A TikToker has created a series sharing things she "had to learn the hard way" about moving to London.

She said she was 29 when she moved to London to pursue a Master's degree during the pandemic.

From renting to ordering drinks at a bar, here are seven things that shocked her.

After living in London, England, for three years, TikToker Olamide Modupe has created a video series sharing things she "had to learn the hard way" about moving there from the US.

Modupe told Insider that she is originally from Los Angeles, California, but that she moved to London from New York when she was 29 to pursue a Master's degree during the pandemic.

She has been documenting her journey on her TikTok account, where she posts travel, beauty, and fashion content.

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Modupe has built up an audience of over 19,000 followers with her videos, which aim to showcase the information you "can't find online" about moving to the UK, she said. Here are some of her discoveries.

The water is not fluoridated.

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In one video posted on July 16, Modupe described the water as having a "crucial difference" that she "didn't learn until it was too late."

She said, "I have never in my life had cavities until I moved to London." She added that this was because she was no longer drinking fluoridated water, but she was still using American toothpaste which may have had a lower fluoride content.

In 2020, 72.7% of the US population on community water systems had access to fluoridated water, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But in England, only around 6 million people — just over 10% of the country's population, according to data from the 2021 Census — live in areas with water fluoridation schemes as of March 2022, according to a policy paper published by the UK government.

Modupe added that since she switched to UK toothpaste, she no longer has issues with her teeth.

In the UK, the National Health Service states that "1,350 to 1,500 parts per million (ppm) fluoride are the most effective," and many mainstream toothpaste brands contain somewhere within that range. Most toothpaste sold in the US contains between 1,000 and 1,100 parts per million, according to the National Institutes of Health.

The process to find an apartment to rent is very different.

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In a video posted on July 24, Modupe pointed out how renting in London was different from New York and Los Angeles.

Modupe said that even though she'd had some "nightmare landlords" when she lived in Brooklyn, New York, the landlords she has had to work with since moving to London have been "intense."

But the process for finding an apartment differs too.

She said that in the US, the norm is to apply to multiple places and wait for the landlord to get back to you to let you know if you have been successful. But in the UK, it is typical to pay a "holding deposit" to secure your rental unit before signing an agreement.

"So you can only apply to one at a time. And if you withdraw, you lose that deposit," said Modupe. "The only way to get that deposit back is if they deny you."

She also added that when she first moved to London, she and her friend also had to pay six months' rent upfront because she was a student and her friend was unemployed.

While paying that much rent upfront is not typical in the UK, some landlords may request it to reduce the risk of missed payments if a tenant has no guaranteed source of income or has a poor credit history.

Budgeting can be a struggle because many UK employers don't pay weekly.

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Modupe also highlighted a difference when it comes to budgeting.

"You actually get paid monthly out here, not bi-weekly," Modupe said in a video posted on August 1. "If that sounds scary, trust me, it was scary for me too."

Most employers in the US pay workers every week or every two weeks. In the UK, it is more common for companies to pay employees at the end of each month.

Modupe told viewers that this means budgeting is very important, and that she had tried a few different tactics to help her improve her budgeting skills. "I was even splitting the check that I got into two different pots on my bank app, and then paying myself twice a month just so I could have a little bit of a transition," she said.

The concept of getting paid monthly was a shock for many US viewers, but some thought it made sense because it would coincide with when their bills were due.

You can start taking vacation time right away after starting a new job.

In the UK, you typically get access to your vacation time as soon as you sign your contract. Jerome Maurice / Getty Images

Modupe told viewers that in the US, you have to accrue your vacation time before you can use it and that you don't get access to any of it right away.

"In the UK, the second you sign your contract, all of your holiday days are there. They're available to you," she said. "You get it immediately. So you're booking the trips immediately."

Several viewers pointed out that while it is technically possible to take all of your vacation days at the beginning of your work contract, you would typically have to pay these days back or work extra days if you decided to leave the company before you had worked enough to accrue the days that you had used.

Modupe also pointed out that the statutory annual leave entitlement differs in the UK and the US.

In the UK, people who work a standard five-day week receive at least 28 days of paid annual leave per year. In the US, there is no minimum paid annual leave — it is at the discretion of employers. The US ranks among the top 10 countries with the least paid time off, according to a report published by the career resource website Resume.io in 2022.

One viewer wrote that having so little vacation time in the US was "very sad." Modupe replied, "They work us to the bone."

Bar culture is very different.

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In one video posted on August 5, Modupe told viewers that bartenders measure drinks very carefully.

"There is no such thing as a free pour here, honey," she said. "They are going to measure it. They are going to scrape the top off. And that's going to be as much as you get."

She said that in places like New York and Los Angeles, bartenders often free-pour alcohol into your glass.

"Here, they are going to measure that. And it's probably for your own good that they are going to measure it," she said.

She also added that bars in London don't typically stay open as late. She said, "Once it hits like 1 o'clock, you're probably not getting in anywhere."

Return policies are stricter.

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In a video posted on August 13, Modupe stressed the importance of reading return policies when ordering something.

"You're gonna wanna read the return policy every time you order something," said Modupe. She said that in the US, she has been able to open something, use it, and then return it.

"Here, they don't play that. They don't play that at all," she said.

It's never too late to make the move.

Modupe has no regrets about her move. kokouu / Getty Images

Videos of people sharing tips for moving states or revealing things that they wish they knew before moving abroad often go viral on TikTok. People have also used TikTok to share reasons why they want to leave the US.

In July, American TikTokers who moved abroad used the platform to reflect on things about the US that made them feel fearful even after they had left the country.

Despite the potential culture shock, Modupe encouraged anyone keen to move to take the plunge.

"I literally moved during the pandemic," Modupe said in one video. "The time is right now. No matter where you are in life, just do it."

Read the original article on Insider