Girls love to shop!

I have a passion for shopping. By passion, I mean being able to spend 13 hours at 168 without sitting or  taking a bathroom break, or engaging in no-backing-down-until-I-get-the-price-I-want haggling, or eating a hotdog sandwich while walking so as not to lose precious shopping time.

Unfortunately, my usual shopping self has taken a hiatus due to a number of reasons:

1. 1 PHP = around 80 GBP (need I say more?)

2. I'm always too cold to care about fashion (who can wear heels in snow?). Besides, I never did get British fashion...maybe because everyone has her own thing...

3. The shops here are incomparable to Greenhills or Divisoria...there's just not enough range to choose from. There's Camden Market but I think it's too far and not worth the travel.

4. The moment you buy a top or a coat, you'll see someone wearing the exact same thing five minutes later (that was when I was in good 'ol Hatfield).

But I'm only human, and I still indulge myself once in a while. However, I check first if the shop has student discounts or bargains (and clearance racks, of course), and I don't go into shops if I know I can't afford anything in it (why add salt to the wound?hehe).

We went to the Harlequin Mall earlier because Pao wanted to buy some work clothes. One of our favorite stores is H&M. It has stores in the States and all over Europe too. It can still be expensive, but we only buy the clothes there during sales. Sometimes, they sell cheap jackets and coats (20-30 GBP) that are really nice, and the quality is good too.

 

If you want clothes, scarves, beanies/bonnets, and other accessories that have an Asian feel to them, Monsoon/Accessorize is the place to go. It can still be pretty expensive though, so it's better to wait for the sale season. I was able to work here for a few weeks during the sale and it was crazy!

Argos sells furniture, electronics, toys, and accessories too. I don't know what type of store it is exactly but I've been able to buy a camera and also a set of placemats there, so go figure. What you do is shop from a catalog, pay at the till, and then get your stuff at the counter. It's efficient, but the downside is that you can't actually see the item before you pay for it. If you don't like it, you can return it right then and there, and they'll refund your money. If you want to save time, you can check if they have what you want online and have it reserved at the store nearest to you.

Finally, there's Primark, which is probably the cheapest store here in the UK. Primark has everything and is the place to go to (if you don't mind wearing the same clothes as a hundred or so other people).

 

They sell cardigans, sweaters, and coats (essentials for the winter season).

  

Haven't tried their make-up line (I only use mineral MU), but they have one too.

 

I bought loads of long sleeved shirts when I first came here, but the collar part usually loses its shape if you put the shirts in the washing machine.

I love their PJs! They're really comfortable and the designs are way cute. I sometimes wear them all day when it's cold.

Primark sells shoes, accessories and home stuff too, but I wasn't able to take pictures cause there were too many people and I wasn't even sure that it was okay to take pics. There's always a long queue at Primark, but the wait isn't too long if they have more than two people at the till.

And of course, at the end of the day, it's always satisfying to bring home a bag of goodies.

Towns here have their own markets, but the markets are not open everyday. In Watford, the market is open on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The fruits and veggies are cheaper at markets as compared to buying them at Asda or Tesco, and you're sure that they're fresh too. Plus, the tinderas are fully made up (with eyeliner and everything, they could give models a run for their money) and really nice, and they'll even help you pick out the freshest produce.

 

And there you have it...UK shopping 101. I don't usually go out so I'm sure I've missed out on some things, but if you want to add anything, leave me a comment and I'll include it here :) Ciao!

To the High Street we go...

Even though I was still tired from yesterday, I forced myself to get out of bed because I needed to get the currency (for my upcoming SG trip) that I ordered from the bank. That meant I had to go to the High Street cause that's where all the shops, restaurants, and banks are. The walk from our flat to the High Street is only ten minutes, so I decided to take some pictures on the way.

There are a lot of pubs here, and they're always full of people, especially when there are matches (like rugby or football). Eating at pubs is always cheaper than going to restaurants, or even McDonald's or Burger King, because of the huge servings. We always order fish and chips and chocolate fudge cake whenever we're at a pub (choc fudge cake is to-die-for). If you're going to one, make sure that you have your ID on you if you look younger than 21 because they might ask you for it. The two pubs below are just two minutes away from our flat.

Although I've been here for almost a year, I still get amused by the language they use. I know it's still English, but sometimes it feels like they're speaking a whole other language. One time, I told the residence office back at uni that the kitchen faucet was broken, only to be asked what a faucet is. I forgot that they say tap instead of faucet. Oops, my bad. 

Here's another example (we saw it on a post while walking):

The houses here are quaint, which I love. The row of houses below remind me of the house in Charmed (the TV show).

I just had to take a picture of the cars, because Audis and Mini Coopers are so common here. I want one!

And finally, here's the Watford High Street.This one was taken months ago, when we went on a Primark shopping spree...more on Primark later).