In this article Sabrina, an international student from Bermuda, shares with us one thing she wished she had known before travelling to Portsmouth.
Hey everyone! My name is Sabrina, and I am an international student in my final year of Dental Hygiene here at the University of Portsmouth. Today I'm going to share with you one thing I wish I'd known before starting my journey as a university student, and that is which shops are the best for buying student essentials. Obtaining this knowledge at the start would have helped reduce my stress as I was struggling to find any shop near me selling what I needed.
Best shops/supermarkets for purchasing food
There are many shops around Portsmouth that sell quality food. Some are Tesco, Poundland, Iceland, Sainsbury, Asda and Lidl. These are your go-to shop that have all the basic foods you need. There are also shops that accommodate international students by selling products only found outside of England:
- Tesco, Lidl and Asda have a section with a variety of foods from around the world
- Portsmouth International Food Centre
- AfricExpress and His Glory Food Store
- Okey Chinese Supermarket, Thai & Asian Foodmart and Sun Hung Chang
- Albert Food Store, Mediterranean Super Market and M A Food Cash & Carry
Some shops provide online shopping and delivery to your home.
Best shops for school supplies
The city centre has many little shops that retail great school supplies, especially ones with adorable designs. The Works, Smiggle and WHSmith sell mainly school supplies, but other stores such as Poundland, Tesco, and Asda also have a section of school supplies. The quality of the items is great in all shops, but I find the supplies in WHSmith and The Works are excellent and have many options to choose from.
Best shop for household supplies
Basic household items can be found in big food shops such as Tesco, Poundland and Asda. However, Wilko was the best shop in my opinion as they have everything you will need to establish your accommodation to your liking. If you are up for a little adventure, Ikea, located in Southampton, is another great shop that provides a large variety of household items. These shops also provide online and delivery services.
What I recommend…
Tesco, Sainsbury and Wilko are my go-to shops as these are closest to my accommodation which can be very convenient for me on rainy or lazy days. That’s why it is important to familiarise yourselves with your surroundings as this will help you determine when and how you can travel to these various shops. Moreover, these are my recommendations for best shops for purchasing food, school and household supplies in Portsmouth. If I had known this before starting it would have saved me a lot of time and effort having to figure it out myself.
Thank you for your time in reading my blog and I hope this helps you when moving to Portsmouth!