Moving to Manchester: Six Months On
And some completely unrelated photos to go with it.
Okay, okay, seeing as I moved on 6th February it's nearer the seven months mark, but I'm gonna go with it, as six seems like the bigger "landmark". But doesn't time fly when you're having fun and drinking the Northern Quarter dry? Since moving to Manchester, there've been a few changes, and I thought where better to word vomit have a look back than here? This blog's seen me through moves to Liverpool and Munich, so here's to bulking out the Manchester chapter.
Whereas my last two jollies had a very definite end date (in Liverpool I was there to study for three years, and my contract in Munich was for six months before landing back with a jury service-shaped bump), moving to Manchester was always going to be a little different. With no specific end date, this one could be a little more permanent. I've been focusing more on getting to know the city centre with brief excursions out, and working out whereabouts I fit in. There was that day towards the end of my first month where it had rained/snowed for the twentieth day in a row and I broke down via whatsapp to Georgia saying I hated it here... but I'm now happy to report that's one of the very few dips I can report since moving to Manchester. Plenty of people have asked when I'm planning to move back South like I've had my moment of madness. Although I don't see myself being here forever, I'm certainly nowhere near done with this city and plan to be here for a good while yet. And hey, while I've got my Railcard, it's max £60 to get back to Essex.
Of course, completely upending your life doesn't come with hiccups. Although the rent sector may not be as cut-throat as London's, things still move quickly. Finding somewhere to live proved pretty tricky, but eventually Laura and I settled just outside the city centre. Up to that point I've been staying in airbnbs (the good, the bad and the ugly), which was emotionally straining on top of starting a new job/city/everything. Thankfully that bit's over, and we've been in our apartment for six months, exactly this time. As I'm not sure quite how long I'll be staying here for, I haven't gone crazy in the furniture department and it's hardly swamped in homewares, but it's definitely feeling a little bit more like home. If you fancy, you can see a little of what it looks like here. I like the area we live in as it's a fifteen minute walk to Piccadilly station (or ten, if you're late for your train and prepared to sweat a bit), close to the Norther Quarter and removed enough to not feel like your pores are clogged with pollution every second of the day. Little mercies.
Surprise, surprise: I'm another one of the multitudes of bloggers who've ended up working in Social Media. I don't reeeeeally talk about my job online that much any more; there are plenty of other people who are happily authoritative on the subject so I'll let them get on with it. This was my principle reason for making the move. I'd started applying for a new job about this time last year, absolutely convinced that I'd simply be moving to another place in London. When I saw this one come up on Twitter, I applied that evening and arranged to come up the next week. Soon enough, I was booking trains and making stuff happen. Manchester is known for its fast fashion, so I wasn't worried about making the move. Yes, I work for a young company, but I've no concerns about its continued success. And that staff discount goes a lot further.
Blogging has taken a bit of a backseat since moving to Manchester, but these things happen and I don't have any concerns. I'm not prepared to quit and take up blogging full time, nor am I in the position to do so. But I do want to keep things ticking over here to continue this little journal I've had since I was at uni. It'd be a bit weird to just... stop. Manchester bloggers are a great group of people, and I see Clare and Laura a happy amount. Basically, I just need to work out what I want to do with my blog, and then maybe I'll create a plan of action. Who knows what'll happen?
I do, of course, have moments where I wish I were based in London. I can't just pop on the tube to get to a networking event, and have to mute whatsapp groups when they're talking about plans for Friday. There is a lot going on in Manchester, but there will always be those greener grass moments. 99% of the time I'm so busy in the here that I'm not concerned with whatever's going on a couple of hundred miles away, but it'd be a downright lie to say it's not hard at times.
TL;DR? Moving to Manchester is happily one of the best decisions I've ever made, and this city seems to have adopted me quite well. And I've sort of started to say Northern phrases, which is really, really weird.
