Hello, my name is Alisa and I’m a first year studying Environmental Geography at the University of York. In this blog, I will shed light on the daily activities I normally undertake. Hopefully this will instill excitement and encouragement to prospective students and alike. In addition, I will mention one of my most enjoyable experiences so far, having just completed my first term.
Early morning
Hearing my alarm clock sound at 7:50am, I drag my feet across the room to splash my face with water. After getting ready for the day ahead, my flat mates and I stick to our routine of breakfast in the Roger Kirk Centre at 8:30am. Having fueled up for my 9am lecture, I stride towards the environment building for my first activity of the day.
Lectures
This day I had three lectures: Physical Geography, Environment Development and Society and Ecological Principles for the Environment. I had a one-hour gap between the first two lectures, which I utilized as a coffee break and of course, a time to chat to friends.
Physical geography is the study of the natural biospheres and the processes and mechanics in which operate them. This is one of my favorite modules, for everything we study is so topical and relevant to the current state of our planet. Environment, Development and Society focusses on the environment-population nexus. It is heavily theory based and encapsulates some of the most important ideals from the world’s leading economists.
The latter lecture was at 3pm, meaning I had time to cook lunch in my flat. A pasta or rice salad is usually my go to! Ecological Principles and the Environment is the study of the biological world and the relationship between living organisms and the environment. My flatmates and I have dinner at 5pm, this is a time to unwind and share stories about our days.
Evenings
After dinner, I usually spend around 2 hours working (either preparing for seminars that week or going over topics covered in lectures). The library is a great space to really focus and concentrate. At 9pm I had Latin and Ballroom dance society, where we learnt the first steps of the waltz and the quickstep. Having an active society in the evenings is a great way to blow off steam and move your body after a full day of working. After dance I headed back to the flat, where I found my friends chatting in the kitchen. So I stuck the kettle on to make a ‘cuppa tea and joined in! Following a busy and enjoyable day, I look forward to a good night’s sleep and repeating it all over again!
Day Trip
This photo was taken on an excursion to Pickering quarry, it captures the famous steam train running through the valley. We completed an eight-mile walk/hike, up through the tabular hills in the North York Moors. The module that covered this trip was Dynamic Earth. In the quarry, we examined all the terrain, which was limestone. We spotted oolitic and fossiliferous limestones which contained fossils and bivalves. From this evidence, we deduced that the UK was once, millions of years ago, a warm and tropical climate, equal to the modern-day Bahamas!
How do you find York outside of the university? As in how do you find the city?
Hello there! York is a stunning historical town with lots to offer. Buses from campus run every 10 minutes or it’s a 20 minute walk – so very accessible. The Shambles market is great, the York wall surrounding York city centre is a very pleasant walk, or high street shopping is an option! There are many independent tea rooms/pubs which are lovely places to relax with your friends. York is a great place to be!