Things you realise when you move to a city

University is the perfect chance for you to escape the not-really-that-quaint characteristics of your small hometown.

Gone are the days of waiting for that one bus an hour or having to catch a train to get to the closest nightclub open past 12am.

Whether you’ve landed yourself a spot in the lively city of Manchester or you went big and moved to London, here are all the things you’ve probably noticed…

No one knows where you're from

They haven't heard of the nearest town, let alone your village.

You end up telling most people you're just from 'around the Midlands'.

You can't get over people complaining they've missed a bus, when the next is in 4 minutes

A different bus rocks up to the stop outside your flat every few minutes - and don't even get you started on the tube.

How is anyone ever late without the excuse of missing the hourly bus to the next town over?

You experience the horrible phenomenon that is rush hour

Sure, the country roads back home could get a bit busy after you’d finished school. But nothing that’s prepared you for the bus or tube ride home from uni at any time from 5pm – 6pm. And it takes you at least two weeks to stop getting in people's way.

Standing on a sweaty tube carriage with your face dangerously close to someone’s chest isn't the glamorous city life you’d pictured.

You get a pang of homesickness when you see the park

Green! Trees! Ducks! If you squint, it’s almost like being back in the countryside.

Uber is your go-to app

A taxi ride that only costs the £3 minimum fare?! A tenth of the cost of your usual ride home from a night out...

You get lost for hours in the local shopping centre

Literally lost - the place is a maze. Especially compared to your hometown’s high street (if that’s what you can call two charity shops, a café and the library).

Shopping after 4pm? Actually being able to use your Student ID for discounts? Madness.

You dread the multiple stages of your journey home

Bus > Train > Train > Bus

Thankfully Reading Week is still a few weeks away.