Landing two o’clock in the morning at Heathrow Airport was a strange experience in deed. Heathrow airport was half empty and quite refreshing as I was half asleep anyway from a long haul flight. A friend came to pick us up from the airport, which was very convenient; a lot of people have to arrange their own means the minute they land. We drove for a good half an hour around the city, all I could remember was orange lights and orange lights.

It took us a couple of days to settle in, first explored the street around me to see exactly what this new city is like. The house structure is definitely different than what I am used to, rooms are a lot smaller and most houses have an upstairs and no garden whatsoever. Luckily most houses and flats come furnished as standard, all you have to do is to bring your own bedding and you are sorted.

Pretty soon found out that there are no real malls in central London but lots of high streets as they call him with streets and streets of shops next to each other, instead of a complex with a lot of shops inside. You also do not need to go into central London to do shopping; you should be able to find a high street in each area of London you currently stay in.

London is quite green with parks all over the place, to be honest; there are 3 within walking distance of where we currently stay. Hyde Park is obviously the most popular one and also the largest one and it can become quite packed during the summer months. People tend to run in parks to keep fit or roller skate.

I have seen more pubs on street corners than anything else. The English loves their pubs and they can be great for socialising as they always have a big screen TV for sporting events or karaoke / quiz nights to keep you entertained. Beer can be quite costly in pubs but they do serve up great meals for lunch and dinner for almost next to nothing. Pubs have no entry fee unlike clubs that can charge up to £15 for entry into the club.

The public transport system in London is quite connected and easy to use and it is advisable to shop around for another way than to trust what Journey Planner has to offer. Leave a comment on this page if you’re confused. Get yourself an Oyster Card and avoid paying cash as it will cost you DOUBLE to get anywhere in London. Get yourself a bicycle if you are going to make short journeys, the traffic delays are not worth the half the time. I use to cycle around London for 9 months; it was actually great now that I think about it. There are plenty of cycling routes and the mayor will be introducing plenty more in the months to come.

In the summer time you will be sweating all the time, being on a bus will be a nightmare considering traffic jams. London does get hot in the summer time; we even got ourselves a water cooler to help with it. Best thing about summer is that you get extra daylight time when the sun comes up early and sets way after 9 at night unlike winter time where the sun comes up late in the morning and sets just after 3 in the afternoon.

There is so much to experience in London that I strongly recommend you check out the community forums or even your local council’s website for upcoming events.

In short I would say living in London is all about what you make of it. We currently stay in zone 3, which is not too far from central London and it is quite easily to get around London easily. However going into central London can be exhausting and you’ll probably spend a lot of money, the shops always know how to lure in customers. London is amazing and unique, step outside of the box and live a little, not from pay check to pay check and experience the little towns around London to see even more.

Like we always say, comments, questions and suggestions are all welcome.