One thing I regretted after returning from India was that I didn’t post enough of my observations about the country, people and culture to this blog, so I’m making another attempt at it, this time having relocated to Hull in northern England. It may not seem as exotic, but in my opinion, every place in the world has something to offer and I’m definitely looking forward to this new adventure.
Let me begin by saying that so far I have found that the people are welcoming, the city centre is attractive and quite cheap, all plus points as far as I’m concerned. Below are a few observations I have made in my first two weeks here:
People: I was surprised to see the mix of nationalities that you come across on a daily basis, which is very pleasing for someone used to London. As anywhere, you can expect some people to be less welcoming, but mostly the locals seem helpful and chatty, reminding me somewhat of my experiences with people in Spain.
Drivers: Driving around Hull, I felt like a pirate compared to the other drivers on the road. Unlike London, where survival is the name of the game, here people see calm, civilised and extremely polite. There is no need to push in to queues because people just seem to let you in. Similarly, as a pedestrian, I feel very safe here. Perhaps the only downside I have experienced is that after leaving a car parked on the street, I came back to find it very badly scratched, presumably by a passing van. Not nice.
The City: Having received a very significant overhaul in the last ten years, the majority of the city centre seems extremely easy on the eye. Gardens, cafes and shops fill the spaces between the renovated docks and modern train/bus station, while Princes Avenue offers a variety of restaurants that I have yet to try, but they certainly smell good!
Humber Bridge: Thought this is worthy of a mention as it is really impressive. It’s longer even than the famous Golden Gate bridge and until 1998 was the longest in the world. Below I’ve added a video I made while crossing it.
Public Transport: On my commute to work, I have already spotted a number of quirks within the design of the system, so I’ll leave this for another post.
Hopefully I’ll find the time to go exploring soon and take some photos around the city. The Humber bridge, docks and city centre seem particularly photogenic. Looking forward to it!
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