You don’t want to jump into a pool until you’ve stuck in your toe to test the water temperature, right? So when it comes to moving to a new city, it’s but natural that you should spend time on research and strategising. You’ve got to figure out everything from scratch – the neighbourhood, the house, the job or college, and if you could, the people. While you’ll definitely need some flexibility to adapt to a new city, the one factor you need to watch out for is expenses. Because after shelling out large amounts on rent, packing, travel, not to mention that deposit your landlord wouldn’t compromise on, arranging all your utilities and the many miscellaneous expenses tied to the cost of living in Chennai or any other big city, you probably haven’t got much money left over to splurge with friends. Of course, you don’t want to become a total loner and stop going out altogether. So what can you do to hold onto a healthy social circle?
Well, fret not, because we’ve got some of the best ideas for inexpensive and fun things you can do with your friends. Check them out below!
Movie Night
Host a movie night, and make the most of the experience with popcorn and beverages. This is far cheaper than going to a movie theater, but often so much more enjoyable. You can easily stream your favourite movie on an online streaming service, or even buy it off YouTube for a very reasonable sum. If you’re old-school, why not break out one of your classic DVDs and fire up your DVD or Bluray player. After that, all that’s left to do is to kick back on your couch and watch your favourite film. Pop some popcorn and have a few beverages, and it’s still light years cheaper than any theater experience would be. Plus you don’t have to worry about strangers walking around in the middle of the show or talking too loudly.
Host a Dinner Party
The idea is simple, but it’ll leave you feeling super fancy. Live out all your adulting dreams by hosting a dinner party at your house for a group of friends, preparing the whole meal from scratch. But we don’t want you to be the only one putting in the work. So why not make it a dinner party circle so that each friend takes on the same project over a period of time, hosting a dinner for the whole group and flexing their cooking chops. It’ll work out cost-effective for the entire group. All you have to do is invest the cost of one large meal and the few hours of prep time, and then you’ll have a free invite to a bunch of dinner parties in the future with a group of people that you enjoy hanging out with.
Break out the board games
This is a great option to try, especially if you’re starting to make new groups of friends and want to bring them all together. With a board game or a card game, there’s enough flexibility to suit a wide range of interests. Depending on your budget, you can start off from inexpensive games that just require an ordinary deck of playing cards and are quick to learn, or branch out and play epic games that take an entire day. If you and your group like themes, you can even choose games that suit your fancy. The possibilities are endless! Just remember that the true fun of a board or card game is the people that you play it with. So don’t let a controversial game of Monopoly destroy your friendship – we’ve heard it can happen!
Go geocaching.
Adventure junkies, listen up. Did you think that thrill-seeking always comes at a price? Well, think again. Geocaching is a simple activity that you can enjoy for free as long as you have a GPS. A geocache is a little box or container that a person has hidden at a specific location. The game works the same way as a treasure hunt, on a more adventurous scale. You just go to a website like Geocaching.com and find your nearest geocache. Then you simply enter the coordinates for this into your phone and make your way there. You might end up at a tourist spot, wandering around a park or along a fence line or in any number of unusual places until you find it, but it’ll be an experience to remember. When you find the geocache, you can add it to your list of “found” caches on the website and sign the log inside the container. Not only is this a fun one-time activity, it can be quite addicting. Try it, maybe geocaching will end up becoming your group’s new weekend tradition!
Try a role playing game.
There’s nothing quite like chilling with your friends, swapping outrageous stories, right? So try making a game out of it! A role playing game is just a way to tell a story together. The most famous one, Dungeons and Dragons, is all about collaboratively telling a fantasy-themed story, and the rules are freely available online. If you were a Potterhead growing up, you’ll probably love this one. And if you’re not a huge fan of rule-following, go on and try an easier one like Fiasco, which only requires some blank notecards and some six sided dice to play. These types of games are great because they can be as unique as your imagination. So let those creative juices flow.
Go to a free community event.
Need an escape from your PG/hostel in Chennai that won’t break the bank? Why not check out your local newspapers, colleges etc for free events going on in your community. During the year, there are countless free concerts, group meetings, speeches, museums, art gallery openings, and other things going on that you might not hear about but that can provide you with a ton of entertainment for free. Of course, if you choose a managed accommodation provider like Stanza Living, you won’t even have to go in search of such events. Their vibrant community programme involves movie screenings, music evenings, game nights and more that you can be a part of without paying a dime.
Now that you’ve these options, you’ll never have to let your budget limit your social life again. So go on, call your friends and get ready for some weekend fun!
