Our decision to move to London for at least 2 years and combine work with travelling around Europe; had been inspired by friends taking this leap (and us becoming jealous of all the amazing places they had visited) and also to challenge ourselves to live in another city on the other side of the world.London became our choice over Canada or Singapore as it would also be a good launching pad for travel around Europe to see all the historic sites that we had read about books or seen in documentaries.
Our arrival into Heathrow airport was memorable due to the number of tissues Mei used after a sudden allergic reaction 3 hours before landing in London. This resulted in a red nose that would have made Rudolph proud, and due to the drop in air-temperature that felt like heading face-first into an ice-chest, we wrapped ourselves up in all the jumpers worn onto the plane to save on check-in luggage weight. Our first taste of coffee in London was at Costas and we realised we needed larger sized wallets as the GBP note is wider (and made of flimsy paper) as opposed to the more streamlined plastic Aussie banknote. After tasting the coffee, we started to miss the Melbourne variety and the conversion back made us realise that things in the UK might be a bit pricey.
When our plane arrived into Heathrow airport we were fortunate that it was outside peak hour and we brushed through immigration, baggage claim and customs relatively quickly. We were thankful that our luggage arrived together, unlike our experience at KL airport where we had foolishly forgotten to tag our bag and someone had pinned a Thai Airways 'heavy luggage' tag it it and when located it was in a queue to be deported to the Middle East. We were able to identify it using the small luggage barcode stickers but in hindsight, in all future trips we aim to use ribbons or even coloured plastic bags wrapped around the handle as identifiers. So as a tip to future travellers - write your name on your suitcase and be nice to airport staff, they are trying to help even though they have no idea where your luggage is, but they will try and convince you that they have it all under control.
Touchdown in Battersea
One of Mei's relatives, 'uncle' Collin had organised for a minicab to pick us up from the airport and deliver us to his apartment in Battersea where we would be staying on his air mattress until more permanent accommodation was found. We soon fell asleep as we struggled to adjust to the time zone. The change to GMT+0 was difficult for our body clocks and for the next few days we got up before 4am, although some alcohol also helped us to sleep in.
London Life Essentials
London Life Essentials
Before we started hunting for permanent accommodation, we needed to get ourselves sorted for public transport and we purchased the all important Oyster card from Victoria station. Whilst we were in Australia we had attended an information night organised by UK immigration specialists - 1st Contact and we purchased their UK Kickstart package to help set up a bank account, national insurance number and UK SIM. It is quite difficult to set up these essential items independently if you are unemployed and do not have a permanent London address.
London Underground
We then started to work out the maze that is the London Underground, installing the tube map onto our phones as a handy reference. We learnt quickly that the 'slow' lane on the escalator is on the right; and not the left as it is in Melbourne. It is also best to avoid sightseeing during peak times as we are both below average height and get squashed quite easily. There is also the ever present PA announcement to 'mind the gap' at every station.
London Underground
We then started to work out the maze that is the London Underground, installing the tube map onto our phones as a handy reference. We learnt quickly that the 'slow' lane on the escalator is on the right; and not the left as it is in Melbourne. It is also best to avoid sightseeing during peak times as we are both below average height and get squashed quite easily. There is also the ever present PA announcement to 'mind the gap' at every station.
First Impressions of London
A City of Fast Walkers
Everyone walks faster than they do in Melbourne - sometimes they apologize when they bump into you, sometimes you intentionally have to bump into strangers to push into a bus queue or risk waiting another 5-10 minutes
Food and Eating Out
Public Transport
Food and Eating Out
Fresh food prices are comparable to Melbourne, range is limited at supermarket - convenience stores like Sainsbury Local / Tesco Express but alcohol is cheaper. Pubs have atmosphere and patrons even on a Monday night. We found the staff to be very friendly and when we opened up a Lonely Planet guide in the middle of a Paddington establishment we soon had offers of recommendations from the bar staff.
Public Transport
We love London's transport system - buses run all the time and to our amazement - frequently; the tube gets us quickly to where we need to catch up with friends and when it closes, we always have a night-bus option to us.
London Sightseeing
Within our first week of arriving in London, we did a spree of touristy sightseeing around Central London - visiting Marble Arch, Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, London Bridge, Tower Bridge and Big Ben.
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| Marble Arch |
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| Iconic Tower of London |
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London Bridge - somewhat disappointing
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| Tower Bridge and HMS Belfast |
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| St James's Park |
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| Harassing a guard |
Historic buildings and sites
We have fallen in love with London due to our passion for history; and no matter where you walk to in London there are little snippets of a historical event that you once read about in a history book. One day whilst walking in the City of London, we found near Monument station, the plaque commemorating the most historic bakery site in London - Pudding Lane, the place where the Great Fire of London began in 1666.
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| Tiny plaque embedded on the side of an office building |
* Location of the fourth wedding in the film Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
* Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
* Shakespeare in Love
* Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)
* The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
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| The archway to St Bartholomew-the-Great Church |
Following the Hollywood theme, nearby is the memorial to Sir William Wallace, the main character from the movie Braveheart. The memorial is located on the spot where he was put to death in 1305.
One sunny day we took a trip out to London Zoo and made a couple of mistakes that we were sure to learn from for future days out. Firstly, we didn't check the public calendar to know that it was school holiday season. Zoos are notoriously busy during peak season and we waited over an hour in the queue. Secondly, we hadn't yet learnt that in London if you do things spontaneously, be prepared to wait. Be prepared to be envious when people holding paper tickets purchased online are able to stroll in to any tourist attraction. We bought a printer the next day.
The London Zoo is an excellent attraction for the young and old. It focuses a lot on endangered animals and the loss of habitats around the world; pushing the conservation agenda; instead of being merely a site with animals.
The London Zoo is an excellent attraction for the young and old. It focuses a lot on endangered animals and the loss of habitats around the world; pushing the conservation agenda; instead of being merely a site with animals.
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| Part aquarium, part zoo |
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| Hello there lizard |
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| Look out there is a snake |
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| Reptile and Mei having a staring contest |
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| Mei and butterfly |
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| A butterfly posing for a photo |
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| Okapi - also known as a forest giraffe |
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| Little one looking for an escape |
Looking for a rental
As part of our exploration of London town to find a rental property, we have walked down and past a number of streets from the Monopoly Board - there is posh Mayfair and Park Lane, the business like Fleet Street and then there is the other end of the scale - Old Kent Road. Affordable and with character - definitely like the real thing.
As part of our exploration of London town to find a rental property, we have walked down and past a number of streets from the Monopoly Board - there is posh Mayfair and Park Lane, the business like Fleet Street and then there is the other end of the scale - Old Kent Road. Affordable and with character - definitely like the real thing.
A large amount of our time was spent trawling through real-estate websites looking for places to rent and getting recommendations from friends. Days were spent exploring areas to live around like Angel (nice but expensive), Camden Markets / Kentish Town, Fulham Broadway, Paddington and Southwark. Many hours were spent in little cars (Mini Coopers) used by real-estate agents to zip around the small side streets and find parking. We had the amusement of seeing a real-estate agent lie to a parking inspector to avoid a ticket; another real-estate agent take us to the wrong apartment - much to the annoyance of the tenants living there.
After a raft of challenging rental-hunting experiences, we were resigned to the fact that we would not be able to find a place with as much 'space' as our house at home. But after-all this was London and it was all part of the experience. Plus, as Olie said "the smaller the space, the less stuff we (particularly Mei) might buy and the less to ship home later on"- now that's forward thinking!
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After a raft of challenging rental-hunting experiences, we were resigned to the fact that we would not be able to find a place with as much 'space' as our house at home. But after-all this was London and it was all part of the experience. Plus, as Olie said "the smaller the space, the less stuff we (particularly Mei) might buy and the less to ship home later on"- now that's forward thinking!
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