I Moved From a Village to The City: Here’s What I’ve Learnt

I’ve always been a home bird. My only experience of moving out prior to 2020 was for the first year of university. I only stayed for a year, so I’ll let you do the maths for how that worked out. Having been surrounded by a good family and a solid friendship group, even though I have always been a very independent individual, I had never craved independence in the way most teens do when applying for university. I was happy to stay and thought I was equally as happy to go, until I went.

Having failed miserably the first time, when I was lucky enough to secure my role at The Sole Supplier, reality suddenly kicked in that I should perhaps flee the nest in search of the city and the lifestyle that comes with it. I’d always pictured myself in London. The lights, the buzz, the opportunities... even the tube excited me! Oh, how naive I was.

My whole childhood I’d lived in a village. I mean, don’t get me wrong it wasn’t an olde-world village out in the sticks surrounded by fields, but it was small. I’d been to London pretty much annually since I was around 10 years old, so was familiar with its busy nature and how vast it is, but visiting a place once a year and living in said place are obviously totally different experiences.

Thanks to the pandemic, there was no particular rush for me to move. I made sure to do my research. But where to live? If you live outside of the capital, you might not be aware that London is actually made up of a mega 32 boroughs. The amount of blogs and forums I read surrounding each area of London was no joke, and the main thing I learnt was that no one can agree on anything. An area one person likes, might be someone else’s worst nightmare. If you’re on the lookout right now, make sure to set out your priorities. Do you want somewhere with a good amount of nightlife? Are green spaces important? There are so many good parks littered across the city. Are you going to be commuting every day? If so, public transport links are going to be top of the list. Don’t get me wrong, London is much better connected than the rest of the UK, but just because you’re in the right city, doesn’t mean you’re going to get to work any quicker. I definitely found that out the hard way.

I sometimes wonder if I would have been better off leaving my organised self behind, and approaching this massive life change a bit more spontaneously like most graduates do. But that's just not in my nature.

Even though this city is a lot more spread out than I first anticipated (one friend who had previously lived here advised me that ‘oh, don’t worry - you can pretty much walk everywhere!’. He was wrong.), is that you must make the most of everything ‘on your doorstep’. I’ve made a list of all the things I want to have seen and visited before the year is out, and I’ve noticed my clothes-order fund has been replaced with eating out and drinking, which it would have done post-pandemic anyway, but living here is just a whole different ball game.

Regardless of what you are spending your money on, be prepared to spend, spend, spend before you’ve even stepped out of your front door! As useful as contactless is, it does make you forget that real money is leaving your bank account. Also, with rent as high as it is, you'll have to be prepared to make sacrifices you might not have even considered necessary before moving. If you’re working from home, you may decide to surrender your dream location in search of a bigger place with nicer decor. Do you have a car you wish to keep? These are all things to take into account. I sold my car before moving and as much as I miss it, it was definitely the right thing to do, as I can’t think of a time when I would have needed to use it.

It’s a strange feeling going from being a big fish in a small pond, to the exact opposite. At home, you can often look at the other people on the bus or walking down the street, and pretty much know where they’re all going. If you live in a small place, you’ll know it’s impossible to leave the house and not meet someone you know. This has been one of the many perks of moving: I can nip to the shops for milk without getting caught up in a conversation or have to worry that the boy I fancied back in school might see me with no make up on. However, familiarity is nice and I took it for granted. It was a blessing to be able to leave the house without a personal alarm, as certain news headlines that emerged just after I moved here shook me. For the girls of the office, we often ask each other if we have alarms or our phone close to hand when leaving alone. It’s habit now, but something I’d never had to really consider before.

Looking on the bright side, however, London fashion is a lot more eccentric. It’s a lovely feeling to be able to express your style in any which way you like, without the fear of sticking out like a sore thumb. They’ll always be someone on the bus dressed way more outlandishly than you are, regardless of the fact you would have been stared at back home. Nevertheless, that’s not to say my outfit hasn’t been commented on. Whilst wearing my beloved Crimson Tint Dunks and a matching sweatshirt (a fairly safe outfit, might I just point out), one gentleman called upon himself to comment ‘oink oink’ at my apparently garishly pink ensemble. Be assured, one has not donned that ‘fit since. Although, my colleagues found my reenactment of the tale amusing to say the least.

Let’s not forget as well that the sneaker scene is much, much better in London. Location is essential for in-store raffles, so it’s nice not getting FOMO when seeing everyone collect their Ws on the ‘gram. Even if I still lost, at least I had the chance.

With endless opportunities to have fun, despite being a massive learning curve I solidly believe that everyone should live in this city at least once in their life. I still don’t fully feel integrated into the London life, and yes, at times I do feel like a fish out of water. But, the food is better, so it’s a no brainer. Just please make sure you have your card ready to scan so you don’t hold up commuters at the barrier, and oh - stand on the right of the escalator. I’ve seen many an argument kick off between ‘Professional’ and ‘Tourist’, but am proud to say I’ve never made this mistake myself.