Half of the summer is gone in a split second. For me first of June was like yesterday. Time flies so fast.

I can probably say on behalf of lots of people, that summer doesn’t feel like a proper summer this year, and that many people don’t enjoy it as much, due to the whole situation in the world. However, the restrictions are lifted in most of the countries, and even if you can’t travel abroad, it doesn’t mean you can’t have some fun and enjoy the warm days where you live. If we look at this with a “glass is half full” perception, we still have around 40 days of summer. To be honest, I can’t wait for the summer to end, so I can finally enjoy my most favorite season and time of the year, nevertheless there’s still some time to that, so making a small bucket list of things to do would be reasonable. And if your borders are still closed and you don’t have a beach and sea around, here are some fun ideas of what to do in summer while keeping the safety rules.

Have a picnic. Pick a day, when it’s not too hot, prepare some snacks and enjoy a little picnic in the park or in the wilderness of nature. If you want your picnic to be a little more fancy and creative, pay attention to the details-a red plaid blanket, a traditional picnic basket, some candles and fairy lights. You can prepare a cheeseboard, or go for sweets-fruits and cupcakes. There are so many beautiful ideas on pinterest to get inspired. If your picnic lasts until late evening, you can have a bonfire (if it’s permitted in the area). Roast some marshmallows, play guitar and sing, cozy up.

Do yoga outside. This can also be in a park, in early morning or late evening, when the air’s chill and fresh. After yoga, doing meditation or having a little tea ceremony would be very pleasing.

If you’re more an active sport lover, ditch the boring gym, remember your childhood and play some games: volleyball, basketball, football, rugby, badminton… You don’t have to be professional at it, you can even make up your own rules. A great way to spend fun time and keep fit. Another idea-rolling. By that I mean rollerblading, skating, riding a bicycle. And if for other activities you’d need some company, this one you can do all on your own. If you don’t know any of these, it’s right time to learn it. Same for driving a car. If you haven’t got a license yet, spend this time wisely and learn it. It’ll be both beneficial and fun. And once you learn to drive, or if you already know it, have a road trip. Not necessarily a long and far one. You can always find something beautiful and worth seeing nearby: a beautiful field, church or temple, some mountains or lake. Make a summer list of songs, have your own carpool karaoke and enjoy the ride. You can also go hiking or camping. Spending time in nature is always a good idea, whether you choose the active side, or just a chill low-key day in the woods. And if you find a little lake or a river, it’s a great opportunity to unwind from all the city rush and cool down from the hot weather. Also it’s so relaxing just sitting and watching the water.

Go to attraction park, ride roller coasters, merry-go-rounds or other carousels, try the go-kartings, eat some cotton candies, try your shooting skills in tyre, or take part in other contests with prizes.

In summer the night sky is usually brighter, with no clouds to cover it up. And there are different celestial events in summer months, a meteor shower, eclipse, a planet parade etc. So you can either go to planetarium, if there’s one in your country, find a telescope and observe the sky, or just plain star gaze. Remember, sky looks much clearer out of the cities, where there’s no city smog. If there’s no possibility for that, you can find a roof, have little picnic in there, and enjoy the shooting stars.

Now let’s go home, and see what we can do in there. Throw a party, not necessarily a big one, just a few friends around. You can have a theme party, a tropical one for example, with all the proper food, decorations, music and of course a dress code. You can make your place look like a little club or pub, and enjoy a Friday night with some fancy drinks and dancings. Summer is the best time to try different recipes with fruits and vegetables and be a little healthier: fresh juices, smoothies, homemade fruit ice cream or snow-cone, acai bowls, lemonade, fruit cakes, veggie sandwiches…Most recipes are really easy, so find the recipes online, make them and invite some friends over to enjoy them.

A movie marathon is always a good idea. There’s something interesting and fun in watching series the whole day, eating junk food and being lazy. Pick a series of movies or even a tv-show. Rewatch your old favorites or start a new series, there are lots of good mini shows, having only 6-10 episodes. Or you can find your old cassette tapes and watch them with your family, remember the good old times.

Last but not least capture the moment. Whether you have a polaroid camera, video camera or just your phone, try to capture every moment, so that you’ll have many memories later. Don’t keep the photos just in your phone, print them, the actual photographs are so much more valuable and enjoyable to watch. You can make an album or scrapbook, and add all the photos, tickets and other things that will remind you of this summer. Also if you love taking photos have a photoshoot, not necessarily a professional one. Pick a place, prepare some photo ideas in your head, an outfit and make-up and you’re good to go.

Remember you can always have fun no matter what. It’s never about the big things, organize some little events and days, and enjoy every second of it. Be spontaneous, do not plan beforehand for days and weeks, summer is that time of the year to be more flexible and spontaneous at your decisions. Kids enjoy holidays, because they don’t plan, they don’t need anything too fancy, they just enjoy every minute spending outside and playing, every movie/cartoon they watch, basically everything they do. It’s right time to learn that from them and have a wonderful summer.