My name is Taiyo, and I am an international student in my final year at Manchester, so I will share some of the services and tips that will benefit you!

Mobile phone services: VOXI

I’m sure you already have mobile data, but for those that are paying costly deals or want a faster 4G/5G service, have you checked out VOXI yet? VOXI is by far the most popular amongst international students, especially their £10/month deal where you will get 8GB of data, but have unlimited use of social media apps, which won’t eat your data! You can buy it online, and even if you have a phone number already, you can use the same one and transfer to VOXI easily!

Bank accounts: Monzo

Most people use either Barclays or HSBC, which are reliable and have a mobile app that is easy to navigate and has useful services. Here I will recommend Monzo though, as the Monzo app has great management features like setting balance targets and it automatically categorizes payments into different sections. Transferring money to a friend is easier, as you don’t need sort codes and account numbers, just a link! You can also make a shared account, if you want to share the money when spending money with flat-mates or your partner.

Asian markets: ‘Lameizi’ and ‘Taste the Orient’

There are many Asian supermarkets near the University, where you can get just about everything you will need to survive. The two I recommend are:

Lameizi
Just the road behind Oseyo, this is the go-to-place for people that want to buy BOTH Chinese and Japanese food. They have a fridge section, with Asian vegetables like Chinese cabbage, meat with Chinese seasoning, ginger, etc.. at the counter, they sell Chinese braised soy sauce eggs which are delicious! Also it is cheaper than Oseyo.

Taste the Orient
New supermarket opened just a year ago, big and clean. it is located closer to Fallowfield for people living there so it is very accessible, maybe drop by on the way home. Recommend the variation of noodles they have, it is mind-blowing! Also a good variation of Asian alcohol, including beer, sake and soju, which tastes quite different to the western alcohol we have here! Other good stores are WH Lung, Han Wong Hong, Oseyo, but are either too far from residential homes, do not have enough variety or expensive compared to the two I
mentioned.

Tricks and tips

Free bus ride to school:
The Magic Bus 147 is actually free for students, as the bus offers transportation between the North and South campuses. If you show the bus driver your ID card, they will let you through! Keep in mind, this is ONLY FOR bus 147 which goes the North campus route.

Student discount at stores:
Many stores offer student discounts even if they don’t say they do. Whether you are shopping at a clothing store or out for food, it might be worth asking politely if they offer such discounts, and if they say yes, well good on you!

The University of Manchester libraries:
UoM has lots of libraries, you might know the big ones like the Alan Gilbert Learning Commons and the Main library, but did you know there are in total 12 libraries in UoM!? A change in environment is always nice, so go check some out. I personally recommend the central library at the very end of Oxford Road. You go up to the first floor and enter the middle area, where you can sit in a huge open study area with a fantastic environment.

Hope there was something new you found out! More blogs will be coming every month, so stay tuned for the next one 🙂

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