At the moment, there are the so-called May Weeks in Cambridge. Yes, you heard me…. MAY.
In May Week, which is not even a week but usually a longer period of time, students celebrate the end of the academic year. The celebrations used to be in May, before exams started,(hence the name) but apparently end of exams is easier to celebrate than the beginning of them.
There are three types if events a college could organise (sometimes annually, sometimes every two years), and that depends on the college itself: is it old, wealthy, with a lot of students,… then it might organise a May Ball. This is the biggest event possible and (non-dining) tickets cost 155 pounds! The dress code differs from college to college. It might be white tie, black tie, formal, or smart-casual. The catch is that sometimes you have to buy two tickets, because they won’t sell single ones. Also, it is apparently very difficult to get tickets, especially if you want to go to a May Ball from a different college. May Balls are themed as far as I know. The one my college was supposed to have was: Down the rabbit hole (Alice in Wonderland). May Balls may include: a firework, big wheels, unlimited food and drinks, popular bands and DJs, balloon rides, etc.
Students, who don’t grow money trees at home, like me, try to crash these huge and expensive parties (unlike me… did not think about trying until it was too late. stupid me). People try to climb over walls, which are often sprayed with anti-burglar sprays leaving green stains on the climbers clothes, swim to the banks behind the colleges and enter from there, or simply pretend you are a performer and part of the band (which a friend of my friend actually managed!). In the morning, a survivor photo is taken, with everyone who stayed until the end. People queue for ages to enter these balls; my friends came two hours early and were around the 100 people mark in the queue.
Apart from the May Balls, colleges may hold June Events. They are a bit cheaper than May Balls with a fewer attractions.
The third and cheapest event is Garden Party. As far as I know, Garden Parties are free, but there are no attraction and you have to pay for food and drinks. Dress-codes don’t exist, my friends went there in jeans and t-shirts.
Clare Hall wanted to have a May Ball, but as our College is so small, they could not sell enough tickets. They then changed in into a Garden Party, which was more like a small June Event, really. I will tell you about our Garden Party, how I spent about an hour in the toilet, spent no money in the casino, yet won, and a disco that nobody is annoyed by soon, now I have to go punting with my friends…stressful leisure.
secretlifeofangi 