London, a cheaper city! you sure?

Well, before I fell head over heels with my now husband (yes, it really was one look and ooeer missus) I used to live in East London in a bubble, yes you read that right, I literally lived in a bubble called Bow Quarter which had it's own fitness centre, underground shop, bar, restaurant, estate agent, telephone box and statue in memory of all the little matchbox girls.

If someone had told me then that London was inexpensive to live in I would have laughed them outside the big iron gates that seperate "the bubble dwellers" from the real world but apparantly London has droped 13 places to number 16 in the annual worldwide cost of living survey from Mercer.

It seems that the recession and the weak pound have helped London become more affordable.

Now that I live in the countryside and have a son and another baby on the way, I view my cost of living in a totally new light, my money used to be spent on me, me, me and now it's spent on the family so I tend to equate things to how many nappies, wipes and toys could I buy with the same money I just blew on a light bite or meeting a friend for lunch.

When I think back to my days of singledom, I cringe at just how much money I spent on completely unecessary things like another handbag, going out 4-5 times a week and an obscene amount on convenient and tasty food & drink!

I am still not convinced London is really cheaper than it was, I think people have altered the way they live and are consuming less and tightening their purse strings more.

It will be interesting to see where London sits on that list in the next couple of years as we slowly claw our way out of a recession.

Some London facts:

- Over 300 languages spoken
- In 2008 52 Michelen stars were awarded to London restaurants
- 5 airports server 155 worldwide destinations
- Every week the 409 escalators in the London tube cover equivalent of several trips around the globe

What are your thoughts on London, do you still find it a very expensive place to live or have you noticed (apart from interest rates dropping) a decrease in your living expenses day-t0-day?

Check out the TimesOnline for London living on the cheap http://tiny.cc/livingcheaplyinlondon

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