A first year university student's lockdown guide to Norwich
Imagine leaving home for university in an unknown city in the middle of a pandemic. Maisy Wyeth did just that.

One of my favourite things to do on my daily walks has been trying to find graffiti animals around the city. After finding a rather amusing ‘dog’ and my friend finding a corresponding ‘lizard’, we have started a mission to find them all, although we don’t quite know what or where. It has been great fun and something we would definitely recommend. So far we have found a dog, lizard, emu, hedgehog and duck between us – although some of these have been cleaned away, so be quick!

My personal highlight of exploring the fine city, especially in the evenings, is walking along the river and seeing Norwich Cathedral, a beautiful 900-year old structure with a complex history that you can currently take a tour of. If you venture up to Mousehold (one of Norwich’s highest points) at sunset, you can see the beautiful cathedral lit up along with stunning views of the whole city.

Living a bit further north has made me lucky enough to be able to walk around Mousehold Heath. At times it feels a bit like a Centre Parks, so is a nice trick to make it feel as though I am on holiday!

When the weather is brighter it has been lovely to walk around Eaton Park with a cuppa from the café and I look forward to spending more sunny days there.

Although I am still yet to check out the more famous coffee shops, such as Bread Source (don’t worry, it is on the top of my list), I am a big fan of The Merchants House, especially with their £1 student takeaways!  And even if I am not a coffee drinker, every time I pass a Kofra it does make me wish I did as they look so inviting especially with their snazzy cups.

I have been lucky enough to get down to the Bowling House when it’s been open and despite breaking a lane, it was a night well spent!

When things are able to open again, I am eager to check out Cinema City. It’s a small multi-screen cinema showing art house films alongside timeless classics and I’ll make the most of the bargain student tickets. After seeing so many others along the river, I’m also looking forward to hiring a canoe from Pub and Paddle on a sunny day to explore the parts of Norwich I am yet to see.

Some may say that moving to Norwich between lockdowns and various tier restrictions was a silly thing to do but it’s been a great city to be a student in even without the usual uni shenanigans.

About the Author

Maisy Wyeth

Maisy is originally from Leicester but currently lives in Norwich as an Architecture Student.