featured,
INTERVIEW
London by Ksenia. “It’s magical: all of them are drunk, but all of them are happy”
14:07:00
Ksenia
is a Russian girl who decided to study art and fashion in London. Right now she
is already a student, but not a long time ago she was taking her first steps in
order to make her dream come true. At first she had to learn English and in
order to do this she went to the best place to do this - to London. She studied
English in one of local schools which offers language classes. Not a long time
ago Ksenia returned back to Moscow to spend her holidays with family and
friends. Today we will talk about her life in London, best places, prices,
people and many other things.
Hello,
Ksenia. As I know you were in Britain for quite a long time. So tell me, how
much time did you spent in London? And why did you choose Britain and not, for
example, the USA?
I was in London for six months. I spent
there Christmas and New Year (It was fun. People walking around the streets,
singing and celebrating. Everyone is so friendly). I was learning English for
five months because I needed to pass IELTS exam. This was the most amazing
experience, especially as a learning experience in my life. I think it’s the
best way to learn a language. Just go to this country. However, I wouldn’t go
to the USA, as I prefer British accent to American. If you know the basis of
the language, that would be pretty easy. Everyone there would help you. The
school was amazing and the teachers were amazing.
What
can you say about local people?
Talking about people, they are different
from Russians. Well, first of all, they are quieter. For example, if we, Russian people, don’t like
something, we would say it right into your face. If I don’t like someone, I
probably won’t speak with that person. But in London British people even if
they don’t like you, they still will be very sweet to you. They won’t pretend
to be your best friend, but still would be acting like they like you. But in
reality, of course, they would dislike you. This is just my experience.
Obviously not all the people are like this. There are lots of great people.
What about famous
prudish character?
Well,
it’s said that people in Britain really like to complain. And yes, they do. We,
Russians, like to complain too. But, again, we usually say everything straight
away, but in Britain people would really politely write you a letter about the
things they are not happy with. Or it may be an angry letter. But still it will
be a letter. And to the face they would say that everything is fine.
How did you like infrastructure?
The
one thing I really like is busses. It’s a really cool thing. You can use them
24/7. I always go everywhere by bus. However, when you use a bus, sometimes you
may think you are going to Trafalgar Square (by the way, my favorite rout is
from Trafalgar Square to Wood Green and backwards), but sometimes they stop in
the middle of the road two or three stops before Trafalgar Square. They would
say “Go away and wait for another bus”. Sometimes this “another bus” is a bus
which you have to wait for a long time. But still it’s cool, because there are
so many of them and they work all the time, even during the holidays.
What about underground?
Underground
is worse. London’s underground is the first underground in the world and it
still works in the same way as it worked during the first its years. The trains
themselves are alright, in comparison with Moscow they are cool. They are
smaller and the underground itself is smaller. Nevertheless, there are a lot of
people because of it seems impossible to use it. And it’s pretty expensive.
It’s much more expensive than in Moscow. Even if you have a travel card.
What
places can you recommend?
Of
course you can go to London Eye or British Museum, National Gallery or National
Portrait Gallery. My favorite one is National Portrait Gallery because there
are really fascinating exhibitions. I was there for Vogue exhibition. It was
amazing. Just AMAZING. For people who love this kind of stuff it would be
especially interesting. Speaking about other places, for me Big Ben looked
absolutely the same as I expected it to be. For me magic of London is more
about walking around and looking around. I mean small houses, small cafes and
shops. I do love Camden in night (Camden
Town, often
shortened to Camden is an area now hosts street markets and music venues which
are strongly associated with alternative culture). Camden for me is the
best place in London, because the atmosphere there is wonderful. People are
happy and it can be good to be a little bit dirty (laughing). A lot of people are drunk. It’s magical: all of them are
drunk, but all of them are happy. There is also a beautiful Regents Park close to Euston station (I like to have a long walk there). In winter I used to grap a cup of hot chocolate in Costa Coffe and then walk in the park.
What
can you say about prices? Is it expensive for a Russian student to live in
London?
If
you are a tourist, everything looks bloody expensive. However, if you live
there for some time, you will understand where you can buy cheap stuff. If you
want to buy some cheap food, you’d better go to Tesco. In Russia it’s easier to
buy something on the street, for example in some small shops. You can do this
in London too, but usually it’s more expensive than in such huge malls as
Tesco. I don’t really like it, but what can you do if you are a poor Russian student?
Café prices, for instance in Starbucks are pretty similar to Russian. It’s
alright. All the museums and galleries are free. Some exhibitions if they work
for some period of time can be pay, but mostly they are pretty cheap. Talking
about hotels, I never lived in hotel, but I was renting a flat. More
specifically, a room. This wasn’t cheap. And actually people say that
accommodation is the most expensive thing in London. I can understand why, as
there are millions of people who come for tourism, business or to study.
What
can you say now, when you have returned home?
Right now when I am back to Russia, I miss English. I miss being
surrounded by this language. I truly love it. I love English and I do love some
people there. Things are different there. For example, the coolest thing about
London is no one care about you, the way you look or behave. You can dance on
the street and no one would say a word. They won’t even look at you. If they
look, they are not British. However, if you ask something or start a
conversation, they would response. They are easy to chat with.
All the pictures belong to their respective owners. The first picture is taken from Wikimedia.
Ksenia
Moscow, Russia
Studies art & fashion
in London
Instagram: @ ksenia_jackson
Snapchat:
nilisaakhmatova
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