Returning to Durham this academic year has provided the experience I never had during my first year. Admittedly, I lived in Durham in private accommodation over summer, meaning I had the honour of getting to experience Durham’s beauty throughout the lush summer months. However, there was an eerie quiet around Durham over this time, something I can say definitely changed on D-Day, or more commonly known as Saturday 25th September.
Finally moving in day
In one day, Durham went from a quiet and peaceful city to a city full of life and energy with freshers and returning students descending on market square. The best bit about move in day though is getting to see my friends, those who I became so close to, but had not seen in person for 3 months.
Freshers’ Week
Freshers week, despite being a second year, is still a perfect time to meet up with these long-lost friends. A whole week of no-work and lots of play, where much of Durham runs freshers events. One thing I did really enjoy was taking a trip to Newcastle (a 10-minute train journey) to participate in Go-Karting! An incredibly beautiful photo of us all post-racing can be seen below. I would love to say that I won, but Charlie (in the middle) just outclassed me. I simply do not have enough words to talk through all the fun things I got involved in during Freshers week, however, it has to end eventually.
The start of in person lectures
Moving into the first week of lectures, I reached a new milestone, my first ever in-person lecture! Unfortunately, I had a 9am on Monday morning. All I can say is that someone in the scheduling department had it out for me. However, once I had met up with a few of my friends on my course and went on inside, the tiredness soon disappeared. The hustle and bustle of people going into lecture theatres, finding seats, getting set up and really getting that real university experience is something I definitely will not be forgetting.
Badminton trials
Another part of Durham life is sport. I felt deprived of badminton over summer, a sport which I love so dearly, and Durham starting back up was a great opportunity for me to, as we say in Josephine Butler, #getinvolved. Trials for Butler Badminton were an outstanding success with a huge turnout. I was allocated into B-team and now I am eagerly awaiting my first game against St Cuths on October 30th.
Looking forward to a great year in Durham
Looking forward, Durham gives me hope and excitement. As winter begins to set in, one opportunity is the ease of seeing sunset and sunrise! I managed to capture a few pictures of Durham in its glory which you can see here. Every other year (Covid permitting) we have an event called Lumiere and it’s happening this year in November. This is a Durham wide light show, which I have only heard positive things about, although I haven’t been myself yet. I am also looking forward to spooky season, a chance to see what Durham can offer to scare me, and no, my essay deadlines do not count.
To summarise, the revival of Durham and the ability to get involved again has presented many opportunities, to which my advice for other students is to grasp as many as you can, the more you get involved with, the more you will get out of your Durham experience!
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