Feeling isolated and bored on my summer holiday..

My first year at uni has come to an end, and I now have a very long (4 month) summer holiday of nothing to do at all. What makes it worse is that my mum's home is in the middle of nowhere (in the middle of the country), and I don't drive, so I have to rely on a bus service that goes by my house every hour. The nearest town is about 10 minutes away - which is very small, and only has a few shops there. I have to travel an hour to get to any proper civilization.

I also have no friends near my home, therefore socialising is difficult. I live in an area where it is extremely difficult to get paid work too, and there are limited volunteering opportunities available.

Anyway, I just wanted some advice/suggestions on how I can get through my summer holiday..... Thank you

Just go out and enjoy nature!

Hi leafystar, welcome.

I would maybe look at the 10 minute town to at least keep you active or depending on your confidence go the hour trip.

Make this a regular thing to not only stimulate the mind but your also getting fresh air and excercise.

Regards Darryl

leafystar said:

My first year at uni has come to an end, and I now have a very long (4 month) summer holiday of nothing to do at all. What makes it worse is that my parents home is in the middle of nowhere (in the middle of the country), and I don't drive, so I have to rely on a bus service that goes by my house every hour. The nearest town is about 10 minutes away - which is very small, and only has a few shops there. I have to travel an hour to get to any proper civilization (where my university is based).

I also have no friends near my home, so therefore socialising is difficult. I live in an area where it is extremely difficult to get paid summer work too, and the volunteering opportunities here are nothing I would fancy doing.

I find when i'm trapped inside the house for a few days, I start to get really introverted, and if an opportunity finally arises to get out of the house I get really anxious about it.


Anyway, I just wanted some advice/suggestions on how I can get through this painfully long summer holiday...... Thank you

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From experience, I had the time of my life, right there, after year one, in Reading Uni, and home & family were in Cheltenham, which all meant "in the sticks" for me, comparing to London, but I spent the summer back home, doing a daunting task of selling paintings door-to-door. It feels like being on the Apprentice TV show now. I had to redo my exams before resuming my second year, and was fulfilling to scrape through that one. There's always a big gap between school and not making a profit, and then hurdling over the fence into €£$-making territory, which you might well have done that already by now, but as a giant difference between having a laugh with mates and then having an income, however short-term or brief or a small amount, that is crucial. It's makes at least a clear split between fun and €£$ for the soul, plus independence, and the split can be very different for everyone. For me, it's 90% €£$ and fun later. My time delivering Domino's Pizza was best ever, and the painting meant NOTHING to me. I am in a mess right now, with no income, no matter how determined I am.

Thanks for the ideas!

Hey LeafyStar,

Do you know anyone who works in the 'big town'? You could maybe get a ride there (and back?) with them.. Or check the car-sharing websites (there's even a Facebook app I think!)
(Not sure how safe or normal hitchhiking is where you live, where I live it's quite okay to do it if you know what you're doing... There are hitchhiking forums and info online too, if you wanna check or learn..)
Or see if you can get discounted bus/train tickets etc.

Do you know anyone in the big town you could maybe stay with, at least overnight, or go partying with friends and stay at their place for a weekend or a few days? (Or just visit and go to the seaside etc if you're not into partying etc) Relatives or friends or friends of friends can come handy...

Do you still have a room at the uni? (& are there more moneymaking opportunities there?) Some people stayed at the campus for the summer, found some summer work and/or went to language courses or such...?

Are there any workshops/camps/internships/volunteering or moneymaking opportunities that you would be interested in?
Some jobs/volunteering opportunities come with a place to stay...

Otherwise, you could pick a project or a few - maybe to learn something interesting online, or DIY some neat things etc.? Read books, make furniture/websites/arts'n'crafts.. etc. Start a biz or write novels or whatever you might be interested in... Easier to do when you're still a student and have 'safety' net of 'studying' and not having to earn real money at the time...

If you do need money, check any moneymaking opportunities online or in the better paid areas.. or even go for the lower paid stuff/volunteering, just to get out a bit and meet some people? Some volunteering gigs can look good on CV too or can lead to later paid gigs..

Are there other bored people/students out there? Could you guys organize something? (Some people if bored start a band )
Any kiddies that might need babysitting or someone to play with them? Or tutoring? (If you're up to that?) Do the library or church or local tourist organisation or other organisations organize something? Any touristy places that might need help?

Not sure what your interests are... Even small towns can sometimes surprise with interesting things though... (Or you can 'escape' to bigger cities!! )