It was a sunny day at the Kralingse Plas, but do not let that fool you. In reality, it was freezing cold at about 10 degrees celsius. Yet, it was the most perfect time for two student associations, Extraordinary Life and Erasmus Extreme, to finally host their annual Polar Bear Dive. Last year, they had to postpone the tradition due to corona restrictions being in place, but now the Polar Bear Dive can finally happen. Our reporter Adinda Khairunnisa changed into her bathing suit and decided to join in the ice cold festivities. How hard can it be?
Cold as hell
Eve Whittaker, a board member of Erasmus Extreme, explained the importance of the tradition of the Polar Bear Dive. “It’s just to experience something new and it is good for your immune systems as well.” Daniel Kamp, an economics student, shared his initial reaction after getting out of the water. “Honestly, it is amazing. Cold as hell!” Matteo Forghieri, another board member of Erasmus Extreme, added that he might go for another dip at the lake.
It was my first experience jumping into a freezing cold lake and safe to say it was not as bad as I thought it would be. It was definitely very cold, yet having other students coming together to celebrate this tradition made it very doable. In the end, I took three dips at the lake with the other students which left me with numb feet, yet a very proud self. Afterwards, we all went to get some nice hot chocolate to calm our bodies down from the cold.
So, how hard can it be? Just a 4 out of 10. Overall, it was an amazing experience and I would definitely do it again next year.
