REFLECTING ON 15 YEARS OF LIFE IN LONDON
I normally tend to shy away from getting too personal here as I want this website to act as a resource for travel inspiration and not my personal diary but I thought such a big milestone deserved at least a mention.
This month marks 15 years since I moved to London.
It’s hard to know even where to start summarising and reflecting on what’s nearly a half of my life. I was only 19 when I packed my bags and moved from a mid sized town in Poland to one of the largest cities in Europe. I’ve never had any limit or a deadline in mind for my time here and always thought of it as a permanent move although I don’t think my idealist teenage brain fully comprehended what that meant.
People often ask me for tips and advice on moving to London but the truth is that London back then was completely different to London today and so much has happened during those 15 years I struggle to remember what I felt like at the beginning. Nevertheless I want to share with you some thoughts and reflections with the hope you’ll find them helpful or relatable.
MOVING ABROAD WHEN YOU’RE YOUNG IS REALLY EASY
Often when I share my story of leaving home at 19 to move to a different city in a different country with a different language people tell me how brave I must be. But the honest truth is that it’s really easy to move abroad when you’re young.
I didn’t really give much thought to the potential issues or difficulties and I had a naive and idealistic view of what life would be like. I had a plan to start university, get a job, make friends, etc and I never stopped for even just a second to think something might not work out or made any plan B for if it didn’t. It didn’t quite work out like I planned but it didn’t faze me. I couchsurfed through Europe, I walked out of jobs and I lived in a caravan in the middle of Scottish Highlands. I threw myself head first at every opportunity no matter how risky without worrying about consequences and making sure I enjoyed myself to the max along the way.
If I was making the move now in my 30s, I would have researched and planned more and I would have been more risk averse. If I had the guts to do it at all, I would have probably missed out on a bunch of awesome experiences. Also, when you get older you own more stuff, have pension funds, credit cards, loans and rental agreements which makes life much more complicated to untangle and shift to a new country.
LONDON LIFE IS NOTHING LIKE YOU IMAGINE
I bet when you’re daydreaming about one day moving to London you’re imagining spending your weekends getting cultured at fancy galleries, regularly watching world famous musicals or strolling down Portobello Road market with a cup of coffee in hand rummaging through stalls full of vintage lace dresses and quirky antique accessories? Or maybe you’re planning to go on long jogs and leisurely walks around Hyde Park? The truth is that whilst I do venture into zone 1 occasionally (actually running this blog is a great motivator!), most of my weekends are spent at Herne Hill farmers market, popping down to the nearest pub or cafe (less than a 100 metres from my apartment) or chilling at the local park.
LONDON SHAPED ME AS A PERSON
Most of my high school friends followed the traditional path of going to university, pursuing a job in the field they were studying, buying a house, getting married and having children. But London life is far from linear. Living here I’ve always been surrounded by entrepreneurial, fiercely ambitious people who weren’t afraid to follow their dreams. Successful Londoners have multiple job titles, side projects and passions, they’re not afraid to repeatedly change careers, retrain or start their own businesses. You could one minute want to be a book publisher, and the next discover a hidden passion for illustration or set off on a round the world adventure in a campervan.
Living in London made me realise that settling for just one thing in life is super dangerous and it can hold you back. And that it’s ok to lose interest in something you used to be passionate about and move on. By being surrounded by ambitious people doing amazing things I’ve grown to be more inspired, driven and determined to succeed in whatever I do.
LONDON MADE ME MORE COMFORTABLE IN MY OWN SKIN
For living in a city of more than 9 million people, it’s super easy to feel invisible in London. You’re surrounded by people of every ethnicity, all body shapes and sizes, wearing all sorts of wacky things and sporting every possible hairstyle. Actually you might just walk down Fulham Road one day and come across a guy with two macaw parrots on his shoulders! Or bump into a guy with a huge python snake at your local park! The best thing though is that nobody turns their head or gives you funny looks. You’re free to be completely yourself whatever that means to you.
LONDON CAN BE A TOUGH PLACE TO LIVE
One trait that I feel all long time Londoners share is thick skin. The city is unforgiving and relentless, and it must have made me cry at least a million times over the last 15 years. Being surrounded by ambitious, creative people is amazing but it can be a double edged sword. It can make you feel like you’re never good enough, like everyone around you is more successful and doing more. It can make you believe that sleep is for the weak and burnout is a badge of honour.
In London it’s not unusual to spend half of your salary on renting a room in an overcrowded house with no living room, to move six times in four years, to live in a shared house well into your 40s, to be just one paycheck away from ending up on the streets or to have to walk two hours each way to your minimum wage job because you can’t afford a bus fare. You could be working a job when one day you finish work at midnight, spend more than an hour to get home only to have to be back at work at 9am the next morning. You could be standing in the rain on the train platform letting the 4th, 5th and 6th train pass because they’re too crowded for you to even get on.
London is one of those cities where nobody has time, everybody is rushing around, and the British are masters of maintaining an acquaintance. It’s easy to know a lot of people but building and maintaining real friendships can sometimes feel impossible. It doesn’t help that London is a transient city, many people come here for a few years before either moving back to their home countries or relocating to the suburbs or countryside. I can’t even count how many friends I’ve waved goodbye to over the years. And if you think moving to the suburbs isn’t that bad, try to convince someone to go out when for them it means a two hour journey to get to the bar and then another two hour journey (and £50+ Uber fare) to get home!
LONDON IS ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING CITIES IN THE WORLD
London is one of the greatest cities in the world, it’s a fact. And I’m super fortunate to be able to live here and call it my hometown. The art and culture scene is world class, the food scene is amazing and there’s an abundance of unique experiences at your fingertips. You could start the morning with yoga on top of The Shard, hop on the Eurostar to enjoy a lunch in Paris and make it back in time to attend a theatre or a movie premiere under the glittering lights of the West End. Most of the great museums and galleries are free, every cuisine is easily accessible and you can catch a direct flight to over 240 destinations all over the world. Also whether you’re into aerial yoga, swing dancing, perfume making, flower arranging or weaving you’re sure to find your tribe in London.
But the thing I love the most is that even after 15 years, I still haven’t seen everything and I still regularly come across places I never knew existed and discover new things to do.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Who knows!? The last few months were a rollercoaster and really brought home that you can’t really say for sure what happens in the future. I still love living in London but for the last couple of years I’ve been thinking to myself how much I miss the thrill of moving to another country and how nice it would be to experience it again. But for now, I will continue making the most of this amazing city and sharing with you all my favourite things about it.
Hope you enjoyed this article! Have you ever lived in another city? What was it like and what life lessons did you learn? Or maybe moving to London is on your bucket list? Let me know in the comments.
