Living in London and how to deal with

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We all already know the London as one of main capital cities of Europe. I've lived in London for several years. As long as I have enough money to live, I can say that I like living in London. In this article, I want to talk about my experience and my understanding of life in London, England. I hope that my experience and my understanding can be a learning and feedback for anyone who wants to live in London, UK. Let’s check them out!


Climate

Wow, the climate was so cold! At that time, I understood that London is not as cold as towns in the northern UK. London is not quite identical with snow. However, its climate was very cold for me, a person who came from a tropical country, Indonesia. Despite the cold penetrating the bone, I thought this city could be said to be nothing when compared to some other European cities such as in Germany or the Scandinavian countries. As long as I lived in London England, the weather was 'unstable'.


Home

Looking for a house or accommodation in London was quite tricky. I tried accessing some home-seeker sites like Zoopla, Find a Property, or Prime location to search for a list of available rental properties. Based on my experience, if you want to rent a house / unit on a website Zoopla, Find a property, or the like; usually you will be connected with an agent. I do not know for sure, but the law and the administration in the UK are very carefully. Unlike in Indonesia where I could just as easily rent my home to others, the UK has the act (law) for the affairs of tenancy (rental). There is a standard or template for Tenancy Agreement (home rental agreement). There is also the responsibility of standards to be met by the landlord (homeowner) in providing home such as gas safety check. But believe me, not everyone here complies with the regulations. The regulations satisfy all citizens as they are applied with full responsibility.


Want cheaper rates for your accommodation? Don’t worry because you still have the chance to get them. If you want cheaper rates, you can just rent one room and shared kitchen / bathroom with other occupant. As a result, there is no guarantee you will receive the rental agreement that appropriate standards act. Even so, you can ask the lodger agreement as evidence in “black and white” so the consequences of having legal standards would not be completed. Yes, there is a price of anything if you use an agent, maybe everything runs smoother and safer, but you have to pay the fees. Sounds fair, right?


Yes, of course you must be careful in looking for agents and shelter. Not all agents and home owners are helpful and pleasant. You can only use a solicitor (lawyer) in a time tripping case, but it certainly will suck your time, focus, and money. You have to be smart to see reviews on the internet, visit or meet directly with the agent / owner of the house and then use your own intuition, or talk with prospective neighbors to avoid unwanted things in the future.


Transportation

The transportation system in London is so definitely better than Jakarta, my hometown. The public transport system in London England is organized very well. There is a good synergy between modes of transport such as bus, tube, train under the command of TfL (Transport for London), everyone can easily access to all information they need.

Living in London England

If you are a registered student in London or UK, then you can use the private car during the first 12 months here. You can also hire a better car, for your info, you can simply search on Google “Car Hire Tips UK”. I myself, prepared international driving license from Indonesia. But based on my experience, you need to learn some regulations of car driving there, since there are so many lines on the road and traffic signage containing a lot of requirements.



Health & Education

I enrolled in the health system of London (called NHS - National Health Service) for free. No need to pay anything. Even so, there were few hospitals or private doctors who charge a fee if you make a visit. So no need to worry, even you don’t have any money in your pocket.
Everyone who lives in London will be listed on the doctor or GP (General Practice) in their respective area. I lived in Ealing area, and then I had to register with a doctor for Ealing region. I could not carelessly visit to the doctor / GP in Wimbledon area for example.


Talking about education system, I do not know for sure about the details. I knew, in the UK, every people can choose between state school and public (independent) school for basic to secondary education. The public one is considered better than the state one. So if you bring your children whose age is under 15, you can send him/her to state school or public school if you think you need a better quality.


Safety


For security, I think for overall, London was safe (especially during the day). When the day turned into night, sometimes I did not feel the same security levels. Sometimes I read the news there was a murder or a fight occurred at night.


Tourist


If you want to live in London temporary as tourist, you can search info about London Day out trips. You can ask for advices from your family or friends or you can search them on a lot of London tourism-related sites. Be diligent in searching info otherwise you will find yourself trapped in confusing situations during your next London trip. There are so many tourist spots there, you can manage your visits in accordance with the time you have.


I hope that my experience and my understanding above can help you to get a comfortable living or traveling in London. Good luck!

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