A guide to living in London

This article is a continuation from my other articles that talk about how to live in other cities. Here, I am going to give you some advice on living in the English capital. London is a big city, pretty much double of the area and population of Madrid. Like many things, its size has its positives and its negatives. Being such a big cultural city, there is so much going on and so many different things to do and see. The downside is obviously, getting around it. Everything is quite spread out, you can only really walk in the area you live. Everything else, you will need to get public transport to. A single bus ticket costs 2, 40, but if you have an Oyster card, it is only 1, 50. Like in other big cities, there are also night buses, which is useful for getting home after a night out if you live far from the bars and pubs.

Those who are used to the Spanish sun will probably find the weather quite rubbish, it rains a lot and it is cold.

Architecture, landscape and culture

London, as many of you probably know from any information website about the city, was founded by the Romans who gave it the name Londinium. As I have already said, it has the largest urban population in Europe, with a population of over 8 million people. Once a major economic centre in Euripa, the city was growing quickly but its old Roman walls still remained. These are definitely worth visiting. I'm now going to talk about some of the major museums in the city, most of which are free to enter.

British Museum

Located on Great Russell street, this is the museum that tells you all about the city's history. The building itself is a work of art as it resembles a Greek temple, with many columns and Ionic capitals. Many artworks and monuments found in archaeological sites are held in the museum. It covers an extensive timeline, from Egypt to the present day, including Greece, Rome, and some of the most important Mayan discoveries in history. You also have to visit the Anthropology room. The entrance to the British Museum is free, but they do accept donations, that can be left in one of the many boxes located throughout the museum. If you like history and have always wanted to see the Rosetta Stone or what a mummy looks like, go to the British museum, you will not regret it. There is a souvenir shop with a great deal of art and artefact reproductions, at various price ranges.

Tate Modern Gallery

I recommend visiting the Tate museum, by walking from the centre across one of the many bridges over the Thames, to Southbank. The area of the museum is 'Southwark' if you are taking the bus of metro there. It is a relatively new museum as the building was only finished in 2000. It was intended to be the Museum of Contemporary Art. One of the "problems" or "advantages", depending on how you see it, is its enormous size. For any tourist spending a few days in London, it is possible to spend a whole day in the Tate. It can be boring, as to see most of it in detail takes a long time. If you are lucky enough to do an Erasmus placement in London, then you can spend more than one day visiting the Tate. Despite it being a modern art gallery, there is a large variety of all artworks, from classics of the 20th century (Picasso, Warhol... ) to more modern and conceptual pieces of work, including audiovisual pieces. Although general admission to the museum is free, on the occasion that exhibitions are taking place there, you might have to buy a ticket.

National Gallery

In the same way as the Tate and the British museum, the National Gallery is a masterpiece in itself, starting with the building. Located in Trafalgar Square, one of the main squares in London which also houses many other important buildings: Canada House, South Africa House... the National Gallery is an art museum but it can be defined as a 'more conventional' art museum, where you can find some of the most important art works of Europe: Van Gogh, Turner, Da Vinci etc. I have to also mention that my favourite piece of art is located in this museum, which you might not have heard of, The Embjadores (Holbein). The amazing thing about this painting is that, despite being painted in the sixteenth century, it has an astonishing optical effect. I will not tell you what it is, you will have to discover it for yourself.

There are many other museums, such as the Sherlock Holmes Museum (located in Baker Street) and the Charles Dickens Museum (the latter is not free).

Parks

Apart from the museums, I am going to talk about the parks, gardens and other cultural activities that will keep you entertained. In London, there are plenty of parks and gardens, so I'm just going to talk about the ones that I have been to. Firstly, is probably the most famous park, Hyde Park (a haven in the middle of the city centre, with more than three thousand trees which change into wonderful colours in Autumn). There is all sorts to do in Hyde Park, from jogging, boating, swimming... there are also a few restaurants but they are very expensive for students. In short, it is the perfect place to escape the city and enjoy a more natural surrounding. Other places you have to visit include St. James Park or a smaller park called Saint Peter's, near Russell Square. One of the things that surprised me about the British parks and gardens, like I said before, is the large number of tombs that they hold. In almost every park, you will find ancient tombs that were used before cemeteries. The parks are a good option for the days when you don't have anything to do and when you don't want to spend much money.

Accommodation

There are different ways to find somewhere to stay in London. Wherever you stay, the rent is usually expensive, more than 300 pounds a month. If you are a student, you can choose to live in student residencies. They are expensive, but they are usually good quality and a quick way to making friends and getting to know people. They usually cost around 500-600 pounds a month. They are of different types available, but they are one of the cheapest options if you want to stay in the centre. I didn't live in a student residency, so I don't know which are the cheapest areas, but there is lots of information about it on the internet. A good option is to stay in a hostel, which usually cheap and an easy way to meet people. Then, once you are there, look for flats advertised in the universities and in the student areas.

Where to eat

London is a cosmopolitan centre, which means you will find restaurants of foods and delicacies from all over the world. Asian cuisine, especially Indian, is very popular in London. Eating out is expensive, although you can always opt for cheap, abundant and unhealthy fast food. For cooking at home, I recommend shopping in cheap supermarkets: Tesco, Morrison, Sainsburys... like I did in Leeds. Normally, the markets sell fruit and meat at a good price, as personally I think that meat in London is quite expensive. I'm only mentioning this in passing because I have already written a long post all about this but if you're a student at SOAS University (close to Russell Square) you can sometimes get free food from Hare Krishna, a vegetarian restaurant. If one day you feel like eating exotic food at a good price you can go to Camden market (a must visit, many shops and you can find some small hidden gems) In Camden, there are loads of food stalls: Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Jamaican... and many other kinds of food, they sell a mix of the food for a good price.

I hope that this information has been useful, I will write another article about partying in London soon.