two drifters: Newcastle-upon-Tyne- A new home

We have gotten very used to the 3 hour train ride, so the ride from London’s Kings Cross to Newcastle Central was easy and quick. The GNER trains that reach England’s regional towns are more modern than the Eurostar, and I was glad seeing as I know I will be making this trip a lot once Geoff arrives in London and for my work with the Design Council.

Before we hopped on the train, Pete took me out to breakfast at the nearby Café Rouge. It’s a big, but cosy, French café with a red and gold interior. We enjoyed a good catch up before I headed to Kings Cross with Mum and Aunty Kew in a black cab with out 7+ pieces of luggage we were taking with us to Newcastle!

After a long and cold wait at the draft-y Kings Cross Station we were off to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, my new home for the next few years. I wasn’t really nervous until the train pulled into the platform. My heart was beating loud as we pulled into Newcastle’s Central Station. We were right on time to be greeted by the sun breaking through the clouds and my old Sydney Uni friend John and his father, waiting on the platform.

The only person I know who was born and grew up in England is John and he just happens to live with his family in Newcastle. We both still mention how bizarre it is that of all places I could have come in England it was be his hometown!

John and I studied Marketing together at Sydney Uni with another friend of ours Jonny. Together we survived 3-hour Marketing lectures on Friday nights while completing our Masters. John was from England and Jonny had come from Austria. Both of them lived and studied at Sydney Uni for a year in 2005.

We checked Mum and Aunty Kew into their serviced apartment which was such a contrast to our tiny London hotel. It was h-u-g-e! With a fully equipped kitchen, large dining and living area, 2 bedrooms, one with en-suite and a big main bathroom.

While they settled in, I went to John’s to meet his Mum and dog, a Cardigan Corgie, Geordie, who can sit upright on his backside! We went out to dinner at El Coto, a Spanish restaurant for Spanish tapas and strong coffee.

I stayed at the Tabari’s cosy, thoughtfully decorated home for the night and awoke today to overcast skies and drizzling rain. John and I set out to check into my university residence, Knoll Court, on Melbourne Street (would you believe?) in the city. The check-in was easy and my room is.. well roomy! It has an en-suite, a large desk, heaps of storage space and a single bed. There is a huge shared kitchen and lounge area which is sunny and bright. My room number is 50C, which is on the highest floor and the inner-most block from the front gate.

We went to sushi train with John for dinner as he had mentioned one of the many things he misses about Sydney is its great sushi.

So what are my first impressions of Newcastle…? Well I can’t tell you much yet except that it is more urban and more city-like than I expected. It is much larger a city than what one would think for a population of 250 000. There are less people here than in London, the water from the tap is drinkable (London’s contains an erosive lime scale) and the people are really nice (they give way to you in traffic- so not Sydney, and go the extra mile to help you out if you need). Here are some landmarks around the city...