Hi everyone, I’m Dalma from Hungary. I, like you perhaps, had a dream to study in London. My dream came true and I have now been living in London for almost 2 months. A lot of things have happened already, but I have survived and I’m very happy to be here. For example, I took the wrong bus and got lost on my first day, plus caught and tore two full Primark bags in the middle of the station with all my stuff falling on the floor. I can now laugh looking back at these funny moments, but at the time, I felt angry and panicked. These stories are all real and common for new students moving to London, but first, let’s start from the beginning.

Landing at Heathrow Airport

On the morning of 7^th September 2019, my plane landed at Heathrow Airport in London. I was happy and tired, but I knew that something good was about to happen. My flight was awesome; I ordered an iced coffee as I stared out the window. It was one of the best and most exciting feelings of my life and the view was fantastic. A few hours later I landed and the adventure began! Well, almost. When getting off the plane I took my two pieces of luggage and handbag to carry through London. I grabbed the big 23kg bag (yes, I know) and the 11kg cabin bag (11kg, insane!) and looked for the underground entrance.

Learning to use the London Underground

When I found the underground, I tried to top up my Oyster card, but I could not find a machine that accepted cash. I was running around like a freak, but finally, I found one and I stood in the queue. I was just glad to find it so I waited patiently. Finally, with my Oyster card ready and with my heavy bags, I got on the tube. My muscles were sore for the next few days and it was a shame that no one offered to help me with them. But the strong independent woman in me said okay, it does not matter, I can do this, and I did! It took me an hour to arrive at my Westminster student accommodation at Raffles House in Wembley. I felt so relieved to finally arrive in my very own room after surviving the whole process.

Moving to London – shopping in IKEA

I decided to take a break and go for a big shop at IKEA. Carrying the big bags wasn’t my favorite thing, but during the weekend I managed it. This was hard especially when I took the wrong bus from IKEA. Confidently, I left the store with 3 big bags and hopped on the first bus I thought was right, but it was not. Deviating 5 kilometers away from home I panicked. I hadn’t slept for more than 24 hours and I felt exhausted. I just wanted to be home and go to sleep. For some reason I called my mum who was in Hungary, it was weird, but I had no idea who to call so I got off the bus and went back where I came from.

After the worry of getting lost, I finally arrived home happy with my new things from IKEA. I decorated my room to my own style and now it really feels like my place, like my home. After this intense arrival experience, I went to the city to grab some stuff from Primark. When I got back to the station, on the way out one of the bags caught on and tore on the gate. I was just standing there, and I could not believe that this is happening, so I grabbed all my stuff and pretended it never happened. The story ended happily, and I started Uni happy and prepared for my dream.

After a week my boxes arrived with the rest of my stuff, they were 3 massive boxes and I was just panicked about how to unpack them. Long story short I made it, but I realised that I packed many unnecessary things.

5 weeks after moving to London

It’s been 5 weeks of classes and I am happy that I study what I have always wanted. I am studying Marketing Management and I have big plans for a sandwich placement year and to work for a big company after graduation. But let’s not rush forward! First things first, I must manage my first year and survive the presentations and the assessments. In these 5 weeks I managed to open a UK bank account, apply for a NI number, look for a part-time job. It was rough but worth it, I did everything before the uni started.

Weird, but I like studying and preparing for the classes especially because I like what I am studying. I have a great timetable and modules; the module leaders are really professional and know what they are doing. All of them are helpful and present the materials in an understandable way. I can say to all the future students and for those who are thinking about coming to Westminster, go for it! It was the best decision of my life, and I won’t regret it because I have already made so many new friends. I know that I will have a great degree and a bright future.

Just the beginning

I am so glad to have this opportunity and would like to thank my parents and friends who helped and believed in me to achieve my dream of moving to London. Now I am living it! The feeling that I have from achieving my goal is amazing.

I hope you can join me in the future as I share my life and latest experiences of living in London and studying at the University of Westminster… stay tuned!

Dalma

Vlog: iitsmedalma

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Dalma Aczel

Latest posts by Dalma Aczel (see all)

• Vlog: A Day in The Life of a Westminster Student - April 9, 2020
• Going home after 3 months - February 7, 2020
• London, the city where nobody can spell my name - December 3, 2019