kleeon

A modest and disgusting hotel near Victoria - 295 pounds a night. I moved to Royal Garden, it’s quite modest, the same 295 pounds. There were 200 before. The clothes are nothing to look at for less than £1000. A modest £50 lunch. One small ceviche £27. Uber to Gatwick £91. How ordinary Englishmen survive in this city is unclear. I dreamed of living in London. Thanks to Igor for giving me this opportunity for six months - he had a job there. With a heavy heart I walked through our favorite places in South Kensington. Our cafe, our butcher. The cafe is no longer there. The butcher is here.

Familiar restaurants have disappeared. But a bunch of new ones have appeared. In good places there is a full landing everywhere. This means there is a lot of money in the city. And I don’t have all of them, which is very tragic. You need money to minimally reduce your contacts with assholes and dregs: so that you don’t get knocked down on the platform by a nasty [slur for a fat person], so that you can ride and fly in comfort, so that the moron on the train doesn’t drop his fucking backpack on your head, well, that’s all...

I thought that the trials in America would end, and Zhenya would have to study for at least a year in London. And now I see that this year will cost a fortune, damn it.

London feels turbulent. Friends warned me to keep my bag with me at all times in front - they steal. iPhones are being pulled out. Crowds from the Middle East. The entire Royal Garden Hotel is inhabited by them. Demonstrations in support of Gaza in the city center. And the police are not screwing anyone.

I was trying to figure out if I still wanted to live in London? Without a lot of money, no, I don’t want to. A friend of mine tried to get hold of the doctor whom she paid 5,000 pounds for tests, but in vain. Medicine or not, or incredibly expensive. Living costs are crazy, and the quality of life is very low. With a typical middle-class salary, you can’t do your own hair or get a regular manicure. You can’t just have a snack in a cafe without a reason - 65 euros fly off the card. Transport is also expensive. It's sad, I really loved London in the 2000s. It's a shame it's so inaccessible now. It’s dangerous to go there with a child - he’ll get sick, who knows with what and how and where to treat him.