Pure Shore

If you've got access to a car, or don't mind hiring one then the best beach to visit by far is Holkham. It's my favourite beach in the UK and only an hours drive from Norwich. The beach was used for filming for Shakespeare in Love and the All Saints music video 'Pure Shores'. Stately Holkham Hall was also the setting for Keira Knightley's film The Duchess. This is not surprising, as the beach is breathtaking, and the sand seems endless after you've emerged from the board walks of the woodland track. The beach is one of the countries largest nature reserves, so fortunately there are no tacky shops around to ruin it's natural beauty. There are numerous sand dunes to explore and get lost in, and due to the sheer expanse of space, it never feels crowded. Sometimes horses gallop across the beach. I would recommend visiting Holkham not only in the summer, but on an autumn evening to watch the sunset, when if your lucky you can be the only one on the beach.

Hit the roof in Bedfords

Bedfords bar is hidden down Bedford Street, in Old Post Office Yard. In the summer they have a nice outside courtyard, but in the winter there is nothing better but to grab a drink and cosy on down on a sofa amongst the inticing timber and beams of the loft bar. 

If your after something more gothic, then idylic then take the stairs down to the basement and into the stony Crypt bar for a completely different but equally unique setting in the middle of Norwich city centre.

Put down your books, and head to The Library

The Library - is a lovely and popular restaurant great for family occasions, dates and graduation meals. The entrance on Guildhall Hill, is grand and proper, it definately feels like a step up from other mainstream Norwich eateries. The listed building still has books adorning the walls, reminiscent of when it served as a real library. The prices are affordable and they offer good deals throughout the day. For example at lunch they offer a limited selection of mains, starters and deserts with one course for £6.95,  two for £9.45 and three for £11.95. They also do burger hour (6-7pm Mon-Fri), where you can get a mammouth burger, chips, and a wine or a small beer for £9.50. Otherwise mains set you back around £10-15. If you have a sweet tooth then I would highly recommend sharing the Chocolate Fondue which comes to your table with pineapple, pretzels, marshmallows, banana and profiteroles.

Boardgames at the Birdcage

For a  quirky and cosy pub in the centre of Norwich head along cobbled Pottergate to The Birdcage. Its a friendly and quaint pub where you can take a book, study or simply hang out with friends. In the evenings it's often packed with a variety of events going on throughout the week, from live music to pub quizzes. I prefer to go here during the day when it's quieter, with my favourite beverage being one of their fantastic hot chocolate's (complete with marshmellows of course). The Birdcage has a large range of boardgames on offer so it is rather novel to pick one out, and play away the afternoon.

Dine in Style at Yellows

Yellows is based in Carrow Road -  the local Norwich Football ground, and it is a sleek American Diner. It feels pretty upmarket with the layout and design, but the prices are pretty decent and definately within a student budget. They do a great £5 lunch menu (Mon- Fri 12pm-2pm) which changes on a weekly basis; here is the current weeks offerings:

Californian Style Fish Cake
served with Coriander & Lime Tartare Sauce and Chunky Fries

Sticky BBQ Chicken and Lettuce Wrap
served with Skinny Fries

Jacket Potatoes
Filled with your choice of two of the following:
Coleslaw; Grated Cheese; Tuna Mayonnaise, Heinz Baked Beans, Homemade Boston Baked Beans or Chilli Con Carne (with a 50p supplement)

The week I went ribs were on the lunch menu and wow, did they deliver! The burgers are also excellent, and most mains are priced between £8 and £12. Check out the full menu here. Every monday from 5pm they also offer a bowl of chilli, rice , tacos and a drink for just £6!


If you are looking for a meal at somewhere different, then support the Canaries, and go to Yellows. Getting there is easy, just stay on the 25 or 35 while it goes round the back of the station, and jump off as soon as Carrow Road comes into view.

Pop in to Norwich Castle for a £1

Norwich castle does a great offer where if you visit in the last hour before closing, you get in for a quid. Which is good, as the normal adult admission price is currently £6.60. While it is a bit of a push to see all the exhibitions in an hour, you can always come again, and it is a nice afternoon activity when you are looking for something out of the ordinary to do.  
Walking around you find out about the castle keep, how it used to be a prison,  and you can don various ridiculous outfits. There are plenty of exhibitions, from Boudica, to Egyptian, Anglo-saxon and Viking; there is even a section on the wildlife in the Norfolk broads. While some of the exhibitions seem quite random and a little out of place, the building is impressive, and it is an interesting way to spend an hour, especially as it only costs a pound!

Cheapest Roast in the East

Head down to the Town House in Thorpe St Andrew for the cheapest roast in the East, priced at £3.89 (Monday-Saturday) for a full on carvery -you really can't complain. Except maybe about the other kind of clientele that these prices/restaurant attracts. You get a choice of meats and help yourself to spuds, veg, sauces and gravy. A great place for an alternative and cheap christmas meal with friends, its also a nice place to come to in the summer as the Town House is situated on the bank of the river Wensum. Just a short drive away from Norwich rail station, jump onboard the number 24 or 12B bus in Norwich centre, in order get to the quaint little village and bargain grub.

Boat your way down the broads

Without a doubt this is my favourite activity to do in Norfolk. A mere 15 minute train ride or 30 minute car journey from Norwich, and you arrive in Hoveton and Wroxham. Or should I say Roy's of Wroxham. Roy must be very rich, for he owns a department store, a large supermarket complete with its own mcdonalds, a gardening store, a children's shop, a women's clothes shop and a toyshop in a village with a row of shops, that are of comparable size to the row on Unthank Road.  In fact it's quite fun playing 'spot a shop that doesn't belong to Roy'.
 



Forgetting Roy, the main purpose of a trip to  Wroxham is to rent a boat out on the broads.With  Fineway leisure you can rent out a variety of 2-12 seater orange boats. If there is enough of you it normally works out around 6/7 quid a head which is ridiculously cheap for a whole day out on the water.

After a quick safety talk and instructions on how to use the boat, you are let loose on the broads! Now its time to navigate the gear stick, the wheel and broads all by yourself. Unfortunately it only really goes upto 7mph but trust me the speed doesn't stop you from cruising into the banks, trees and weeds.

You have to navigate around sailing boats who weave across your path, and the biggest challenge is finding a mooring/parking when you fancy a drink/pub lunch. Oh and not forgetting the fun and challenge of finding your way back to the launch site of course. As you make your way down the waterways there are windmills and impressive houses to nose at, complete with boat garages. A pub I would recommend for a stop off would be the Swan Inn, as it serves great food and drinks at a relatively good price, and has outside seating where you can watch the boats go by on the bank at Horning. An excellent day out, a day on the broads is an essential and exciting experience for all. After you've disembarked the Kings Head by the mini roundabout in Wroxham is well worth a visit too.

Shoot 'em up at Quasar

Transport yourself back to being a kid again, and hit up Quasar Elite on St Stephens Road (just off of the main roundabout by Iceland). Split yourself into teams, protect your base and strive to be top gun! Luckily they still hand out the catty score printouts after so you know whose been attacking you, especially those on your own team. It's a great laugh and a pretty good set up inside, with plenty of alcoves, barrels to hide behind and a raised bridge to spy on your prey from. They offer a great student deal whereby two games are a fiver (Mon-Fri before 4pm). Its a great activity for a rainy day or a birthday celebration.

Waffle on in St Giles Street

 The Waffle House on St Giles Street is always popular and rampacked, and for good reason. Before coming, I was unsure I would like a waffle as a savoury main, but the bolognaise waffle proved me otherwise. The savoury combinations are a little out there, for example the humous, rocket and avacado waffle, asian tuna salad waffle, or you can even go for a vegetable curry waffle; however all are executed with perfection.  The puddings are definately were it's at though, in particular I would recomend the Chocolate Mousse with banana and chocolate flakes.



Another excellent waffle for the sweet toothed is the hot dutch apple - guaranteed to warm you up on a cold winter day. What's great is they do 10% student discount and offer a £6.60 two course lunch menu. This limits your choice of waffles, but it's excellent value and often includes the favourites (the lunch menu is available Mon-Fri 11am-4pm).

Tee-Time in Eaton Park

Got a couple of hours to spare? Challenge yourself to complete the 18 holes in Eaton Park's Pitch and Putt. It even has bunkers! And lots of trees to inevitably lose your balls in. For just over a fiver, its a great laugh and way to spend an afternoon. Open throughout winter you can pay, hire clubs, balls and tees from the little hut by the University corner of the park. For updated prices and details click here. Good luck!

A taste of Italiano in Norwich

Wow was I happy when I found this quaint little delicatessen, Amaretto.  It is relatively hidden down the cobbled St Georges street (Delaneys is on the corner and it is opposite St Andrews church). At Amaretto you can get a pizza slice almost the size of your face for £1.90. With a range of toppings, grab a slice fresh out of the oven (I recommend the chorizo and red onion one).

If your not in the mood for pizza, they do a range of gorgeous looking baguettes, sausage rolls, cakes and various other fresh and tempting offerings. But I assure you, go for the pizza - you will not be disapointed.

Seal there is to see at the Beach

Jump aboard a 35 minute direct train from Norwich, and you will arrive to the smell of fresh salt air, blue seas, and white glistening sand. The destination: Great Yarmouth. I will admit that the town does live up to the attached stigma and seems a little run down and tacky.  However the beach is lush, and you can get chips in a cone off the market for a quid! There is so much to do, and in the end like everywhere, it's what you do/make it that counts.


Walking down the bustling Regent Road there are the usual seaside tack stores, selling buckets, sticks of rock and I <3 GY tees. Tickles joke shop with the man chundering in a toxic bucket outside is my personal favourite. At number 18 Regent Road there is even a mini- maddame toussads in the form of  Louis Tussauds House of Wax.

Check out the pier, the rides and the arcades. Watch kids ride donkeys or the oldies with their metal detectors hoping for a good find. Play a game of adventure golf, buy a picnic for the beach at the ASDA next to the train station, or grab some fresh fish and chips. The shopping centre isn't bad either with most of the main shops including topshop, new look and Miss Selfridges.

The best thing and what I would highly suggest you do on your visit to Great Yarmouth is catch a boat to Scroby Sands to see the grey seal colony. Scoby Sands was one of the first commercial offshore wind farms in the UK and houses 30 turbines. It is now also home to a large seal colony, who come right up to the boat, and are a delight to watch.

You catch the boat, on the beach just right of the main pier.

Paris in 48 hours!

For a whirlwind, all encompassing perfect 48 hours in the City of Lights or the city of Lurrrve then follow this guide!

Start your morning (from around 8am) in the Latin Quarter, and from the bottom of Rue Mouffetard all the way up to 

Time for a Thai

Want a cheap bite to eat in Norwich? Of asian persuasion? Check out Totally Thai, 8 Orford Hill  (opposite Primark on St. Stephens). I went to Totally Thai for the £5.95 (includes main course and rice) lunch menu, and the thai green chicken curry was to die for (ask for mild if you cant handle the heat). For the adventurous, try Pat Gap Pau, which bursts with hot, sweet and melt in your mouth chilli flavour.  While the evening menu is obviously more pricey, I would definately recommend checking totally thai out, for all types of occasions. The restaurant is small and cosy, (as you can see in the picture) and it fills up quickly come lunchtime. In the summer I was pleased to discover the secret garden and rooftop terrace through the back of the restaurant; which is like an oasis of calm off of one of the busiest shopping streets in Norwich.