Amy Mescus, Head of Culture:
After pining for years, this summer I finally dipped into my savings and sent myself and my boyfriend to the country rich in history and blessed in geography, nestled along the Adriatic Sea; Croatia! Now the savings weren’t exactly abundant, so we opted for the cheaper coastal city in Croatia, Zadar. Zadar is relatively small, with it being easy to explore the entire Old Town in a singular day, but the amount of activities in and around the city are immense and we parted Zadar after seven nights with no regrets, feeling completely satisfied with everything we did and saw.
We took a boat trip out to Telašćia and Kornati where we arrived first to the most stunning salt lake, basking in the brief moment we had the scene completely to ourselves. We were also fed and watered by the kind staff on board.
On another day we indulged in a guided tour around Plitvice Lakes National Park to admire Mother Nature’s finest work with serene lakes and Croatia’s tallest waterfall.
...we tackled Zrmanja River with nothing but a kayak, a bit of overconfidence, and a dream.
Our final full day in Zadar was arguably the best; we tackled Zrmanja River with nothing but a kayak, a bit of overconfidence, and a dream. As it turned out, we were a pretty good team and I only had to shout at my boyfriend once! That’s a joke - he essentially carried us the whole way.
Our in-between days were spent exploring the maze that is the Old Town or at Kolovare beach - renowned for its diving pier, which we regrettably did not participate in, but I was content at a distance with our (slightly unnecessary since the water was so clear) snorkels.
Alex Paine, Film Sub-Editor:
After many years me and my family returned to Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of Shakespeare and home to the RSC, and we really indulged in the full Shakespeare experience. We were lucky enough to see the fantastic new production of A Winter’s Tale, our first time seeing a Shakespeare play in his hometown, and we revisited the Shakespeare Birthplace Museum, of which the undeniable highlight is seeing actors perform excerpts from selected plays out in the garden. Stratford truly is a beautiful place to just have a walk around, but it’s even better for those who choose to immerse themselves in the culture of the town.
Sophie Psaila, Opinion Sub-Editor:
Although I didn’t finish my placement year until mid-August, I made sure to squeeze in my fair share of travels!
First stop was Northumberland, for a week of beautiful countryside hikes and more pub trips than I care to admit. We stayed in Amble, a cosy harbourside town, but most of our time was spent exploring neighbouring villages. Bamburgh Castle was a real highlight, although my most memorable moment was finally seeing a Highland cow (lifelong goal complete). I really enjoyed this trip - nestled away in the heart of Northumberland’s beautiful green fields and surrounded by Geordies, what more could you want?!
From there, I was lucky enough to jet off to Croatia for ten days with my boyfriend. We started in Split, a hub of history and breath-taking architecture. Split has quite the nightlife scene - of course we had to experience the infamous free bar at Crozzies - but we spent most of our time wandering around Diocletian’s Palace and the Green Market. One day we took a boat trip to a nearby island, Trogir, swam in the Blue Lagoon and even snorkelled around a shipwreck. The water here was unreal, it was so blue it was almost green - I’ve never seen anything like it! On our way back into Split, we were met with a storm. Imagine being thrown around by these huge waves all while songs like ‘I Will Survive’ and ‘I’m Still Standing’ blasted from the speakers - it was like some strange fever dream!
Next up was Brač. We stayed in Bol, home to the famous Zlatni Rat (‘Golden Horn’) beach. While this beach was packed with tourists, the island had plenty of hidden gems. My favourite was a tiny beach tucked right beside a monastery.
This little island felt like a secret getaway and the old town was straight out of a medieval fairytale.
Korčula, though, stole the show. This little island felt like a secret getaway and the old town was straight out of a medieval fairytale. I could’ve stayed in Korčula for weeks, just enjoying the incredible beaches and living off of the best ice cream I’ve ever had. We spent a day in Lumbarda, a nearby region covered in vineyards, where we basically did a wine-tasting pub crawl. Grk, a wine exclusive to the island, was the standout - though by that point, after several tastings, everything tasted pretty delicious!
Finally, we made our way down to Dubrovnik. For any Game of Thrones lovers (like myself) this was exactly what you’d imagine it to be like. Endless streets filled with cobbled buildings and beautiful churches. We even did a self-guided tour of filming locations from GoT, and yes, we shamelessly recreated the “shame steps” scene. Speaking of steps, I absolutely was not prepared for the sheer number of stairs we had to climb on this holiday. Every beach trip seemed to involve hiking up what felt like thousands of them. I don’t think my legs will ever forgive me!
Safe to say I packed everything I could into just a couple of weeks! Definitely a nice change of scenery after a year of office life. But now I couldn't be more excited to settle back into uni life at Newcastle - welcome (back)!!