The Saint
Incest anyone?
Katie Macleod commands you to draw up your St Andrews bucket list - before its too late.
ST ANDREWS, THE BUBBLE... Whatever you want to call it, the home of golf has been my home for the past three-plus years. But with (whisper it) less than three months until schools out forever, Ive suddenly become nostalgic. While many fourth years will be turning their thoughts towards the vague and fast approaching concept that is real life, my focus has been smaller, more local: the bucket list. This bucket list is not intended for the end of my days, but the end of my days as a student, my pre-graduation list of all the quintessentially only in St Andrews activities that leave outsiders looking on in confusion. Red gowns anyone?
It all started when I let slip that I had never been to Drouthys. WHAT?! Youve never been to Drouthys? The general reaction was so severe you would think I had just said Id never been to the Bop. The Drouthys episode got me wondering what else had I omitted from my only-in-St Andrews experience? A lot, as it turns out. My personal bucket list currently sits at a to-do total of 16. And yes, drinks at Drouthys are top of that list. It seems Im not alone. The Facebook group 101 Things To Do Before You Leave St Andrews has over 800 members, and countless wall posts that cover everything from beach bonfires to academic incest, Janettas ice cream to KFB delicacies. My particular favourite is number 46 on the suggested list: try to drunkenly catch a Kinburn park rabbit.
Drunken desires aside, there are of course the essentials. Raisin Weekend and academic families are such institutions they barely require a mention; the same goes for the May Dip, although I do know a fourth year or two who have yet to get their feet wet on a cold May morning. Theres the Sunday morning pier walk, the Kate Kennedy procession (which doubles as a good university history lesson), and the love-hate relationship most of us have with the Bop. Après exam activities like the pier jump and the ritual water attack of final year students by their academic offspring are a fun (read freezing) way to round off the year.
St. Andrews has hidden haunts too, and more than the three streets we see en route to class. Craigtoun Park is a two mile walk away, while the Botanic Gardens are located just behind Ladebraes, a destination in itself. A reliable source informs me that the museum in Kinburn Park is home to a cute cafe now you know where to go when there are no seats in Starbucks.
Then there are activities that arent technically in St Andrews, but are considered vital student experiences nonetheless. Skipping the queue at Fat Sams in Dundee on a Wednesday night or devouring the famous fish and chips in nearby Anstruther qualify in this case.
Listen to your elders: four years fly by. Don your gown and head to the Castle; it is free, after all, and tourists will want to take photos with you. Walk the length of West Sands, or run like Chariots of Fire just dont get caught by the tide! Wait until it warms up and go putting on the Himalayas (or partake in a spot of pub golf if you prefer). Show up fashionably late for FS or Dont Walk. How many other universities showcase Chanel next to student threads?
And instead of hurrying away from the aspiring actors outside the library, pick up a ticket and sample some student theatre at the Byre. Take afternoon tea at the Old Course Hotel, walk along the Scores and climb St Rules tower for that panoramic postcard view. The list could go on and on; I know mine does.
It doesnt matter if youre in your first or final year, if you frequent the Lizard or the library: just make sure you make the most of what St Andrews has to offer. So forget about bursting out of the Bubble break into it.
