With the breakneck speed at which technologies develop, one’s mobile device has established itself as an indispensable part of one’s gear. Armed with the correct set of apps, your phone could promote your education, cater to your entertainment, protect you from getting lost, retrieve useful information for you from the Internet and even as much as predict the future.
All these special properties become vital for you once you step into the world outside your student accommodation. London is a vast cosmopolitan city with a dynamic way of life which can often leave you giddy with astonishment. The following list of apps will help you prepare.
Google Translate
If you only had to select one app to install on your phone, this should be it. Maybe you are homesick so you run to the local store to buy that special spice your mom used to cook that delicious vegetable soup. Not sure of the name of the spice? Simply ask Google Translate and waste no further time in heading back home to cook that nostalgic soup. While the app’s translation of text should be taken with a pinch of salt, isolated terminology is surprisingly accurate and useful.
British Slang
If your experience of English before you came to London was confined to textbooks, films and novels, and you have come to this country in the smug confidence of knowing at least two thirds of the Great Oxford English Dictionary by heart, you are in for a big surprise. Spoken English, it turns out, strays far from Jane Austen standards and unless you enjoy curious stares for your Shakespearean lexicon, you had better learn English fast. The British Slang app tells you all about the language that the Oxford Dictionary does not even suspect.
Free WiFi Finder
When enumerating the vital life resources for a 21st century human being, it would be incorrect to stop merely at air, water and food. Indeed, some human beings have been known to last longer without any of these than when deprived of WiFi. The developers of the Free WiFi Finder app know this and their invention saves lives daily as it displays points of free WiFi across London. Whether it is to check if the professor has graded your paper or where to find the nearest pub, this app will ensure the constant supply of Internet to your veins.
CityMapper London
It is an ongoing scientific debate whether there are more neurons in the brain or bus stops in London. While no one knows for sure how both the nervous and the London transport systems work, CityMapper London at least gives a fair clue about the latter. You can explore routes, check timetables, track your location and even send your route for somebody else to track. With this app you can never get lost once you step outside your student accommodation. London traffic may try to trick you, but CityMapper is known to sniff out transport delays, road blockages and other snares.
A fun and comfortable life in the big city for an international student is only a click away. Whether you need language help, reliable free WiFi connection or the way to your student accommodation, London apps are here to help.
Sophie Smith works as an independent consultant, specialising in offering advice on London student accommodation. London offers an unbeatable experience for international students, and Sophie has many suggestions to make sure that their time in the city is positive, safe and enjoyable.
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