Hello!
Looks like I have been neglecting this page for almost 2 years. Quite sad about that fact, but life been super busy, yet exiting.
So, where have I been? I moved to the UK from September 2017 to December 2018 due to my decision to pursue a graduate study. Actually, until the last minutes I still considering to continue my study in Finland. But choosing UK was really a great decision.
After made the decision to choose UK, the things I first prepared besides visa was my accommodation, which was unfortunately super expensive because my University was located close to London which makes the rent costs 2 times higher than other big cities such as Birmingham and Nottingham. Surprising fact, renting a room in the UK is not as simple as in Indonesia, as we need to sign an agreement with our landlord and pay a large sum of deposit. The fear of getting our deposit taken makes me and my flatmates becomes extra careful with the house, especially after surprising incident (part of the house collapsed) at the very first day of 2018!
One of the greatest challenge was adjusting to a new place. September in the UK means the sky turns dark earlier compared to in Indonesia, the worst things was my phone was kinda broken at the first days I arrived in the UK, I remember that time when the sky already darken and I got lost in the middle of the wildness at my campus, and my phone didn't work. I almost teared up, but somehow I found the way out, but I ended up walking for twice as it supposed to be. And, since I chose the cheapest rent possible, my flat was quite far (almost 3 km walk), and twice means around 6 km walk.
As a moslem, of course halal food is one of the most crucial part, and Reading has a lot stores that sells halal meats, as well halal and halal friendly restaurant. At my Uni, there's also a large moslem center, where students and public could conduct their prayer, make coffee, and eat snacks provided by the moslem society of UoR. One of my classmates even asked me to bring him to the center to get free coffee :) However, because the campus is quite big, there are times that I conduct my prayer in the Graduate Study Room, which ends up with my friend asked me they are allowed to watch me praying.
However, despite of the struggle, it was a great memory and a very precious experiences.
Looks like I have been neglecting this page for almost 2 years. Quite sad about that fact, but life been super busy, yet exiting.
So, where have I been? I moved to the UK from September 2017 to December 2018 due to my decision to pursue a graduate study. Actually, until the last minutes I still considering to continue my study in Finland. But choosing UK was really a great decision.
After made the decision to choose UK, the things I first prepared besides visa was my accommodation, which was unfortunately super expensive because my University was located close to London which makes the rent costs 2 times higher than other big cities such as Birmingham and Nottingham. Surprising fact, renting a room in the UK is not as simple as in Indonesia, as we need to sign an agreement with our landlord and pay a large sum of deposit. The fear of getting our deposit taken makes me and my flatmates becomes extra careful with the house, especially after surprising incident (part of the house collapsed) at the very first day of 2018!
One of the greatest challenge was adjusting to a new place. September in the UK means the sky turns dark earlier compared to in Indonesia, the worst things was my phone was kinda broken at the first days I arrived in the UK, I remember that time when the sky already darken and I got lost in the middle of the wildness at my campus, and my phone didn't work. I almost teared up, but somehow I found the way out, but I ended up walking for twice as it supposed to be. And, since I chose the cheapest rent possible, my flat was quite far (almost 3 km walk), and twice means around 6 km walk.
As a moslem, of course halal food is one of the most crucial part, and Reading has a lot stores that sells halal meats, as well halal and halal friendly restaurant. At my Uni, there's also a large moslem center, where students and public could conduct their prayer, make coffee, and eat snacks provided by the moslem society of UoR. One of my classmates even asked me to bring him to the center to get free coffee :) However, because the campus is quite big, there are times that I conduct my prayer in the Graduate Study Room, which ends up with my friend asked me they are allowed to watch me praying.
However, despite of the struggle, it was a great memory and a very precious experiences.
