Manchester > London?

May 12, 2018
5 min read

If you've ever had a conversation with me, you know I have a sick obsession with what I believe to be the greatest city in the world: Manchester, UK.

Greater Manchester is in North West England (North of London) and has around 2.8 million people. That makes the county second most-populated to London. Manchester, the borough itself contains over two million Mancs 🐝, yet you dont feel over crowded like in NYC. A city that wears it's overcrowding like a badge.

Don't get me wrong I love New York. My whole life has been a love/hate relationship with the city as a Long Islander. I find it awesome and beautiful, grimey and super-expensive. NYC like London is sensory overload for me: a whole lot of people, a lot of noises, a lot of smells. Most of the time they're not very nice ones. Manchester's city centre is just big enough and contains so much of the same great things NYC and London have to offer.

The worker bee is a symbol associated with Manchester an has been in place sice the Industrial revolution. Mancs believe in the togetherness of the city that works hard. The bee can be found on street planters and garbage bins, manhole covers, is mosaics in city buildings, locals' tattoos (made in troves after the Manchester terrorist attacks in May 2017 as solidarity acts, even I damn near got one.) and just about everywhere. There is even support for local bees. On top of the Printworks there are hives and you can even adopt a bee as well as purchase the honey they produce. (What a great cash cow, just saying.)

The main reason I think Manchester is better than London: its cheaper and who doesn't like to get bang for their buck. From monthly rent to a pint of beer, Manchester is just cheaper.

One thing I loved about living in Manchester, its a college town for real! A lot of the city's bars, clubs, and restaurants cater to students and their budgets. Which means the budget-travler will also enjoy a city like Manchesta. The city houses Manchester Metropolitan University and The University of Manchester, among other colleges (16-19 year olds.) The city accomodates the two huge university and college students that the city brings in every term. The city has an awesome student culture. Now, because of this you might be uneasy. You dont want to be surrounded by uni/college kids. However, there are plenty of places that are less rowdy, and a lot more refined and sohisticated, so do not worry about that.

London has over 30 major shopping centres and malls, but is more always better. No. Manchester has 2 major shopping centres in my eyes, The Arndale and the Trafford Centre. In addition to these large malls, there are High Street (designer lables & prices) stores at King Street, New Cathedral Street, Exchange Square, and Market Street. Small and local business you can shop at are scattered all over the streets of the Northern Quarter.

The Trafford Centre is located at Regent Cres, Stretford, Manchester M17 8AA, UK. That's about 25-45 min via car and a definite 45 minutes by bus from City Hall in city centre. One of the many reasons I'll be featuring The Arndale.

The Manchester Arndale is a spot I spent a lot of time at, especially at the begining of my stint in Manchester. If youre in the city already, you can take the free shuttle bus 1 and 2 and hop off right in front The Arndale. If you happen to be driving from outside the city, use your GPS and type in Manchester Arndale, or Market Street, Manchester, Greater Manchester, M4 3AQ. You can find stores like River Island, H&M, T.K. Maxx, Superdry, and LUSH. For a full list, click here. But in addition to clothing, electronics, and your typical food court: The Arndale is awesome because it has two food courts. It even has a full blown fish market on the lower level. In the less obvious food court, there are about 30ish stalls of food and even a bar. I find this level of food court to be less mainstream and more cost effective. You can find curry, African, and Jamaican food here, and even a proper mini pub. If Nando's or Yo!SUSHI is your preference, the main food court is what youre looking for.

In addition to this, this mall has a Wilko and an Aldi. At Wilko you can pick up forgotten items like shower shoes or a converter for the outlets. At Aldi you can buy cheap eats.

I stayed in the Hatter's Hostel on Newton Street in the Norther Quarter for 10 days when I overzealously flew into town weeks before the first day of classes. Not wanting to blow all of my money I utilized The Arndale for cheap meals. Places like Gregg's, Nando's, and ethic cuisines from the lower level kept me within budget and full.

Lemon & Herb grilled chicken, chips, corn on the cob, yellow rice and garlic bread.

I didnt order two starches, i promise I got a salad and not chips.

Another one of my favorite places to eat when in city centre is This & That Cafe Ltd. Its a simple but delicious hideaway. I actually stumbled upon it by accident the first time I ate here. You go in and it's very simple. Pick your curries, pick your rice, and chow down. Everything on the menu is amazing, guaranteed because I'm almost positive I have tasted everything on the menu that is on a daily kind of schedule, so I'd check the website. Must haves: lamb & potato, lamb & split peas, cauliflower and potatoes, lamb and corgettes(eggplant), samosas, the onion bhaji and roti.

curried potatoes, lamb curry, rice, and minced meat (ground beef) samosa

This & That Ltd. enclave at 3 Soap St, Manchester, M4 1EW serving Cafeteria styled meals.

There is a huge population of Asian people living and working in Manchester. Which means a lot of Indian curry houses. A lot of Americans think of Asians and those who come from or are decendants of China, (don't lie!) In reality, Asians include the whole continent including South Asia: Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bangledesh, Bhutan, and Myanmar. You can find something curried on just about every menu in Manchester as a somewhat ode to their cities multi-cultural demographic. There's even a Curry Mile. Wilmslow Road runs through the centre of Rusholme in South Manchester, England. There is a huge amount of restaurants, take-aways, hooka lounges, and kebab houses specialising in the cuisines of South Asia and the Middle East.

Chinatown is one of many in the U.K. However, Manchester's Chinatown is the most Chinese city in England. Manchester "has more Chinese people in it than almost any other city or borough in England. A total of 6,721 people born in China were living in the city at the time of the last Census in 2011.That represented 1.3 per cent of the city’s population. In other words, roughly one person in 75 who lived in Manchester in 2011 was born in China." Manchester Evening News 1/29/17

Among being a huge cultural epicenter, its filled with community learning centres, endless all-you can eat buffets, specialty restaurants, supermarkets, shops and Chinese physicians. Some shoppes even sell Hong Kong published newspapers air-shipped in that morning and delivered to Manchester's Chinatown.

As mentioned earlier, I love Manchester. My two main reasons:

1. It is cheaper than many large cities like New York and London.

2. The multi-cultural aspects give you a cultural trip in addition to great eats, over 70 breweries, insane amount of summer festivals, and student-aged culture, and art splashed on the walls, floors, and galleries throughtout the city.

When you think of Great Britain, you shuld be thinking about saving money, but not being cheap on experience. You can get a great feel for England by visiting Manchester. For an in-depth city guide and walk through of culture, the arts, food and drink, and information on history and arcitecture, click here & download the PDF.