May 5, 2015, by Sunita Tailor

In the summertime, when the weather is fine…

This blog post was written by second year English student, Katie Randall from the School of English.

Your first summer in Nottingham is without a doubt the best summer.

Painstakingly layering up and looking like the Michelin man for months in a vain attempt to protect yourself from the bitter Northern winter can become a bit of a drag, so you can be forgiven if at the first hint of a blue sky and the sight of green leaves you whip out the sunglasses and resign yourself to a day sunbathing on the downs. It’s not just that campus becomes 100 times more beautiful in the sunshine (the shimmering lake, Trent building looking majestic etc.) it’s that there is so much to do to celebrate coming to the end of your first year and rewarding yourself for all the hard work you put into coursework and revising for exams.

For me, the first time I really felt that summery feeling in Notts was after going to see the Nottingham New Theatre and Lakeside Arts Theatre production of Dr. Faustus. Walking back around the lake after the evening show, the sun was still high in the sky and I couldn’t believe that I was only a twenty-minute walk away from a theatre where I could pay £5 to see a really good play, and in such a gorgeous location too. This year, the two theatres have collaborated once more to put on a production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which runs from Monday 27^th April – Saturday 2^nd May. Based on last year’s performance I would recommend going for these reasons – 1) to support and, or laugh at your fellow English students, 2) to have a break from revision, and 3) to see some quality entertainment.

Of course, this isn’t the only thing that’s great about summer in Nottingham. After the 6^th June, you’ll usually be free to explore: you can rent a boat to take out on Highfields Lake, venture further into the city, go to festivals such as No Tomorrow, Holi on the Downs and Dot to Dot, relish the green spaces like Wollaton Park and so much more. You probably won’t have time to squeeze everything you want to do in before going home for summer, but you should take the time to enjoy the first summer in your new city because it’s magical to discover new places in the sun, especially when you don’t have to worry about dissertations or other scary 2^nd or 3^rd year things!

Good luck with revision and deadlines, don’t stress too much and make sure you have a fantastic summer in Nottingham and wherever else you may be heading.

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