Surviving Your First Year in London
17th June 2018Moving to London is a dream for many and to those of you who have joined us, we welcome you! Moving to London is exciting and every day is filled with a new little surprise. Whether you have come over from somewhere else in the UK or abroad, London is uniquely, unique.
Surviving your first year in London can be a little hectic, but don’t you worry because we’re here with some tips by people who have done it themselves.
1. Yes. We have two dials on the oven. One to control temperature and the other to switch to different oven settings. How did you ever live with just the one by the way?
2. The ‘Tube’ is not a weird saying Londoners say here and there. When we say we’re ‘taking the tube’ it means we’re getting on the London Underground (or Overground).
3. Surviving the tube is a whole thing. Remember these rules:
- Avoid eye contact at all costs.
- Shove and shove hard.
- Wait for people to get off the tube before you get on. However, ensure you have rule number 2 in the back of your mind at all times.
- Bring water. The tube journeys are often a mission and things get hot and uncomfortable. Make sure you have something on you to drink.
4. Google the words ‘Leicester Square’ and ‘Holborn’ before you arrive just because it’s likely you’ll say it wrong. Pronunciation here in London is little odd.
5. You will have a local by the end of month 1.
6. A ‘Local’ is the closest pub to where you are living. We have ‘Locals’ here because Londoners love a pint. You’ll feel that one too after about month 2.
7. There are way too many things to do in London and you are always spoilt by choice. Just make sure you do everything before midnight because London is also Cinderella. This is probably the reason we start drinking early here…
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8. Your bank account will break up with you. It’s cool, it wasn’t really working anyway. Credit cards are just way more understanding.
9. On the total flip side, you’ll find a bunch of free stuff to do in London anyway so you can probably balance it out. Unless you end up at your local again afterward…
10. Living in London is the best thing you could do (we think). It’s filled with amazing venues, food, culture and the people are what make this city great. Your first year in London is going to be an adjustment but don’t worry at all because you’ll get into the rhythm of things quick. If in doubt, pop along to a Thinking Bob event and get the low down on how to meet people and get the most out of living in London – by the people already doing it.
