Author: Marcus Li

  A filthy swamp in which no fresh water flows in and none flows out. The air is thick and sluggish, too, and the muddy banks emit a stench of century-old decay. The empty bottles, rotten plastic bags, and the forgotten cries of birds and wildlife… In the stifling heat of summer, swarms of flies […]

Urban metropolises often influence us in ways beyond our control. After being swallowed up by the tedious void that is the London traffic congestion, I arrive at Victoria 45 minutes late, having missed my press opening of the new Tate Britain exhibition. The London Underground journey that would otherwise excite a non-Londoner fails to impress […]

So, your student loan has just come in … and has promptly disappeared on your rent. How are you going to survive the arctic winter known as ‘Hilary term’, now that the first term’s ‘care packages’ from home have all been used up? Will it be necessary to wear the same pair of unwashed jeans […]

The turkey has been carved and eaten, the walls of Facebook have been covered with far too many shameless selfies, and everyone has had their share of festivity to last them several months. Now what? For many Oxonians, the transience of time slows down, opening up a dreaded void of slight unease and panic due […]

It’s always helpful, at the end of the year, to look back on the events of the last twelve months, to take stock of how far we have come, and indeed how far we have still to go. With that in mind, I offer my own assessment of the year’s events: the lessons I’ve learned […]

Sometimes it’s good to get out of the library and confront the real world, albeit still in the heart of the Oxford ‘bubble’. Oxford celebrates centuries of history; not least it is reasonably easy to find a unique coffee shop tucked away, with pleasant hustle and bustle, and beautifully worn-out leather armchairs. Café-studying is the […]

Christmas can be stressful, particularly if a significant part of it is spent in an enclosed space with a large number of squealing children, drunken uncles, passive-aggressive parents, and those relatives from the South who never tire of observing how much colder it is up North. With that in mind, I offer my guide to […]