| Hey everyone! I just accepted a position today with Thorpe St. Andrew's High School in Norwich, Norfolk, starting September 3rd. I've got to get everything moving and I'm quite excited! Is anyone else here moving to the area or already from there?
Also random question, has anyone booked their move flight through cheaptickets, and do you know if once you pay your over baggage charge if you have to pay for each part of the journey? My possible flight has two connections. Just curious.
EnglishTeacher I still am not able to access your site and I will definetly need to review all of your helpful information for moving and forms and your school year in general. I never corresponded with you outside of the site so I never had your external e-mail address. I have a blog you could leave me a message on or I could post my address for you and then delete it later. This is my blog address jessicasoe.blogspot.com/ thank you so much in advance!
So how about anyone else? Any offers or new prospects? Good luck!
~Jess from Ohio teaching English (one of many) |
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Jess,
Once you pay your baggage overage charge, it's good for the entire trip unless you've booked each leg seperately. My baggage overage was even good when I had to pick up my bags in Dublin and then re-submit them to complete the journey to London.
Good luck on your new adventure.
Meli (Ohio ;-) ) |
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Meli,
Thanks for your reply, I'm getting so excited and very nervous, I'm checking out apartments with google maps directions in the other screen so I can decide how far is too far to travel each day. About how far are you from your school? I hope to walk but it looks like the bus might be necessary. Did you share with anyone or find a place of your own? |
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Hi Jess,
Yes, I found my current flat on my own and it was a mistake. Landlord is great. There's nothing wrong with the flat itself really. Problem is that school is 20mins away by car but 1.5hrs way by buses (it takes 2). Also, buses run past my flat very infrequently (once an hour until 8am) eventhough there's a bus stop just outside my kitchen window. I hoping to move within the next week or so.
I also found that some people didn't want me to rent their flats once they'd heard my accent. Interrestingly, a friend of mine from school has been helping me look for a new flat this year. I called and asked about a particularly promising place and was told it was already gone. When Mary called on the same flat afterward they set up a viewing...hmmm. Oh and they want references from 1)previous landlords, 2)your bank, and 3)your employeer...the last of which can be a bit difficult considering that everyone's on summer break. I think Bluewave can help with this some.
Estate agents are very helpful, but they do charge fees. Best bet is to ask someone from your new school to help you. I know...I didn't want to ask for help either, but it is better for EVERYBODY that way because you'll be happier and more rest. Read into that, you'll be able to be a better teacher. Ask. Ask. Ask.
Also, 500 pounds is about right for a nice 1 bedroom flat. Less than that and you may find you're in a dinky, dirty, or undesirable location. It's good to have a local person around to tell you where is good and where to avoid because its not always obvious to us "foreigners."
You may need 1 or 2 months worth of rent as a deposit plus then the rent. You also will probably need to pay for 6 months worth of water right off. If you want a TV, then TV tax is about 145 pounds up front. It's usually better value to buy a monthly bus pass rather than paying for each journey (offers a bit of freedom as well)...and its a 4 week month rather than a calendar month so it doesn't matter when you buy it. Oh, and don't forget the council tax. You must register for that as soon as you have a flat. Studios (a.k.a. Bedsits) and 1 bedroom flats are the cheapest for council tax, but if you get a roommate then you BOTH have to pay the tax.
That's all that I can think of right now. As the government still has my passport to "consider" the extension to my leave to stay, I'll be here all summer.
Cheers,
Meli |
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Hey Meli,
See that's what I don't know about, what distances are "acceptable" in order to get around in a timely fashion in the cities. I'll be in Norwich and some places seem reasonable to me, like within 4 miles, but I e-mail one person and she said that it would be very hard for me to get to my school from her house unless I bought a car. Nearly everything in the country here is 15 minutes so I have no idea about "scale".
I just booked my ticket about 5 minutes ago, I'll be arriving on Sunday morning and probably spending 1 night in London to fill out paper work with my agency (a different agency found me a position than Bluewave).
I'm hoping to find some people in the English department who can give me very specific perimeters for where I should and shouldn't live.
But if your around on the 26 and 27 when I arrive I'd love to get together somewhere in London to meet and chat. I'll keep you posted.
~Jess
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