annoying, we were out of the flat most of the time anyway so it didn’t affect the trip too much. Once I put some makeup on and got rid of our hand luggage (I’m pretty proud of myself for managing to pack light even if it was for 2 nights so it’s getting a mention), we headed out to explore the city. The area surrounding our accommodation was very green, with a huge park we walked across each day to get to the tram line which was a 2 minute walk away. 

The City

Finally, we were back in the city and free to have a look around. It was so busy! The atmosphere was so different to anything I’d experienced before, people all seemed very happy and there was a range of tourists from all over the world. The city was huge and lots of the streets seemed to go on and on so there’s a lot of walking involved, especially when you’re only there for a short trip and want to see as much as possible!

Amsterdam’s souvenir shops are very different to London, with most filled with various weed related items, clog keyrings and then there’s the shops that are devoted to selling porn DVD’s which appear the closer you get to the red light district.

Coffee Shops/Cafe’s

We walked around the city for hours taking pictures, exploring and being typical visitors. There were coffee shops everywhere with tourists and locals smoking upstairs. They sold the usual souvenirs, drinks, snacks and were very busy. We visited a bar/restaurant called ‘Lost in Amsterdam’ which sold cute cocktails and milkshakes, it was pretty dark in there so I wasn’t able to get a decent photo but it had a very cool interior, you can check it out some pics here.

Red Light District

Anyway, after looking around everywhere, we went back to the flat. When we headed out to have our first drinks, we found a bar with music that sold the cheapest drinks and stayed there until we were we went on to explore the red light district. We both were pretty surprised by it even though we knew what to expect! You could see individuals going into visit the girls behind the windows and there was huge queue’s of people lining up to see a live sex show. Drinking there was fun though and even though there were some questionable people, we had a really good night. It is a unique part of the city! 

DAY TWO

Art

I really wanted to go to the Van Gogh museum so we went back to where we had met Rens in the morning to have a look around. There was three floors, with rooms dedicated to a different time in Gogh’s life. Each room told a story and for someone who had forgotten about everything to do learning about him at school it was really interesting and I absolutely loved it. I definitely would recommend others to visit!

Food

We were starving when we got out of the museum, I can’t remember if we were hungover as well but we definitely appreciated the amount of junk food that lined the streets of the city. Churros, waffles, chips and literally every type of snack food you could think of was there. The only downfall of this is there was nothing else to eat during the day but food from these places, unless you paid for a meal for lunch, which is fine for a short trip but it would get hard if you were staying there a week! My favourite junk food shop we went to was a huge pix and mix store. We visited there again to get another bag before our trip home.

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Later that evening, we went out to dinner, and both had a carbonara which was SO good. To wrap up the food section, here is a picture of a fed up me at 4am wanting to find the tram line to that would take us back to the flat, little did I know we were going to spend an hour walking up and down after this photo was taken to catch one, we got lost but at least I had my chips.

The Grasshopper

After dinner we went on a boat trip (we both fell asleep on) and went back to the bars again. The Grasshopper was one of our favourites, it was lit up completely green and had some fab cocktails.

Final Things… 

One thing we didn’t get a chance to do but should get a mention was renting out bikes! We tried to but they were all taken.

Money for drinks on happy hour were about £7.50 each in some the bars and your standard tenner for cocktails. We did manage to find a bar that was cheaper than that hence why we stayed there for a while! So you can see why we didn’t get to go clubbing, entry was very expensive and we were happy to go on a bar crawl instead. We probably would have done a bit more research on where to go clubbing for less if we had stayed longer!

It is a really great experience to get out and explore different countries and cultures while you are at university! It means you can get some journalism experience in by documenting your trip, a chance to socialise with new friends from university and gives you a break from studying!

By Sophie Taylor

20 March 2018

Image Credit: Sophie Taylor

Culture Focus: Ibiza

It’s February, it’s -2 outside and summer is still four months away. To get the summer buzz back, I will be reminiscing and talking about the top things in Ibiza which I loved when I visited last summer, being one of my favourite trips and would highly recommend to anyone! Our culture focus pieces aim to encourage students to look at the wider world, learn about a new culture and give you a chilled reading break from your studies/

First of all, Ibiza can be for the party-goers who love staying out till the sun rises or for the chilled-out kind who love exploring the island’s historic culture – it suits everyone! Ibiza is the third largest island of the Balearic Islands with its capital city being Ibiza Town; mainly split up into two parts – San Antonio (the party part) and Ibiza Town (the chill part.)

San Antonio Beach – The most popular beach on the island, the long strip stretches out for  miles, giving holiday-makers various viewpoints of the island. The beach is surrounded by bars and chill-out places with the most popular being Ibiza Rocks, hosting a variety of bands and artists, performing live throughout the summer season.  There are also a lot of water sport activities to take part in which are a lot of fun!

Ocean Beach – Well known for being the best daytime pool party on the island, Ocean Beach is an absolute must when visiting Ibiza. The venue has a variety of swimming pools, sunbeds, bars and insane DJs, making it one of the most luxurious places on the island. Surrounded by entertainment, acrobats in the air, inflatables covering the pools and giant disco balls, the fun is never-ending, partying till the sun goes down!

Café Mambo – The most iconic bar in the whole of Ibiza. Café Mambo has become renowned for being located in the best place for sunset views, being able to enjoy cocktails, live music and watching the sun set behind the sea, giving off amazing views! BBC Radio 1 tend to host their Ibiza weekender at Café Mambo, adding to its popularity.

Ibiza Town – Full of historic architecture, boutique shops, food markets and a selection of bars, there is plenty to do and see! There are many museums, art galleries and historical churches to admire too, offering something completely different compared to the main strip in San Antonio Bay. The must have food to try when visiting Is Spanish paella, being the Spanish famous dish!

Overall, I think that Ibiza is definitely a place to add to your bucket list if you haven’t been already. Flights out there are relatively cheap and even accommodation is too if you look on the right travel sites online!

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By Eliza Rawson 

26th February 2018

Image Credit: Eliza Rawson

Culture Focus: Stockholm

By Alexa Klos

Stockholm, Sweden, a city built on 14 islands, connected by 57 bridges surely earns the Swedish capital the nickname “Beauty on the Water.” Whether you are interested in food, scenery, shopping or architecture Stockholm has it all!

First off, a few things to know about the city. The Swedish Krona is the official currency, the city is very expensive, the public transportation is easy to navigate and travelling there in mid-October is going to be cold but the changing autumn leaves will reward you with great scenery. My travelling companion and I are both from Minnesota in the United States and very use to chilly weather. Maybe living in the UK for the past two months had made us soft, but we were not prepared for the cold and wind that Stockholm brought.

Day 1: On our first day we started our journey by heading to Gamla Stan, definitely a touristy area but well worth it. Founded in 1252, it is one of the best-preserved and largest medieval city centres. The area is like a pedestrian-friendly open-air museum, loaded with winding alleys, attractions, cafes, bars, restaurants and places to shop for souvenirs. Since we were so cold and unprepared for the weather our first stop was a tourist shop to buy hats. Once warmed up we made our way to the Nobel Museum. A very manageable and informative museum filled with some of the brightest minds, ideas and acts dating back to 1901. During our journey to another island we walked past but didn’t enter the Royal Palace (which is one of the city’s greatest attractions), we did happen to be passing by at the right time to witness a unique changing of the guard. That evening we finished our day by visiting Fotografiska, a centre for contemporary photography with a wide variety of exhibits.

Day 2: Our accommodation in Stockholm was with Airbnb, located about 20 minutes by train outside of the city. Our host gave my friend and I a list of activities she thought we would like. She recommended taking a tour of the Archipelago Islands via boat. We started our second morning off by having an outrageously expensive £25 breakfast, (apple, tea, orange juice, porridge, mini sandwich) and then boarded the boat the Vaxholm, the capital of the Archipelago islands. Made up of around 24,000 islands, some have inhabitants, some are still left to nature. After the boat tour and an hour spent walking around the quaint town of Vaxholm, my friend and I decided the tour would be even more amazing during the spring or summer months! Upon arriving back in Stockholm we decided to check out the Vasastan area of the city. It’s known as an area with some great coffee and pastry shops. We closed our evening by climbing to an overlook point giving us amazing views of Stockholm as the sun was setting.

Day 3: On our third day we spent the late morning at the Vasa Museum. In the year 1628, the mighty warship Vasa embarked on her maiden voyage. In only 10 minutes the impressive ship was sinking to the floor of the Saltsjon. Due to the lack of salt and cold temperatures of water, the ship stayed very well preserved until it was rediscovered in 1956. Many salvaged objects are on display, including cannonballs, shoes, pillboxes and other artefacts that offer a vivid glimpse at 17th-century sea life. After leaving the impressive Vasa Museum we took one last stroll through Gamla Stan for some souvenirs before heading back to the UK.

There are many other things to see in Stockholm and three days was definitely not enough to experience the city. We chose our activities based on the duration of our trip, finances and location. Upon departing Sweden that evening my friend and I were both glad that we had stumbled across a cheap flight and decided to spend our 3 days in Stockholm.

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Image Credit: Alexa Klos

Culture Focus: Madrid

By Hanushka Karnani

Last weekend whilst walking around the old Madrid, or as the Spanish call it, ‘El Viejo Madrid’, I noticed those little details in the town that make this vivacious capital a city that allows you to escape from your daily reality and indulge in a beautiful history and a vibrant culture. From picturesque cafes to fill up your Instagram profiles in the chic and quirky area of Chueca, to slick rooftop bars where one can properly embrace the stunning views of the capital alongside a cheap glass of wine or a ‘cana’ (beer).

Although it may be cold during the autumn season, the fallen leaves of all different shades of orange and green, paint the colours of the city. The endless and delicious tapas bars the city has to offer will never keep you from a good meal with great laughs, booze of course and lots of Serrano Ham. The streets in the ‘Viejo Madrid’ are completely chock- full of these Spanish delights and every place you will come across with will bring you its own unique enchantment and atmosphere. Art galleries, museums and theatre are also some of the other exciting ventures one can get up to when exploring this urban city.

Despite students needing to be on a budget, this should not exclude you from taking a weekend off your university work and fly out to one of the many wonderful European destinations there are on offer. For cheap travel, you can visit StudentUniverse, Sky Scanner and STA Travel.

Travelling isn’t only for Instagram updates and Facebook posts. It’s a chance to meet new people, broaden your horizons and gives you an opportunity to learn more about yourself as a person.

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Image Credit: Hanushka Karnani and Lavina Karnani

Moving in to Student Housing – What to do and Knowing Your Rights!

By Hollie Luck

It’s that time of year again where you have to fork out a load of money on a deposit and haul all of your things into your new place. Now going into my final year of university, I’ve just moved out of one student property and into a new one, and so I thought it would be useful to give a guide on what to do once you’ve moved in, and your rights as tenants.

First off once you get the keys to the property you will need to complete the inventory form. This should list what furniture and white goods belong in the property and in what condition they are in. You should look through this carefully and make sure anything that is in poor condition or broken when you first moved in is written down on the inventory so the landlord can’t blame it on you when you move out! Anything that is broken should also be reported so that the landlord can fix this for you.

Next up is organising bills, it can be a little tedious at times but it needs to be done! If your bills aren’t included in your monthly rent then it is up to you to organise your water, electric, gas and wifi. Using comparison sites are the best way to find the cheapest supplier for each of these, saving you some money for Mid-Week Mashup!

One bill you shouldn’t be paying for whilst you are a student is council tax. Providing the council with a Student Status certificate (which you can ask for from the iCentre) will ensure you are exempt from paying the bill.

Once you’re all settled in, it’s important to know your rights as tenants. Put simply, if you break something then you pay for it. However, general wear and tear on the property is not up to you to pay for. If white goods randomly stop working or a pipe burst (and you didn’t block the drain) then you are not liable to pay to replace it. Things, like losing your keys or leaving a big stain on the carpet, is your responsibility though so be careful!

Furthermore, although you do not own the property, the landlord or letting agency isn’t allowed to enter the property without your knowledge and giving you 24-hour notice that they will be paying a visit, this is a legal requirement that they must uphold.

At the beginning of your tenancy, you should be informed that your deposit has been placed into a tenancy deposit scheme, again this is legally required by the government. You should ask for confirmation of this if it hasn’t been mentioned already. At the end of your tenancy, your deposit should be given back to you in full unless there is something wrong with the property that you are liable for. A written explanation of what is wrong with the property and how much will be taken from your deposit should be provided to you so you can dispute this with the landlord or letting agents if you feel money has been taken from you unfairly.

For more information about your right as tenants visit this website for more information.

For impartial advice, you can also send in your questions to the SU Advice Team here.

Image Credit: Elle Haywood

Culture Focus: Gibraltar

By Hanushka Karnani

Gibraltar is a small British colony located in the south region of the Iberian peninsula. It’s a small and acquainted town that borderlines with Spain and beautifully blends the English ‘pub’ culture with the Spanish ‘tapas’. Gibraltar offers sandy beaches and historic cobbled streets, as well as ethnic diversity in culture and religion within its society. The town is also popular for the apes that inhabited the rock thousands of years ago and is now considered one of its main tourist attractions.

The combination of the English language alongside a strong influence of a Spanish lifestyle, is what creates the unique subculture that exists on the Rock of Gibraltar. The distinct language, colloquialized by the Gibraltarians themselves as ‘Llanito’, derived from both the English and Spanish languages, with some words that may have originated from places such as Malta and certain parts of Italy and Portugal.

Gibraltar can also be described as a small paradise for those interested in a multicultural atmosphere. The integration of religions and communities such as, Christians, Muslims, Hindus and Jewish have encouraged this ethnic diversity and mindset in its culture, food and the social interactions. Gibraltarians or the ‘Llanitos’, as they like to call themselves, are without a doubt known as ‘foodies’. Their local cuisine has adopted flavours from a number of different places and because of that, dishes that have been passed down through generations such as Calentita (kind of quiche made with chickpea), Torta de Acelga (chard pie) and Banoffee Pie have become part of the national gastronomy. Around the rock one will come across a number of different restaurants to suit everyone’s acquired tastes. Options may range from a tapas night out across the border in La Linea or a traditional Indian curry at one of the town’s favourite Indian spots.

Very much into health and fitness or simply enjoy a little challenge? This little ‘ape’ land is a great place to keep fit. The sun is always shining and the views are breathtaking which motivates us, students, even more. Runs along the beach or a hike up the ‘Mediterranean Steps’ are usually what the young ones get up to in keeping up with those beach bodies. Skydiving, jet skiing and even surfing are also very popular during the summer.

Nightlife on the rock is surprisingly good  – admit it, you were not expecting a tiny rock at the last tip of Spain to be such a party place, however, it’s true. Marina Bay and Ocean Village Leisure Park are right by the sea and therefore make them idyllic areas for cocktails or perhaps a little dancing in a summery atmosphere.

Good food, good nightlife, nice people and the beach. What more does one want? See you on the rock!

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Image Credit: Hanushka Karnani