So far, not too expensive

So after all the hype and 'advice' regarding how expensive London is, so far the prices have been not too bad at all. I must mention here that income gets taxed about 30% here which is horrifying. I nearly screamed when the orientation woman said 11% plus 20%. I think I'd rather just live without healthcare, thanks. And minimum wage is 5.77 which is way below ours. Please do not convert it to Canadian dollars because people living in London are paid and pay in pounds so the conversion is pointless unless you're a tourist. Also rent can get pretty expensive and the tubes seemed kind of expensive but you can get a monthly travel pass for 99 pounds and that allows you to ride the tubes, the bus or the night bus (not really sure what that is but apparently it's perfectly safe to ride at night) unlimited for that entire month so that's actually quite good. Our bus passes at home are 75 bucks and that's just to ride the inefficient, cheap-as-borscht transit. So in comparison it's quite reasonable.

Also, regular things like food are really cheap too. And there are so many restaurants here, it is insane. Tons of random shops too. The prices range but you can find dresses for 15 pounds and shirts for 5. You can also get takeout from a buffet for 3.5 or grab a gourmet flatbread pizza for 8.50. Today I happened upon a market during my search for a flat iron and bought myself the makings of dinner. For 2 pounds 65 pence, I got:

-3 peppers (one green, one orange, one yellow)
-4 heads of garlic
-4 heads of green onions
-1 red onion
-1 large piece of garlic (about 4 inches long)

Then at the supermarket, I got the following for 6 pounds 85 pence:
-2 packs of fully cooked, sliced chicken breasts with about a 1 1/2 cups of chicken breast in each pack. They were 1 pound each.
-1 bag of pasta. Enough for about 3 servings
-1 medium sized jar of creamy tomato sauce
-1 self-grinder spice (garlic and chilli pepper--great combo)

So for under ten pounds, I made dinner for myself tonight, had seconds (it was delicious!) and I still have enough left over to have for lunch and snack tomorrow. AND I used less than half of my ingredients so I can make this delicious meal again! If I was working, I could have lunch for a week. All in all, I won't be starving here as I thought I would. But all the walking will make up for it. I'm pretty sure I walked at least 12 miles today, which is insane. Thank God for flats. I'm sad for all my pumps that I brought cause they won't be worn unless I am certain I won't have to walk any further than the tube station. No getting lost in 3 inch heels for me, no thanks.