[hrag]

Originally Posted by rippergeo

I found out that some of them get abusive
but throwing away hard earned money on a drunk stranger's smoking habit?

Verbal abuse is fine but I've seen physical abuse happen. Terribly unnerving. Fully agree on the hard earned money part - cigarettes are VERY expensive in the UK. Used to cost 5 quid for a pack 3 years ago.

revvedup - we're also giving you gyan into commonly used words in the UK (terribly, frightfully, quid etc.) ajmat or Thad E Ginathom can give you GYAN.

Note: the different accents in the UK will also take some getting used to. The Scots were the most difficult for me - don't be fooled by the way Sean Connery speaks in the movies.

[Thad E Ginathom]

I'm not sure whether to recommend PC-World/Dixons, etc....

If you know what you want, just needing to pick up a box and pay at the till (ignoring their entreaties to buy other stuff, especially 'extended warranties' then I guess you can do that. You will be amazed by the size of a PC-World.

However, do not expect any technical advice or product knowledge from staff in shops like that. They may pretend to have it, but they don't. You will also find that they sell basic stuff like cables at utterly ridiculous prices compared to a small electrical or computer component shop.

<crossposted>

You'd better see Sam's thread on the English language!

[GTO]

Originally Posted by revvedup

Does this apply to me since I would be residing in catered accomodation for the first year( I have to come back to India for a few weeks at the end of the first year and I can learn cooking and carry some utensils then) ?

If you are big on fresh home-cooked food (as most Indians are), learn how to cook. Cafe food is a convenient option for students but you will grow tired of it. I preferred eating home food on week days in the States....never took more than 30 minutes to whip up dal & one subzi. Roti / breads are best bought from the many Indian grocery stores. Cooking your own food is cheaper, healthier and more convenient.

when I asked about the same to my senior pursuing automotive enginneering there he said that the uni's 16 million pound library suffices all his needs. Still do I need to carry any books ?

Text books are your bible and should stay with you for life. IMO, you should buy your own textbooks, atleast for the subjects that really interest you.

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

As a resident student, I don't know if you are covered by the British National Health Service. Find out (if not from a member here) from your foreign-student counsellors at the university.

Any international student on a program of longer than 6 months is covered by the NHS.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Any international student on a program of longer than 6 months is covered by the NHS.

That is good to know.

[Sar]

Congrats on the good news revvedup. It is a fantastic adventure, I'm still not sure if I would live in the U.K long term, but I have had some great times there. From a female perspective regarding food, you will even find Asian speciality shops that will have things like pickles, masalas and I even bought a tava for my inlaws when I lived there for 4 months. (They wanted chapatis )
Aldi's is another great place for good value food, they do the regular spice mixes for say, tandoori chicken, you can buy ready made naans and even rice that you just boil in a bag.
Its fab you have been given such great advice. I found people in London cold, but as you go further south, they are lovely. There is so much to see and you can have lovely bargain breaks away at very little cost. Enjoy the opportunity. All the best!

[Thad E Ginathom]

I found people in London cold, but as you go further south, they are lovely.

Or North!

Just... anywhere outside London!

[Sar]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Or North!

Just... anywhere outside London!

Oh yes, met heaps of Northerners while we lived in Kuwait & even here in Doha. I'm partial to the south west because that's where the rest of the family is .

[revvedup]

Thank you everybody for your advice . Everything is nice and fine here at the moment( including people !). Although the cars and tech( the two things that I love the most) here are too good !

Although I do have an idea about the brit lingo ( regular viewing og TG and fifth gear and finally paid off eh !). But still I would appreciate some more info about the lingo though.

Again thank you everbody.

Oh and I forgot to carry an converter for the plugs ( I know you all told me about this but that was for laptops, which I didn't carry here ) here from India so nothing's working. Any idea where I could get one and at what price ?

plug adapters can be picked up from dixon's, currys or maplins. the last one is better because the prices are the best there. use the store locator on their website to find the nearest shop.
You might get cheaper stuff from Pound stores on the high street, but they are not usually reliable.

when shopping for stuff, always look around and compare prices in atleast 2 or shops if you have the time, there will be a wide variation in prices from shop to shop.
that goes for everything. not just electronics and electricals

[kutlee]

i guess Dixons is currys electronics now. For shopping suggest, tesco, sainsburys (asda -bad). I pciked up an adapter (from some local store) made by dunlop. they are rugged. Most electronics, i trust internet rather than hanging around in shops. it's a waste and confusing. non prescrition drugs are available in tesco, boots etc. for desi vessels such as idli maker etc, visit smaller asian shops in town.
Birmingham is a nice place close to Cvtry. I guess transport museum in cvtry rearranges the suff inside every week or so to keep it afresh.
enjoy the stay.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Try to buy electrical things at a small outlet (no pun intended).

Dixons and associated stores will rip you off for this sort of thing. Even a department store will be better!

On the whole, I recommend chopping off your plugs and buying and fitting British. That way, everything will be a proper fit and you won't have to worry about it until you get back home!

[DKG]

While sadly most British marques have ended up being owned by non-British companies the fact remains that British engineers are amongst the world's best, especially when it comes to racing tech. F1 has been dominated by British engineering aces. Use the time you spend there in checking out all the cottage engineering industries. Ideally if you can eventually work for them that would be great. Some great guys that come to mind are Gordon Murray who designed the McLaren F1 and (was it?) John Barnard at Ferrari? I remember there was a Brit engineer heading Ferrari technical for the F1 team. He was largely responsible for Ferrari's turn around.

See if you can meet these legends. Also people like Stirling Moss who still frequent racing events.

[revvedup]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Try to buy electrical things at a small outlet (no pun intended).

Dixons and associated stores will rip you off for this sort of thing. Even a department store will be better!

On the whole, I recommend chopping off your plugs and buying and fitting British. That way, everything will be a proper fit and you won't have to worry about it until you get back home!

Thanks for that, saved me a lot of money( it's 2 and a half ponds here at Tescos) there .

Originally Posted by DKG

While sadly most British marques have ended up being owned by non-British companies the fact remains that British engineers are amongst the world's best, especially when it comes to racing tech. F1 has been dominated by British engineering aces. Use the time you spend there in checking out all the cottage engineering industries. Ideally if you can eventually work for them that would be great. Some great guys that come to mind are Gordon Murray who designed the McLaren F1 and (was it?) John Barnard at Ferrari? I remember there was a Brit engineer heading Ferrari technical for the F1 team. He was largely responsible for Ferrari's turn around.

See if you can meet these legends. Also people like Stirling Moss who still frequent racing events.

Completely agree with that DKG. The whole purpose of coming to the UK was to get a lot of motorsports exposure and if possible meet legends and personal heroes( Gordon Murray ) who I adore in the motorsports industry. I just talked to the people in the Vauxhall showroom a couple of days back and they asked me to get my CV, let's see what happens. But surely would try to go to some good racing events as soon I get a job there or any other dealership ( BMW anyone ?) .


Oh and I did check out the transport museum on the weekend. It surely is a nice place Thrust SSC, Thrust SSC simulator et all and lots of cars too !.

This is where I go tommorow.
Heritage Motor Centre - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Donington Park - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia is where the motorsports engineering guys go :( .

[Thad E Ginathom]

£2.50 for a plug? Sheesh!

Look out for a branch of Wilkinson. They will have good-value hardware/electrical items.

Also Lidl is good for bargain hunting. Apart from the food, they have all sorts of random stuff --- even including some great computer bargains sometimes. New stuff every week.

[motorheadinc]

just dug up this thread out of nowhere

Well I would love to know more about the things here.