What to expect of Manchester and the UK

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Part 4 – Manchester

Student life will be very tiring. Typically, people will start getting busy around week 3 or week 4 to prepare for their midterm test or coursework deadlines. Week 6 is what we call ‘reading week’; we don’t have any lectures during this week. However, this doesn’t mean it is a week to relax, some lecturers will utilise this week to give you a midterm test (or you will have it in either week 5 or 7) and some may run lab classes. This will vary based on what courses you are doing and you may not even have a midterm test or coursework to hand in, but the point is, you will be busy in one way or another.

Although your first year results don’t count towards your degree at the end (you need a minimum of a Third Class or 40% to pass your first year, otherwise you will have to resit exams or be dropped from the course), putting in the effort and getting the best result you can will still be beneficial. This will allow you to gain an edge on applying for internships in the second year (big companies generally open up their vacancies in September of the year so your results in the first year are what will reflect your academic performance). With all this being said, I am here to talk about having fun in Manchester and all the places you can visit. You can’t work hard if you don’t play hard 😆😆.

I hope you now have a rough idea of how the public transport system works in Manchester(you can read part 3 to learn more if you haven’t already). If not, don’t worry, you will get used to it after a week or two so just let it flow~~. Now I am going to introduce you to some of the popular tourist attractions you can visit when you are here. They are great for weekend trips or you can visit them after you finish your classes if you happen to finish early in some days.

Famous attractions

National Football Museum is the building on the left side of the picture.

• Football stadiums – with two of the best football teams located in Manchester. Watching a game from both teams should be on you must do list. If that is too pricey then you can visit the stadiums and participate in the stadium tour.
  • Old Trafford for Manchester United (nicknamed Red Devils😈)
  • Etihad Stadium
• National Football Museum – this free entry museum located in the city centre a variety of football displays that it worth a visit even if you are not the biggest football fan. If you are a football enthusiast then this place is a must go to place for you!
• Museum of Science and Industry – a large museum with 12 galleries devoted to the development of science, technology and industry. It is situated on the site of the world’s oldest rail station. Lovers of trains, planes and science need to come here!
• Manchester Art Gallery – located in the city centre of Manchester, this gallery possesses one of the largest art collections in the UK. It’s free to enter so go inside when you are shopping in time and enlighten your inner artistic mind🙂🙂.
• John Ryland’s Library – built over 100 years ago and now part of the University of Manchester Library. Although it is part of the University, you are unlikely to use this library as the one located on campus is far too convenient compared to this one. Make sure you go and have a look inside this beautiful neo-Gothic building before you forget about it 😐😐.
• Chinatown – this is one of the biggest Chinese communities in the UK, there are plenty of good restaurants (Chinese, Korean, Thai, Japanese, Vietnamese and some more) you can choose from.
  • here is a picture of the arch of Chinatown

These are just a fraction of what Manchester has to offer, the rest is left for you to explore! If visiting museums and old buildings doesn’t suit your taste, there are still many things you can do. You can have a food tour (many good restaurants are located in Chinatown and city centre), a club tour, a pub tour, etc. The only thing stopping you is your imagination haha😉.

As usual, thank you for taking your time reading and don’t be afraid to ask if you have any questions.