My third year in London will end in couple of months and although I have no idea where on Earth my future will take me I feel like it has been an invaluable experience. Living in London, though, has changed my views in almost everything, these are some of the lines I rarely use, I'm quite convinced almost everybody who lives here feels what I'm saying.
Indeed, money is the mysterious notion around here that tends to be rather similar to time, motivation and Friday evening wine - there seemed to be quite a substantial amount of it, but we're still left empty-handed. Bearing the burden of most expensive city in the world, London seems to enjoy charging life-changing prices for its transport, housing, food and gas, leaving students with merely a handful on coins in the end of the calendar month. However, one must admit that living in such conditions has a rather positive impact on budgeting - who would've guessed I actually track my expenses and think twice before purchasing a pair of new shoes? Plus, you'll never be shocked by the high prices, when travelling to somewhere.
Let’s take the taxi.
Yeah, no. Although, taxis are well-loved and often used in London I'm still not over the four times higher taxi fees than back home. Apparently, as my unofficial research shows, black cab drivers may earn up to £90k per year, which is roughly three times the average wage of £31k for men and £25k for women (let's not get into discussing the wage gap, shall we).
It’s so quiet and peaceful around here
The closest experience to silence in London is probably the the time span of an elevator ride, of approximately 30 seconds. With large numbers of people privacy has become a distant memory, and peace of mind and tranquility have disappeared, which all contribute to the stressful lifestyle of Londoners. People here are often regarded as busy people who lack altruism and fail to take a moment to just... breathe in and breathe out and value what they've given.
I’m bored
I think we all know how the saying goes. Tired of London, tired of life. I have always held the impression that only boring people are bored. Numerous museums, markets, restaurants, clubs, concerts and festivals offer something to do everywhere and anytime (except for 3am on Friday night, when the fun ends, because all the bars are being closed). Honestly, if you're bored in London, you're either very boring, very lazy or very broke.
Flat-hunting? Sounds exciting and not at all stressful!
I think one of the most stressful things about living in London, is actually finding a place to live. There are way too many fishy agencies and unbalanced landlords/landladies, who turn out to be drunks, junkies and, I kid you not, even prostitutes. The notion of "You are your postcode" is still actual, though denied, and due to the the high crime rates in certain areas flat hunting is more frightening than ever, especially for a single person.
Tinder? Haha, what’s that?
Love is said to make the world go round and there's no shame in contributing to Earth's normal orbit around the Sun. London, being the city with the population of about eight million, is a mecca of single-dwellers, as the sheer number of people and tremendously busy lifestyle hinders the lucky (or unlucky) coincidences of meeting someone more than once. So, the word "tinder" is no longer used to refer to dry inflammable material as back in the days, now it's considered as the main way of procrastination and the centre of new love and inevitably horny men.
The sound of closing doors? I’ll just wait for the next tube.
You are not a true Londoner if you haven't got stuck between the closing doors on the underground. The sound of the closing doors is similar to red light and Instagram pictures of your dinner - nobody cares! I swear, the sprints I've witnessed in order to make it to that certain train beat everything I've seen on the Olympic Games, plus people are dressed way better.
I just love the weather around here.
They said it, so they probably mean it.
People in London are blessed with having this certain topic of conversation that has probably saved numerous awkward silences and initiated countless conversations. It's too windy, too rainy, too hot, too cold and, most of all, it's too cloudy.
They said it, so they probably mean it.
If you're British and get easily offended, then I suggest you to stop reading. Otherwise, keep going. Brits have this interesting ability to say what they don't mean just to be polite, merely because they've been taught that it's the only right thing to do. For a Northerner like me, it is an unfamiliar and rather confusing gesture, as we've used to saying what we sincerely mean or say nothing at all. Although, I can see why this can often be regarded impolite or arrogant, it seems to be a lot genuine way of expressing oneself. "I'll talk to you later" means "I'll talk to you never," and "Nice shirt!" usually means "It's ok I guess."
I love our Major!
Dear Boris, please stop.
"ok"
Haven't seen a fox for a while.
These, allegedly clever, animals can be encountered almost as often as white girls snapping pictures in Starbucks. I'm not even exaggerating when I say that they actually feel like official citizens, except you know, they don't have to pay council tax.
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