13 Things I've Learnt about Living in London

Life

1. The water is hard: This has implications on everything from cleaning to your hair. Depending on how much this impacts you, you may need to get a Britta filter and/or a shower filter

2. Independent dryers aren’t common, instead washer dryers are merged into one not-very-efficient machine. Plan to dry clothes for longer than you expect

3. Pants refer to underwear. Trousers are what you wear on top of underwear

Communication

1. “You alright” is not a question but a way of saying hi. It doesn’t require an answer

2. “How are you?” on the other hand does require an answer

3. The phrase “to be fair” has less to do with being fair and is more a precursor to making a point, or sometimes just a filler phrase

4. Londoners are far more friendly than the stereotypes will tell you. But they’ll never admit to it

Travel

1. When on an escalator stand on the right and walk on the left. In all other cases, stick to the left

2. The tube in peak hour is not a place to dawdle. If you’re still figuring out the city try to travel outside peak hour

3. A high street is the main road, usually containing shops

4. Postcodes don’t just refer to an area, but are exact street or sometimes even building codes. This saves a lot of time when entering addresses

5. ‘See it, say it, sorted’ may be the most annoying slogan of the century

6. London is far bigger than you’ll ever be able to imagine. Get used to walking a lot