Written by Marina
08 Mar 2016
Hello again, readers! Today I will talk a little bit more about life in Uppsala. And I must say that there is no life in Uppsala without the student nations.
Ok, that was me being very dramatic and exaggerated. But it is indeed true that the nations have much to do with social life in Uppsala, since they offer very interesting services for students like, just to quick mention: cheap food, housing, work opportunity and, of course, PARTIES. Every start of the semester they open for new students to join and for the old students to change nations or still be in the same. You pay a fee every semester for your nation card that is required in every event they have. But if you belong to a nation you can go to all the others, so no pressure! haha
So there are 13 nations, that exist since the 17 century, so it’s kind of a tradition here. They are: Stockholms Nation, Gotlands Nation, Västgöta Nation, Östgöta Nation, Gästrike-Hälsinge Nation (known as GH) , Göteborgs Nation, Värmlands Nation, Norrlands Nation, Uplands Nation, Kalmar Nation, Södermanlands-Nerikes nation (aka Snerikes), Västmanlands-Dala (also known as V-Dala) and Smålands nation. All of them have different types of food, parties and clubs for example, but all made by students for students.
So starting with food, cause it’s a personal favorite haha. All the nations have some type of restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch or fika (sometimes just two of them or all). Some of them have pancakes as their specialty or a delicious soup for example, but the best part is the price! Everything is very cheap, so eat in the nations are the first option for any student in Uppsala.
The plus or being a part in a nation? You can work there! Not something that will pay all of your expenses, don’t go for that. But as a way to be social, meet new people and get some working experience and get a free lunch or a little bit of money in the end of the day. Another plus is accommodation! The nations (not sure if all of them) have accommodations for their members to apply, you just need to be part of the nation and check the requirements.
When it comes to parties (the most famous ones are Snerikes on Tuesdays, Stockholms on Thursdays and Värmlands on Fridays), the nations have themes, cheaper alcohol, cool people and music for every ears. You can choose what you want, from a dance floor to a pub, or to hip-hop to pop, it doesn’t matter, you will find one that pleases you.
On top of all, all the nations have cool buildings, some of them really old and some of them quite modern, full of rooms and space for you to hang out or study. I just realized after writing this how much of my student life is affected by the nations and I think this is awesome.
