Botanic Avenue is fucking amazing. I know it. You know it. The culchies from the Holylands who travel here to fill up their Boojum cards know it.

Botanic Avenue is quite literally the best place to live if you’re studying in Belfast – far enough away from the Holylands that you can sleep when you need to but close enough that you can party. Food, drink, things to do – Bot has it all.

Ever stumbled drunkenly to your home on Botanic at night and noticed there are both a pizza company and a chip company round the corner from you? Both of them serve until two o’clock in the morning too. If you’re not a Botanic resident, you were undoubtably there earlier in the day and willingly stood in the queue longer than the Fly in Freshers’ week – and you probably picked up a Boojum for your troubles.

But the fast food joints aren’t the only places that make Botanic beaut. If you’re feeling like a hipster you could go for a proper meal in Maggie Mays, or order the exact same food at a slightly lower quality in Ruby’s next door.

If you’re feeling exotic, you could sneak up to the Moghul – one of the best Indians in Belfast city. But prepare to take a chunk out of your student loan. It’s no Happy Meal. If you feeling like something exotic at a much cheaper price, try Falafel. It’s better than a Boojum, trust me.

“After all that feeding, what can I do next?” I hear you ask. Watering of course, and Botanic has lots of it.

Head to the Empire for a pint or a bourbon, or a pint of bourbon and a coke if you have five fifty. Here you can watch everything from comedy to music. You can take a date to Rab McCullough’s legendary blues night on a Thursday and she can tell you how it’s funny because her dad likes this sort of music (true story). On a Monday night they run a pub quiz, be warned though, it’s the same team who win it every single week. Cheating bastards.

And if you get bored of the old fashioned cool of Empire, head to Madison’s during happy hour for cocktails cheaper than a large chip at Chip Co. The cocktails are three pound and delicious. There’s everything from tasty and girly, to disgusting yet manly, so you’re spoiled for choice. And there’s always Molly’s Yard if you feel like pretending you don’t study at Queen’s.

One of the best parts about Botanic is how ridiculously close to Queen’s it is. You can leave for lectures at 10.01 and make it there before the lecturer is done giving out handouts. The route from Botanic to Queen’s allows you to pass the poor souls waiting for the uni link bus. Imagine having to get up early for your class to sit in an hour of traffic and after the long journey the only reward you get is that you’re in Jordanstown. It doesn’t bear thinking about.

What about Botanic Gardens? It’s in Botanic, isn’t it?

Of course Botanic’s in Botanic, you already knew that you cheeky bastard. The Gardens aren’t bad considering they’re a stones throw away from the ‘lands. Day drinking in Botanic Gardens is a rite of passage usually the result of one of two scenarios: “Yay lectures are over” or “I have completely fucked my exams and may have to go UUJ”.

Botanic has it all, I dare you to say otherwise.