Growing up in London all my life, I knew that I wanted to move away from the big city for university! Bournemouth was my first choice, what with its vibrant student hot spots and sandy beaches!

All I knew was the big city and the thought of moving somewhere a lot smaller was a little daunting at first! But looking back on it now, I worried over nothing! Yes, Bournemouth was very different to my lifestyle back home, but I wouldn’t change it for the world!

As Bournemouth is naturally much smaller than London I was overwhelmed by the strong sense of community around me! With the young, old, students and residents all working together to create a happy, friendly atmosphere for all! I noticed this most in the winter with Bournemouth’s famous Christmas market which draw everyone in the community together to celebrate the festivities.

Living in London I am fortunate to have a 24 hour travel service, which I didn’t realise how much I took for granted until I moved to Bournemouth. At home waiting 14 minutes for the bus seemed ridiculous….but when the V1 runs once every hour between 6pm the final one being at 10pm, I realised how wrong I was! To this day I vouch not to moan about London travel services! But after a while you do adapt to the bus services and learn to plan your time around them.

Last but not least, the main difference between city life to Bournemouth was the beautiful lower gardens and beach front! Where you can enjoy a bbq on the beach with friends and not to mention capture some great pictures for your Instagram feed!