From London to Oxford

Just typing that title gave me déjà vu. Yes, I’ve moved again. This time though, I’ve stayed in the UK (despite the unfortunate Brexit timing) and have made the beautiful city of dreaming spires my new home. I’ve been in Oxford for the better part of half a year and so far, noticed a lot of similarities with the big smoke.

I’ll be real with you. Like London, it’s expensive. And, pretty polluted. But, I should add that as a Londoner these things, although real causes for concern, made me feel weirdly right at home.  I’ve fallen in love with the majestic tall spires which dot the Oxford skyline – the university buildings are a dream. The stars even shine brighter here in the green pastures of Oxfordshire and the noise levels are low enough to make me notice the quiet. The cobbled streets and sheer small size of the city remind me of my Dutch home of Leiden.

Since moving, life has gotten in the way of blogging. However, in true new year, new me style – I am determined to write more musings, share more travels and communicate fascinating science and the people behind it.

– Nikita

 

 

From London to Leiden

Hello and Happy New Year!

With January almost over, I’ve spent the first month of 2015 getting settled into my new home and it’s about time I shared it on my blog 🙂

New Year, new country, new job. It seems that every year has brought me to another part of the world. This time last year I was living in southern Germany, where I interned at the European Southern Observatory in Munich. This year, I have moved from my home in London, to the picturesque city of Leiden.

Located in South Holland, Leiden is a beautiful part of the Netherlands around half an hour from Amsterdam by train. Situated almost too-close to the UK, I flew across the English Channel to Amsterdam a few days after the start of 2015. We were delayed in the aircraft for a few hours, however the pilots let us take a tour of the flight deck while we waited 🙂

I’ve been living in working in this quaint city for almost a month now and have attempted to capture the beauty of my surroundings in a few (mostly rainy) photos that I’ll share with you in this post. The weather may not be that different to home, but that’s all that London and Leiden have in common it seems!

Dotted with cute flower, cheese and bread stores, the cobbled streets of Leiden are a world away from the London skyline. With a bridge over one of the many winding Dutch canals around every corner, my new home is an enchanting European city with a little character and a lot of bikes!

I’m working as a Science Editor at communications company EJR-Quartz, where we do the web content and editorial work for clients including the European Space Agency (ESA) and the German Aerospace Centre (DLR). It’s a great place to be working in the space industry, with ESA centre, ESTEC situated nearby.

The winter is a cold yet beautiful time to be here. The frosty morning air is a great wake-me-up on my walk to work and the icy canals make for perfect photos – framed at night by old-fashioned street lanterns.

Leiden will be the first place I’ll be living in for more than 5 months in recent years. Travelling as often as I do, makes you appreciate the contrary notion of settling in one place and making it home.

I’m looking forward to seeing Leiden in different lights as the seasons change throughout the year 🙂

-Nikita