My flat

University accommodation in the United Kingdom is very different from what I am used to. I live in a flat with 5 other study abroad students. We share a kitchen and a bathroom, but all have our own separate bedrooms. The common areas in our flat are cleaned each day and deep cleaned once a week. I am lucky in that my accommodation is on campus; most days my walk to class is only about 5 minutes. I’m told that at most of the bigger universities in London, student may have to commute up to 40 minutes for their classes!

The best part about our flat is the people in it. 4 of us are from various places around the United States, one is from Puerto Rico, and one is from Ecuador. We get along extremely well. All being study abroad students, I think we automatically have similar goals. I always have someone to explore the city with or just to talk if it gets hard. We all know exactly what each other are going through. At first, I was disappointed that I wasn’t with local students, but now I’m glad. I want to meet Brits, of course, but living with them would have been difficult.

Having shared a room my whole life, I was apprehensive about being alone in my own room, but I really love it. It is small, which makes it cozy, and more than big enough for all my stuff. A big difference is that I have a sink in my room. I don’t know why this isn’t standard at American universities, because it is a total game changer. I can wash my hands, fill my water bottle, and even wash my hair without leaving my room!

Some of my flatmates were a bit put off at first by our living conditions. The rooms are clean, but very much not new. They have obviously been lived in by many other students before us. Since all the buildings are so old here, they are not as nice as we are used to, but they have their own charm. We did our best to make it feel like home. We are responsible for buying our own toilet paper, dish soap, dish towels, and other things. This was a bit of a shock at first when we arrived, but we soon created a system to make sure we contribute equally.

By far the biggest difference in the way I am living in London versus the way I lived at MLC is the food. Here, I do all my own grocery shopping and cooking. A meal plan that applies to the various cafés on campus is available, but it really isn’t worth the money. Plus, I love to cook! It has been such an adventure figuring out what to buy and what I can make that both tastes good and is healthy. So far the stars are pasta and frozen veggie burgers. My favorite part of the day is around 6 or 7 pm when all my flatmates find their way to the kitchen to make dinner. We end up sticking around in there for hours: eating, playing cards, and talking about our days. I feel like a part of a family.