December is here, deadlines are looming, your overdraft is on its last legs, and it’s too cold to go out without getting frostbite. The seasonal blues are starting to hit pretty hard, and the only thing you’ve got to look forward to is an undercooked ASDA chicken and some frozen roast potatoes for your house Christmas dinner. It’s rough out here.
Don’t fret, we’ve made a Liverpool student advent calendar to get you through the chaos. Each day brings something that every Liverpool student relates to, from overpriced cocktails on Castle Street, to your annual meltdown in Harold Cohen. It’s the stuff of dreams, honestly.
Day 1: A Fat Frog or Raz Bomb
It’s a necessity for the 1st of December being a Monday, obviously. Celebrate the beginning of student-mas by choosing your ideal drink down at The Raz and wake up regretting all your life choices. Any terrible decisions or messy afters are not our responsibility though.
Day 2: A guarantee to never fall down the BaaBar stairs
You can’t say you are a Liverpool uni student without having the trauma of tumbling down BaaBar stairs after one too many tequila shots, so consider this your personal guarantee for that never to happen again – you’re welcome freshers!
Day 3: A day trip to Lark Lane
Because we all know that the best way to avoid uni deadlines is a wholesome trip to Lark Lane with your flatmates.
Day 4: A coupon to never get denied a MyTicket
Oh yes, a Liverpool student’s best kept secret, a MyTicket on the buses. I see you Smithdown lot trying to convince the bus driver that you’re 16 so you can get cheap tickets, and I applaud you. Use this like a genie granting you a wish, and they’ll never awkwardly ask for ID ever again.
Day 5: The Tesco on campus to be quiet when you go in
The worst thing after a lecture is walking to the Tesco on Brownlow Hill to grab your favourite meal deal, and having to fight your way through the crowd of sleep deprived library zombines. So today, Tesco is empty and your meal deal is available. My dream date, cute.
Day 6: No more Thursday 9ams
Everybody loves a Wednesday sports social, but the thought of your 9am seminar is always lingering over your shoulder. In December I’ve decided that they do not exist. You’re welcome.
Day 7: A windproof umbrella
Now this one may seem a bit out there, however you’re forgetting the Liverpool weather. You can never recover from your £3 Primark umbrella blowing inside out in the middle of campus, so a windproof umbrella is arguably the best gift on this list. You’ll almost always be walking past your first year situationship when you’re fighting with wind and rain so consider this a benefit to your street cred.
Day 8: A ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card for the Santa Dash
We all know that you signed up for the Santa Dash hungover when you thought running would revolutionise your life, don’t worry we’ve got you covered, and you can always do it next year!
Day 9: Week 12 lectures to only show Christmas films
Undoubtedly the best part of school was convincing your teachers to watch a Christmas film in the last week of term, and I think all universities should do this too, it’s that final motivational boost to finish your essay that you’ve already delayed starting.
Day 10: Discounts in all of the vintage shops on Bold Street
You and your bank account have barely survived semester one, but you need to treat yourself to that Ralph Lauren jumper you’ve had your eye on in Pop Boutique. This will also mean you’ll become the favourite child in the family with some spectacular gift ideas this Christmas, which is always a bonus.
Day 11: Unlimited hot chocolate in the library
It’s essay and exam season and the library is the last place you want to spend your time in, but an unlimited hot chocolate machine would make your day a little brighter, motivating you to finish that essay you’ve been putting off.
Day 12: A month long assignment extension
It’s December, it’s dark and bleak, and you’ve forgotten about your assignment that is worth 35 per cent of your mark. It’s okay, we’ve got your back, just make sure to not forget about it again! Yes, the week long extension is now available to everyone. Yes, you missed that too. No shame here.
Day 13: Free ice skating lessons at the Bombed Out Church
Christmas time means one thing, and that is your flatmates dragging you to the Bombed Out Church for a wholesome evening ice skating, but you can’t ice skate. Well now you can, you’re not going to embarrass yourself, I promise.
Day 13: A sweet treat at the Christmas Markets
Whatever your opinion is on the Liverpool Christmas Markets, you can’t deny that its selection of sweet treats is unbelievable, but they do break the bank just a little bit. So, go grab your favourite sweet treat with your mates at the market, you deserve it! This one’s on us.
Day 14: A never-ending Christmas candle from Home Bargains
Oh yes, the holy grail of student housing. It costs £1.99, smells vaguely of “cinnamon winter dreams”, and somehow masks the scent of burnt food and despair. And the mould. And the dirty washing up in the sink. And the stench of the weird brown patch in the ceiling. I could go on.
Day 15: Your favourite seat in the library to always be available
Because we all know that there’s nothing worse than deciding to leave the comfort of your flat to lock in with work, only to discover that your favourite motivational spot in the library is taken. I’ll reserve the ones by the windows in the Sydney Jones for those of you who have had a particularly bad crash out this year.
Day 16: A professionally catered Christmas meal for your housemates
We all know the stress of trying to cook a Christmas dinner with your flatmates, the fire alarm is going off, the worktops are covered in gravy and your roasties aren’t getting crispy. So, I think you have all earnt a professionally cooked Christmas dinner after the stress of this semester.
Day 17: A touristy day around the city
It’s a rite of passage for all Liverpool freshers, you get to the first semester and you’re so excited to be in Liverpool and go out that you forget all of the wonderful history and culture the city has to offer. Take the day off work, and go explore The Docks, and The Beatles Museum. My guilty pleasure is always wanting to go on the Magical Mystery Tour bus. Cringe.
Day 18: Some Christmas themed embroidery in Uniqlo
A Liverpool student fashion staple is the Uniqlo cross body bag, and to make it more unique, I say you should venture down to Uniqlo and treat yourself to a festive embroidery to celebrate handing in the essay you have been putting off for months.
Day 19: A cheap Uber back to Smithdown on a night out
Because the real winter villain in Liverpool is the Uber price surge at 4am on a Saturday night, there really is not any need to be paying £30 for an Uber to Lawrence Road of all places.
Day 20: Your overdraft, but festive and bottomless
The gift that keeps on giving, and taking. Imagine checking your banking app and not feeling your soul leave your body. This magical overdraft replenishes itself every time you accidentally spend £40 at the Baltic Market or justify a third takeaway because it’s too cold to cook.
Day 21: A personal heater in every uni room
Say goodbye to frostbite in the lecture halls. We’re looking at you Sherrington Building.
Day 22: A whole flat trip to Rudy’s
As someone who comes from a town that doesn’t have a Rudy’s, it is the thing I miss the most over Christmas. So, celebrate the festive cheer, and treat yourself to that triple pepperoni that you have been dreaming about.
Day 23: Always avoid the free shot people on Concert Square
Because there is nothing worse than trailing your Aldi shop through Concert Square and getting stopped three times outside of Soho to come in and get a free shot. It’s 6pm on a Tuesday, is it not a bit early?
Day 24: Cheap train tickets home with guaranteed no cancellations
Ah, Lime Street Station in December is one of those places that you actively want to avoid. Every student in the city is racing to get home to their nice, warm, mould-free houses, but you have to face the battle of expensive train tickets and your train getting cancelled or delayed five times before you can actually do that.
Day 25: A month of peace, sleep and home cooked meals
You’ve reached the end! You’re back home, getting fussed over by your parents about how you haven’t looked after yourself. Enjoy the endless bubble baths, and an uninterrupted sleep without your flatmates barging in at 3am.
Congratulations, you’ve made it to day 25! And while you might not get a professionally catered Christmas dinner or a windproof umbrella anytime soon, a student can dream. Until then, we’ll be in the Raz, pretending a vodka cranberry is one of our five-a-day. Merry Christmas Liverpool, see you next term – slightly poorer but still iconic.
